Bear and Bells in Waveney

We were on holiday in Beecles which is .6 miles away from this pub which was displaying an A board in Beecles with a menu, so off we set walking only to get there and it was closed, may be a good idea to put your opening hours on the A board, wasn't happy!

People smoking freely... Nuffield said.

A real surprise. Quite a small pub but a really big welcome. The staff we're really friendly. The beef brisket & point of Blue Moon were just what the Doctor ordered.

Beer was lovely, food was odd and not good. Alot of the chips were bad, black bits and not edible.

Friendly staff .food chips nachos not so nice hard chips .good beer

Menu was just burgers and chips served with wooden knife,fork and spoon?? And we unable to cut meal had to tear it to eat. Might as well gone to Macdonalds.

Gemma makes you welcome and does enjoy banter

Grait staff, very good beer,good afternoon

My four sisters and I had the worst lunch of our lives today in your pub. Despite telling the waitress our disappointments with the food, we were still expected to pay full price for this appalling excuse for a pub lunch.

Brilliant pub, great service and a lovely burger, cooked to perfection! Would 100% recommend and go again!

A wake/ celebration of my father's passing. Private function room, all facilities great venue, great food, thank you

Very dirty pub.Sticky table.Toilet.....no comments.Beer garden?rubbish and rats.

Horrific experience paying £5 for a ticket for an Ibiza night to be met with children and prams, totally misled for ticket sales and would never waste my money ever again

As brief as I can be, & following on from DIV LOI review, our experience on Sat 25/5. I can't comment on the food as we decided not to eat. I booked this on 19/4 ( a month before)when obviously we were also expecting to see a proper food menu, not loaded chips, burgers etc. The staff member took us into the back dining area, which was empty, where we were confronted with litter & food on the floor, tables & chairs disheveled, bits & pieces hanging from the rafters, loads of balloons slung behind the bar, clearly been used for a party. Cleaning spray on the bar(obviously not used) toilet checked out...disgusting!! We purchased 2 drinks but I wish we hadn't. What a difference to our last visit...disappointed & annoyed is an understatement. The only apology we got was for the now new menu.

Pleasant staff and the new food / sports bar approach is well received . Great staff , great vibes . And well behaved happy dogs everywhere. Publican heaven

Love the beer garden here, it feels like somebody's actual walked garden

My husband had a really good burger meal here but sadly me and 2 others who had the fish and chips didn't. It was served in a metal bucket and we were given wooden cutlery to eat with. Ludicrous idea. The paper lining in the bucket broke up by the time you got to the bottom. Why it can't be served on a plate with proper cutlery is beyond me. Sadly not a good experience.

Visited today as we'd reserved a table for Sunday lunch. Looked on the website to see the menu and decided to give them a go. The pub itself is a lovely venue, v clean with a good outdoor area out the back and friendly staff. When we arrived we were informed they were starting their new menu and with dismay it was now only burger and dirty Fries grub. All the decent food I'd seen on the website was gone. See photos of what's on the website and the menu we got when we got there. Not knowing if we were gonna get in anywhere else (apart from wetherspoon and we weren't in the mood for microwave food) we decided to stay. 3 burgers with 3 drinks came to £54. The food arrived promptly in, what I can only describe as, a tiny Victorian bath. (You know the ones they put in front of the fire and fill with a kettle) In it was a half pound cheese burger, a few (and I mean a few) v crispy skin on chips and a layer of grease proof paper (more on that later) its also came with disposable wooden knife, fork, spoon? And a serviette. The meal itself was ok. I mean it was a nice burger but impossible to eat with your hands and the wooden culinary (they gave us proper metal ones after that) the amount of fat that poured from the burger was a bit of a concern when I gave it a squeeze but overall tasty. Now back to the grease proof paper due to having to use metal knife and forks we didn't notice till the end we'd also eaten some of the grease proof paper............ (Well at least it will come out wrapped) So all in all it was a disappointment when you're expecting roast beef and you get another generic burger and chips (even though it was nice) it's sad state of affairs for pubs in general that they are having to ditch the pub classics because of rising costs of staff, energy costs and ingredients. In the end it's a lovely pub with friendly staff but I'd just go there for a drink

Simple Burger menu but they do it well.. just the one real ale on when visited but I believe they normally have more .. live music and friendly atmosphere.. Manageress and staff were lovely ...

A great dog friendly venue with really good food and a fine selection of beverages. Always very friendly and accommodating.

Lovely Sunday roast, best we've had for ages. Highly recommend

Great place with great staff. Food was excellent, so good we are going back again.

Called in, just for a drink, because they were dog friendly but realised they also did food so asked for the menu. Due to it being Easter Sunday, they were only serving food to those that had booked. We totally accepted that and told the waitress that we'd only called in for a drink. She was very apologetic but came back a short time later and said, if we were prepared to wait, they'd fit our food order in. The food was excellent and well worth the wait. The staff were also brilliant. Would highly recommend 👌

Nice atmosphere and friendly locals

Didn't have any food 😕 great place good atmosphere very nice bar maid maid.

15.25 for a pint of bitter and a coors . Expensive.

We had our wedding reception here in the function room and honestly cannot fault a single thing. Jemma was a pleasure to work with and nothing was too much trouble. The function room is completely private with its own bar and toilets (newly added) and includes the garden if requested. It's fully enclosed and the kids were free to run around and keep themselves amused. The buffet food was lovely and there was plenty of it. The log burner in the room, with patio heater and blankets in the garden were perfect given it was February. Would highly recommend the bear and Bells for any events, and the price was very reasonable (not inflated at the mention of it being a wedding). Thank you Jemma and your whole team, you were all amazing

Friendly people, food was only mediocre. Disappointed really. Much of the food was obviously previously frozen and just cooked to order.

Lovely lunch with my son. Friendly staff and good food. Would recommend.

Friendly pub. Love dogs. Food is always good.

I went in for drinks. The beer was good and the staff were brilliant. I wasn't so keen on the decor, but I went in for the beer not the looks of the place so all is good

First time visit and will be coming back. Brought my mum in and she had a walker but everyone was very helpful!!!

Excellent food, polite cheery staff definitely eat here again.

Great place to go to for a pint or two.

I can't give 6 stars, but if I could I would. The Bear and Bells is a perfect place to spend a pre-christmas afternoon, us 2 old guys had a fabulous time! A lovely log burner to sit next to, perfectly cooked steak and friendly staff happy to go along with our "dad jokes".

We had an amazing family meal. Brisket was tender with a beautiful sauce, fish pie wasn't on the menu but we had heard the chef's fish pie is to die for so cheekily ask for it and it could be made as the ingredients were there. Absolutely to die for. Thank you for going above and beyond for us. The place to eat 😋 👌 🙌

Great Xmas work meal. Beautiful food and friendly staff

Lovely bar staff thanks becca so friendly

Staff Christmas meal, superb service, lovely food, could not fault. Thanks team for a lovely evening

Totally recommend . Its a lovely place to spend time 🥳🥳

Wow, wow wow, first class meal, Beef Brisket ooh la la!!!!! Wonderful staff, so helpful and friendly, see you again soon Becky.

Good choice of food to go with your drinks!

Popped in for a quick drick during the floods, it was nice and warm and friendly atmosphere and plenty of tables to relax while it rained outside :(

29th Oct. Just had roast beef Sunday lunch which was excellent. Probably best I have eaten in a Pub. Highly recommend.

Cracking pub in super location. Very friendly service. Beer very good on the day. Give it a try.

First visit- great atmosphere - very friendly. Great singer. Back on the 4th of November. We'll be there.

The chief was off but thay bent over to accommodate my needs

Stopped for lunch. Lovely food, reasonable price. Service was good, waitress was friendly and helpful. Nice relaxed envirinment wuth pleasent decor.

Dog friendly pub in middle of town. Good selection of beers along with sensible pub grub menu. Beer garden is quiet and secluded. Very friendly locals. Comedy nights once a month, quiz on Wednesdays and live music on Friday. Worth the walk from the yacht station if you’re on holiday. The home made beef lasalgne was wonderful

Met some friends here for lunch, never been here before, good service and large portions, will certainly return when in area again and highly recommend the food.

Good food, loved the Cumberland Sausage.

Lovely relaxing experience - excellent

Great place for a drink and bite to eat, one of best pubs in Suffolk. Nice beer garden. Worth the travel

Friendly and helpful. Big screen sports.

Lovely pub. Very friendly and efficient staff and very good food

Ate before comedy night which was fantastic entertainment

Good food but a 40 minute wait at lunchtime for our food ? Not so good . Would have been nice you've been told about the long wait before ordering or during waiting . Nice dog friendly place though

Very limited menu, quite dark sitting inside. Wouldn’t go again.

I can highly recommend the beef Sunday dinner. The beef was good quality and cooked to perfection. The Yorkshire puddings were homemade and served with a good selection of vegetables. 👍

My two friends and I had a meal here yesterday and every single part of our experience was perfect. Our drinks were flawlessly served by some wonderfully friendly bartenders. There was a great range to choose from. Our meals were simply wonderful and clearly cooked by somebody who cares about their craft. The main menu had some lovely items and the specials board was so hard to choose from as everything on it was tempting. The back beer garden was charming. I could not fault anything, literally nothing. I urge you to visit this place; you can thank me later!

Lovely pub with good food. Outside seating area and dogs are welcome.

Love the place..proper nice pub& real ale...food menu good..

Loved it friendly and welcoming . Great food

The award for the worst pub goes to the Bear and Bells, felt unwelcome from the first foot in the door, didn't say anything as we walked in, didn't want to serve drinks and when asked for the food menu was told they were too busy, Best you take the sign in from the front advertising food and specials, there was only 8 others in the pub, got your message. Don't say you have or will fix because reading the other reviews you say you will months ago, won't be spending my money where its not wanted.

Lovely location to stop and have some food, great menu and lovely atmosphere. The inside is really cosy.

Great local pub. Clearly very much enjoyed by the local community. People in there all seemed to know each other and the staff. 4 of us had dinner there and the food and service was great. I had the gammon on the specials board and it came with a proper slice of pineapple, not from a tin. Very tasty. Only downside was they had no eggs for the gammon. Wouldn't have been difficult for them to pop 3 mins walk away to the co-op to get some eggs if they've run out. But otherwise great. Accommodated our friends dog happily also. Thanks!

Great pub, friendly staff , great atmosphere.

Just went in for drinks. Menu looked good though. Nice atmosphere, good well kept 🍺

A mixed story. My meal was brilliant - best version of what I ordered I've had for a long while and definitely worth the money. My wife's meal was less good - she ordered the steak and found it wasn't particularly good - quite tough and chewy. She left most of it. This was a long awaited night out and about and experience left us feeling a little underwhelmed. Staff came to our table to ask about how the food was so plenty of opportunities to say but my wife didn't want to make a fuss. Aside from that, little touches weren't there like providing a steak knife, offering sauces and providing water when there are glasses for water. Little things like that make the experience and add those special touches. It feels like the idea of what they're trying to do is brilliant but the implementation isn't quite there just yet.

Lovely food and very friendly staff.

Went there today and had a good pint of Nelson's bitter

Friendly staff good selection beers ,wines and spirits. Good courtyard garden and plenty of seating at the front . Dog friendly

Would definitely go again, staff very obliging

This was a real gem of a pub to find which allowed dogs in the pub! The food was good too, great value with the specials. 👍

Fabulous food,great service.Two of us had the belly pork and both agreed it was the best we'd ever had.Thank you

Fabulous lunch, best pub lunch i have had for a long time

I had a fantastic meal here this week. The staff were friendly and helpful. I asked for gluten free and the sea bass was delicious. Well cooked and beautifully presented.

Lovely beer garden. Staff very friendly

Nice pub, great outdoor seating overlooking the square. Friendly staff, dog friendly.

Great food and lovely place for family to eat when on a boating holiday.

Food was absolutely superb 10/10 - waited quite a while but that's because its cooked fresh and it was definitely worth the wait.

We had lunch here and it was very acceptable. Home made with good ingredients. We have also had a drink here in the evening but the experience was not so great. Poor customer service and those behind the bar didn’t seem to know if they were staff or customers!

Lovely, friendly pub with amazing food. Great value for money. Staff were lovely and very accommodating. Highly recommend and if we lived here this pub would be a firm favourite.

Looks like a nice little pub, unfortunately the til system was not working correctly so our 4 sandwiches took about an hour to come out. We were not made aware there was an issue until the food came out. Service was good and staff very friendly.

Wonderful Lamb & Braised Pork Roast 👌

Great pub with good choice of food & drink, just bare in mind they don't serve food after 5pm on Sundays, as we went there as Google said they did till 7pm but it was wrong..! :-/

Just had a roast. Family really enjoyed it, absolutely spit on. I would like to see a slightly larger whiskey selection but other then that everything was great. Thank you

Definitely worth it. Nice atmosphere and friendly efficient service. Went in there with two toddlers and staff were very accommodating towards them. Ordered pie, mash and peas which was £14 but was a decent quantity and very good, so worth the price.

My feed was nice . Small portion and over prices otherwise good meal

Always a friendly welcome from Trudy & her staff. Good food and dog friendly too.

If you wish to close earlier then don't say you're open until 10pm. A nice place and nice staff but cleaning and closing the bar down 45 minutes before your close time will get you what you want.

Very friendly pub, with a fantastic comedy night

Wonderful service and the food was served fresh and hot

Absolutely beautiful meal highly recommend, lovely atmosphere great service Will definitely be visiting again soon ☺

Big party so bit chaotic but service was good staff very helpful and happy to help out recommend

Very highly recommended. Had my daughters 16th in the function room and they provided a brilliant buffet. Staff were very friendly and lovely. Will definitely go there again

Went to the comedy night absolutely brilliant- lovely pub great hosts - friendly welcoming atmosphere.

Really cold and kept my coat on. Poor choice for lunchtime menu. Food average. Pleasant barmaid.

If you are ever anywhere near Beccles, make a detour for a couple of hours. Very welcoming and reasonable priced too

Nice and friendly staff. Decent selection of beer. But somehow lacked the charm of a small town pub that you’d expect. Definitely worth a visit however!