The Anchor Inn in East Hampshire

Lovely location with plenty of space both indoors and outside. Rather limited menu with few surprises, hence conventional food as pubs go these days.

Disgusting service:On Wednesday, 11th May a group of 7 of us went to The Anchor Pub in Lower Froyle for dinner. Upon booking we were told that we could not book at 8pm, so instead booked for 8:30pm. Upon arriving early we elected to have a drink at the bar while we waited for all members of the group to arrive. From the outset we were haggled by our to be waiter to go to our table so that he could set it? I questioned why we needed to be seated before he could do the settings which didn't go down well. Presuming the dining room was very busy we abruptly finished our drinks and made our way to our designated table, only to find that we were the only patrons in the entire dining area! For the first 5 minutes the waiter had his back to us doing something appearing to do something on his phone at the counter which meant that there was an unnecessary delay in our drinks order for the table. When he eventually did make his way over one of the initial questions for him was whether he could recommend a taxi company to which he replied 'Google it'. The very next question was what he would recommend on the menu to which he unhelpfully replied 'everything'. All the while his manner was curt and passive aggressive. When the wine eventually did arrive it tasted as though it had been stored in the oven it was so warm. When the food arrived the sides that we had ordered to accompany our meal were forgotten. Plates were then attempted to be cleared and desserts delivered while some of the guests were still eating their main courses! When requesting a final bottle of wine the waiter had the audacity to tell us that 'we had had enough and that the bill would be brought over' at which time I went to the bar to get an extra bottle of wine... having only had 2-3 glasses each among those of us that were drinking wine it was hardly a tall order to request an additional bottle (and well before closing time I might add). Despite the situation we continued in our bid to be courteous to end and thanked him for his service to which his reply was (turning to one of the patrons) 'fine, except for you'. Having spent the best part of £500 in this pub I would have expected the service to have been infinitely better than it was. All 7 of us have families and friends - all of which will now have had this unpleasant experience shared which does not reflect positively on the future of your pub. Perhaps telling in that we were the only patrons in the dining area on a Wednesday evening. Needless to say it will almost certainly be the last. Such a shame given the potential of this venue. If I were to offer a recommendation my advice would be to go somewhere else where your service experience would surely be anything better than disgusting and your money better invested.

Was told this was a really nice pub with interesting food but there was nothing special in their menu. I had a burger which was really overcooked, and a glass of wine which took about 15 minutes to arrive ... By then I was halfway through the meal. Service was quite poor and the prices pretty ridiculous. Desserts at 9.50 each. Will not be returning.

The only redeeming factor of this pub were the food and the view. Upon arrival at 1:20pm on a beautiful late spring day, the pub was practically empty, this should have been a forewarning. The service was frankly abysmal when we were expecting it to be first class as previously experienced. The 2 waitresses seemed more concerned with their own chitter chatter than seeing us to a table in a deserted garden and during the course of the meal it proved that they lacked any skills in table service, from not knowing the ales, failing to check for drink requirements to leaving empty plates and glasses on vacant tables as well as our own. The grand finale was the bill being incorrect with prices seemingly picked out of thin air and not from the menu.

Fantastic place with very friendly staff and a beautiful beer garden. Good choice of wines and beers ,but whats nice I'd the age and decor of the pub. Highly recommended

We had a fantastic experience at this restaurant for a joint birthday celebration. Food was truly excellent, service was warm and welcoming and we learnt of a new favourite liqueur! Would highly recommend! Love the olde worlde feel of the bar, but the newer eating area if you prefer.

Beautiful and cosy pub with welcoming and kind staff. Gluten free and vegan option for lunch/dinner - the kind of place where they will go out of their way to look after you. I can't wait to visit again.

Fantastic!!! Food, service and the room we stayed in were all above expectation. Simple food done very well, with great service (so warm & welcoming) and dog friendly too! We only wish we could have stayed longer.

I am sending this message with a heavy heart as I have always enjoyed my time at your pub. However last night I was utterly appalled when our bill came in from our tab after having had three rounds of drinks. Firstly the bill was incorrect as the bar manager had mixed our drinks bill with another table and added them together but was adamant he was correct, secondly he said we had 4 glasses of wine when we had three and he was adamant he was correct as he poured them! Finally and so very shocking he charged us £10.00 service charge for us collecting our drinks from the bar. If we had paid each round would we have been charged a service bill? We were too polite at the time to question it but having slept on it I am very upset about it. The Anchor Inn has always been our go to pub to meet our friends unfortunately after last nights experience we will be questioning our choice.I am not one to complain but felt it was important for you to know that our experience was not a pleasant one.

Very disappointed with this pub. I phoned to make a reservation a few days before our visit and asked for a table for four in the best place in their restaurant. Was assured that this was not a problem, and would be done. Arrived on the dot for our booking, and there was no record of me having asked for a well placed table. As the pub was fairly empty, we chose the table ourselves. Ordered our drinks, only one non-alcoholic beer/lager available, a bottle of Heineken Zero, ordered two, plus a gin and tonic, and spritz with ice. Lagers came, warm, told the fridge was not working, would have been cold if they had been put outside!! Gin and tonic, the tonic bottle was actually very warm to the touch!! Must have been in the oven!! Spritz came sans ice!! We move onto the food, limited menu, some of the starters and two of the mains were not available, all that was available, burger, steaks and a cauliflower and veggie couscous. One of us ordered two starters instead of a main, the three others, burgers. Starters were ok, burgers were ok, but one had some parchment paper right in the middle of it. This main was taken off the bill. Desserts were ok, but one of us ordered a coffee with hot mince pies, and guess what? Yes, you've guessed it, the mince pies were cold!! Won't be going there again!!