Swan Needham Market — Restaurant in Mid Suffolk

On first impressions, the pub looked nicely decorated, though a little worn. We waited slightly longer than expected to be seated, but this was understandable given it was a Saturday evening. However, it quickly became clear that the pub was very understaffed.

Our food orders were taken promptly, but we were told they had no rice or steak, which eliminated a large part of the menu. The toilets were unclean, and to make matters worse, I came across three men openly taking drugs in the gents. There were signs stating a zero-tolerance policy towards drug use, but if they cannot even maintain basic hygiene in the toilets, it’s difficult to believe such rules are enforced. This was particularly disappointing, as the pub is advertised as being family-friendly.

I would have raised these concerns with a member of staff, but as mentioned, they were clearly overstretched and far too busy. The food itself was very poor quality and seemed to be mostly frozen. The children’s pizza, for example, was simply a microwavable Chicago Town pizza. While we weren’t expecting fine dining, a ready meal from the local Co-op would likely have been better.

After finishing, our plates were left uncleared for a long time, and in the end, we had to go to the bar to pay. On what should be their busiest night of the week, it was obvious they did not have nearly enough staff.

Overall, I would not recommend this pub. If you’re considering visiting, I would strongly suggest...

Unfortunately do not cater well for gluten allergy. However drinks were great and the ‘normal’ food menu was great as reviewed by my friends. Now the gluten free unfriendliness - I was only given an allergen booklet at the restaurant which wasn’t very helpful, and the gluten free menu which is only available online is very, very limited with things like the gluten free burgers coming as a ‘naked burger’ without a bun and without fries with a ‘bigger salad’. It’s a shame to have such little choice just because I am an allergy sufferer. I brought my own GF bun which made the meal 100x better and this would be a simple fix for the restaurant to provide to make the gluten free options more attractive and show that some effort is being made to be inclusive. Supermarket GF buns are easily freezable. It is also a shame the only side options for GF are a jacket potato, new potatoes or salad. There are many options, including oven chips or a separate fryer, which would help GF people like myself feel included as well as having a substantial meal when paying the same price as the alternative gluten containing option. I imagine the online GF menu has discouraged many people because the restaurant is just making meals GF by excluding ingredients instead of offering alternatives. I hope to see a more inclusive GF menu in the future as I’m sure it would offer a huge boost to...

First time eating in the swan, food was mediocre at best. Asked for ham and "mushroom" pizza but got not one single piece of mushroom. Got a "bucket" of chicken strips on the side but what turned up was a frozen southern fried chicken burger cut into strips for £4.50 that's steep and misleading. Manager was friendly enough but won't be eating there again. Would definitely not recommended.

Update After seeing the reply I got from my review I was shocked at the misinformation and inaccuracies of said statement. No one came round to check if the food was ok nor was I told about no mushrooms OR got offered a different topping!? I welcome the owner to check the CCTV on Tuesday 14th June NOT Sunday (as accused) at around 7pm. I went round to speak to the owner to discuss how unfair and untrue the reply was, all I got back was she didn't write it nor does she have any idea who wrote it and even said perhaps the previous owners wrote it!? she said she will ask "head office" to see if they can edit it. I have given it a few days and nothing has changed hence the update. A simple apology would have been sufficient instead of a passive aggressive reply with inaccurate and false...