The Dove Inn

I was so looking forward to having lunch with my son. We sat in the conservatory at a very spacious table for two. The glass roof in the conservatory looked as if it hadn’t been cleaned in months! The chef came into the conservatory, he was very scruffy dressed in jeans and a not very white chefs jacket. The crispy beef starter was brought to the table within minutes. It looked unappetising and was very dry. No sooner had the starter plate been removed, the sirloin steak was brought to the table. It looked anemic and, like the starter, not very appetising. It was even more disappointing when I started chewing my way through it! It was tough, unseasoned and tasteless. The Sticky Toffee pudding with ice cream looked as if it had been plated with no care. I would not recommend the food!

Dined with friends in the conservatory. The choice was Fish and Chips and Sizzling Pork. The Fish was excellent but the Pork dish was exceptional. The flavours were a delight and the dish can readliy be described as being 'over and above' normal expectations of Pub food. Not to be missed.

We came here for lunch today, 10th April, with some very good friends. We were sat in the conservatory. It was lovely and warm and bright. We got our drinks order in, slight problem with the Gin as sent strawberry not London dry, but they sorted very quickly. The menu today was not the full menu that was on the website, it was hand written and photo copied. We were disappointed as I was looking forward to a gammon steak, and a friend wanted something that was no longer available. We phoned in the morning to check the time the table was booked, but we’re not told it wasn’t the full menu. But we ordered something anyway. I had tomato soup which was very nice, well seasoned followed by the sirloin steak, it was cooked spot on, the chunky chips were absolutely fabulous, and a dish filled with peppercorn sauce. It was a fantastic meal. My wife and a friend had the chicken, basically a hunters chicken, it was cooked well, with potatoes and other veg, in a creamy sauce, the other friend didn’t fancy any of the main meals, so had the prawn cocktail as a main, she really enjoyed it too. They had a pud between them, they loved that too. So from what could have been a bad day with the menu, we all thoroughly enjoyed our meal, even the coffee afterwards was very good. I have given the 5 stars for the meals we ate, and the very attentive staff, and quality of the food. Maybe should have taken one off for not telling us about the menu until we got there, but I’m a fair man and they deserved 5 stars.

We came for lunch on Mothers Day. It was very busy, our table was booked for 2:30pm. Extremely disappointed with our meals. The roast beef was not pink (as I was told it would be) vegetables so overcooked and the roast potatoes very well done. I think the whole meal was just hanging around. Our son had a burger which was nearly £20 and terrible. He mentioned it to the waitress and she got another one for him. Strangely she wouldn’t take the burger back to the kitchen as she didn’t want her boss to know!! The second one was excellent. On a plus side all the waitresses were lovely, very helpful and friendly. We certainly won’t be going back any time soon.

We booked two rooms at the Dove Inn for three nights while we were in England for a funeral. I rarely write reviews but felt compelled to write this one because the staff was so kind to us. We arrived in England from America and we showed up very late for check-in. I called ahead to warn them and they knew I was frazzled arriving so late and exhausted from jet lag. They stayed up waiting for us and had complimentary drinks at the bar so we could destress a little bit. Our rooms were spacious (for England) and very, very clean. There were spiders, but it's the English countryside and there will always be spiders! We had a lovely breakfast in the sunny dining room each morning. We especially appreciated Lee's kindness towards our family when we came back to the Inn after the wake for drinks. Lee knew we were there for an emotional and sad time and did everything he could to make our stay stress-free and enjoyable. We cannot recommend the Dove Inn enough and will definitely stay there again.

So my family goes back in this village six decades and this is the first time I have stayed. This have be overhauled brought into the third millenia whilst combining village pub, gastro food and genuine welcomes. I can imagine Sunday lunches are very busy so well worth booking in advance. The rooms, warm, comfortable and well appointed. Pricing not the cheapest but also good value for money.