The Bear

Quick glance:
+ great staff
+ nice decoration
+ patio and BBQ for summers
— pricey lunch
— more style than substance
Full review:
The bear is nicely decorated on the inside. It also has an outdoor area in front of the pub facing the traffic (if you like spotting moving cars) or in the back facing the car park (if you like spotting stationary cars). In the summers they turn on that BBQ grills and you can have decent selection of ribs, burgers and the likes.
I revisited on a Saturday in spring for lunch and this time chose from their a la carte menu, filled with mouthwatering description of the food they offer. Unfortunately the actual products didn’t live up to expectations.
I can never resist the «weird» items on the menu so for starter we shared the «Pigs head croquette, pigs ear crackling, black pudding, apple purée». The plate of food was carefully arranged and beautifully presented but the taste and quality of cooking was lacking, especially given the pricey menu that usually reflects a certain level of quality. The croquette was unseasoned and the pigs ear crackling was hard and inedible. My burger for mains was slightly on the dry side, although it was a filling portion.
The staff is friendly and delivers a good service. It’s just a shame the food isn’t quite there.

Live just around the corner and have a love hate relationship with the Bear. I have always found the food to be expensive but good but the service is continually terrible. The décor/​atmosphere is great and it could be so so much better. Last night the bar maid looked extremely annoyed that we asked for a drink as if really it wasn’t her job to serve us. I thought to start with she just didn’t understand but soon realised she was disinterested moody and unhelpful. When they charge almost £8 for a glass of wine they really need to do better!!!

I’ve eaten here several times and have to say have not had anything other than good food (not cheap by any means), great service and a nice setting on the deck and a roaring fire inside in the winter.

costs more than your normal pub but the food is very good or at least it was. thought it was just a bad experince for me but looking at the reviews on here it has gone down in standard. lovely surroundings

Overpriced :-(

Very bad experience at birthday celebration for my wife in terms of both service and food! Brought wrong orders to the table, insisted that we ordered a bottle of White wine that we didn’t and very rude service. At 11pm they started turning off the lights in the dining section as we were last there on a Saturday night. Staff were anxious to get out and no management to be seen. Very disappointing! I only decided to write this after they sent me out an email advertising group events!

What happened??? This was a fabulous pub last time I went about a year ago. Now it’s a train wreck! The food was deplorable. Really sad, actually. Tasteless, small portions.

From my Unilocal nickname and pictures on my profile, you can probably guess that I can’t resist anything with a bear reference! Yes I’m a Chicago Bears fan.
So I’m glad to be able to report unbiasedly that The Bear is a solid English pub serving good food and ale. You can tell from the large dining area that the kitchen does produce some good food which is major draw to this pub.
There’s an international flavour to the food with the influences ranging from Scandinavian gravadlax to oriental hoisin duck rolls to Mediterranean salads. However, I tend to enjoy the English traditionals most here like Gloucester Old Spot pork belly or suet crust chicken, ham & leek pie finished off with a sticky toffee pudding for dessert.
They also have BBQs on their deck in the summer and you can even pre-​order your lunch to save time.
All in all, the Bear is furry good!

I’ve been to this pub many times with my family and we’ve always enjoyed it.
However, we went today and spent £150 on a meal for 5 and it really wasn’t up to much. The service was slow, the meat was dry and the potatos and the rest of the veg, very soggy. Based on today’s visit I would say steer clear.

Slightly more expensive than an average pub for food but it’s well worth the extra. The atmosphere is very nice, a cross between a cosy pub and a restaraunt.
The choice of food was not huge but it tasted great, was served quickly and looked fresh and home made.

This pub was refurbished a few years ago, and has gone from a ghost pub to a thriving little business. This place is always busy. Its great in summer, with the front veranda, complete with those ever popular outdoor heaters, and winter with its fires that creates a nice cosy atmoshphere. Food is served in restaurant and bar area and is your usual posh pub grub. A good place to meet up with out venturing into a local town!