Royal Oak — Restaurant in England

Disappointed and Unwelcome

I've been to The Royal Oak a few times with my family, and while we’ve always enjoyed the atmosphere, our most recent visit left us feeling deeply disappointed. Unfortunately, it wasn't just the food that fell short this time; the way we were treated by a particular member of staff was truly disheartening.

As a family with young children, we understand that kids can be a bit energetic at times, but it's nothing unusual for a family-friendly establishment. However, this staff member seemed to have little understanding or patience for that. What made it even more concerning was that on previous visits, we’ve seen the same person be completely fine with other families and their children. The only noticeable difference between us and them was my Indian heritage, which left us feeling uncomfortable and unwelcome.

The food, too, was not up to the standard we've come to expect. What was once an enjoyable meal was now dry and lackluster, and the overall experience felt like a far cry from the pub we used to look forward to visiting.

I would hope that The Royal Oak can address these issues—both in terms of the food and the way their staff treats all customers equally. Until then, I'm not sure we'll be coming back...

Shocking Service and Hostile Attitude I visited The Royal Oak in Farnham Common today with my family, and I am appalled by the experience. The pub was completely empty, yet we were met by an older lady whose attitude was downright hostile. She clearly has no understanding of basic customer service.

I was with my two children, one of whom is autistic, and requested to sit on a bench-style table for ease and comfort. Her response? A flat-out no with a patronizing explanation that only four people could sit there—even though the space could easily accommodate five, especially as two of us were kids. This was nothing short of unnecessary and unreasonable.

Her tone and behavior were sickening and made us feel completely unwelcome. As an Asian family, the treatment we received felt laced with prejudice. Her attitude reeked of discrimination, and I honestly felt that we were being judged from the moment we walked in.

We left immediately and went elsewhere, as there was no way we were going to tolerate such appalling treatment. To the management: if this is the kind of person representing your business, you need to take a serious look at who you employ. It was one of the most unpleasant experiences we’ve ever...

Visited on Sunday and was just about to leave an excellent review, and then i saw some of the reviews below. We were sat on a table set for 6, which we had booked in advanced as we knew it was a Sunday and understood it would be busy. Around 30 minutes into our visit another table arrived who seemed to have an issue with where they were sat. The manager was explaining that they could not pull up an extra chair as they were reserved and would be blocking both fire exit and fire; both valid reasons. The table continued to ignore the manager, and instead insisted that their no younger than 13 year old sat on his older sisters lap for the whole visit? When the manager said that unfortunately this wouldn’t be suitable, they threw a fit and began swearing at them. The manager asked them to leave and went to go help run food. I saw this table rip the napkins from under cutlery, and snap the flowers on the table in half. Must say it does not give me much hope for future generations if this is what parents are doing in front of their children.

Despite this all staff were apologetic and the food was great! will...