Good food and always a warm welcome. Landlord Dave will offer food at pretty much any time of the…read moreday or night, highly recommended

This must be the finest place to eat within 20 miles of Builth Wells…read moreBeautiful food,piping hot ,excellent service, very friendly atmosphere, worth every penny charged which was very reasonable Highly recommended cannot fault this super eating house.!!!!

Welshcake took me here on our way to Nanternis back in April 2008. It was--as he would…read moresay--stonking. The inn itself is cozy, but everything in the U.K. countryside seems cozy to me. I felt like I might see Bilbo Baggins at any moment, but if I did he'd be wearing Burberry. It's not a mid-grade pub by any means, though the front room is set up as such. We dined in the back room, which consisted of about six tables and a wee fireplace. The decor was rustic and the rooms were clean. Our meal began with a butternut-squash type amuse-bouche, which made our eyes pop in delight and set the tone for the rest of the meal. The soda bread was equally amazing. I ordered the scallops, which were divine and accompanied by a mushroom "marmalade," and Welshie had the local Welsh rib eye, (which I sampled--divine). He's always on about Welsh black beef--it's a delight any visitor to Wales should sink his or her teeth into. While I've categorized this as British, this is not standard, stodgy, British country fare. The chef is obviously French-trained (though maybe I'm wrong), inventive and experimental, serving up accessible, classy mainstay dishes alongside mind-bending and palate-pleasing "risks." I've been waiting for Yelp to go U.K.-side just so I could review the Griffin. We will always go back to this gorgeous little house of deliciousness when we are in Wales. Top notch!

After a beautiful day walking in the Brecon Beacons with people 30 years older than us but…read moreapproximately 30 times fitter, we decided to go all out and head for the Griffin, despite smelling and looking basically quite bad. The Inn is a cosy, well kept place with a nice bar and lounge as well as the restaurant which spills out into the tack room where we were seated. Like the other reviewers, I found the amuse-bouche of soup - broccoli this time - absolutely delicious (unlike the other reviewers, I had no idea what amuse-bouche was until I read this page). Squash soup to start was rich, spicy and creamy, the flavour of the vegetable only being strengthened by the other ingredients. The smoked salmon fish cakes were about as good as fish cakes can be - all about the fish and lightly crunchy. Main courses were also fantastic - pork belly was sweet and juicy, served with pancetta and I think mash - the accompaniments were not as excellent. The other main, suckling pig, was a huge hit and came with a tasty selection of roasted vegetables. Dessert was lemon tart, for which I didn't have particularly high expectations, but it was about the best I have ever had and - bonus - came with delicious blackcurrent sorbet. The other one we tried was some kind of chocolate/banana confection which was intensely good. The barman was very helpful in suggesting sherry, wine for the main course and pudding wine, the last of which was particularly outstanding. Service otherwise was all right but not particularly attentive and complicated by the fact that three people were sharing service of our table. Also, they made a major mistake with the bill that had I not been paying attention would have cost us about £25. This was related to us ordering a starter from the set menu and a main from a la carte. We heard someone else doing the same and being assured it was fine but when we asked they said this was only for guests staying at the Inn. Quite the put down!

My husband and I LOVE this place. Go here if you want a TRUE Welsh country side experience…read more Pros: -good prices on rooms. We will splurge and go for the big rooms next time. -their breakfast which is included in the room rate. Their eggs are from the hens and ducks in their garden. They have BLUE eggs also!!!! -their tea experience and sandwiches are delicious! -wonderful service. Everyone is so nice. -parking is easy. Cons: -no elevator so might be tough if you have big luggage. -no water in room. You will need to ask to be brought up. -the bed we had in room 2 was slightly uncomfortable. You can tell the bed is old but that's part of the charm I'm presuming. The bed sheets are nice. -their "honor bar" for the alcohol is expensive $$$$.

There really no words to describe the hotel. It is by far the most beautiful place we have stayed…read more From the ambiance to the impeccable service the stay was amazing. Shout out to Brian who is the true definition of the perfect butler et al. The staff can't do enough for you and if I was getting married this would be the place.

At the end of a rainy day in and around Brecon, my friend and I were looking for a nice meal to end…read moreour weekend. Luckily, we were able to secure a table for a late seating. The castle was big and welcoming, a site for cold rain soaked eyes! The menu was very promising, but unfortunately due to a bit of miscommunication they got our order wrong! We both wanted the lamb shank, but were told only one portion was left- I changed to the pork belly, but somehow the waitress thought we both changed, and brought my friend the completely wrong dish! They were very apologetic, but I wasn't too impressed as they made it clear they thought it was our fault! The pork belly was tender and rich, crackling was good but slightly burned in a little spot. Served with adequate mash, and a slightly overdone pork filet cut, it made for an enjoyable but mediocre meal. Sauce was tasty though, with bits of apricot running through it. The dessert really saved the meal...salted caramel profiteroles. Served with decadent cream and a chocolate sauce, they were absolutely delicious! Overall, decent meal for good price, but make sure you book a table and have a back up menu selection!

I was here for a wedding and had a big 3 course meal and spent quite a bit of time in the gardens…read moreand the bar during my time there. Lovely grounds very scenic with the castle joined to it at the side. They did great food for the wedding with mushrooms for appetizers and a wonderful sunday roast for the main course. The dessert was also terrific. Very friendly And helpful staff and it has a cool location with lots of parks and things to see nearby. Id go again.

Place practically empty, over 30 mins now still waiting and rude staff. When ever I question food…read moretime est totally ignored

As Wetherspoons go this is my least favourite. Food is horrible, drinks taste as if they've been…read morewatered down and clientèle is quite scary. I was there the other day and a man actually said the See you next Tuesday word pretty loud, and it was only twelve in the afternoon! The food always looks like its been thrown on your plate and i've had to take it back more than once. OK, so its a spoons and drinks are reasonable, food is reasonable but surely that doesn't mean they have to be crap. I'm not overly fussed on the staff in this place, having worked in another Wetherspoons, i'm sure i must have attended a completely different training session to these guys. All look like they have the weight of the world on their shoulders and all seem to rather be on their mobile phones other than in work. Cant blame them really they work long hours, for crap pay... i should know! Anyway if it's cheap nosh your after head over to Rhyd-y-car to the Dragonfly and if your after a cheap drink, although its out the way go to the Bali Glas! Far better atmosphere and divine drinks and staff.

The Angel Hotel is coining it! It must be if it can afford to have seven persons waiting on just…read moreeight people in the restaurant. More about that later. The Angel Hotel is a former Georgian coaching-inn, now rated three AA stars. It has 32 en-suite guest rooms, plus a Lodge at nearby Abergavenny Castle. The restaurant has an AA rosette, with an award-winning wine list. The Foxhunter Bar has an open fire, original wood panelling from the early 1900's, and interesting old paintings of Abergavenny.There's a good range of beers like The Reverend James and London Pride, plus guest beers, and a half-dozen wines by the glass. Special mention must be made of their superb Afternoon Teas, with scones, cakes and pastries, served from 3.00 - 5.30pm, with is proper bone china and linen. For £6.00 you may have tea or coffee with a small selection of cakes, or freshly-baked scones with jam and cream. For £9.80 you get the pastries plus a selection of sandwiches:Black Mountain smoked salmon, Marinated cucumber and cream cheese, Home-cooked ham, and Egg mayonnaise with cress. Weighing in at £14.80 is the Champagne Tea: copious amounts of all the above plus champagne. The Angel has been awarded membership of the prestigious UK Tea Guild and for 2008 an 'Award of Excellence'. The Angel is one of only six hotels outside of London to have achieved this accolade. The Tea Menu runs to about 6 pages and is a really good read, describing with great affection the wide choice of leaf teas available. The hotel claims currently to be refurbishing their bedrooms. If you intend to stay there, make absolutely certain you ask for, and get, a refurbished room, because the older ones are shabby and unkempt. And the restaurant? Some seriously good food, much of it sourced locally. For Lunch expect £20 per head, Dinner double it; plus wine, from an excellent list containing several by the glass and half-a-dozen half-bottles. The room is L-shaped and the staff, whenever I wanted them, always seemed to be 'round the corner' out of view; and I counted SEVEN of them. Perhaps they were expecting a big lunchtime, but it didn't materialise. They reminded me of the proverbial London Buses - you wait for ages and then 2 or 3 came round the corner simultaneously. But no real complaints - better to have than not to have!

My friend and her family go here for afternoon tea and champagne if someone's done well. Very Jilly…read moreCooper i always think. Anyway i'm not a fan, i went with once and thought it was filled with pretentious idiots who talk to loudly, eat too fast and behave like well, idiots. Now, to me, it's as if the Angel is desperately trying to be something it's not, much like Abergavenny itself. I'm told the rooms are lovely but expensive. I'm told the food is lovely, but expensive, I'm told the place is lovely, but...you guessed it, expensive! So, you can imagine my surprise when i found out everything was not lovely but still expensive. Right on the corner of the High Street The Angel isn't even that pretty. I'm aware many people take their vows down here and i had a sneaky peak at the wedding prices and be Jesus! it's probably cheaper and more fun to fly your whole wedding party (vicar and all) to Vegas than it is to get married here. All in all for people who like to think their posh. Not moi!

Wonderful service from beginning to end. We were greeted at the door with welcoming smiling face…read more Our host Lauren made us feel like royalty. She took us to a nice spacious table, offered to get high chair right away. She was consistently friendly and inviting. The food was wonderful. My hisband had gammon and chips. He thoroughly enjoyed all of it! He said the chips were PERFECT! My daughter had cheese and leek soup with hot fresh bread- she thoroughly enjoyed her meal too. I had the cheese board with crackers and onion chutney. Again - perfect!! There was another lady there too, yhat was also very kind and friendly. It had a lovely feel to the place, and it was an all round EXCELLENT WELSH EXPERIENCE of hospitality and food!!!

Great old world pub on the lovely village that is usk. Would recommend if you're looking for a pub…read moreto have a meal in

I was recently en route for a walk in the Brecon Beacons when we called in at the Nant Ddu Lodge…read more Situated on the road between Merthyr Tydfil and Brecon it is classed as a hotel, bistro and spa. Despite this rather posh description, Nant Ddu is very informal, and as we sat in the cosy bar area, we were made to feel very welcome! They had a wide range of options to choose from on the menu, at reasonable prices. I had the roasted cherry tomato and goat's cheese tartlet, which was only £4.95 (that's cheaper than many starters I've had at other restaurants)! Despite this low price I can honestly say that the tartlet was most delicious there really was the right balance between pastry and cheese. Another thing I appreciated about this establishment, is that all the food is locally sourced and prepared on site; with fresh meat coming in daily from Brecon and fresh fish from Cardiff. After lunch I had a quick peep at the spa area, which with it's pool and jacuzzi looked the perfect spot to chill out!

This is the best place to eat in S. Wales! Lovely food and…read morelocation. Bit pricey mind! Been going here for years and there is nowhere else like it! Fantastic!