Axe & Cleaver in Trafford

Great breakfast selection and food was amazing. Service was excellent, friendly and interactive staff. Definitely recommend.

Called late lunch time on a Friday, excellent friendly service and quality food very helpful and efficient staff Kassie & Lace they made it excellent value for money, we will be returning soon as we can

Thanks to Paul for a really enjoyable evening and Sam for serving us. Great food and drink and we appreciated the 2 meals for £20 offer. Will be back again soon.

Friendly staff, reasonably priced comfortable environment. Unplanned visit and called in on the off chance to see if we could get a table. The guy who spoke to us upon entering was very helpful and found us a table but did advise us we needed to vacate after about 2 hours. This wasn't going to be an issue as we already planned on having a Sunday lunch. I had beer rump, my wife had the roast turkey, we had a side of cauliflower cheese. The food was very good, and they did provide an extra mug of gravy when requested. If I was picky, I thought the roast potatoes could be more cooked, but that is my preference. The portions are good and we both felt full afterwards, this resulted in us sharing a desert. We had the bakewell tart and custard, which again was very nice. Looked like a reasonable selection of beer, I stuck with my usual Guinness, my wife had shandy due to driving. Overall, a nice experience and the staff are good. One thing we both noticed, we weren't asked about allergies, which is unusual. This is something that will improve the business if they make it something the integrate into the greating, we have a family member with a severe allergy so this is why we noticed it. This is not a criticism, more an observation as we really enjoyed this place. Thanks

I absolutely love the food and staff here! It’s definitely my go-to spot for brunch on the weekends. Servena and Paul were the staff members who served us today, and they are both so lovely. They always make us feel very welcome! Highly recommend!!

Really impressed with the great quality food, clearly made with fresh ingredients. Pub was gorgeous and top notch service from Servena, Kassie, and Alyson, all really welcoming and professional. Top notch Guinness and all, can’t go wrong!

This was a return visit after a previous one which was really not very good 5 months ago. Having decided to return I bkd on line and mentioned we had been before and were hoping this time it would be ok. We visited as a party of 3 like last time for Sunday lunch. We all ordered the turkey Sunday dinner. All the meals were lovely and nothing was missing from the meals we requested extra gravy and this was not a problem and a jug of gravy was brought out. We were too full for desserts. We were served by Servena who was pleasant and friendly. She came and asked if everything was ok and so did Paul. Paul later came to speak to my mum and I as he remembered us from our previous visit when we had problems. He wanted to check everything was ok . This time the experience was really good the staff were attentive and the food was great. Thank you for making our return visit a memorable experience. We will be back soon.

A wonderful Lunch with 15 old work colleagues and to celebrate an 80th Birthday of one of the guests on Wednesday 12th February. The booking process was straight forward and whoever I spoke to was so helpful and obliging with helpful advice on how to deal with a large group. On the Day, a nice touch of a "Happy Birthday" Banner for the Birthday Boy. The food was fantastic with the Pie and Mixed Grill very popular. The two young ladies serving were exceptional, dealing with a bunch of OAPs and retirees efficiently and in a kindly way. Settling up was easy following advice prior to booking - this can be difficult with a large group as to who had what!! I can't thank the all the Staff enough who made the Lunch so wonderful and made the organising of the event so easy - they were all exceptional. Everyone had a great time. Thank you so much

Met here today for lunch and it was delicious as always. We received a warm welcome from Paul, and excellent table service from Servena. Thank you.

Fantastic service !! Alyson and Paul served us. As always, outstanding

Held a funeral buffet here today. Would highly recommend as a venue for any event or just a meal out. No room hire fee if you use the area just as you go inside. This is slightly raised and separate from the rest of the pub. Really good buffet and was reasonably priced. Staff very attentive and even though it was obviously a sad day, it went very well. Thank you.

We visited here for my mother's 70th birthday last Christmas, and it was truly a memorable experience. From the moment we walked in, we were greeted by Paul, the manager, who was incredibly friendly and attentive. His warm hospitality made the whole visit feel extra special. The pub itself has a classic English country feel, warm and cosy. As for the food, it definitely lived up to the reputation of good pub grub. A fabulous hearty menu with something for everyone's taste. It was a great place to celebrate and we could not recommend this place enough to anyone who happens to be in the area. Again, thank you so much to Paul and his wonderful staff for a brilliant evening.

Called in on a very busy afternoon and the pub was clearly full. Lovely front of house / waitress named Serrena quickly attended to us and managed to find us a seat. She was so polite and attentive throughout our whole meal. Server Kassie was lovely too, checking if we wanted sauces etc .. Food excellent and bonus if your a blue light card holder as they offer 15% off food. Great place to call in if you’ve been for a walk at Dunham Massey. Will defiantly return .

This was the best WI Ladies Lunch for some time. The food was delicious, the surroundings were comfortable and clean and the serving staff, Kassie and Servena, were wonderful.

Wont be back here ! Lunch visit today, unhelpful , arrogant female staff member informed us if you haven’t booked you’re not sitting down! and then she walked off .there was several empty tables we could have used.

Visited with the family at the weekend for a light lunch. The service from Paul and Alyson was excellent from start to finish, they were flexible to our request for our kids food and I ordered the coronation chickpea sandwich which I would highly recommend. Lovely atmosphere with a fireplace warming the place.

Spent several hours on a Sunday afternoon, relaxing with the wife over a fabulous bottle of Malbec. Although we didn’t eat here, the plates of food being served looked amazing (particularly the enormous Yorkshire puddings) and the host (Alyson) was super friendly and helpful. We will certainly be back in the near future !!

Lovely post run meal. Very tasty burgers. Great service from Paul

Came here for Valentine’s Day with my partner, food was absolutely lovely, however £25 for the lamb shank in abit of gravy (was suppose to be in a shepards pie) was extortionate. The picture attached is our food untouched, that is definitely not in a shepards pie. My partners mixed grill was lovely he really enjoyed it.

Great Sunday lunch, and great service from Paul!

Great food as always, service was amazing as always, managed to get a last minute table on Sunday, thanks guys.

Highly recommend. Was visiting from Canada. Great atmosphere and great food.

A lovely gastropub, full of atmosphere, with great food, wines and service. Highly recommended.

Lovely roast dinner. Service was top notch, super friendly and service was quick. We booked for a friend’s birthday and they went the extra mile to make us feel welcome and for him to feel celebrated. Would recommend and visit again.

Such a lovely warming atmosphere to this hidden countryside gem.

Great food and team, well recommended

Basic. My pie was very expensive for what it was. Almost no accompaniment except for a few leaves. My wife's steak was lukewarm.

We went for breakfast on a recommendation and so pleased we did. The food was amazing (full cooked and Chef and Brewer Benedict - gluten free option). Sat near the open fire which was lovely after our walk and service was spot on (thanks Neil) Would definitely recommend.

Lovely food, very helpful staff

Huge car park, nice pub and friendly staff. Food was great too. First class

Couldn't really fault the staff/service but food very mediocre. Portion sizes rather stingy, particularly chips, veg, salad etc. Cutting back on these things makes little business sense. Also £4.45 for a coke is extortion, even the draught beer is cheaper. Not the worst meal out I've ever had but won't be back anytime soon.

We dropped in solely for a quiet drink. Lovely pub and beautiful surroundings. Sat by the open fire and had a fantastic evening with friends

First time at this venue-- and very pleasantly surprised. Very ' oldie worldly' and full of charm. Had a birthday meal for three-- food was exceptional and beautifully presented-- WELL DONE TO THE CHEF👍 coffee just right as well! Also important-- the staff were very professional and friendly!! Well done everyone-- and definitely be visiting again very soon. 😘

This was our first visit. Really lovely and attentive staff. And comfortable and welcoming surroundings. Food met expectations, nothing spectacular, as only typical chef & brewer fayre. But as a party of 7, we all enjoyed our meals and drinks and left feeling it had been an enjoyable experience.

Really enjoyed visiting the pub, Great steak sandwich and felt well looked after

We came for a Birthday meal and weren't disappointed the staff were welcoming and friendly and the food was excellent with a great choice of food and dessert hope to be back soon

Lovely cosy pub for a cheeky midweek dinner, with a warm welcome from Paul and Alyson.

My first visit here after 9 p.m. on a Saturday night. No cars, no customers, staff was preparing to leave for the night. The young Stretfordian at the bar said we were more than welcome to stay, while she prepped for the following day. She offered us a seat in an area that was not being used for Sunday and kindly served us, telling us it was not a problem for us to be there. She even offered us a second drink in an empty pub. That is customer service! Wonderful building and clean interior, cannot wait to return with a few more people. Thank you.

Really nice breakfast by the crackling fire after a nice walk

Had a lovely breakfast. Beautifully presented and tasted delicious. Service was fantastic and it was lovely and cosy near to the open fire. Would 100% recommend.

Nice quiet country pub. Only stopped in for coffee and a snack but would consider returning.

Not dog friendly walked 4 miles to this this pub I was feeling hungry though would stop at this pub told no dogs

Always very cosy and great home cook food, our Sunday roast rivelled our christmas day dinner!

Delicious lamb shank, lovely drinks, and fun service. Thank you xx

Staff and food always fantastic. Great location and venue for a family meal

Had a very relaxing family meal at lunchtime. The service provided by Paul and Kassie was excellent, and the food was good and very reasonable. A very enjoyable experience as always at this lovely pub. Thank you.

If I could give more stars I would. Absolutely fabulous, have been coming here for years with my family always wonderful. Big thanks to Neil and Paul

Fantastic service, as always although Alyson was especially kind, warm and friendly today. What an absolute asset! Paul is always so nice too. He always leaves a great impression and is clearly a great guy. My personal view is that the food here is generally pub food, hence the 3* review; I don't think the prices make this higher as I think the same price can get much nicer food elsewhere, but please don't let this take from my review of thr service, which I would give 5/5, especially led by Alyson and Paul

Great food, great service, great settings. We’re very lucky to have this pub on our doorstep, it’s always a pleasure. Thanks guys, see you soon

Came for Sunday lunch and was not disappointed. Huge portion of meat, roasties were fresh and crispy, veg nicely done. No complaints at all, the offer of a mini pudding was a good choice after such a huge roast; would highly recommend

Fabulous New Year's Eve meal. Excellent choices. Excellent food. Even better service.

Had a really enjoyable vegetarian breakfast here after a walk down the canal. Altrincham has many breakfast choices, but at £10 this is a really solid option that is a decent in quantity and quality for the price. Bonus points for a roaring fire on a cold day

Had the steak. Nothing special. Food 7.5/10. However, hey did squeeze us in on NYE not booked. Which was unexpected. From there, the service was outstanding. All humans 5 Star. A relaxed English country pub. With heritage and history. Full of relaxed people and attentive staff. What more could one ask for. Worth a nip in.

Truly wonderful New Years Eve meal with family. Normally we would expect sub standard food and service over the Xmas period, but not at this place. Food was really gorgeous and service superb, no rushing to get you served and out. We haven’t been here for a while but rest assured we will definitely be frequenting it more often. Highly recommended ( the Sunday roasts are scrumptious) give it a try you wont be disappointed

We came as a group for a Christmas dinner, but they were unfortunately sold out of the vegetarian options! They substituted it for the mushroom pie from the main menu, but it was one of the worst pies we’ve ever had. We also payed the Christmas set menu price (so it actually was more expensive than if we’d chosen from the main menu). The atmosphere and service is fab! And the team were great. It’s a shame the food was disappointing!

Really enjoyed it. Great food, service and atmosphere

Fantastic service but food leaves a lot to be desired, especially for the price. Further, the Christmas menu listed various things that weren't on the actual dishes. We also had to proactively ask about whether we needed to prebrook. My view is that the Christmas menu as a whole was poorly facilitated, save for the friendly staff on the day

Came here tonight for meal , the manager met us and was lovely , talking chatting lovely man, paul our waiter was so chatty made us laugh so much we loved him.. we all had the festive menu absolutely scrumptious turkey melted in your mouth and tastes delicious, highly recommended.. and trifle omg i was dribbling , smells were spicey and mouth watering. Overall lovely atmosphere great food .. nice manager .. just lovely and paul so so nice highly recommended thankyou from the golden youngies . Merry Christmas see you all again

Lovely atmosphere and the staff were very friendly! The meats for the Sunday roast was great as well, the only thing that wasn’t as up to par was the roast potatoes and one the desserts in the trio! Otherwise I would highly recommend this place and come back.

Wonderful place to visit. Very friendly staff and excellent food for very good price. Few times being here

Really nice cosy pub, delicious food and top service from Alyson & Sophie. Went for my girlfriend’s birthday and they put out a banner and brought out a slice of cake. Highly recommend to anyone looking for a great meal.

Lovely food amazing service thank you

Where do I start !!! I booked a meal for 2pm for 15/12/24 with my wife and her two sons the first time we’ve managed to get them together in the last 6 months due to everyone’s work commitments. We booked the axe and cleaver as I’d ate there in the past. When arriving I was greeting by not friendliest have you booked to which obviously I had. We arrived at around 1.55 pm so 5 mins early we were told to wait at the bar as table wasn’t ready. We stood at bar ordered 4 drinks and waited till around 2.05 even though there was 2 empty tables for 4 people were set and ready. When we were eventually seated my sons youngest said to me his coke was flat I spoke to a lady and told her this and made a joke out of it saying it’s probably because he went out last night the lady returned and said we’ve tried it and it isn’t flat and nobody else has complained!!! This made me angry and embarrassed and my wife in particular left feeling embarrassed and uncomfortable. Our meals then arrived which were appalling my potato’s on my sea bass were luke warm my wife and her sons parsnips were not just luke warm but actually cold I wanted to tell the lady but my wife’s exact words were don’t you saw the reaction to the coke I just want to finish and leave which we did. My self and my wife often eat out in Manchester at the ivy and tattu and we were treated far better there and with much more respect and warmth than at the axe and cleaver. My last comment is the only positive a gentleman who worked there called Paul treated us as you would expect to be treated with warmth and humour but our day was awful after spending over £120 it was a waste of time and money

Excellent meal in lovely surroundings. Really nice Sunday lunches which we all enjoyed. Our servers Paul and Denise looked after us well. Recommended, we will be back. Very handy for Dunham Massey.

Lovely meal out for Sunday lunch. Huge portions, nice decor and good food. Good kids menu for little ones. The servers Paul and denise were very friendly and made the experience.

Paul took our order & sorted the bill. He was extremely pleasant & conversational without being over the top. We had Sunday dinner with turkey. The food was well cooked but for us the balance was wrong. A very large amount of meat & insufficient amount of vegetables. There were no roast parsnips which was disappointing.

When first walked I thought it was dead in there, but turned out to be a wake. Went through to the other half with a nice fire. Was pleasantly surprised by the quality of food for a Greene King. All courses were flavoursome (baked camembert, cod loin in bacon, truffle). Host was very pleasant to.

Average for the price, avoid the burgers they taste strange

We booked at short notice. And it was a very good experience. We would recommend it Tremendous D & S

Brilliant food and excellent staff couldn't do enough for you. Excellent with children. I will be coming back with the rest of the family. Alyson & Sophie amazing service better than what I have experienced at Mitchelin star restaurants. Thank you

I don’t usually write reviews, but this experience was so awful I feel I need to warn others. I booked this place for my 30th birthday dinner, expecting a festive and enjoyable evening, but it turned out to be anything but. From the moment we arrived, the service was unwelcoming. The waitress, a woman with red hair, didn’t smile once the entire evening, which made the whole atmosphere cold and uncomfortable. We were rushed right away with questions about how long everyone would take to arrive, making it feel like they just wanted to get rid of us. The food was even worse. The Yorkshire puddings were like rocks—completely inedible—and the sausages in the pigs in blankets were barely cooked. For what should have been a festive meal, everything was poorly prepared and lacking in quality. What should have been a special occasion turned into a huge disappointment. I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone looking to celebrate—or even for a regular meal. Avoid at all costs.

Nice pre drink before the Paul Heaton concert. Nice atmosphere and decor.

Paul and Sophie looked after us perfectly

Our second time enjoying a family meal before visiting the light trail at National Trust Dunham Massey, which is just a few minutes drive away. Excellent in all respects. Lovely staff, we had the same staff member looking after us all evening. Food is delicious and good value. Recommended.

Booked a large party in for a family gathering, from making the booking to paying the bill service was above and beyond, thank you. Food was excellent, everyone in our group really enjoyed their meals. Would not hesitate in recommending the Axe and Cleaver. We will definitely be returning.

Thank you for the lovely visit and warm soup, Paul and Kassie made sure our visit was welcomed and warm 🤗

Fantastic evening: good food, good value, plus the friendliest welcome imaginable, (with outstandingly congenial service too) by our host, Paul. Highly recommended!

It's a lovely country spot here. Comfortable, great food great service. A cosy warm haven when we popped in for a spot of lunch with a friend on a cold wet midweek when we wanted to avoid town. The smaller lunch menu was great, service from Paul spot on. Keep doing what you do Axe & Cleaver!

Lovely food, warm inviting setting

What a hidden gem. Warm welcome on arrival and another from our server, Paul. Food available from either the standard and/or the festive menus, I was spoilt for choice but decided on (with Paul's welcome insight) on steak & ale pie with chips and mixed greens. It was delicious and oh so filling, I had to decline desserts. All in all, great venue, great food, great staff and competive prices. Highly recommend.

Lovely pub. Mushroom pie was amazing and had several vegan options. Service and price all good. Will visit again for sure.

Really enjoyed a Sunday Roast, lovely Atmosphere

Had Sunday lunch, food was great, staff are all lovely, lovely and warm very welcoming pub, will defo return

Huge plates. Good food and lovely service. The Rope and Anchor feels like you’re eating at your mums house, it’s has a real family feel. Will return!

A great lunch as always. Excellent service from Paul & Alison who are both very attentive without being obtrusive. Made to feel very welcome

Brilliant food and polite staff

Kassie & Neil were fantastic! Decor is beautiful, food is incredible! Staff & atmosphere perfect

Lamb shank pie & Trio of deserts! Lovely food! Comfortable surroundings in a lane somewhere in the countryside near Altrincham! Our 1st visit but our friends have been many times. Lovely relaxed atmosphere and Paul. I will not forget you. You cheeky chappie! You are funny! Made our visit memorable! Look forward to seeing you again in the near future!!

Family get together meal, great service from Paul, who was friendly and professional, and looked after our party, ensuring drinks and food were brought over in a timely manner.

Lovely meal and great service from Paul and Alyson.

Excellent reception by the staff from the moment we walked through the door. Lovely warm friendly pub, with delicious food.

Great pub and well worth the extra mileage. Warm friendly atmosphere with excellent food

A wonderful 75th birthday meal. Many thanks to Paul & Alyson. A special mention to Paul who made the evening so enjoyable.

Excellent food great staff easy to park very clean pub recommended to anyone great atmosphere close to dunham massey Park

The place is lovely, the food delicious but unfortunately every single member of staff is miserable as sin. Not a single please, thank you or smile. You feel as welcome as a root canal

Fantastic food and great service

Only stopped in the garden for a quick drink, service and beer faultless

As a local, we’ve been coming to the axe and cleaver for years. Great choice of beer and cider. Amazing food with some Truly delicious specials. Fantastic Evening entertainment from the Friday night quiz to Saturday night fever with local bands and singers. Always a good atmosphere and always made to feel welcome by the staff and fellow pub goers,Would give more stars if available.

Sunday morning full English in a beautiful quiet time. Service was lovely and friendly. Food fresh and hot. Sausages yummy. Paul who served us was a super friendly guy. Highly Recommend

Just had a lovely light lunch there in the middle of an enjoyable Autumn country walk. A very pleasant place to be