Fox Inn

the food at this pub is fantastic, and also has plenty of exterior seating.

Correct me if I am wrong, but it is no longer an Ember inn pub, hence the notice board stating children welcome, not minimum age 13 as it used to be under the previous owners.

My family and I went to the Fox yesterday (Sunday) for a quick bite to eat. What was a happy day turned into a stressful and annoying early evening.
Upon arriving to order food we were told that there would be a wait of approx 30 mins. We were happy enough to wait as my sister is vegetarian and know she could trust the ingredients at the pub (unlike other local places that use non-​veggie cheese in veggie labelled foods).
40 mins later we caught the attention of a member of staff to ask for an eta on our food. He abruptly told us ‘Well it is an hours wait’. His tone was quite dismissive.
Annoyed he walked off to ask for us and informed us it would be 5 mins.
By the time we got our food it had been 70 mins. Obviously we were starving and really unhappy with the level of service. No one apologised for the wait we endured.
In addition to this our food was only just passable. I had steak and egg with chips and peas. The steak was very nice. The eggs were over cooked and the chips were only just cooked. I counted the number of dried up sad peas I had. 16 in total. It looked as if it had been thrown at the plate from a distance too.
The same applied to all meals served. We asked for some more peas from the waiter. He huffed and went to get some. My Sisters veggie burger was just warm. She is writing to complain to Ember Inns directly.
Usually this place is cheap and cheerful. My parents pop in often but will not be returning after yesterdays display.
The staff really didn’t want to be there so why would be want to be?

The Fox Inn is part of the Ember Inns chain of pubs/​restaurants around the UK. They are pubs for adults only, with a minimum age of 14 dining outside, and 18 inside. This is not a family pub, but an adult’s pub.
The chain in general is a nice idea, and all the ones we’ve been in have been relatively samey — nice white or light coloured exteriors, and nice, country home interiors.
The Tamworth one, The Fox Inn, is very nice, with comfortable, low lighting, plus chairs, plenty of seating and some very nice touches such as artsy wallpaper and some nice art.
The service here is pub service. It’s friendly enough, nothing the matter with it, but nothing to get excited about either.
There are some nice beers on tap, such as Spitfire, and the last time we were there, I tried a blonde bitter that was really interesting (had no idea one could combine the two!).
The food is decent and not typical pub grub (though most assuredly much of it is frozen), you definitely get what you pay for, which is medium priced, decent food.
Last time, hubby had the Seafood Mixed Grill, which was really interesting, with 6 different types of seafood, and all cooked well.
Hurrah for the Fox, even if it is part of a chain.

nice relaxed atmosphere. outside, heated seating. friendly staff