The Horse & Groom, Charlton Reviews Summary

Category: Pub

Address: The Street, Charlton, Malmesbury SN16 9DL, United Kingdom

Phone: +441666823904

Rating: 4.5
based on 129 reviews.

Food Quality

Pros:

  • "Lovely food, the chefs know their stuff."
  • "Every one of our dishes were delicious (which is hard to find)."
  • "The food was tasty."
  • "Breakfast was top notch with lots of choices!"
  • "Excellent food and great menu!"
  • "The food was delicious and my Dad enjoyed it so much."
  • "Dinner was, as always, spectacular."

Cons:

  • "I chose the Pie of the day, which was Chicken and was quite disappointed! The pastry crust top and sides were too thick and it was difficult to cut."
  • "The food was mediocre."
  • "Food variable. ‘Pork and parsnip’ pies particularly poor."
  • "The roast dinners were inedible, meat so tough you couldn’t cut it, potatoes not cooked and kale was raw."
  • "Mash and pie with dinner were dry."
  • "Expensive and pretentious food, crazy wine prices."
  • "The food when it arrived was very poor; overdone fish, few chips of which 10% were the dregs of the chip-pan."

Service

Pros:

  • "The service and staff were exceptional."
  • "The staff were all so friendly and helpful."
  • "The staff were very tentative and everything was done with courtesy and a smile."
  • "They could not have been more accommodating, helpful or friendly, they were brilliant!"
  • "Kes and the team were lovely and accommodating and looked after us well!"
  • "Really friendly and helpful staff - every single one couldn’t have been nicer."
  • "All the staff are friendly and attentive to needs."

Cons:

  • "The atmosphere was lacking, and the service was poor as the waiters spent most of their time in the restaurant's pub area."
  • "Expensive and slow service."
  • "The service was slow and very poor."
  • "We visited Easter Saturday and all was well apart from friends of the waiting staff were eating and they spent a lot of time at their table chatting…"
  • "The waitress eventually came and said they were short staffed and long delays were likely."
  • "Very poor service very poor food."
  • "Poor service, manager messed up our order."

Accommodation

Pros:

  • "The room was very comfortable and we had a great night’s sleep."
  • "Room was spacious spotlessly clean and had everything you could ask for."
  • "Lovely clean, comfortable and welcoming stay."
  • "The room was clean and the bed was very comfy and we both slept very well."
  • "Our room was so comfortable, came with a gorgeous bath and a super breakfast."
  • "We stayed overnight in the family hotel room and it was perfect for us."
  • "The rooms are full of charm and character."

Cons:

  • "It’s a fabulously old country pub, not a building designed as a hotel, so the room layout etc is a bit quaint/compromised."
  • "The only little issue was that there was only a bathtub with a shower head, and nowhere to mount it when standing."
  • "The room we stayed in was cold with no shower (only a Victorian bath with a shower head but no way to hold it up)."
  • "Access to our attic room was by two very steep flights of stairs then access via a very low low door shaped to the contour of the ceiling."
  • "Room only has portable radiator for heating without thermostat."
  • "No hot water on the third day so no shower/bath we had to wash in cold water."
  • "The EnSite had a dormer style roof window that had lost its blind some time ago and would not shut so when we had a downpour it leaked in."

Value

Pros:

  • "Prices seemed good value, and signing up for their loyalty rewards scheme seems a no-brainer, as we'll definitely be back."
  • "Lovely simple food at a very good price."
  • "Loyalty discount scheme available on a Wednesday."
  • "The food was prepared and presented flawlessly and the quality of the food, far outweighed the final bill."
  • "Great beers, even better food."
  • "Lovely simple food at a very good price."
  • "The food was excellent."

Cons:

  • "The only thing that would put us off re-visiting, which was also voiced by other friends we saw in there was the high price of the food, despite it being good it was far too expensive for a pub meal."
  • "Please avoid as the prices are high and the quality is none existent."
  • "Not great value for money, £21 for a Charcuterie board sharer and chips."
  • "Very disappointed Christmas dinner. Turkey dry and salty. Veg was hard."
  • "Food was overpriced for what it was. Fish and Chips 13 quid. For a small piece of overcooked fish."
  • "Really Really Really bad food experience, served cold, sent back main under cooked."
  • "I had a meal on opening night that was inedible (excessive seasoning in gravy) .... Not impressed!"

Atmosphere

Pros:

  • "Everything you want from a country pub."
  • "The place itself is very cosy and decorative."
  • "Looking like this could become a local haunt for our family in the local area. Offering a good concise menu in pleasant indoor and outdoor surroundings."
  • "Being very dog friendly (allowed in the restaurant as well as the bar) made it even better."
  • "Fabulous traditional pub. No loud music, just the noise of convivial chatter."
  • "It's a great inn to enjoy good beer, lovely food and a great atmosphere provided by some colourful locals."
  • "Great atmosphere, lovely selection of wines and beers, dog friendly."

Cons:

  • "Unfortunately, the current owner Butcombe are trying to turn this lively country pub into a gastropub."
  • "Hosting was non existent, very impersonal and unattentative."
  • "On arrival was shown to a table out the back, which was a grim area."
  • "Pub had a lovely traditional atmosphere."
  • "Unfortunately, we were a little disappointed with a few things."
  • "Services times not as advertised."
  • "As the only eatery in the village it is not good for hikers and walkers."

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