I may have been an exception but …

On 17th November I took a guest for lunch and was advised to book. We arrived, ordered and were seated – the place soon filled – and I ordered our drinks. My guest received a medium-sweet white wine, despite my having specified a dry one when offered a choice of three bottles…

We waited about 45 minutes for our order to arrive, As later arrivals had already been served, i asked when our meals would be served.. They appeared about 10 minutes later but my guest's fish was luke-warm and overcooked while my venison (a lovely looking piece of meat) was completely raw and cold. I sent it back and it was returned a further 10 minutes later – warm but still raw – and i was unimpressed by the quality, quantity or choice of the accompanying vegetables.

Walking our dog afterwards – a decided plus-point for the pub, though there were many of them in the restaurant – we met another diner who expressed surprise at the state of our food but agreed that poor service was not unusual.

I cancelled my cheque but later relented and sent another, with a covering note which resulted in a very apologetic message from the landlord on my answering machine. I returned his call but received a very dismissive response.

Would I go back? No. The restaurant does have a good reputation and a pleasant rural atmosphere, but most of the other diners seemed to be regular and local. As I am neither, I would look elsewhere – there are plenty of pubs in the West Country serving good food .