Caldecotte Arms in Milton Keynes

Well they tried. Thought would try this place as it has been refurbished since last visited. However, won't be rushing back, ordered food, waited quite a while for a cheese toastie and chips, when it did finally arrive the chips were dried up and barely warm and the bread was burnt. Then we were told couldn’t even outdoors (where we were sat when the order was placed) communication skills need to be improved and also perhaps add some signage’s on grounds which would make it clear what areas are dining friendly or not. Shame as it’s a lovely location with a superb view.

Wow super speedy service we were absolutely amazed at how quick we got our meal (mini mixed grill from lunch menu). It didn’t like it had just been microwaved either! Decor looked great inside, modern yet warm feeling. Good value on lunch time menu to and reasonably busy today which I guess is no surprise! Would recommend.

The atmosphere is nice, staff are friendly and attentive, the setting is beautiful, however, the disappointment comes with the serving times (between breakfast/brunch/lunch) times are restricted as are menus mainly because they service a hotel as well.1. You can’t eat off the buffet as that’s for hotel guests. (Communicated by a bar lady 29/01/22)2. You can’t sit in certain locations because one is for hotel guests, one is for brunch/lunch and breakfast tables are limited. (communicated by waitress 29/01/22)3. You can’t order breakfast seated in the pub section. (Bar lady 29/01/22)Remember lunch is only served from 12:00 so don’t get there at 11:15 and want lunch … it’s a LONG wait (second visit 27/02/22)It’s all rather confusing. This was our second visit and we sadly will not return because of this.BUT If you can live with all the confusion the positive is that the food was amazing!!

This pub / restaurant always seems to be packed and busy, and if you’re here just for drinks be prepared to have a bit of a wait at the bar. Things are much better if you’re dining with table service, of course, but this isn’t an option if you’re sat outside. On the subject of outside, there are loads of tables on the grass, each with a relaxing view of the lake and you quickly grow accustomed to the slope many are on.The inside is all clean and modern plus the staff are always friendly. There’s some good dining areas on the ground floor, as well as more secluded sections upstairs which feel more private and are ideal for a special occasion group meal. The menu has a good range with everything reasonably priced.The breaded mushroom starter could pass for a main meal - expecting small button mushrooms I was surprised to be presented with seven huge slices and salad, along with my choice of dip. Very tasty though, and the pie which followed as the main was superb. The fajita option on the menu was great, and the beef was cooked to order and very tasty. Presentation of everything was decent enough and the serving time was impressive given how busy the place was.Overall it’s a decent restaurant, but slightly more geared to a formal meal than something casual; I’ll be returning for the right occasion. It’d be a perfect spot for drinks in the summer but the wait is just always too long to make it practical and some extra bar staff would be really welcome.

Lovely pub with so many features, lake in front , swans, Canada geese flowing, old wind mill construction remains, spacious and high ceiling, menu is easy and straight.Our installation team stayed in the Premier Inn by the side for a week and had dinner every evening.The 32 ounce steak and T bone are nice and huge, the seafood grill is good, grilled Scottish salmon is tasty and what I like most is the fresh salad.

Nice pub, food was nice. The fish was a little chewy but other than that nice. Lovely location. Very dog friendly! Beds and treats galore!

Superb evening meal whilst staying in the Premier Inn next door.Restaurant was lovely laid out, staff were quick to seat us and attend to our drinks order, before allowing us time to decide on our meals.Food arrived promptly and was piping hot and delicious.Service was excellent and the food was first class. An added bonus was a live singer on the Saturday night so an excellent surprise.Lauren our server was superb, polite, attentive and quick, managing several tables at a time. A credit to Greene king.

Visited a few times over the past couple months with friends and my dog. Great place to visit for a walk and a drink in the beer garden. Only downside can be trying to park when it's busy. Will definitely be back soon!

The nice lake-side location is about the best thing you can say about the Caldecotte. We had lunch in the beer garden surrounded by plastic cups, old napkins and other rubbish that hadn't been tidied up from the previous evening. Despite the place being practically empty service was slow. The food, when it did arrive, very mediocre indeed. After our meal we went for a walk around the lake for an hour. When we passed the Caldecotte again 60 minutes later our table still hadn't been cleared. Instead of clearing tables the staff were all chatting to each other by a side door. No wonder the nearby lake has so much plastic rubbish in it!!! Staff also weren't wearing masks. Really surprising given current COVID concerns. Would not go back.

The restaurant has so much potential, it's a beautiful large setting situated next to a lake and children's play park. There is free parking outdoors too. The staff were friendly and welcoming and toilets and outdoor areas were clean.Now given all of this I would've given 5 stars however there were a few areas of improvement - I'm not sure they could handle a busy Saturday night very well. The time between starter and main course was an exceptionally long time and people that arrived after us had eaten and left in between that time. We reminded our friendly waitress and she also said she was just wondering where it was too, it was only at this point she asked if our toddler would like some colouring too. It was getting very late for him and he was getting tired, we also had a 2 hour drive back home so had initially made sure we booked the table to allow for this and not have to drive home in the dark - but unfortunately then still had to. When it finally came out , my partners 'rare' steak was more or less cremated - but he didn't want me to say anything because didn't want to risk having to wait even longer and doesn't like the confrontation neither. I had to ask for more cutlery on the table as there wasn't enough , and there weren't 6 chicken nuggets on my boys plate as ordered - they had to come back with the extra when I reminded them. And a family members burger was cold when it had come out. Such a shame as the front of house staff and setting was great as I said.Other guests I noticed also had a see through screen between their tables allowing for 2 parties to share one table. The see through screen would've personally bothered me and would seem so intrusive sat those close to another stranger. But it didn't affect us personally.Would we visit again? For drinks sat outside I'm sure that would be brilliant ... for food I'd probably go elsewhere as it was quite overcooked and a hassle waiting.