Royal Oak

The service is always great, with Charlotte greeting us with a smile every time. A lovely local pub with really nice staff.

I hardly felt welcome at The Royal Oak. My mother needed to use the toilet, and while I waited I bought a Diet Coke so I wouldn't use the place without making a purchase. The landlord gave me a dirty look and asked, “is that all you’re having? What does she want?” I said, “yeah, is that alright?” He replied in a disgruntled way, then left me alone. It's a public house, so people from the public will come in. Some money is better than none. If we'd been treated better, we might have come back while holidaying in the area. The landlord bit his nose off despite his face. Good luck, bud.

DO NOT ENTER. We walked through to the pool table area and saw a pile of clutter to the right. The landlord's reception was horrible, and by the time the barmaid greeted us at the bar, the smell had got worse and we'd all decided eating there wasn't worth the risk. It felt dirty, smelly, and dismal. I wouldn't recommend anyone go in, let alone eat or drink there.

The Guinness was good, and the woman behind the bar was really friendly, but we didn't eat. The pub's cleanliness put me off, and the courtyard had dead Christmas trees and rotten tables. The decor is all over the place: one corner feels like a comic convention, then you turn and see Buddhas, skulls, and grizzly bears. If the pub is dirty, I wonder what the kitchens are like. I always look forward to local pub food on a cheeky weekend away, so this was a letdown.