The Old Volunteer

I booked a table for four and we all enjoyed the food. The service was faultless and I would certainly recommend the Old Volunteer to others. I'm sure we will return in the near future for another meal.

Had a lovely meal in a lovely atmosphere. We were particularly impressed with the friendliness of the staff. We look forward to returning very soon.

Staff very pleasant and attentive, despite being busy. Food was good and plentiful, steak cooked just how we liked it. Will definitely dine there again.

A pleasant experience from start to finish. A shining example of how a gastropub should be. Personal involvement from the landlady ready to help us with our request to delay our meal a few minutes from the booked time... to courteous, friendly and willing serving staff. Really good food was excellent value. Some might think it took 'longer than it should', but food this fresh and well prepared is not going to be 'quick' and it was absolutely fine time-wise.

Very good Sunday lunch, meat was superb! We will be back, the service is always very good and quality of food as always, high and fresh!

We went for Sunday lunch (5pm) and the pub was very busy, as we had expected. The food was very good and so was the service. But we did feel a little rushed. Both courses arrived very quickly, but this would not put us off going again.

Lovely welcome, efficient bar staff, really impressed by the ambiance of the bar and seating areas. The Old Vol has a lovely atmosphere. Our table (for 4) was fine, menu quite interesting. We did feel there was quite a price jump between the main menus and the steaks. Also some rather odd combinations (pork and king prawns, anyone?) and pie with chips was drowned in gravy (how about offering the gravy in a jug?) That said, one of our party did have an 'odd' combination and he said it was OK. My biggest disappointment, not confined to the Old Vol, was the NOISE LEVEL!! We were 4 and there was an adjacent party of 8. We honestly couldn't hear ourselves think. They weren't actually over-boisterous but the lack of any soft furnishings in the dining area made it quite torturous and, at one point, stopped our conversation. Curtains...blinds...cushions...the odd rug...?

Average. I had high hopes given the location but it didn't meet expectation. We were 40 mins late being shown to our table but in the defence of the staff they did take our order whilst we were waiting and keep us informed. I had Caesar salad, which part way through I realised there was no pancetta, which was clearly stated on the menu. I questioned it with staff to be told that the kitchen had run out but not informed the waiters. Maybe most people wouldn't notice or question, but there aren't many ingredients in a Caesar salad so it's pretty obvious when a key ingredient is missing!!! No apology, no reduced price, no offer of an alternative. The staff weren't particularly attentive and stomp around the place with their ear pieces in. Maybe the kitchen should use this technology tell them what they have run out of?!

It was ok. The trotter starter was excellant, but we think the same 'gravy' was used for the beef and lamb. The chips could have been hand cut but they looked very uniform and were only mediocre. The fennel coleslaw had no taste of fennel. It was a fairly standard coleslaw

Really enjoyed our first visit the staff are really welcoming and the food was excellent the only disappointment was that we didn't realise you had to give 24 hours notice to have the Beef Wellington but we shall try it on our next visit if still available.

Lovely food and service the ice cream is amazing should be a shop to be able to buy the ice cream. Would recommend the place to anyone

Went on mothers day so had the 3 course set menu. Good value for money, lovely place and nice food, attentive staff. Will definitely go back....

I met with two friends who had not been to the Old Volunteer before and they were both very impressed and would visit again. We had a lovely relaxed meal. The food was excellent and we were not rushed. We spent a lot of time talking but did not feel we had to hurry at all. I would recommend this pub to anyone for the food, the atmosphere and the surroundings.

Excellent meal, Pigs trotter to die for!! Also mussels were as they should be big and juicy in a lovely sauce. Staff and chef were super which was apparent when we arrived as the place was very busy. However we were taken care of very well.

Great Sunday lunch today, I had pork, my friend had beef and my partner had Wellington, all very impressed. Huge portions and all really good quality. Set menu is great value for the quality of food. Gent that took our payment was great: chatty, friendly and genuine. Top marks to him.

Fabulous Sunday lunch 3 course for £20 per head. Excellent value for the high quality of food served with excellent service. Will be returning soon and definately will be returning.

The Old Volunteer is a great pub / resturant, the food was fantastic and the staff were very friendly and accomodating, we will definitly be going back.

The Food and service was excellent I would go back you can see why it is busy place staff where always on hand when needed

A very busy pub. We felt a little crammed upstairs next to a very large table. The food was good and decent value for money.

hi, Tuesday night visit to this country pub, 10 or so other dinners in there. Very good food, ambience, staff and location, but some dishes seen expensive.

Myself and 5 members of my family went for lunch here the welcome was excellent, the service and food was excellent, I just felt the portion sizes should have been just slightly bigger. Will be going back again and recommending to friends.

MENU OFFERED GOOD CHOICE AND FOOD WELL PRESENTED. NICE AMBIENCE AND STAFF PROFESSIONAL. BUT PREFER SERVICE CHARGE TO BE A PERSONALTHING WHICH IS WHAT IT IS MEANT TO Be.

Wonderful building, food & service. Went for Sunday lunch , more food than we could eat and meat cooked perfectly. Would definitely recommend and will return.

We pre booked. The four of us had a great evening. Just after we ordered the electric went out in the whole street. the staff were quick to bring candles to the table and take drinks orders. The manager kept all tables updated that they had contacted the power supplier and it could be up to an 1 hour to come back on again. The chef had fired up a bar-b q ready just in case to keep cooking and as it happend the electric was on again after half an hour and I got my steak! Hurrahhhh! The staff all coped very well...well done. Oh, and great choice of red wine by the manageress.

Really was very comfortable, and lovely staff but scores very low on value for money. Simple stuff like tiny portion size, options for extra (how much does an extra bowl of chips, cabbage cost), and no mits with cheap coffee means we won't be going again.

Excellent quality with freindly staff. Not cheap but then sometimes you have to pay more for better service and quality. Overall a good experience would visit again

Good atmosphere, lovely food and variety of menu choice. House wine could be better but espresso martini absolutely beautiful. Sometimes busy but adds to atmosphere if you don't mind raising you voice.

Amazing food and quick service. Been a few times and will definitely return again soon and also recommend to friends/family. Really enjoyed our Sunday! Thank you :)

Excellent beverages, lovely food and great service. Large family group found the whole experience enjoyable with terrific atmosphere and spacious environment. Cannot fault our visit, would highly recommend.

Food was good but limited choice of fish and steaks expensive. Dined with some friends and asked to be moved because of very noisy party on adjacent table. Proprietor very helpful but not an ideal night. Cost was about right at about £30 per head including drinks

The menu and the food were very good. The prices were reasonable. The staff were friendly and efficient. We are looking forward to going again.

Lovely meal .. fitted us in last minute for a Valentine's meal. Prosseco with an oyster (first ever!) and well planned 3 course menu with good choices. Food arrived promptly, service was excellent and the atmosphere was good, though not in main part of pub which I prefer (not grumbling though as pleased we got a table!). Got a rose (well two actually) when I left. Would recommend.

Booked table for 12.45. Seated and order taken promptly. Food very good - service was very friendly and efficient. The atmosphere was very pleasant as was the decor. I have dined in the restaurant several times now - food and service has always been very good and staff always friendly. My colleague had not been before but she was imressed and would certainly visit again. A very enjoyable all round experience.

We had a great meal at The Volunteer this evening the food was delicious-I had Belly Pork with Scallops-the Belly Pork was soft and tasted of Pork ,.the Scallops plump and sweet.So often food in so called restaurants is bland and not cooked as it should be---not so at The Volunteer.My husband and I both had Bread and Butter pudding -light and fluffy with a vanilla custard and a tart quince jam that cut through the richness of the pudding and creme anglaise. I chose- on Jo's recommendation -a Romanian Pinot Noir which was just as she described.Jo is a great host friendly ,vivacious and knowledgeable about her menu and her wine list.Over last year and so far this year we have never had a bad meal at ''The Old Vol'' and we will definitely be returning.Pam P.

Lovely food and well kept beer (and wine). Good attentive service. Rare beef rib cooked to perfection but make sure you like it rare! Not cheap but very, very good

Lovely food- very loud- possibly lack of soft furnishings- lots of hard surfaces for noise to bounce off of but after the initial bit of shouting across the table to each other it got a bit quieter. Staff were lovely and we shall go back for the beef wellington

Lovely atmosphere good service and the food we had from the lunchtime menu. Was excellent.

The food was amazing and the service was great attending to our every need without being extrusive. I will be booking again soon and cannot wait.

Inexperienced staff for relatively busy service. Food took almost 1hr to arrive. Other tables around us who arrived later than us received food before us. Despite the service the food was very nice.

Absolutely amazing night, food was delicious service was a delight and me and my Bessie's will be back very soon:) loved it would definitely recommend

Good atmosphere in the Old Volunteer., very friendly staff, nice surroundings always had very good food. Very well run . The location is also very nice with lovely views

Lovely food .There is a great ambiance and very friendly but not overbearing service . Not cheap but good value given the quality of the food.

Meat under-cooked and tough only because they did not ask how you wanted your meat when ordered so had to go back and cooked a little more , desserts lukewarm and not worth the £3.50 for them as tiny. Waiters/waitresses service very good but too much chatter with the headsets.

We had a very warm welcome the food was excellent and we had great service. The pumpkin soup was especially delicious as was the broccoli and Stilton

Food was extremely good and table was ready as we arrived. Service with a smile and good balance of attention without intrusion. Will definitely be returning.

Mussels excellent, crab cakes,rather dry, not enough sauce. - unfortunately some shell left in also. We will be back.Beautiful restored public house. Excellent beef sandwiches.

Lovely food and great atmosphere looking forward to going back. Great quality for a reasonable price, a great mix of countryside and contemporary in this unique gastro pub!

First of three Xmas meals booked at the Vol this festive season and, if last night's meal was anything to go by, I won't be disappointed! Fab service as always too.

Sunday dinner nice - but expensive- -a good option when you don't want to cook -it's a shame they don't have a bottle of Cava - or a reasonably priced bottle of house champagne -as an alternative to the current trend for Prosseco- £22 for a single serve bottle of Moët a bit much.

For a provincial restaurant it was very good much better than I expected. Happy to recommend it to anybody in the area and I will dine here again