The George Inn

We booked online for a late lunch and were excited to try this pub, based on a recent review from The Times. When we arrived there was nobody at the bar so we waited a few minutes. When a waitress arrived I said “hello, we have a booking” at which she looked shocked and repeated this to another woman, who I see from the website is the General Manager. “Not if you don’t have a confirmation email you don’t” she said “the kitchen is closed.” As I did have a confirmation email I said “I do have an email” and found it on my phone. “Well, the kitchen’s closing so you’ve got 5 minutes” said the General Manager as she pointed at a table, “you can sit there” – she didn’t even show us there or offer a drink. I did say, politely, “oh, this isn’t the nicest welcome I’ve ever had” which she ignored. She then banged down 2 menus and some water, without a word, and off she went. I’ve worked in restaurants, bars and kitchens and I get it: late lunch bookings must be annoying. The chefs might have cleaned up the kitchen, put all their ingredients and equipment away and be ready to go home before coming back for evening service. But if you’re a pub that does food and if you accept online bookings at 2.45pm then you should be ready to honour them. Or, maybe, just don’t let people book after 2pm if you don’t want their business. I’d have thought that’s achievable on DesignMyNight, which is the booking engine The George uses. We wouldn’t have minded at all if we had been asked, nicely, to order quickly. We’d have stayed for lunch, spent a couple of hundred quid and I could tell you about the food and the wine. As it is, we decided we didn’t want to spend any money here: the attitude of the General Manager was sales prevention at its finest so we left and the chefs were able to go home as intended. There are some fabulous pubs and restaurants nearby so we’ll stick with them instead and suggest you do the same. Unless you enjoy being made to feel annoying and unwelcome, in which case, go for it.

Really negative experience. We booked for a night at the George Inn plus dinner in the restaurant for a special birthday night away. We arrived and asked whether we could check in, to which we were simply told ‘no’. We were given no time to explain that we had meant check in, take a walk and then go to our room at 4pm. We put this slightly unfriendly first impression behind us and found the staff to be very pleasant as we ordered drinks and sat in the garden. Once taken to our room, while beautiful, we were surprised to find the toilet was not en-suite but located in the same space with a small wooden screen. We were told that we were also welcome to use the toilet down in the pub. We spoke to the same member of staff who greeted us at the beginning of our stay and who also turned out to be the General Manager to explain that we were uncomfortable with this arrangement and to see if there were any other rooms available. While saying that she had spoken to the owner several times herself about the set up of the room, the General Manager offered no warmth or understanding beyond that. She also told us that the rooms were clearly described on the website although we can find no mention of a room with toilet in situ. There was a vague suggestion of talking to the owner about a possible discount or finding us alternative accommodation. The overall sense was that she was doing us a favour and there was no acknowledgement of our disappoin**ent or a level of customer service that you might hope to expect. We decided to leave at this point, feeling slightly baffled and very disappointed at what had originally shown every sign of being a really special experience. We would never return to this venue.

A very friendly place, with cosy seating area, quirky interesting decoration throughout and comfortable accommodation. Al the staff are extremely helpful and the food is very well prepared.

Mattie, the Manageress was brilliant with a minor issue. I was most impressed with her attitude and the service from all the staff in general. This place has a blessed feeling and I feel peaceful here Highly recommended all round. Thanks Ian

As I do I searched Tripadvisor for a nice pub near to my customer visits, I stayed at The George for 2 nights. The photos and reviews made my decision to say here, the pub is quite remote so glad I used my sat nav. First appearance of the outside looked really nice, a lovely stone colour for the area, car park at rear which had plenty of space. Checked in at the bar, friendly polite lady showed me to my room in the garden, room was very nice, good quality furnishings and same for en-suite, coffee machine etc and bottled water is a nice extra. Busy day, time for the bar! I am a big real ale fan, I saw Hook Norton which is one of my favourite ales, once the ale was poured, ale looked quite cloudy to me but tasted ok, tried a second but didn’t taste good, DAM SHAME. I reverted to a very nice glass of Rioja, time for dinner. Started with a very nice bowl of celeriac soup, then enjoyed the most amazing tender Sirloin steak I have tasted in years, accompanied with mushroom, chips and a very nicely dressed green salad. Perfectly cooked,WOW. Dessert menu also looked really nice, I ordered Lemon meringue pie, arrived presented to a Michelin standard and tasted fantastic. Asked to pre order breakfast, ordered the English breakfast, WOW what a breakfast, absolutely wonderful, really set me up for day, no lunch required. After a busy day I was looking forward to another evening at The George. Thankfully the Hook Norton had been sorted, I thought shall I re order the steak again, so I did. Started with the soup, again really nice, the steak arrived, looked amazing, tasted amazing, however I thought there is a different chef on tonight, the outer fat was not sealed correctly although cooked as I asked, medium. I also noticed that a green salad was not provided but a simple watercress, not dressed and quite bland. Definitely not to same standard as the previous evening, hence my 4 stars. Couldn’t manage a dessert. I enjoyed another beautiful glass of Rioja, However the wine was presented in a white wine glass, I noticed other customers had red wine presented in a correct red wine glass, so I assume some staff understood wine glasses, some didn’t. All staff were very friendly and polite. Hope you find my comments as constructive, definitely not complaints. I will definitely return one day.

My husband & I stayed here for a night before a lunch party relatively locally. The Good The staff were lovely and we were given our key with no fuss for room 2. The George is beautifully decorated & I noticed the elegantly planted tubs outside the front. The bed was huge and comfy (albeit on a slope as the property is so ancient). The sheets were good as were the pillows. The parking was easy and convenient and the breakfast huge and generous. The products for the bath were smart and a treat. The George is obviously a local favourite with a busy restaurant in the evening. The Bad Room 2 is a major shocker if you are a couple. There is an open loo on a small raised platform within the bedroom with an open rolltop bath, basin and no shower. A very small wooden screen is provided which would be woeful for privacy and all the horrors associated with having a loo with no walls or privacy in the bedroom. I wanted to check out immediately on seeing this arrangement but we were exhausted having flown in that day and also it was a Saturday night so completely full. Apparently Room 2 is generally given to people booking on *********** and there is no warning of the loo in the bedroom situation. So.. if you are on your own, there would be a lot less of an issue, but as a couple the loo situation is really gruesome. The staff were lovely and the owner really kindly offered us the use of the downstairs loos in the public area - so we padded through the bar in our dressing gowns and slippers (thank goodness we brought these)! Dinner was fine and the G&T delicious. It was expensive though and the dining room was freezing. We and our neighbouring diners wore puffer coats throughout. Would we stay again? Despite being married almost 25 years, there are some things that your significant other should never have to witness. I think I will have to overcome my shock of the loo situation first!

What a very special place. We stayed here recently and we were so impressed with the attentive staff and caring approach we received. We had a lovely spotlessly clean room and great Sunday lunch here and would love to call and stay again ! Thank my so much

I was so impressed with this place. From the moment you arrive, staff make you feel super welcome. The rooms are beautiful and totally immaculate - and I’m a tricky customer to impress when it comes to cleanliness of rooms! The food was lovely. Something about this place is just really special

Amazing start to finish. This is a great find. A good place to stay at any time of the year Underfloor heating and lovely patio tables! Rooms, breakfast , lunch, dinner and service! all superb. A great place to stay. The staff are a credit to the owners.