A great, but really quaint, old English pub in the middle of nowhere. Great service and extremely…read moregood food. Very nice in the summer as the gardens are vast and overlook the countryside. Lao, if you are in the area in November, they have a fantastic firework display (arrive early, it gets packed)

What an amazing traditional pub. Views to die for, massive garden space, ample parking and the…read moremost amazing pub brimming with character. The staff are always friendly, professional and helpful. The food is always amazing quality from rolls at lunch to the best chicken pie in the evening. We turned up without a booking just wanting a summer time drink but when we asked if we could possibly have a table they managed to fit us in. During lockdown we visited several times. Everything was really professional. We felt extremely safe but none of the enjoyable experience was compromised.

Great gastro pub. Fab food, atmosphere and really friendly service. Strongly recommended.read more

The Bear has become a good quality gastro pub recently with a nice atmosphere and a good menu and…read moresome great specials. The ambiance is relaxed country pub and the staff are very helpful. There is a reasonable ca park as it gets quite hard to park in the summer. I have visited for lunch and dinner and both were very nicely presented and well cooked. The skate is very tasty and the scampi and Jenga chips are good. The costs can be a little bit higher for lunch but the menu is very similar and therefore for dinner, I thought it was quite reasonable. Peter who used to be at another Billericay restaurant is the restaurant manager and as normal makes sure we get well looked after.

Great pub in the heart of London with a fantastic ale assortment, as well as cider and liquor. It…read morehas a traditional, local charm and when we visited on a Sunday night was packed by locals and visitors. Luckily we found some stool seating by the front and were able to enjoy some beers and take in the ambiance. There's an upstairs that is accessible by a very very narrow staircase which even has handles for support, all part of the fun lol!! Beer: We tried out the Guinness (great pouring process!), peroni, and a local ale which the bartender allowed me to sample. He was very helpful and walked me through the different ciders they had in stock and even how you could add fruit syrups to sweeten the flavor. What makes this place even more memorable was the helpfulness of the young guy bartending. He helped us plan how to get to Gatwick airport extremely early the next morning and we owe him a big one!

Typical London pub experience. No food except for crisps etc. Prompt and attentive bar service…read moreonly.

This is fast becoming a very good local pub,with friendly staff . I is on the village green, with…read moreparking at rear The management appear to be making great efforts to create a good atmosphere,with great food (at reasonable prices ) . I think they are doing a great job Steve B 18/10/2009

"the royal oak" a 5 min walk from ockendon station. my first impression on looking at this "ye…read moreolde" pub was well presented and clean, upon going inside initially it was dark. a very clean refurbished pub with a marble bar and exceptionally clean and pleasant surroundings. the bar staff were very welcoming and greeted me with a smile, they were attentive and made me feel as though they had known me for years. the beer garden has a relaxed tone about it with parasols and seating for over 100, the grass and border flowers are immaculate, whilst i was there, there was a wedding party in the other side (the restaurant) the food i hear is superb and well worth a visit on a sunday.. my overall impression is this is a place you can bring your wife/ partner to and will both be impressed at the attention to detail and warm friendly atmosphere... terry h (an impressed member of the public) 08/october/2013

*GUSHGUSHGUSHGUSHGUSH!!!*…read more I can't say enough wonderful things about this pub. This five stars is 90% based on the food. Best pub food ever! First of all, there are 5 or 6 veggie options on the menu, which is a rarity. Some of their options are a mushroom stroganoff, vegetables au gratin, ploughman's sandwich, and a mediterranean pasta. My husband had veggie lasagna which was served with chips and salad. I had vegetables au gratin - broccoli, carrots, aubergines (eggplant to my american friends), bell peppers and onions, drowning in a rich cheese sauce topped with breadcrumbs. Heaven in a bowl!! There was a lovely salad on the side along with a generous portion of coleslaw. There's a nice selection of homemade desserts as well, which seem to change every week. We sampled the almond cheesecake which was amazingly delish. Aside from excellent food, there is good selection of beers. The manager is a super friendly guy who remembers us every time and always stops to have a chat. There's a cool layout with the bar in the entrance and two rooms off to either side. There's plenty of room for groups, however it's still small enough to feel cozy. Lots of outdoor seating as well. The White Hart is now a weekly trip for us!

Quite lovely Sunday dinner. Food was plentiful and very good array of choices. We have done several…read morepub meals and this was one of the best . We both chose the chicken, spinach an mushroom pie from the specials board. There was also quite good new potatoes (nice alternative choice from chips, they also had mashed) and the vegetable side was a veritable garden. Green beans, broccoli, peas and carrots - all in a portion size that would have sufficed alone. The tomato basil soup starter was delicious. We were unfortunately too full to partake of any of the yummy sounding desserts. Service was friendly and location is quaint-true locals type of place we go out of our way to find.

Old fashioned pub with hundreds of horse brasses hanging from everywhere. Food was mediocre and pub…read morehad little atmosphere even though it was half full.Not bad but not good.

You will notice that there will be an increase in reviews from around Essex. With one of my besties…read moresetting up home in Epping, it is inevitable that I will spend half of my time in the area checking out bars and restaurants. My third venture into Epping brought us to this little pub, pretty much in the middle of nowhere. It was a Tuesday night and we had signed up for the quiz night. The plan was to have a bite to eat and then take the quiz prize for the Northerners (2 Geordies lasses and one Scouser/Mancunian). Theydon Oak, is a traditional pub with a nice selection of beers on tap, uneven floor surface, ceiling beams, antiques along the walls, all the things that add to a boozer with a rich history. On the quiz front, we came third (no not out of three teams' lol). But on the food front, it was a big win. I opted for the Fillet Steak, as I was intrigued to see if they could match the Londoners, and they did. Firstly, it was a proper portion, although 8oz, it felt bigger. Cooked perfectly to order (medium rare) and really tasty. I partnered this with Diane sauce (cream, sherry, mushrooms and onions) and fries. Helen had the pub menu staple item of a burger and Sam had chilli con carne served with basmati rice which was interesting choice. There could have been a little more sauce with the chilli, but it was tasty enough with the mixed peppers and kidney beans. These were washed down with Sauvignon Blanc, Rioja and Moretti beer. Service is informal and friendly. They are obviously used to regulars, but were very welcoming to us. We felt like we had known them and the other quizzers for ages, possibly because were a little bit jolly for a Tuesday eve. Pricing is reasonable with the Fillet steak being the most pricy thing at £19.95 and totally worth it. It's a shame this place is so far away from me, as I could see myself popping by for an after work drink or dinner on a lazy eve when I don't want to cook. I am definitely up for trying their Sunday roast at some stage, which is £18.95 for a four course set menu! To summarise, if you live in Essex or even Hertfordshire, you must go!

The Carpenters Arms is a wonderfully British experience and has an upbeat and amazing energy and…read morenot as packed as it's a block off the other one named The Portman. The very kind Cleo was a refreshing entity to pub culture. The meat pies were amazing both the Moo & Blue & Free Ranger pies were recommended as they are served on mashed potatoes and hearty enough to serve as a single meal of the day.

I've been here multiple time over the years and it's never disappointed. Came in with the family…read morethis time and had a few beers and some chicken wings. Service is great and so is the ambiance. If you want a local pub this Is the place for you! Cheers!

What do you do when the weather is nice? Head to the pub garden of course!…read more This pub is hidden down some country lane, it is extremely cute and there is a lot of outdoor seating. There is also a lovely play area for children. We ordered food and was told that the food would take an hour and a half (they weren't joking) on their menu it states 'we don't make fast food, we make good food' something like that, well boy was that far from the truth. We ordered: Onion rings, garlic bread, breaded mushrooms, potato skins, tuna sandwich, and a burger. Garlic bread was awful it was a baguette with loaded cheese, the tuna sandwich was also awful. All that food came to £40. This pub got 3 stars just because of the location and the outdoor seating and even that is generous. There are much better pubs that have a good garden.

The King and Tinker is a very old pub (the oldest in Enfield, apparently) situated in a rural…read morelocation by White Webbs Park. It is in the London Borough of Enfield, not far from the border with Hertfordshire, but you wouldn't think you were anywhere near London. We'd passed the pub a number of times before while out walking but yesterday decided to stop for a drink and something to eat. We had a hot salt beef sandwich (a pub speciality) and poached fish of the day. Both meals were good. I also had a pint of Hobgoblin ale (not great, but drinkable) and a second pint, of London Pride (very good). The staff were very polite, friendly and helpful. What I particularly liked about the King and Tinker was that it hadn't been modernised or made to seem fancy (the dreaded 'country pub & dining'). It was just how typical country pubs used to be, with photos and pictures of local interest on the wall, regulars sitting at the bar chatting with each other and the staff, and no piped music playing. It seemed like it was more or less the same as it would have been 30 or 40 years ago, except for the fact it offers a full food menu, which many pubs didn't in those days. We enjoyed our visit so much we made a note to come back again when out walking in the area.

If you're looking for a good pub, it doesn't get much better than this…read more Lovingly called simply "The Axe" by locals, this pub is in a different league to most other rural pubs. I'll explain why and try to be concise. The cuisine is exceptional. There's a good selection of quality drinks. The service is excellent. The atmosphere is always friendly and welcoming -- the sort of place where complete strangers tend to strike-up conversation. The location is perfect, overlooking the Village Green, with a big beer garden behind, and a vast playing field behind that. It's a lovely village, nestled in the gently-undulating farming landscape of rural north-east Herts -- no wonder Braughing was recently awarded the prestigious "Village of the Year" accolade. The pub's menu always includes the best of local produce, from locally-reared beef to local pork sausages, alongside popular country pub dishes. (Braughing village is famous for, among other things, the delicious local sausages, and this is a good place to sample them.) Did I mention the pies? A different pie every day it seems, and you won't find better pies than these. I don't make a statement like that lightly.

Nice, friendly proper British Pub. I always make it a point to stop in for a few pints when I am…read morehere from the States.

Take a short walk from the high street to fine this gem of a pub which feels like a country cousin…read morewith city fare. There is a lovely beer garden with plenty of greenery. The beers on tap are a nice mixture of cast ales, craft beer and mainstream lager. The food is high quality for pub grub. We had the Mediterranean chicken salad and fish and chips. Both were very good and totally hit the spot! Definitely worth visiting!