BITE user comments - Meadway
Comments by Meadway
In Wilton recently with my disabled wife and our dog I stopped there at lunchtime. The car park was deserted. There was a covered seating area in the yard in which a grumpy-looking man was standing smoking. On enquiry I found he was the guv'nor. I asked about dogs: not allowed. I said we would sit outside: no good, he replied, you'll be troubled by wasps. Looking in the bar I saw it was empty - I wonder why? We drove on and went to the Pembroke Arms where we had a very different experience.
14 Sep 2013 22:34
I visited recently with two potential problems: my disabled wife and able-bodied dog. After an experience with another Wilton pub I went in to check access and dog policy. The access was quite easy, and dogs were welcome in the bar, so in we went. As we approached the door a member of staff spotted the wheelchair and hurried to open the door with a smile. The bar was comfortable and welcoming. There were two draught ales; I went for the Wessex Brewery Golden Apostle. Pale in colour, quite light in taste but with a pronounced hoppy flavour, it was 4.8% and very drinkable. We ate a chicken salad and fish and chips, and Madam had a pudding - rhubarb crumble - which was plenty for two sharing. It wasn't cheap, but it was very good value, and the sincere welcome from the staff was outstanding. Last but by no means least: there was a properly fitted-out disabled toilet. We shall certainly visit again. Highly recommended.
14 Sep 2013 22:28
I looked in at the end of last week. There was just one customer in at late lunchtime. A grumpy-looking blonde woman behind the bar looked up for a moment from her mobile, then returned to her texting. All but one of the pump clips were turned round, so when the barman turned up I asked for a pint of T.E.A. The blonde woman said "Ain't ready yet". The barman said "It ain't ready yet". I said nothing and left. If the beer situation indicates a change of tenant, the new staff were certainly doing their best to suppress the trade.
4 Aug 2013 18:16
We visited this evening for the first time in a year. Young's Special was on the bar and very good it was. madam had scampi and I treated myself to a Dover sole. I find it, framkly, amazing that it manages to keep its standards in a time when small business people are being desperately stretched
15 May 2013 22:37
Nicely furnished, friendly staff (and regulars!) well-kept beer and good food, freshly cooked and in generous helpings at a reasonable price.
24 Sep 2011 10:34
I visited twice in the last week, the first time to recce a visit to the petanque terrain. On both occasions the welcome was warm and sincere. I tried the Sussex bitter, Badger and Ferret. All three were in excellent condition and served to measure. Food was of good quality, a reasonable range (not a load of freezer-to-microwave packets) and fairly priced. My only regret is that the house is about 20 miles from home: it was recently judged to be Hall and Woodhouse's pub of the year, and I'm not a bit surprised.
23 Sep 2011 23:18
A friendly, sincere welcome; they found a water bowl for the dog. The Tanglefoot and Harvey's Sussex Bitter were both excellent. My sandwich - prawns and smoked salmon mayonnaise on granary bread - was one of the best I have ever eaten: generously filled and perfectly delicious. We will most certainly be back.
25 Jan 2011 16:30
Three Horseshoes, East Worldham
Madam and I visited at lunchtime today. The chill (weather and economy) meant we started with the place to ourselves, but nevertheless the central heating was well on, and there was a fine wood fire getting going. The HSB was excellent; but what's happened to ESB? I hardly ever see it nowadays. Food (jacket spud and a prawn baguette) was very acceptable. We shall certainluy go again.
21 Dec 2009 14:43
I booked a table for Lunch on Saturday using the Sandrock's website form. When we arrived, according to the sign outside they didn't do Saturday lunches, but they did for us! A sign of the times, I guess. The Summer Lightning was excellent, with a good hoppy bite. I started my lunch with a prawn cocktail: large tasty prawns, no complaints there. For my main course I chose the home-made burger, with tasty cheese and bacon topping. Bowing, no doubt, to the healthy food fanatic lobby, the burger was a little too dry and fat-free for my taste. The fries were the opposite, quite greasy, caused no doubt by their being chucked in the deep fryer before it was hot. Madam had the home-cooked gammon salad. The meat was perfect: dry and almost crumbly. (I sampled it extensively!) Her pudding, a chocolate sponge with cream, didn't touch the sides on its way down. One little hobby-horse on so-called healthy eating: I can find no rigorous scientific study to show that "too much" salt in the diet is harmful. But that's another story!
29 Nov 2009 16:29
My wife and I have been a few times and enjoyed excellent food and drink. The Monday evening fish 'n' chips is excellent for quality and value. And one of your reporters, good at damning with faint praise, should know that the "elderley (sic) generation" can not only find good value, they can also spell!
12 Oct 2009 22:54
Living near Liphook we have driven past this pub umpteen times. From the outside it is quite unappealing. A local group was proposing it for a Christmas Dinner so Madam and I thought we'd try it out. Inside it is absolutely different from the outside view. It is freshly decorated and tastefully furnished. The HSB was excellent. We lunched off the main menu - ham and eggs and fish 'n' chips - and the food was delicious. Madam's ham, beautifully crumbly and free of revolting injected water, made me wish I hadn't chosen the fish - not that there was anything wrong with it! In any event, there was too much ham for her so I finished it. We returned today and tried the snack menu: my Stilton ploughman's was fine, and Madam's cheese toastie didn't touch the sides. The HSB was so good the first time i didn't care to experiment. We're now looking forward to Christmas.
12 Oct 2009 22:46
I thought I'd give it a try, being only a mile or so distant, so Madam and I looked in at lunchtime. There were a few people in the garden, no-one inside except us. There were Pride, Abbot and Flower's IPA on tap. Abbot and the IPA both very good, and no problems on measure. The eating area is smart and well furnished. Madam had a jacket potato with cheese, and I had the Butcher's Burger. The potato didn't score well: it was 'mashy' - perhaps reheated once too often. The burger was good: thick, meaty and cooked just right. The extra price Stilton topping wasn't worth it. The chips were very good, as was the green salad. It certainly rated another visit
25 Jun 2009 20:07
Madam and I visited for a quick lunch snack. The London Pride was excellent. Madam had a jacket potato with cheese, freshly prepared and delicious. I selected salmon fishcakes which were OK but probably straight out of Brake Bros' catalogue and, I thought, rather pricey. The pub was quiet (dammit, how many aren't at present?) ut the staff friendly and cheerful.
3 Jun 2009 20:07
I was there for a group Christmas lunch. The food was excellent and plentiful, the service prompt and friendly, and the Doom Bar (from a barrel behind the bar) was perfect. I'm not too sure the coffee wasn't instant, though, but that's quibbling. I shall certainly visit again.
6 Dec 2008 13:56
I sai8d we'd return, so we did. It was Friday, I am a fish-head, we had bro-in-law to entertain. The HSB was off so I went instead for Pride which was good. The fish was again excellent, tasting really fresh. Madam and bro-in-law both had ham and eggs; a nice touch was the reduction, not asked for but still given, because Madam only wanted a single egg rather than the two on the menu. All very satisfactory. Let me emphasize, I have ABSOLUTELY NO connection with the Robin Hood other than as a happy customer.
1 Nov 2008 17:11
After finding it shut on Tuesday (on which day it closes all day) we decided today to try it for lunch. It was quiet, but two cars outside is two cars better than the previous tenants could manage by the end of their time there. There was a good range of hand pumped ales available: I went for the HSB which was just right. The menu on the board inside featured a range of panini-type snacks and half a dozen mains, something I find reassuring. A vast menu tends to indicate a similar-sized freezer. The board outside featured fish and chips every Friday - take away or eat in - so we decided to try it. It was excellent: we learned later that the fish had only arrived a few minutes before we had. Good batter and not too much of it, and tasty chunky chips. Recommended. We will certainly return.
24 Oct 2008 16:09
This was going to be the evening we tried the Robin Hood at Standford, but the signs along the roadside did not include the information given at the door (50 yards away) that the pub did not open on Tuesdays. So we drove on to Haslemere and the Swan. "The Abbot's off; but it'll be on again in a couple of minutes. I'll bring you a pint over." Well worth waiting for. I ordered a gammon. "Why not have the Grill Club gammon? That way you get a drink included." The staff were friendly, service prompt and cheerful, and the bill: two mains, one pudding, two pints of Abbot and a J2O, just over �17. Beat that!
21 Oct 2008 21:46
I had only a few minutes for a rapid pint between visiting a friend in University College Hospital and taking a train home from Waterloo. I walked down TCR - where have all the wacky radio shops gone? - and called in for a rapid refresher. I had an excellent pint of Pride, and only �2.50! No time for food, but what I saw was highly edible, and the carrots were fresh, not frozen. If only I could be in Town in less than 10 years for my next visit.
11 Oct 2008 21:49
We enjoyed our previous visit so when bro-in-law came to stay we took him at the weekend. I tried the Pedigree this time rather than the 49er: it was well-kept and very good. I started with the home-made vegetable soup. There was so much vegetable in it, they could have put a pastry lid on it and sold it as vegetable pie! Delicious. I went on to the lasagne which was very tasty with plenty of meat in it. madam had the chicken in mushroom sauce which she pronounced to be very good. Bro-in-law took the gammon - his empty plate spoke volumes. I'm glad our first experience has proved to be untypical.
22 Sep 2008 09:23
Our nearby hotel food was so-so, so we decided to eat here instead. The bitter was excellent, just as before. I had a home-made fish pie under a mashed potato topping which was delicious. Madam had scampi which was a little too much for her, so I was able to help. On a wet September Tuesday evening the number of diners was surprising; most of them were locals. My only wish is that it were about 50 miles nearer home.
10 Sep 2008 19:12
After our last disastrous visit I received a message from the landlord. He confirmed there had been chef trouble, assured us things were better and urged us to try again. So we did. A friendly welcome, the Ringwood 49er was excellent. We started with a shared plate of garlic bread with a balsamic dip: very good. Madam had the gammon with pineapple, and I, being a glutton for punishment, went for the haddock again. The gammon was just right: well cooked, tender and tasty. My fish was everything it should have been. Obviously fresh not frozen, in a crisp tasty batter. Looking around the dining area, five of the six tables were occupied and on two of them the diners were tucking into the haddock with gusto. Madam finished with the banoffe pie. As there was no cheese on the menu I missed a dessert, but on leaving I saw a diner with cheese and biscuits. Serves me right for not asking, but it ought to appear on the menu.
As I mentioned above it was busy, with five tables occupied. Everyone seemed to be enjoying their meal, the service was friendly and efficient. We shall return.
5 Sep 2008 10:38
I visited recently for the first time in two years. It was Monday lunchtime and not very busy. There were three of us plus the dog. This is a pub which is dog friendly, not merely tolerant. The Abbot was perfect, albeit pricey. The gammon and pineapple all disappeared, as did my wife's scampi. Fortunately for the dog she dropped one. My cottage pie was excellent. Plenty of beef and veg with just enough gravy, topped with roughly-mashed potato (no Smash used here!) If there is one criticism, the chips were rather dark, but this I suspect was due to the oil needing a change. They were neither greasy nor overcooked. We will certainly return.
22 Aug 2008 09:39
My wife and I went this evening. Following the recent refurb it was smart, spotless and comfortable. The Pedigree was excellent. Next, the food. Oh dear. My wife has a demanding medication schedule so we need to eat on time. The garlic bread was good. Well, something had to be. her chicken supreme was OK, but the cauliflower was either badly bruised or dirty. My haddock: now, how do you ruin a piece of fresh fried fish? Overcook it, that's how. The batter had the colour and toughness of a brandy snap. The fish was bone dry. We didn't have time to send it back so I ate what I could. The landlady came in response to my complaint to the very helpful waitress. She offered a free pudding, but when that was rejected a bill arrived for the full amount. The really funny thing was that a customer who arrived after us had his fish mistreated the same way. he sent his back, though.
30 Jul 2008 21:02
I took my wife this morning. As a child she lived 50 yards away so it was particularly interesting for her. On hearing of her interest the staff could not have been more friendly or helpful, even taking a picture off the wall for her to look at. I had a very good pint of HSB (not always the best kept beer), and the smells from the kitchen made us wish we could have stayed for lunch. We will most definitely return.
12 Jul 2008 16:06
On three recent visits the beer and food were good, the staff obliging and the toilets acceptable. We shall return.
2 Jul 2008 23:33
Friendly village pub. Decent food, nothing out of the ordinary but of good quality, well cooked and served with cloth napkins on the tables. Obliging staff who fitted us in at short notine on a busy evening. The Ringwood 49er was excellent.
2 Jul 2008 23:31
Super pub. Visited while en route, so it was a really lucky find. We had the dog with us, so the sign in the back garden "Dogs welcome with well behaved owners" was just what we hoped to see. An excellent range of beers (from the ground floor cellar) and we were delighted with the food. Definitely down for a return visit in September.
22 Jun 2008 12:11
When my wife and I first moved to the area, just over a year ago, we dined at the Robin Hood three nights running before we felt like cooking after the move. Last autumn it changed hands, and standards went down like a stone. No doubt the smoking ban hasn't helped, but customer numbers are way down and corner cutting is evident. We wanted a quick lunch during the week so thought we'd give it another try. Big mistake! The Ringwood bitter was OK, but the food was awful. My wife had a jacket with cheese. The potato was barely warm with a small handful of machine-grated cheese. My ploughmans had a mini-baguette roll, straight out of the freezer and into the microwave. One end was doughy, the other I couldn't bite through. But the cheese! For a ploughmans this consisted of another handful of the same well-aerated rubbish which garnished my wife's potato. Accompanying it was a handful of what my old food hygiene instructor called "The notorious pub salad" - a handful of lettuce brown at the edges. I was just about able to make a small cheese roll out of the edible ingredients. These two culinary gems cost �11. I estimate total cost of the ingredients at under a pound. This really was awful. It competes for last place in my pub food experience (which started in 1962) with the emetic dessert served up in the Links a few weeks ago.
21 Jun 2008 16:26
My wife and I visited yesterday evening. It was the second time since the previously free house was taken over by Fuller's. The first time they loftily informed us they had no 'ordinary' bread, only paninis, etc. Trouble was, the toaster wasn't working! No-one had thought to use a grill. Still, back to the present. The HSB was good but pricey. But why no ESB? Could it be the latter is stronger and thus not quite so profitable? We decided on food, and we most definitely weren't impressed. My home-made burger (from locally-sourced beef) had the consistency of (and not much more taste than) compressed sawdust. It should have been a cheeseburger, but don't ask me where the cheese was. The chips were both dark and greasy, a mark of their being put into the fryer before it was up to temperature. My wife's fish was fair, and a little too large for her, so some of that made up for my uneaten burger. On my complaining we were offered a free pudding. My wife chose the brownie with cream. Talk about a sting in the tail: overnight it all returned! I wondered, when we went in, why so few people were eating. Now I suspect I know. We won't be back.
19 Apr 2008 08:40
The Temple Inn, Liss Forest
After a disastrous year - tenant left in January, various get-rich-quick merchants tried, and failed, to make a fortune - the pub closed for a re-furb in the autumn with the prospect of some professional pub people taking it over. Credit where it's due to Fuller's, who could so easily have closed it and seen it turned into 'executive apartments'. It reopened just before Christmas and seems to be doing very well. I had a dodgy pint of HSB but the barrel was changed without question. The new menu looks good, but may be a little expensive for what is, after all, a village pub in a backwater. I play Petanque regularly there, so you can imagine we missed it while it was closed. Last week we had our belated Christmas dinner. The food, to give it its due, was excellent, but I suspect they will pick up more lunchtime trade with some more typical country pub grub.
14 Jan 2014 11:19