The Masons Arms — Restaurant in England

Visited on a very warm Wednesday afternoon in August. Car park at the side and rear of the pub. Not a big car park and no designated disabled spaces that we could see. No steps to worry about as we came in through the rear entrance. Low ceiling though as we entered but sign posted so able to avoid. Brother went to the bar for two pints of Moretti. £5.50 a pint. Was informed there would be a twenty minute wait before they could take our order if we wished to eat. Didn’t look massively busy but quite a few tables occupied and customers finishing their meals so probably had a bit of a rush earlier. He grabbed a few menus and we began to look through them . Wide choice of food available with a few options not seen elsewhere. Only ended up waiting about ten minutes before we were asked if we wanted to order. That time had given us time to go through the main menu with prices for mains from £11.00 up to £18.00. The snack menu available till 4pm with sandwiches starting from £7.00. The specials menu included dishes like Meat feast Naanizza, a pizza served on a Naan bread, and Steak n Kidney Steamed Suet pudding. Finally a bits and bobs menu with 10 choices of stuff such as Chilli Cheese bites and Lime and Ginger Chicken Strips. Prices were £4.00 for 1 or 3 for £11.00. So plenty of options depending on your taste, appetite and wallet. One option that caught my eye was the YAPAS or Yorkshire Tapas from the Main Menu. My brother went for a Roast Beef sandwich from the Snack Menu with a portion of chips at £3.00. Also asked for the wine list and ordered a large glass, 250ml, of the Rioja at £7.60. Seemed quite a long wait for our order to arrive but then it was soon obvious this was home made and fresh and not your usual frozen fare served in so many places these days. . I was a bit taken aback with the size of the YAPAS. Far more than I expected. Black pudding fritters very good as was the scotch egg. Huge portion of haddock goujons. Must have been 5 or 6 big pieces of fish. More fish than I have had in many places when I have ordered their fish n chips. The curry sauce that came with it was really tasty. The ham hock and Wensleydale croquettes also very nice. They tasted much better when they had cooled down. Wasn’t that keen on the homemade pork pie in all honesty. Both texture and taste not to my liking. Also not a massive fan of the huge bowl of Yorkshire pudding I got. Seemed dry to me. The gravy it came with seemed a bit thin but tasted fantastic. Loads of taste and flavour. I was unable to finish my order. It was far too much for me but, it is described as a Sharer on the menu, so should have been forewarned. My brother enjoyed his sandwich. Loads of beef on it. The chips he got were probably the best we have had for a long time. Proper home made chips but i only sampled a few as I was stuffed trying to finish my YAPAS. As I said it was a very warm afternoon. Window was open behind us so a little bit of fresh air coming in but a lot of road noise when vehicles went past especially when it was farm traffic. A fan or two would have been welcome. I suppose the interior of the pub could be described as dated but if your more concerned with the quality and taste of your food then I would recommend the...

Enjoyed Sunday Lunch here today (5.11.23 /12:00) in this classic pub. As noted by others, it has a cosy feel, which we enjoyed, as compared to ultra modern or fake classic.

The pub is divided into 2 areas: "dogs allowed" and "no dogs". We were in the "dogs allowed" area and enjoyed seeing the various dogs (we used to have one).

We had reserved a table the day before (by telephone - friendly lady!) and I would highly recommend anyone else to do so, as virtually all the tables had "Reserved" signs on them (This, of course, may only be the case on Sundays). Some even had 2 reservations (as ours 12:00 and 15:00). And obviously, you may prefer to sit in the "no dogs" part of the pub and book accordingly.

Food was in generous portions and very good value for money. We (2 persons) chose the Beef Roast and the Pork Roast (£15 each) We had one (generous) portion of Sticky Toffee Pudding with sauce and ice-cream (£6) and a tea to follow.

Toilets were very clean (Finally a pub, where you can really smell the disinfectant!)

Friendly staff - the manageress is obviously a friend of dogs - There were water bowls and a jar of doggy treats on the mantelpiece. She said hello to all the dogs and Yes, she does also say hello to the guests ;-)

Regretably, I read a couple of negative reviews on Google about a drunken manager, by a (I think) couple staying overnight. Is there someone else in the hotel? Or what happened?

We personally, were fully satisfied with our meal and have already recommended the pub to friends & family for Sunday Lunches!

It was also nice to see that the dogs were extremely well-behaved, which, as I think we all know, is down to...

Been going to this pub for many years. Recommended it to circa 60 friends and family...probably more. "Live" locally too. Met at least 4 of the previous LL there... "A good LL ensures a great environment for the clientelle." NOT SO WITH THIS ONE!! This one, makes Basil Faulty look like the winner of the annual "best boss" award of the year...(sorry Basil)... but not as funny. It takes alot to get me cross, but after weeks of thought, I felt complelled to let you know of my experiences (plural) On my last encounter, I found him to be...rude, arguementative, threatening, obnoxious, ignorant, aggressive etc., etc...and that was in the car park!! It left me shaken and very upset. It is obvoius to see why he appears to be annoyed and upset when he continually moans for weeks about "his pub is empty on lovely summer's days"...who would want to spend their time at this pub with him at the helm! Having observed him over the months, he is obvoiusly totally un-aware that HE is the problem...and not everyone else. My advice...GO TO THE OLD SWAN, closeby, on the main road and STAY AWAY FROM THE MASONS... WHY??...much better parking, beer garden, toilets, play areas and atmosphere.The food, beer and drinks are just as good (if not better) and there is a better and more varied menu... ohhh....and...the landlord makes you feel welcome! Yeah!! So...GOODBYE MASONS...HELLO THE OLD SWAN. One regret...I wish I had done this months and months ago, but so thrilled that I can, now that THERE IS A MUCH BETTER ALTERNATIVE IN THE...