Horse and Groom, Pub on the Hill — Restaurant in Cotswold District

I received a warm welcome from Inka and she was very friendly. |It’s very hard to find the correct star rating for this hotel, a low score is certainly not reflective of the staff. However, I find I can’t be too generous either. |Having booked well in advance, I was very surprised to receive a call 2 days before my stay informing me that the kitchens would now be closed on Monday and Tuesday ( I was overnighting Monday night) so there would be no food available the evening I arrived and no hot breakfast either. I did get the price of breakfast refunded but was not entirely happy as I was going to have to go in search of food following an incredibly long day. Unfortunately, it seems most of the Cotswolds choose to close Monday nights. |On booking I was also told that the only room available was the signature feature room at higher cost - although they may have had cancellations, only 3 out of the 5 bedrooms were in use so I feel I was mislead and overcharged. |The room had a nice style but the paintwork was damaged and tatty. The facilities were good, a decent coffee machine, tea bags, hot chocolate sachets and a kettle. There was a smart TV and a hair dryer. Although it was listed, there was no mini fridge or safe. |The bathroom had both bath and shower and came complete with complimentary toiletries but there had been an obvious and damaging water leak from above and the bath side was hanging off. Not really what I was expecting from a feature room ( unless that is the feature) |Both the bedroom and bathroom were very clean.|I slept well as the bonus to the pub being closed was a very quiet night. |Breakfast was a cold buffet, I can’t say I have had Rice Krispies since I was a child but it was the only ‘grown up’ choice with the other being coco pops. There was plenty of bread to toast, yoghurt, croissants and pain au chocolate alongside cheese and ham. Hot drinks were from the machine behind the bar so did not feel plentiful, although that could have been my interpretation. |As I said at the start, the staff were lovely but I really don’t think I would choose to stay again. |Too expensive for...

My family & I booked a table for 4 to celebrate my wife's birthday. We had not been here for a few years but remembered good things so drove from Evesham for the special occasion. Parking was challenging as the car park was full but we managed to squeeze onto the lay by in front of the main building, behind another car. The venue is quite nice, with horse racing paraphernalia & artwork. Was quite busy on a Wednesday evening, which did bode well. Welcome was luke warm from the bar, as they were not on restaurant duty but the staff from the restaurant area soon came to take over take us to our table. The menu is limited & aiming toward the cordon bleu. Not for those with any limitations or on the fussy side but luckily we can eat pretty much anything (bar 1 with a gluten intolerance). For me it was expensive for what you got. £8 for blended olive in a saucer & 4 pieces of sour dough, is a bit much but we ordered 3 starters of that ilk & everyone thought they were tasty so, great. We then waited 25 minutes for the main after the starter was cleared. We were chatting & in no rush, so no problem. Two venison cottage pies, 1 fish & chips & 1 celeriac & mushroom pie. All but the fish & chips were very salty. Salt to taste normally but that was far too much. The mushroom pie was so bad it was 1/4 eaten. I felt a bit rough after I must admit. Lots of wines to choose from on the drinks menu. 3 ales to choose at the bar. Starter £8 Main £19 (not steak) There was a 10% service charge automatically applied to the bill, which I don't agree with. Not really impressed & I don't think we will be making the trip again, which is a shame. In summary, staff rather quiet, menu is expensive & the food had far too much salt. Maybe we caught them on...

Stopped for lunch on spec today and was happy to find the pub not too busy on a Saturday at 2:00pm. We ordered burgers, mine supposedly being a "beef brisket" burger and as my wife is vegetarian, she ordered the "plant based burger". Well what a disappointment!

The burgers were pretty much supermarket bought quality and very plain.

My wife's burger was listed on the menu to come with "slaw", but it was missing. When we enquired, we were informed that it was left out as it has mayonnaise as an ingredient and that that is not vegan. We didn't order a vegan burger. There was no offer for us to have the "slaw" if we wanted it and the attitude of the table staff indicated that we shouldn't ask!

When the bill arrived there was no adjustment to the amount charged or offer for this, due to the missing element in what was served. Also they had the cheek to add a service charge! Since when in the UK has a service charge been added by default?

£51 for a mediocre lunch and three drinks!!! We just wanted to leave by then, so just paid and left.

I don't think we will be back in a hurry even though we are reasonably local. It's a shame as we like to eat out and also to meet friends for dinner on a regular basis. We certainly won't be visiting the Horse and Groom unless it...