Bowyer Arms in Vale of White Horse

Came with family for food highly disappointed manager walked past and didn't acknowledged us food was awful needs sorting soon won't be back in a hurry

One of our local pubs. Descended on them with three boisterous children. Pub decorated for Hallowe’en. Well done for having a table of activities for the children. The food came promptly and nice and hot. The children like running around garden in the dark and the trains. It’s always known by us as the train pub. They felt sad the climbing frame is gone but that seems to be the way these days

Booked a table for 6.30pm today Sunday. Arrived to be told no food left only a burger or pizza both unhealthy options. Why did they take our booking if there was a possibility of no food. Disgusted and walked out. Had to then get bus into Abingdon to get something to eat.should be on website if not doing food Sunday evening

Very accessible pub. located right next to Radley Station and on the regular 35 bus service between Oxford and Abingdon. There is a small garden to the rear where you can sit and watch the trains go by. Internally, the place has been heavily modernised, far too much for my liking, meaning there is very little traditional pub atmosphere left. There is an extensive food menu with something for everyone, but it's all straightforward stuff; you're not going to find anything particularly interesting on the menu and, as far as I could see, there is no specials board. Upon arrival we were advised there would be a 30-40 minute wait for food, and that turned out to be the case. It's good that they, at least, try to manage expectations but we all ordered fairly simple dishes which other pubs would deliver in half that time. They seem to be very understaffed - there appeared to be just a single person running the bar and servicing all the tables. To be fair, she was making a pretty decent job of it, but could certainly do with another pair of hands. I suspect the kitchen was equally understaffed. The food, when it arrived, was very good and reasonably priced. I ordered the Salmon & Cheddar Fishcakes (£13.79) and they were exceptionally good fishcakes, well prepared, and containing decent pieces of salmon (not just a load of mush like you get in some places), served with very good chips and a salad. Ales seem to come exclusively from the Greene King portfolio.

All I can say it absolutely worst meal I ever had food was warm a hair in gravy boat food was like it had all been reheated many times staff where basically useless never again would we eat there.

Visited today for lunch. Ordered sandwich and ha Coker potato at 14.05pm. Arrived at 14.55. Chased at 14.40 and after check with kitchen was told it would be 2 minutes. Food was ok. Just need to advise of food wait time when ordering and then advise of correct time to wait if chased up. Be honest and keep us advised and this would eliminate some of the bad reviews. If we are told an hour at start we have the choice of not ordering.

We went for lunch on a Friday - five seniors and a child. It was DREADFUL, most disappointing for this group of old Radley-ians. Three of our party ordered from the senior menu, two from the main menu, and the child chose to just have a sandwich. That turned out to be the best decision any of us made that day. One of our party ordered a sharing starter, which came quite quickly and seemed fine. We then waited almost an hour for our mains: one was a lasagne which was burnt beyond all recognition, to the point that you wonder how the chef even allowed it to leave the kitchen; two of us had fish and chips from the Seniors Menu, which was just brown battered fish, not the golden batter you see in a chip shop, no more than half a dozen chips and rock hard mushy peas, which were inedible. The fourth member had ordered mac & cheese, which arrived looking like a side dish, rather than a main, being only half full. Our fifth member's main was nowhere to be seen, even after the sandwich was delivered. When we brought the incinerated lasagne and missing main to the attention of a member of staff, they reluctantly offered to put through a new lasagne and cook the missing dish. However, having already waited for more than hour, we declined this offer and so two of our party had no main course at all. We decided to try the chocolate brownie for the second course of the meal deal, only to be told that the only dessert they had was ice cream. We eventually left at 3 p.m., disgusted, disappointed and deciding not to return. It would be a shame if the pub were to close, but if this and the kinds of service mentioned in other reviews persist, it's hard to see how it can continue. It sounds like the managers are the wrong people in the wrong place. It appears that they are trying to turn this much-loved village pub into a sports bar. to attract a younger crowd more willing to spend money on beer but far less likely to eat out. Ths would be a grave mistake, and a loss to the village should the pub fail.

A lovely trip out for the afternoon with children and partner. The children loved the bouncy castle, games that were provided, and found a little library and chose to get a book to read. They also loved the trains that went past that stopped them in their tracks to watch them zoom past. My partner enjoyed watching the football in the sunshine while I enjoyed the surrounds and watching the children running around and making friends while we were there. A lovely big open space garden with sheltered seating, heaters and tv or seating further in to the garden with umbrellas. When it came to ordering our meals we chose to seat inside. Personal choice. Bar staff were polite and friendly. The bar staff made sure of any allergies in my party when taking the orders. (I had a dairy allergy within the party). We were advices that it could be up to an hour for the food to be served. Which was a fair estimate given the timing and how busy it was. We ordered the starts for two along will Katsu prawn, halloumi fries and the crispy Korean cauliflower, Mac and cheese with garlic bread x2, A hot honey chicken burger, a children’s chicken nugget meal with chips and veg sticks. It was all cooked perfectly. And the dairy free meal was brought out separately. Once the meals were done with we ordered the children’s chocolate brownie and ice-cream x3, a children’s fruit cocktail and a scoop of dairy free vanilla ice-cream. The bar staff requested at my request that the fruit and dairy free ice-cream came together. Over all we all had an enjoyable pleasant experience from the moment we walked in to leaving. And just a huge Well done on the dairy free options. A huge surprise to see as it is not often, that my dairy free child has so much choice.

Great refurbished pub lovely choice of drinks food looks good but OMG customer service is shocking Blond lady with glasses is clearly in the wrong job No greeting as new customer No interaction No smile No personality Don’t think we will be going there again

As it has been since moving to Radley, the service and general attitude towards customers was terrible. They have given the pub a nice makeover but the staff are the ones who need to change. They have removed the playground which is now preventing us from going. It has brought all the children into the pub itself and they are clearly bored! They have a big chance to keep regular customers with a busy village and lots of staff from the school but they are consistently being rude and unwelcoming.

Food was very good and hot, it was good value for money and there was plenty to choose on the menu, something for food groups to he staff was friendly and efficient

My husband and I went with my Assistance Dog last night, for a meal. The member of staff I spoke to at the time of booking was very helpful and accommodating. The food was lovely and the service was great! The staff were very friendly and helpful. Thank you so much! 😊

On this particular visit I couldn’t fault the food and service , had a brilliant dinner with friends and was not disappointed

Had a lovely evening, the food was hot and tasty, had a good specials menu- loved the biscuit inspired desserts! friendly staff.

This is our local pub and we were interested in their festive Christmas menu. We were not let down. The turkey was plentiful, surrounded by an array of veg - the parsnips were really tasty and the Yorkshire pudding was excellent. For dessert we had the Christmas pudding, which was very moist. All in all a great meal at a good price. Well done to all the team.

Unwelcoming, poor food when i told staff that half of my meal was inedible they didn't give me any response!! Another Greenking venue to add to my list of places not to frequent again!!

Had a lovely Xmas dinner for 13 people. All the food was delicious, though some of it could have been a little hotter - but to be expected with a big group. Really nice atmosphere, not too overwhelmed with corny Christmas music, and table not jammed in so close that you couldn't be sure who was your group and who wasn't. Service was good, given the number of us, and no rush to kick us out for another sitting afterwards. Would def choose again for the same group next year.

Been taking family to Bowyers for some time now. Food always been lovely and value for money. SADLY over the last 6 months it's been a different story. A lot of the food is over cooked to the point where you can't eat it eg my daughter couldn't even cut up her chicken nuggets they were so hard from being over cooked. My fish was pretty much the same. Chips again over cooked. Burger was very burnt. The last time we went there was us in there and another couple, that was it. The other couple walked out after demanding a refund as food was taking so long. We stayed as had gone past the point of no return so to speak. Bearing in mind ours was the only food order in, it took 55 minutes for our food to come out. We only ordered 3 mains. There was 4 other people at the bar but they were just drinking. What has happened to this lovely pub. The only positive was the staff were as lovely as ever. Always very polite and smiley and friendly.

We visited the Bowyers Arms on Saturday Lunchtime and had a very nice meal in relaxed surroundings. There were 4 of us and we each ordered something different from the main menu. Each of us were very impressed with the food quality and very decent portion sizes. Personally I had the Beef Bourguignon which was delicious and full of well cooked beef. There was a good selection of deserts and once again we all said how nice they were. Will certainly be going back and have booked for the 14th December for a Christmas get together. A mention to the staff who were very friendly and helpful. Another thing I liked was they came to the table and took our order rather than going up to the bar.

We were looking forward to a nice lunch. When my husbands arrived, chicken and ham pie, it looked lovely. Mine arrived looking very dirty, Gammon and chips. The gammon was black on both sides, the pineapple was unrecognisable, both very burnt. The waitress didn’t come anywhere near us for us to complain. It was only after we’d finished she asked if the meal was okay. Clearly it wasn’t by the burnt gammon and pineapple left on my plate. We were offered a free pudding or a refund. We accepted a refund.

Went for a pub lunch around 2pm on a Monday in November 2023. The venue was clean tidy and welcoming. The staff we encountered were all friendly. My wife ordered what was described as an award winning pie. Not sure what award it won, but the pastry was rather tough and she described it as average. I ordered a sirloin steak, medium rare. It came out exactly as I'd requested, and was very nice. Pub was virtually empty at the time we were there. Would visit pub again, but infrequently. The beer was well kept and we enjoyed it.

Excellent Sunday Roast! This pub has been so inconsistent over the last few years and has been more bad than good but I can safely say that todays food, service, atmosphere & cleanliness were top notch! I sincerely hope that this is the way forward for this Village pub. Charlotte the manager is clearly starting to work some magic! The Roast was exceptional! Roast potatoes home made, as were the Yorkshires and fresh veg! Meat cooked to our liking and I am fussy let me tell you ! The roast was as good as a Home Roast in my opinion! The staff were very friendly & attentive. For dessert we shared an Apple crumble & Custard which again was delicious! We look forward to visiting our local again with high hopes!

Large pub with friendly staff. Was busy for a Tuesday night which is a good sign. Plenty of parking and food was great. Will definitely come back again.

We had a lovely meal here with friends thanks to the great staff who were excellent serving us Emily Callum Tom and Jude although some menu changes did not suit our fellow diners that is down to Greene King Otherwise brilliant Thank you.

Very nice and happy hospitality would recommend to anyone who fancies a few drinks and food. Workers are very nice and customers are also very polite.

Came in for a quick family dinner the three us enjoyed every bit of it. I had a massive fish and chips, the missis had a pie and daughter had chicken nuggets. All were cooked perfectly and brought out by a very friendly and nice man. 10 out of 10

Popped in on a whim with the family and were pleasantly surprised. A busy Friday night and only 2 people working. They managed to make it seem effortless. Friendly welcome, prompt service (at the table) and a great meal all round. We’ll definitely be returning!

Charlotte & team always make us feel welcome and it’s a great place to catch up with friends and watch all the sport. Great service and friendly bar staff.

I can't recommend this pub enough, staff are lovely annd very helpful and food is always brilliant! We go very often and always satisfied with everything

Had a lovely meal today 17th. Served by Kevin, he advised us that due to an unexpected brewery inspection there was a 30 - 45 mins delay on food. Kept informed during that time and it arrived about 40 mins. Chicken Schnitzel and Lamb Shank followed by mini Eaton Mess and Coffee. Meal was nice and hot and service very good by friendly staff. We had a lovely time.

Poor atmosphere on arrival. long wait for the prawns I ordered to come raw returned the food with no real sympathy. Waiting for the tape warm or food poisoning.

My wife her friend and myself, have just had a wonderful meal at The Bowyers Arms in Radley village. We have eaten here before and always enjoyed it. However this time the staff went over and above the call of duty! New staff and I believe new management after a few weeks of temps running the pub, has made a big difference. Everyone who served us was helpful, friendly, and cheerful. A new menu with dishes not usually found in this type of pub surprised us and we eagerly consumed them. (Salmon and Vintage Cheddar Fishcakes, †Beef Rib Bourguignon) and my normal (boring me according to my wife) gammon steak was the best I have had in any pub in the area for ages. Excellent food, service, and choice. Super staff. Good value with plenty of parking. , Highly recommend As Arnie would say – hasta la vista, baby.

The service was excellent and the staff were very nice, I could not fault it. The fish and chips was the best I have ever had. We come here often and have noticed a great difference in the food and service compared to the beginning...

Went for a lovely meal while waiting for the train. The food came quick and it was absolutely amazing I would highly recommend Charlotte the land lady is very nice and staff are all friendly and helpful

Despite some negative reviews my friends and I came here for dinner, albeit without booking. It was busy, but we found a table with some help from the staff. There was a wait on food which we expected but this was relayed to us as...

We are a retired couple in our 70’s and we come her regularly for lunch so on our 49th wedding anniversary on aug bank holiday we called in around 3pm.we ordered our drinks and the lady said the chef was on lunch so we left...

Friday lunchtime, busy, and we were a party of 8. We had pre-booked our food order on the advice of the staff. The food came was ready on time and everyone was served at the same time. The Bowyers do great pub food. The staff...

On a glorious sunny evening we set off for a pub garden treat. The staff were very friendly and welcoming. The garden is well maintained and some nice things for small children to entertain them. The added bonus this has a train station at the...

I’ve been to this pub a fair few times and used to be great. However today I took my dad here for lunch and we waited an hour for 2 toasties, ignored by a staff member when we asked where the food was. When food...

We came here for dinner with one of our grandchildren after having an afternoon out . We found garden area and pub inside were both clean and all the staff helpful and friendly plus all our meals were nice our grandson like the mix and...

Sad to write a negative review, we had lovely senior Sunday lunch 3 months ago, had returned last month, very disappointing, senior meal was cold, veg not cooked, but wanted to try again today, but not at all good, 5 of us, 3 had to...

I came here before and it was an absolutely beautiful Sunday dinner, but I had come today and it was the complete opposite. My potato's were solid. Yorkshire and Stuffing was over cooked. Veggies wernt cooked properly. All the food was luke warm expect the...

Here i am again enjoying a lovely set up 👍 at the Bowyers Arms in Radley, plus the lovely weather still got lovely staff even though they are new staff because Alex the manager has moved to another Green King in Abingdon let's hope he...

Great night with friendly staff to hand to keep the drinks flowing, excellent evening and food great dog friendly place and dogs well looked after

Very disappointed! We visited on recommendation of a family member. However our visit did not live up to our expectations. The food service was very slow even though it was not too busy. When the food finally arrived it was dry and over cooked. On...

Warm welcome on arrival, very friendly, great service, good choice of beers.lovely beer garden.nice staff👍

Yes I'm here again enjoying a drink in the beer garden under cover with the heating on watching the rain come down and doing videos and photos of the rain, so come on everybody come down and enjoy the lovely food and drinks and plus...

I have been there many times and had good night's out watching live music and enjoying a meal with friends. The bar staff have all ways been friendly to all.

Another lovely evening- and in a rare treat we actually got in on a Friday night without booking! The food is fabulous and as someone with allergies & intolerances not in the official 14 they are brilliant at adapting my meals. They are also understanding...

Lovely friendly staff Good food and atmosphere Looking forward to another Friday drink and some food :)

Food was good my wife is disabled and the were very accommodating also after the meal a friend had brought a cake which they sliced and gave us plates at no extra cost very nice afternoon bar staff were very friendly and helpful

I am Had an amazing time for Monday lunch. Came with the family to have some lovely toesties and sandwiches which was on a great deal with a drink. Served by lovely GM who catered to use all the way through and helped us out...

Called in for lunch at around 1.30pm pub was fairly empty, no more than a dozen or so at first the sign said 30 minute for food which we thought wasn't to bad so we ordered drinks and sat down to look at the menu....

Busy night with a bit of a wait but the steaks were perfectly cook and well presented. Nice to see Marcus back behind the bar and the rest of the staff were welcoming and efficient Lovely to see the pub busy too

Had one of the sharers from their large menu and came out in good time tasty and hot, great selection of beers to match with the food, something for everyone. Top notch service from Callum,Rebecca and the team

Came for lunch and although we had a few issues with our food. The man (I assume the manager) was incredible at helping fix anything we needed. We will come back again for sure.

Always love it here. Come in for the evening to have some dinner! 2 classics for 12.99 is always bargain. Food was great as usual and service from manager is always on point. This is my go to place for food and drinks and always...

Don’t ask for chicken.despite being on the menu they don’t have any. Toasted sandwich filling was cold, found it inedible and cammonbare was luke warm. We waited half an hour for this and paid £37 for the privilege Felt sorry for the young man behind...

We had a very pleasant meal at this welcoming pub/ restaurant on the above date and we had excellent service and attention from staff on duty that evening. Our grateful thanks to Rebecca Emily and Marcus top marks to them and all who help at...

Located by the village's railway station this pub has a friendly atmosphere and highly efficient service. It took no time to get a drink and enjoy it in a pleasant environment without having to worry about when the train would arrive. The perfect way to...

Christmas dinner with work colleagues. Booking was really simple. This is the third year we’ve visited and we were not disappointed. Really well looked after despite staff shortages. Food was good and order quite an achievement to serve us as a party of 25 and...

Very disappointing 3 course Christmas meal. Starter and pudding good but the main meal was not ok. Very hard vegetables, carrots, parsnips and roast potatoes were so hard the fork wouldn’t go in. The Yorkshire pudding was not cooked, the middle was raw. Turkey, gravy...

We found this pub so excellent that we're going to book again. The catering was excellent, the choices were so delicious it was hard not to overeat (I wanted a bit of everything), and to top it up they brought in an amazing array of...

Lovely atmosphere and food. Perfect for a nice relaxing meal with family. Staff always polite and welcoming. Highly recommend

Had a great weekend at Bowyers with friends we really enjoyed ourselfs and the service from the staff was fornominal! Thanks to manager aslo helping us out with the menu and drinks. What a lovely establishment. Will definitely be back next weekend with more friends...

The pub is excellent and good for the family and kids, excellent food, excellent quality and excellent service and staff

Excellent service and great food this evening for a family get together. A warm and welcoming place to eat. Very much enjoyed by all of us.

Just had a 50th birthday party here and it was great! Staff went out of their way to make it good , especially Tom, who made the whole thing still happen, after the Queens death. Lovely food, service, decor and atmosphere. We come here often...

The staff are very friendly especially Beckiy who likes to av a chat and still remembers what drinks we have and how we have them plus Alex dose aswell

Popped in for a meal on Wednesday evening on way back from Oxford. I'm sorry that we did. Only 2 staff on,it very busy. Took an hour to receive our cold to lukewarm meals. Sent the baked camembert back and got a refund. It was...

Staying in Radley we visited this pub a couple of times. Only one member of staff apparent (I totally accept that getting staff in the hospitality industry is difficult). I collected all the abandoned glasses from the outside tables & popped them on a table...

We booked a table for 25 people for a birthday and the service we had was absolutely amazing. The staff went out of their way and nothing was too much trouble. There was also live music in the evening at the pub which they have...

Had a lovely time at the bowyers this evening. Great food and reasonably priced drinks. Special mention to Alex who looked after us today.

Love coming here after a long walk and always get a warm welcome. Excellent food and fantastic couple running it. My favourite place to come when on my own as never feel uncomfortable.

Lovely evening catching up with a friend. Welcoming with good food, at very reasonable prices and good service. We'll certainly be back.

Had a great time yesterday at Bowyers Arms with a group of friends! Even with the bad weather we all had a great time having food and drinks. The staff were amazing and the duty manager on shift was super helpful with recommending items from...

The meal was delicious and the staff were very friendly and helpful. I would definitely recommend to family and friends.

We were at the Bowyers Arms on Tuesday 7th June. We had a great meal, the Camembert starter was so nice 😊 but everyone had a great meal and we even managed all 3 courses. Service was great and a big thank you to Tom...

Great get together for my great neices 6th birthday. Food very good. Great service from Tom who looked after us.

We came for dinner Friday. Sat outside as restaurant was booked up but that was ok as it was warm & sunny. Had a lovely dinner although food wasn’t piping hot. Tom really went out his way! Thank you x

Just had a lovely Sunday Lunch. Service was friendly and attentive from Rebecca. Food wash hot, fresh and a real plateful. Would not hesitate to come again.

Very nice atmosphere and garden and great recommendation of beer from The duty manager Ordered from the menu food was well presented and very tasty

Came in for a quick meal and had a Southen Fried Burger. Came out quickly and the staff made sure everything was OK. Staff were friendly and chatty.

Great village pub with quick service and friendly staff, great to outside on a sunny day with a pint

Went to the bowyers arms for my 22nd birthday enjoyed the evening with friendly staff and had a lovely meal and enjoyed the even activity Andy had on. Alex who served me was polite and cheerful. Wonderful night highly recommend

Decided to go to the Bowyers Arms as we were near for dinner we wereng let down, friendly warm welcome, helpful staff. Food came out in a timely manner and well presented, tasted as good as it looked.

Had a family meal and I was very impressed with my order. The staff were really friendly and answered my questions in a polite manner. I ordered the gammon steak and asked if I could have the pineapple fresh and they were very accommodating and...

We found this place on the off chance, on a busy day with my family, the service was fab and accommodating especially from a bloke called Alex?? and the food was hot and nicely cooked, out of 6 meals ordered absolutely no complaints. Will be...

Recently had a very good meal with friends, good meal followed by deserts. Then ordered 2 Martini Espressos on offer for 2 for £8…. Also ordered a latte and a Irish whiskey coffee… price for the drinks was £16.50…. Bit steep I thought!!! £4.00 for...

Went out for the day with friends and the kids had great time in Bowyers arms really enjoyed it! The kids loved the outside garden to! And the kids meals are great price with desserts and drink. And the 2 classics for 11.49 was great...

The Bowyers Arm used to be a local pub that invited people to the pub with a warm welcome with a family atmosphere , the pub today has taken out sky sports that attracted local people to come and watch a game as a community...

What a great place!!! Andy and Elaine were so accommodating with our requests, we weren't the easiest of customers I'm sure!!! The team were so friendly too! All round amazing service! Will return!!!

Just visited the bowyer in Radley and can't believe how rude the landlords were. First we got there and there were no tables so was told we could wait in the garden cos the landlady didn't want us "in the way of the till" then...

Fantastic night music was great, the atmosphere was fantastic, the staff were friendly, helpful and remembered our round to the very last drink. The pub was clean and well presented, decorated to a high standard. A pub that our group and as couples will be...

We had our parents 25th wedding anniversary meal great service freindly atmosphere, food was great nothing was to much trouble. When family left we stayed and continued to have a drink again the staff were helpful and polite, got to a stage they said the...

Can't thank these guys enough always helpful and polite recommended strongly. Always felt welcome...,

First time visit to the Bowyer Arms today. It is a smart looking pub with good parking and convenient for local towns etc. A warm welcomes you and interior decor & seating is very nice. Tables well spaced apart and cleaned immediately when vacated. This...

We had a fabulous NYE celebration there with scrumptious pub food, good selection of beers, wines and spirits that we always enjoy having there. Tables layout are done per covid safe measure and we felt very safe to enjoy our time there from 630pm till...

Lunch there today. First visit. I highly recommend The Chef’s Signature Dish - ‘Grilled pineapple and chilli chicken thighs’……absolutely delicious. Tender chicken, ..just the right amount of chilli…crisp sweet potato chips….broccoli cooked to perfection, All served hot by very attentive, even though busy, staff. Try...

Second visit in recent times, (last Friday to be exact) & it really is very, very good. Something has changed from previous visits before Covid & the change is extremely positive!! I was pleasantly surprised last visit with a tasty chicken dish, the curry I...