The Fox at Willian — Restaurant in North Hertfordshire

A fabulous place for a celebration!

We visited The Fox at Willian to celebrate my husband's birthday and we were delighted with this gastro-pub from the moment we arrived. We were met with a warm, friendly welcome and then we were kindly shown to our room.

The room was gorgeous, clean and airy. The bed was huge and incredibly comfortable; that night we slept very peacefully. The bathroom is spacious and sadly we didn't get a chance to enjoy the tub but I can only imagine how lovely it would be to relax and soak in it. All the little touches were great, you don't need for anything and we were particularly touched by the birthday note from the team, it was super thoughtful. The only thing I’d recommend is if you’re a little sensitive to light, bring an eye mask (which we always travel with). The shutters are beautiful but there is a little light leak which could bother some people. But with our masks, we slept soundly.

Before dinner we spent time enjoying a drink in the beer garden soaking up the last of the sunshine. It's a cracking little spot with a lovely buzz about it, we could have sat there for hours taking in the atmosphere.

When I made the booking I also made sure to reserve a table for dinner and I’m so pleased I did as it’s a very popular restaurant and was pretty full…I now understand why. I also made them aware during the booking process that we’re both plant based and I was reassured that it wouldn’t be a problem.

When we were seated at the table, we were met with another little birthday card from the team which was such a kind gesture. Our server was super friendly and really helpful when it came to informing us about which dishes can be adapted for a plant based diet. She was just brilliant and her confidence in the kitchen with vegan options truly put our minds at ease and we were excited to try the food.

We chose the Asparagus to start and the Sambal to follow. We were blown away, the food was delicious. Especially the Sambal, I think that is one of the tastiest curries I’ve ever eaten. It’s clear that the chefs in the kitchen have a real passion for food and delivering quality dishes, especially so for a dish that needs to be adapted. It was a joy to have a meal that had some love and thought put in to it rather than another falafel type option. So, thank you to the chef/s for our wonderful meal, you made our stay that much more special.

We took advantage of a late check out option and enjoyed a slow and leisurely morning. At breakfast, again all the staff who served our table were warm and friendly. Our vegan breakfast and coffee was lovely and it all set us up for our drive home.

Overall, we had a smashing time at The Fox, it’s a real treat and my husband had a brilliant birthday. The whole ambience here is relaxed and inviting, the food is wonderful, the rooms are comfy and the staff are stellar. It’s great value for money and we’d love to return in the future. Thank you for a brilliant stay, we loved it. Warm wishes...

I was absolutely delighted when I managed to get a booking at what we thought would be a very pleasant day out - badly needed for the first outing for one of my friends since lockdown.||||The welcome was warm and friendly and the manager was helpful when we asked if we could move tables as one of my friends was a trifle nervous about being too close to the table next to the one we were initially allocated to.||||Thereafter it went down a slow slippery slope. When it came to ordering our meal, we were shocked to be told that only bar snacks were available..... The only thing that would have been of interest and would have made a difference to allay our intense disappointment of having to choose from the Bar Snacks limited menu, - were the oysters but then only to be told that they had run out of them!! This was hardly surprising given that was the oysters was the only interesting item that most guests would have ordered.||||I must admit that the waiter serving us was professional and apologised for the limitations of the menu and at least empathised with us that we had driven all that way (and also upsettingly got stuck in traffic taking us a few hours to get back when it should have only been a couple of hours at the most).||||The manager for some unknown reason did not take kindly to being given feedback that the lady that took our booking should have advised that even though that was the only table they had to offer, but that meant we would have to have the bar snacks menu. There was no way we would have travelled all that way for a first outing to just have glorified bar snacks - particularly when there were other pubs we could have booked at. The bar snacks were okay for what they were - bar snacks - we could have even got much better burgers or fish and chips from our local pub but that was not worth travelling all that way. The manager did not even offer to do anything by way of even a small 'gesture' if only to acknowledge - A truly regrettable...

I was absolutely delighted when I managed to get a booking at what we thought would be a very pleasant day out - badly needed for the first outing for one of my friends since lockdown.||||The welcome was warm and friendly and the manager was helpful when we asked if we could move tables as one of my friends was a trifle nervous about being too close to the table next to the one we were initially allocated to.||||Thereafter it went down a slow slippery slope. When it came to ordering our meal, we were shocked to be told that only bar snacks were available..... The only thing that would have been of interest and would have made a difference to allay our intense disappointment of having to choose from the Bar Snacks limited menu, - were the oysters but then only to be told that they had run out of them!! This was hardly surprising given that was the oysters was the only interesting item that most guests would have ordered.||||I must admit that the waiter serving us was professional and apologised for the limitations of the menu and at least empathised with us that we had driven all that way (and also upsettingly got stuck in traffic taking us a few hours to get back when it should have only been a couple of hours at the most).||||The manager for some unknown reason did not take kindly to being given feedback that the lady that took our booking should have advised that even though that was the only table they had to offer, but that meant we would have to have the bar snacks menu. There was no way we would have travelled all that way for a first outing to just have glorified bar snacks - particularly when there were other pubs we could have booked at. The bar snacks were okay for what they were - bar snacks - we could have even got much better burgers or fish and chips from our local pub but that was not worth travelling all that way. The manager did not even offer to do anything by way of even a small 'gesture' if only to acknowledge - A truly regrettable...