The Loddon Swan

The menu changes regularly and has some very good food. I just had fish and chips, with great mushy peas, and was pleased to see local wine specials. A more varied wine list would be welcome. Service was excellent, and the rooms are clean and comfortable. Congratulations, I know the work it takes to create such a good experience. I’ll be back.

We’ve eaten here several times before, so booked lunch for New Year’s Day, but this visit was a real letdown. The steak meals were very good, but the rest of the mains weren’t. Three of us had roast sirloin, two had belly pork and two had steak. One meal arrived cold, not even lukewarm, and the others were only just warm. The green vegetable sides were cold too. The roast potatoes seemed reheated, perhaps deep-fried, and were tough. The pork and beef were tough as well, though the pork tasted good. I can only assume some of it had been reheated from an earlier service. Three of us also ordered the hash brown with beetroot and blue cheese. The hash brown itself was good, but the flavours were out of balance, with too little beetroot and no blue cheese that we could detect. We pointed out the cold meal and sent it back. They offered to make another, but said it would take 15 minutes, so we asked them to reheat it instead. The plate came back very hot, but the food was still only just warm. The bill was adjusted, though the staff didn’t seem particularly apologetic. It’s a shame, because the food and service had been very good before, but I doubt we’ll return.

I spotted the Swan while following Google Maps to avoid a queue on the A146 on my way to Lowestoft, so I decided to chance a meal. The welcome was great, the atmosphere was good and the food was really tasty. Well worth the slight detour if you’re passing.

The breakfasts were delicious, especially the exceptional sausages and bacon sourced locally. Staff were friendly, helpful and attentive, and I really appreciated the excellent pod coffee machine. We stayed for a short break while visiting places around Norfolk. The bedroom was large and mostly very comfortable, though the mattresses were a bit old, saggy, creaky and lumpy, and could do with being replaced. Everything else in the room was decent.