The White Swan — Restaurant in England

As part of the eat out to help out initiative we decided to eat at the White Swan as we’d been following their progress during the lockdown period and it looked like they were doing good things for the surrounding villages with their take away meals. Unfortunately we were just outside their delivery area. We have no pub or restaurant in our village but wanted to dine out and celebrate here. I don’t know exactly what went wrong this evening but after their previous boasts of serving over 100 steaks last week, they couldn’t seem to get it right tonight. We arrived much earlier than our chosen 8pm slot and ordered starters and a bottle of wine and waited. Another local couple arrived obviously known to the owner and they got their wine immediately. It wasn’t until the starters arrived that we reminded the owner we hadn’t yet had our wine. It duly arrived and was poured into our glasses. We could see other diners waiting long periods for meals and yet others seemed to be getting much more prompt service. After an hour waiting we queried where our pre-ordered steaks were and were told they were just being plated up. More time passed and the local couple had eaten and left, we were left wondering if we’d ever get served at all. It was clear that our meals had been delayed somehow and we were being fobbed off so we chose to leave and pay for our wine only in protest. The owner made no apology quite the contrary he was aghast when we refused to pay for the starters in recompense for all the sitting around and waiting. If you don’t want a disappointing wait and poor service I’d suggest you stay away from this eatery. We had hoped the dining experience would be one we could share with our friends and recommend to our guests but sadly we shall not...

Oh dear. Returned here to enjoy a family birthday meal for 5 of us. We were looking forward to going out to a village pub further afield just for a change and had been to the White Swan a few years ago. First of all no welcome on arrival despite the bar area being almost empty. Our table was directly opposite the bar area and we felt this was a little cramped. Despite the extensive menu choice the food was pretty poor. The calamari starters were too salty and both guests agreed. Our main courses were very disappointing- it would take too long to go into details about every single meal but I left all the chicken pieces on the kebab meal I ordered because of the taste - all pieces very fatty and not very nice at all. Aside from the food disappointment, the service was poor. Often the waitresses were gathered at the bar when not actually serving , stood near their boss but never really kept a check on whether customers needed anything- such as more drinks for example. However this really indicates that they have never really been trained to do this as part of their role and they were probably unaware of how this looked or that they had customers waiting to order extra drinks. After the long wait for food and disappointment with the starters and main course, we decided not to wait for puddings. Whichever owner was stood behind the bar all night - you would do well to smile occasionally, take an interest in your customers and thank them when they leave instead of ignoring them. We declined to pay the voluntary gratuity during payment. Such a disappointing experience and an expensive meal overall which was not enjoyable. No excuses. We will not...

This was our first time at the White Swan having been recommended by a friend. We went as a couple, in the afternoon having booked a table.

Upon entry we were met by a pleasant chap who showed us to our table. The waiting staff were incredibly friendly and easy to talk to, and the atmosphere is definitely relaxed and inviting.

Our drinks were served quickly and menus handed to us. The choices from the menu are very large and usually I’m a little weary of establishments that have such a large offering however, what comes across really well is the back story of the owners and their food experiences on their travels.

This is their food and their stamp on the place, and what a masterpiece it is!

We ordered camembert and calamari for starters which came out quickly. The camembert was warmed perfectly so nice and gooey and calamari was home made and crispy.

Mains we ordered burgers - these are proper burgers and I mean 2 large beef patties (homemade), decent sized buns and with each comes a twist. My wife had a Mexican variant and I had the truffle version. Quite possibly one of the best burgers we’ve eaten.

Dessert I had the fairground cart; the ice cream, pop corn, candy floss and donuts were sublime, it’s presented so well and also fun. We asked for a box to take the donuts back as we were absolutely full, and they gladly accommodated this.

In summary, this place is pretty epic. Slightly different offering from the usual pub food and because of this, it stands out and is a must try!

We’ll definitely be coming back because we want to try the other...