Essex Arms Pub in Watford

Food took 1.5hrs to come out mains came first was told our starter was defrosting which was weird…

Shocking place, won't be returning - cold food, poor service. We weren't told the kitchen was closing at 7pm, our table was booked for 6:30pm, so we had to order starters/mains and pudding all at once. It was freezing cold. They lost the key for the disabled toilet. It was shocking!! We spent over £226 there, what a load of crap not worth £20!! PLEASE READ THIS and DONT GO THERE.

Waited over 1hr for food in a near empty pub. Sent food back, could have broken a window with the overcooked sausages... Toilet urinals leaking to the point only one urinal could be used, mop and bucket left obstructing the other usable urinal. Lack of customers speaks volumes.

Lovely pub in great location. Good food but absolutely disastrous service. We waited an hour and a half for our food and got told it was because other people ordered at the same time as us?! Not our problem mate. What a joke.

Hello. I live in Watford , and we have been in Essex Arms many times. But never again because it was dissponinting . First, We asked for another table as the one that was giver was exactly needed. The kitchen and the table near was full of kitchen cutlery. Like we were in the kitchen After asking polite the the staff(girl) she did find one but she was very annoyed and even if I said thank you for a hundred times she still didn't know to smile. The food was good, but at the bar, it was very hard to get a drink , we had to ask for a cocktail, and we received nothing as they threw them away. It was cold and we asked if the can start a fire but the gentlemen said No ,we don't have coles, even if it was a big bag near the fireplace so some of us stayed with a jacked on like the guys near or table. Honestly, the staff didn't really want to be there today. You can see that they don't want to be bothered. We'll we won't since we will never go here anymore.

We have been regular visitors to the Essex Arms in Watford for the last 10 months, we often visit before walking the dog, for a drink and some lunch either myself and husband or sometimes family as well, we have always been reasonably happy although sometimes the food was a little under par but usually ok. I was surprised when we visited today to be told by the bar staff that it was booking only today……surprised because we had seen no notices when we had visited a week earlier to this effect and there was nothing on the website, in fact the website states they always keep some tables free for walk ins…...ok its Boxing Day but it didn’t seem that busy, we decided to find somewhere else but I did check the website once outside only to find we could have booked a table and gone back in but by now I was a little miffed. We moved on and found another pub who were happy to fit us in and had great food and service……guess what, we now have a new regular haunt and will avoid the Essex Arms in future, clearly they don't value their regular customers who keep the money rolling in the rest of the year and not just at christmas. I find it strange that pubs will turn away the people who keep them going the whole year round to make a few pounds at Christmas……doesn’t make good business sense no wonder loads of them can’t make ends meet.

We were a party of 11 and had booked for a mid week festive lunch. The staff and manager could not have been nicer very accommodating and helpful both before hand and on the day. The food was very good, service perfect and all at an incredibly reasonable price. A great start to the festive season. Many Thanks Everyone and have a great Christmas

Review Title: Welcome to the Smelly Arms – Where Hospitality Goes to Die Ah, the Essex Arms, or as I’ve affectionately renamed it, The Smelly Arms. Don’t let the charming ambience and ideal location fool you—this pub is a fever dream wrapped in stale sweat and existential despair. Let’s start with the staff. You know those people who look like they just learned about happiness from a textbook but gave up halfway through? That’s them. Misery oozes from behind the bar faster than the flat lager they serve. It’s almost impressive. You want a smile? Bring one yourself, because none are available here. And then there’s the manager—the crown jewel of this circus. This gentleman (using the term loosely) seems to be juggling a few challenges: a foul mood, anger issues, and a wardrobe that hasn’t met a washing machine since the Stone Age. If grumpiness were a sport, he’d have Olympic gold. Asking for a pint feels like you’ve insulted his entire lineage. I’d suggest he shower, but I suspect his skin might reject the concept of cleanliness altogether. The owners? Oh, they’re running this place like they’ve got one foot in the pub and the other foot in liquidation. Every creak of the barstool whispers, “Why am I still here?” It’s as if they’re looking for an excuse to close the doors permanently—but not before squeezing out the last ounce of joy from their customers. On the bright side, the ambience and location are lovely! It’s the kind of place you’d love to spend hours in… if you were deaf, blind, and had no sense of smell. In summary, the Smelly Arms is an experience. A feverish, chaotic, comedy of errors. Come for the location, stay for the stories—because you’ll leave with plenty to tell (and possibly a lungful of damp pub air). 1/5 stars—would visit again, but only to confirm it wasn’t a bad dream.

We stopped in for a Saturday lunchtime meal and were very pleasantly surprised. The bar was quite quiet, which worried us a little, but we were wrong to worry. The food was excellent and at a very reasonable price. I had the mixed grill, which was a very big eat. The steak was without doubt one of the best I have had - evenly cooked to perfection with no fat or gristle at all. And plenty of flavour. My only complaint was the mushrooms (done on the grill too?) were a over done, but it was so minor in comparison to everything done so right. Superb onion rings - not at all fatty, excellent sausages and grilled chicken, that wasn't dried out. Shame I missed out on trying the gammon, which wasn't available, but the alternative offered (an extra sausage) was good. I have no doubt it would have been excellent too. A pretty damn impressive chef was on duty that day. I can't understand why the place wasn't packed. Having to register your car to avoid a fine in the car park is irritating, but I guess that is because they have people park there who do not go into the pub.

So slow.We pushed the boat out because of a lengthy illness. Five of us had 2 full grills with extra steak. 1rainbow lasagna,and 2 children’s meals 1over 6 and 1under.1.30 is a good time for lunch? The place was nearly empty and few staff?. 2 mixed grills after we had paid we were told of no gammon. In at 13.15 for lunch empty one Scottish person behind the bar who struggled with our order. He couldn’t understand me/or me he. No itemised bill on payment so when it was adjusted we had no idea why was it the cook who brought the food out to the wrong guests. I had my son’s steak that was supposed to be medium and was extra well done. Mine should have been medium rare and he got what looked like medium. The bar person taking our order said childrens fruit shoots are included, they are extra. The childs under 6 meal did not have two sausages, but chipolatas. I would welcome a phone call.sauces were lovely.

Good pub that is right for the area it serves

Tried to order 2x Shepards pie only 1 avalable. Then tried to order 1x Hunters Chicken none avalable. Waited 40min for food. This was at 5:15pm and it wasn't busy. The saugages on the sausage and mash were burn't (black), didn't bother to complain at the time as I wanted to eat with the others I was with.

Had a pleasant meal. Very friendly staff. Visited when a jazz group was playing, good atmosphere

Food was great and great value for money. A pleasant afternoon

The app didn't work for our table (52), 80% of the food items were out of stock. Avoid!!

We arrived 2pm table booked for 7 people . Came to place order to be told at least half of the menu wasn't available. Staff were very pleasant. Waitress seemed a little embarrassed at the menu choice. No desserts available at all . Very sad as seems a lovely friendly pub.food that did come was ok . Such a shame

Great pub nice drink on the way back from the fireworks on Saturday. Saves sitting in traffic.

Lovely place to come and enjoy a meal. It’s in a good location for me. Food tasted good too.

Was warned at booking that the evening was expected to be busy, I appreciated this and allowed extra time. The pub is pleasant, the food service was slow, as expected, but was reasonably priced and OK. What was disappointing was when I came to order dessert, the server sighed, rolled his eyes and said he couldn't say when that might arrive. I asked if he'd prefer me not to place the order. He could tell I wasn't impressed. I would have left but my son really wanted dessert. With the exception of this interaction I would have had a pleasant enough evening but can't recommend and won't be returning here as I was made to feel a total inconvenience.

We needed to be in the area and my brother-in-law had recommended the Essex Arms so we gave a try. The greeting on arrival was friendly and genuine, all three staff members we interacted with the the same so we felt welcome and comfortable. The drink selection was excellent and the food was great, the atmosphere convivial so it was a shame we needed to leave because one of had to drive. It's not very local to us but we will visit again and because of this experience we decided to try another Ember Inn.

We arrived at The Essex Arms at around 8 pm and the two bar staff were aggressive from the get go. One of them pointed their finger in my face and told me my niece was under age although she was drinking Apple Juice. They then gave us dirty stares and were intimidating as we finished our drinks and were rude the next time I went to the bar to buy another drink. They said the bar was still open but not for us. I told them my niece wasn't drinking alcohol and we could go outside and drink in the front garden. Again, they smirked and said the bar is open and not for us. They were extremely rude, intimidating, aggressive and goading for trouble. It's a shame as it was a Saturday night, a celebratory drink for my niece and all the family were up but the bar staff completely ruined the atmosphere with their rudeness, intimidation and aggression. The bar man with the long grey hair put a finger in my face and was very threatening. No personality, no customer service and didn't care about the patrons. No wonder the pub was empty on a Saturday night when every other pub in Watford is heaving. Avoid the pub by all costs and don't let the staff intimidate and threaten you. 1 star out of 10. Horrible, threatening and unfriendly atmosphere mainly due to the two men behind the bar. They were arguing all night between themselves and also insulted other customers. Leave well alone and find a friendly pub where you are welcome.

I spent a whole day on the canals with my best friends in the world and the Essex arms ruined it with completely bang average blob grub. Location and vibe of the pub could be incredible if they stopped feeding absolute sewer cack on plates and charging £20 for it. The staff were hotties with nice botties. Simon sony erricson was a highlight. Oh and those nachos are hot cack

Received a £100 parking fine for parking in their car park! Outrageous. Nobody mentioned the need to pay for parking! Will it be going back

We walk across Cassiobury and love that The Essex Arms is dog friendly. Had another nice dinner here!

Lovely cosy place. Lots of nooks and open fires..perfect for this time of year. Very relaxing pub.

Great evening out lovely atmosphere.

Such a miserable experience!we were a group of 5 adults with kids, and we were literally kicked off from the but with the excuse of they had booked 2 birthdays already. However, people pop in to have drink with no booking. Looks like kids were not welcome. Sad.

Miserable experience, we were not allowed to stay because we had kids. The staff had all types of excuses to not letting us sit down but the pub was half empty. Horrible service.

Arrived just before six o’clock after watching football. Found a table snd ordered a drink from the bar which were very reasonable priced. Ordered food via my phone from the table which arrived within fifteen to teeny minutes. Cooked fresh and very tasty. Pleasant staff and waiting and behind the bar. The only criticism is that a few tables had not been cleared or set up with menus for next customers. Maybe a potman or woman should be employed for that particular job at very busy times… or the waiting staff should be more aware when tables become vacant and be pro active .. that’s down to training.

Thank you so much to the staff at The Essex Arms (I forgot to get names to personally thank) for an amazing visit yesterday! We brought my 94 year old grandad here for an early dinner and he was so excited to come. He thought after 20 years from his last visit, that the staff would remember him. So I called ahead and asked the staff if they could say they remember him. When we went in and they all made a massive fuss over my grandad. He had the biggest, beaming smile on his face, it made me tear up. Thank you so much for doing this! The food, service and atmosphere was excellent. We are hoping to make it a regular visit here. Thank you again!

Great Atmosphere- Friendly staff and delicious food. Great service and and excellent value for money. Portions are bigger than average and menu is simple making easier to order and eat there and then.

Food was excellent and great service would recommend 👍🏽

Amazing food and quick service for my family. Pet friendly and just friendly staff in general. Food was tasty and perfect temperature. Very accessible for my disabled father and very open to making things work around you and offering help if needed.

Great Sunday roast, portion size is value for money, service was quick and staff very polite. Would visit again.

What a great place to eat and meet friends music just right for chatting and some great offers to be had Thursday steak night discount on steak and wine and ale makes a nice mid week date night highly recommended see you soon

Excellent food and everything was perfect

Service any slower I’d be going backwards in time. Took over half hour to just clear the plates. Staff having to be asked for plates to be cleared isn’t a good sign of the service, especially when the place is relatively quiet on a Sunday lunchtime. Roast chicken was decent, gammon was tough. 6/10 for the food but the service has to be quicker.

Just moved into the area and this is my local. Lots going on for all the family. Quiz nights, live music, Halloween party and breakfast with Santa. Very nice and friendly atmosphere, with reasonable priced food and drinks. Looking forward to spending some time there.

Nice comfy place to sit and have a drink. Good atmosphere, friendly staff. Dropped in for lunch, food was nice. Will return to try the dinner menu.

Great pub good value great service from Ben

Excellent staff and service! A great pub. James Evans is particularly exemplary.

Food was tasty but service was slow. 30 mins at a quiet time. The really poor thing was the food actually arrived before the drink. Waiting 33 mins for a Pepsi is unacceptable.

Every Thursday, two steaks for seventeen pounds! 👍

Family favourite for celebrations, been countless times over the years. You can't go wrong with it!

Sted was amazing so was the food. Koftas are fantastic

Never seen anyone pour a pint like Billy does. What a wizard on that Guinness🙌🏻. Love u Bil🫶🏻

Nice little pub. Food is good and reasonably priced. Mixture of locals and people visiting the park. Nice atmosphere. At staff were friendly. Recommend if you want a spot of lunch or a pint

Good food, good people, good atmosphere. All what you'd want from a local pub.

Lovely friendly staff, good selection of drinks and wonderful food! It was a welcoming pub and very comfortable. Thanks

Landlady made us feel at home very polite and accommodating, all though only one barman running around serving food to the tables, Maybe more staff needed on a sunny Friday afternoon

Lovely little restaurant/pub food was lovely, took a little time to get to you but very delicious. The woo woo drinks was lush! Very hospitable.

Great places for real ales always great Monday and Thursday 2.49 pint great valve and with the app free pints on loyalty card great place to eat mmmmmm Love going to this place to relax for a few hours

Great staff, great service, great place

Miriam and her team are truly amazing and will definitely visit again in the near future.

Great place to drink and relax after a hard day at work staff are friendly and go above and beyond

It’s such a shame that the service was so terrible. The location is quite nice. I was there for a business meeting that became awkward due to having to wait an hour and a half for a salad and a burger! We only received a meal after we reminded the manageress that we hadn’t received our order after an hour. The salad was supposed to be a health bowl with quinoa and actually I ended up paying £10 for five lettuce leaves sprinkled with a little quinoa and a tiny amount of other salad items. It wasn’t even very busy, so that excuse fell on deaf ears. Won’t bother to go back there, ever.

Had a lovely Sunday lunch with the family, crispy roast potatoes and melt in the mouth beef rib!

Come to this pub regularly, staff are always friendly and accommodating. Stead and the Lauras are very knowledgable. I can’t recommend this pub enough!

I was very disappointed with the Sunday roast dinner the veg was raw and the meat was disgusting. And the crumble apple was not cooked and I would never recommend this pub to anyone

Lovely pub. Brought my friends here and they said it was great

The posh fish and chips was a SCREAMER of a pub dinner. 5* all around.

Visited earlier this week was very welcoming and food was great.

Isaac was absolutely fantastic with the service that he provided to our group

Popped in for a couple of Prides. Even when busy, I always find a seat.

Good local pub, with good ales & friendly staff, nice menu.

Arrived too early for the kitchen, waited. Staff great and helpful. Food ok, would rather a fillet chicken instead of chicken in breadcrumbs on hunters chicken.

Listened to music on a Sunday what a great idea 5-8 can bring the kids and they can dance and eat no baby sitter required anyone with kids should come

Great for Sunday afternoon (5_8) music particularly end of month lou's swing and jazz best around

Great pub with a fantastic atmosphere well presented with great range of food and 🍸

Food great value for money. Staff very attentive and helpful. Gluten free options and knowledge from staff.

Lovely staff and great vibe, food is nice too!

I went to the Essex arms with a few friends and was served by Isaac, he was so kind and really helpful! We need more Isaac’s as staff! Thank you for being so lovely

Great place, not too expensive and staff were friendly and welcoming.

Had baby shower here today food and sfaff amazing

Amazing beer garden, perfect for the summer days !! Food is good value, even better when you download the app

Nice pub with a large beer garden. The food was tasty and the staff was friendly and helpful.

Always a busy pub at the weekend, James the barman is a top guy, a friendly warm atmosphere and a great selection of beers.

We popped in for lunch and found the menu had just changed. We spent quite a while trying to decide what to have as there was so much on the menu that we wanted to eat as it all sounded delicious! We will keep returning to try something else on the menu. Food was delicious, staff were lovely, and great value for money. Thank you.

This is a great pub to go for a drink and mingle with friends - in winter in front of the fire and in summer plenty of outdoor seating. You will get a warm welcome and It offers great food and a good range of ale. The pub car park offers plenty of free parking.

Good food, large portions, decent service

What a friendly place to be as a solo drinker/eater this is a lovely place they look after you and can't do enough to make you welcome food is great and value real ale range very good always a great pint Marian is very welcoming and all her staff would recommend to everyone to try

Excellent place to eat and drink

Great spot - fantastic service and food was great - really nice atmosphere for a busy Friday night - would 100% recommend

Great place for a family lunch excellent food friendly staff looked after us and good price would highly recommend so glad we booked in inadavance as quite busy

What a lovey place went with the family for Sunday lunch. Excellent meal everything was hot and tasty. Staff looked after us very well food was great value Booking is advisable and ask the best time to come Coming back soon and for father's day

Had a great lunch, staff always friendly with great service.

Great for classic pub food and drinks in family friendly setup

Very good & respectful service all staff very polite. Food very good & much improved since previous visits.

Really bad quality of food, barely edible, not recommended other than for just drinking.

Great pub with lots of seating both inside and outside. Lovely staff and great atmosphere.

Second time here! Great pub foods reasonable price. Will come again for sure!

Massive improvement. Love the little events they put on too.

Lovely food and nice friendly staff. Couldn’t do too much for us.

Fantastic evening in the Essex, brilliant atmosphere, bar staff really engaging and service throughout the evening was fast. Food was well cooked and the recommended dish was excellent, looking forward to the next visit

We were a party of 10, we had friendly helpful service and lovely food at reasonable prices. We had a lovely time.

Great family friendly pub. Decent food and brilliant service. (The chicken wings are superb fyi)

Always a pleasure. Great people, great beer!

Had what the menu stated was a ciabiatta BLT , however it was an undercooked french baguette so did not get the crispiness I was expecting . Although we were there for opening on Saturday lunchtime , they couldn't fulfill our order for three chicken and avocado salads as they'd ran out of avocado! That said, the portions were generous and, with the exception of the undercooked baguette, were tasty .

The staff are friendly and there is always a great atmosphere. I love the chicken wings

Lovely team & lovely atmosphere, we've only really eaten the chicken wings which are always tasty