The Broad Face — Restaurant in Vale of White Horse

Excellent range of beers - friendly staff - a little expensive but overall worth visiting - never had a bad time. Staff also very knowledgeable and helpful about the beers. Just had a Sunday Roast there and that was excellent too. Ate about 4 in afternoon (not too busy) and very relaxed atmosphere - will definitely be back again. Have been in again since initial review (but not to eat though) - Sunday 13/08 just witnessed a bit of class - one of the bar staff wiping down a table with a scourer covered in a cloth napkin - quality and in my opinion the 3 regular 'barmaids' have got to be amongst the best in Abingdon - service is outstanding. Oh yes and it's got 'easy to use' free WiFi - no messing around with registering + it's good too - password on a chalk board on the bar - simple and other pubs should take notice. Have been in many times since above reviews - but recently came in or my wife's birthday and had Sunday Lunch - food excellent and 'filling' - however best touch was the two bar staff improvised with a rice pudding sweet which had a candle in it and accompanied by them singing "happy birthday" - not prompted by me at all - a small gesture but meant alot - still maintain my earlier comment - Best Pub in Abingdon !! Yes a further update - something else I've since noticed - the 'mains' plug sockets have the latest 'built-in' USB charging ports, so very easy to keep your tech items/phone powered/charged - just bring your own usb lead. May only be a small point but very useful in this day and age. Nice touch. Well it's been sometime since my last update - so time to come up to date - and yes, it's still the best pub in Abingdon - everything above still applies - it's now in the Camra good beer guide (which speaks volumes) - normally 8 real ales always on - the restaurant side gets busier and busier and yes it's still got the same staff - can't be many pubs in Abingdon that can claim the same. So probably an update due - still under the same ownership but with change of some personell. Manager has come from 'their sister pub' in Newbury - but head chef and head barmaid have remained the same (which has kept an element of continuity) - some nice decor changes too. However the important point is - still excellent in all respects - beers well looked after and all new staff trained to a high standard and capable of multitasking - great atmosphere and very welcoming to new visitors too. Still consider it to be the best pub in Abingdon. Food menu top notch too. Currently some live music at selective times. Always a cheerful welcome on arrival and dogs welcome too. Many 'locals' still been coming here for years (even during the Covid era when allowed) - and overall a real family type atmosphere. Generally attracts a more adult crowd and very little issues with undesirables. Yes, I'm a 'regular' so might be considered 'biased' - but actually it's a top pub and quite unique in the area.

Update October 2022 - And yes - it's still good and the 'head barmaid' is still here along with the manageress - have been other various staff come and gone, but they're all trained well and the overall continuity is still there. Still friendy atmosphere and generally still pretty busy even in these difficult times. Places like thi6s deserve our support where we can otherwise we will loose them. The big 'chains' have their place but independents like this have their own character.

So a further update October 2024 - pretty much a complete change of staff but still the same owner - Joshua. The range of ales still 8 and well maintained - food has definitely improved again - new manager Will, who came from a sister pub and 3 excellent 'girls' behind the bar now - bit like the old times of 5 years or so ago. Really good atmosphere still - still one of the best pubs...

Booked in to the Broadface a few weeks ago and wasn’t aware it had changed ownership (I loved their Pavlova it was amazing) so when we arrived and it was new faces I was slightly nervous and yes the menu had changed. First time we went they had lamb (wasn’t on the menu this time I think they’re refining the menu as they find their feet. I ordered the grass fed beef my partner had lamb.

There’s no rush and they make you feel at home and nothing is too much trouble. They have a good range of alcohol/ alcohol free and the winner for me was they do Mediterranean tonic! Really friendly welcoming staff.

When the food arrived it looked beautiful really well presented, cooked to perfection and the gravy (their gravy has its very own tang with a number of ingredients just trying this dinner for the gravy is highly recommended simply beautiful). Meat cooked as requested too brilliant. Second time round we didn’t get side dishes but the portions were very generous. This time around (for me the gravy pot was too small- I love your gravy I want to celebrate that because it’s amazing) I can only describe the rest as a taste sensation just when you think you’ve discovered all the flavours from the honey roast carrots and parsnips ham the beauty of the rosemary potatoes. It’s not simple pub fare they’ve really knocked it out of the park.

I loved the place anyway for its decor but very impressed with the food. So much though has gone in to the flavours, presentation and making it adaptable to picky eaters like me. Well done guys love everything you’re doing. We...

A lovely little spot on the Thames to go for lunch. It was clean, had a lovely atmosphere with modern decor. We went for lunch and the food that was on offer looked very promising, we were glad to see a children's menu on offer for the little one as well. On the lunch menu they do 2 courses for £10 which is fairly reasonable. I started with the duck and chicken terrine which was delicious and a friend had the soup, which looked devine. What followed was even more delectable, chicken, mushroom and garlic linguine. My wife and daughter both had a fish finger and tartar sandwich. They were both left a little underwhelmed, for the price you would expect a little quality but it seems more effort is put into the presentation department. It looked the part but unfortunately was very bland. For me a fantastic meal so far but for others not so good, what really let The Broad Face down though was when we had to wait 30 minutes for dessert, now this would have been acceptable on a busy Friday night but not on a Wednesday lunchtime when we were the only people in the restaurant. Overall this was an average experience with fairly good food but I would advise on staying away if you only want a quick bite. On the plus though, they do have an above average...