gatcombe farm shop in North Somerset - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

Great place to meet up and the breakfast was good 💯

Great butchery as well as fresh veg. Whether you like rib of beef or brisket, pork leg or rolled shoulder, leg of lamb or free range chicken, this is the place. Not cheap, how could it be, but if you try their meat you won't stray back to the supermarket. They're very helpful, nice people too.

Nice little farm shop selling meat, fruit, veg, pies etc plus a small amount of flowers/plants. Lovely setting with old farm buildings and animals. Prices were reasonable for a farm shop too.

Great farm shop. Lovely staff, supplying high quality products at reasonable prices.

The layout of the long established Gatcombe Farm Shop at Flax Bourton is a bit higgledy-piggledy, with a number of small retail areas linked together. However, it stocks a good range of local produce and the quality is generally good. There is a cafe / restaurant next door - the Greedy Goose - and there is extensive hard standing parking. Set in the countryside, there are pleasant views all around, including over the duck pond.

Brilliant farm shop, we live in long Ashton, so it's literally a few minutes away. Large selection of fresh meats and vegetables. Friendly staff, too.

Lovely fresh products and friendly staff will definitely be going back

The shop seemed fine and well stocked. We only dropped in to meet up with someone quickly at the cafe. Would I go to the cafe for another meeting.. probably not. Don't get me wrong. The staff seemed okay.... In that they gave us what we asked for. The cafe just seemed a tadge run down. Nothing a luck of paint wouldn't help and a smarten up but I guess it was fine.

Proper farm shop, best Victoria sponges.

The greedy goose here is awesome as is the farm shop and food staff are very friendly well worth a look

Awesome farm shop with amazing selection of meat, veg and more. Stopped in after a day's drive looking for dinner inspiration and found everything we needed. Friendly staff (even though we arrived just before closing and walked all over their freshly mopped floor.)

Very nice Cafe. Clean, and serving good food at reasonable prices in the Greedy Goose. Also a Farm Shop attached. Splendid variety of good produce Would recommend.

What a farm shop should be! Not pretentious or overpriced "posh" items... Mostly decent fruit and veg! Great meat quality and price as well as pork pies etc. Nice people.

Ordered our cooked ham as we do every year for Christmas but got an uncooked one instead, sent message and they sorted it out immediately, really impressed with the customer service, would recommend

Very enjoyable experience. Lovely food 😋

Always buy My Meat and Veg From here,. Very Friendly Staff .

Nice location, great cafe overlooking pond and farm animals. Do book on Sunday as it's a popular place. Handy farm shop for fresh produce and friendly staff.

Lovely farm shop, well stocked and presented. Being able to see the fowl producing the eggs was nice for the little one.

Lovely place. Very scenic. Food not so good.

Terrible service today not there usually service last time coming here

Setting and atmosphere is nice, great for kids with ducks, geese and chickens roaming around the pond most of the year round. Occasionally has lamas and alpacas. Shop is good. Baked items and cakes are yummy. Tea and coffee available and good quality. Nice seating indoors and out which plenty of choice. Clean and tidy. Upon entering the cafe, it is vague as to which way to go. Sign posting could be more help.

今週　とってもよいfarmをみつけて新鮮な野菜をたくさん買って帰りましたが残念な事に雨でしたので今日お友達夫婦と一緒にいってまた野菜やお花を買いました　残念なことに今日も雨でした 本当は5つ星にしたかったけど4つ星になったのはお天気のせいです

Great breakfast, staff were lovely, nice to look at all the farm animals

We booked this venue for a large birthday gathering recently, and we all enjoyed the most wonderful evening! A gorgeous setting, the staff were fantastic, and the food was absolutely delicious!! They catered for all- Old & young (and a few allergies thrown in as well!!). Perfect venue, would highly recommend!

Lovely place to visit, good stop on our bike ride, nice staff, nice food, pleasant views, very relaxing place

Great staff Friendly atmosphere A couple of the customers were grumpy though 😂

Great coffee. Great service. Great location.

Had cottage pie with chips and vegetables very nice.

It's good food and coffee The whole place could do with a good sweep and a lick of paint Will be back again soon

Great food and friendly service

Loads of outside seating, friendly service, delicious cake, feed the animals. Looking forward to the Sunday carvery returning!

VERY UNPROFESSIONAL SERVICE ON THE PHONE DID NOT FEEL WELCOMING AND SEEMS TO VERY KAREN LIKE HERE WORST EVER PHONE ENQUIRY AVOID THIS PLACE

Greedy Goose excellent outdoor space and goats and geese around.. Great service, thank you...

Friendly butchers and friendly staff. Delicious veg. Couldn’t be more pleased we have this on our door step. Always pleasant and prices very reasonable. Not to mention it’s easy to let the Little’s stay outside watching the animals while I have a quick browse in the shop. Lovely place

Produce realy fresh. Home made cakes are fantastic a reel friendly place staff are fantastic highly highly recommended this place

Lovely place, friendly and good food.

Excellent location and also has plenty of product range for everyone. Plus the fact its local produce and it goes to support a local hard working farm what more could you ask for... You must go to appreciate it

Very good comprehensive shop at competitive prices .cafe not open at mo but hopefully soon🤞 nice stop when cycling from Bristol to nailsea

Brilliant quality as always. Staff very friendly. Sue Butcher

Fabulous place that serves the Community extremely well.

Lovely setting. Friendly staff and superb food from the shop. Highly recommend 👍

Always polite and friendly, excellent quality produce.

Very nice place ,prices not bad, but some of the meat looked a bit old

Nice farm shop with a good restaurant next door breakfast and roast dinner s available at certain times

Friendly staff, good range of products. Veg will be seasonal, which means local, which is great. Fab pork and Leek sausages for dinner last night, no fat and made at the farm. Loads of lovely cakes to buy also home made. Give it a whirl. Did not try the restaurant. This is a seperate business on the farm site.

Disappointed. Was keen to buy local and without packaging but walked away empty handed as unfortunately a lot of the veg didn't look very fresh.

Good home cooked food, table of six all with different menu selection, from the English breakfast to a Carvery roast. Staff were accomodating and friendly. As previous review mentions the decor, I do agree tired looking dining area, which could be improved but needs to keep its quirky look and not become to mainstream.

Really disappointing. Chairs incredibly uncomfortable. Carvery meat was so dry and over cooked that it was almost inedible. Chef/server was rude. Love the setting but won't be visiting again for a meal.

lovely produce, homemade cakes, jams and spreads, wide variety in a little shop, cheese, meats, ice cream, biscuits, fruit, veg etc. card payments accepted over £5.

Farm shop ok. Carvery has the worst service I’ve ever seen. Meat bought from ASDA. Carvery owner rude and obnoxious. All you can eat prea heated food.

Excellent farm butcher - all meat is from the owner's farm, or another local farmer. Recommended if you care about the quality of the meat you eat, and want to support local farms. Say hello to William, who built the shop decades ago, and still works everyday.

The restaurant is very busy during Sunday Lunches but the value seems to vary whenever we have visited, the Sunday lunches are very good value with a choice of meal sizes ie one or two choice of meat.

Me recomendaron visitar este restaurante, así que llevé a mi hermana conmigo. Mi primera impresión fue que la decoración, etc. era muy cansado y no muy limpio. Pedí una chaqueta de atún patatas, que es una de mis comidas favoritas y mi hermana pedimos un sándwich de jamón. La patata chaqueta estaba a unos cocidos y estaba cubierto de lo que sólo puedo describir como atún ladera. Mi hermana disfrutó su sandwich aunque tenía un aspecto 'oorstop.

Good choice in produce, duck & goose eggs, freshly pulled carrots, meats and cheeses, lots to choose from, locally sourced food, next door to the restaurant for Carvery

Will not be returning to this restaurant. Was seated at a dirty table, which was never cleaned. Ordered a jacket potato with cheese, and it was just laughable. Way too much cheese was covered over the potato, which was then placed under a grill so all the cheese was melted into a block on top of the potato. Tasted awful. Have attached a photo of the left over cheese I could not eat. Really disappointed.

Heard lots of good reviews about this place but had never been so around 25 of us went for my mothers birthday and the food was fantastic - great for those with a large appetite as it is a carvery and you can eat as much as you like.

Huge breakfast (available til 3pm) after coming from the airport (10mins) after an early start was great.

We sometimes shop for fresh vegetables in the farm shop and have a bite to eat in the cafe/restaurant alongside. The food is good but portion size is large. We had a ploughman and a panini. Both were very good. Service was good when we went despite the rain bringing the stag & hen parties into the dry from the field nearby.

La ubicación es buena, la tienda de la granja está bien, pero no es el mejor que hemos estado! El personal parece miserable y no interesados en servicio al cliente (aparte de la carnicería que era realmente útil). Hay animales para los niños a ver pero estábamos un poco preocupados por el bienestar de los animales como el burro fueron yendo en fajas en el enredó paddock y él no tenía agua limpia!

Well laid out carvery with friendly staff and licenced too! Good choice of meats with a good pudding selection too.

Recientemente fui con mi familia para un asado el domingo y no me decepcionó. Tuve Turquía, pudines yorkshire, zanahorias, col roja, guisantes, coliflor y queso jardín algunas patatas asadas cubierto de su salsa encantador. Tan impresionados con la fresca y todo fue sin duda volveremos a visitar. Incluso me dijo que mi madre me gustaría tener nuestra cena de Navidad!

Decent cafe, nice cakes. Outdoor seating and a small children's play area.

Visited on a lovely sunny day. Great spot. Farm shop ok - worth a visit - but a few greengrocery items quite stale. Lovely friendly lady on the meat, cheese counter.

Decided to visit for a Sunday lunch 2 weeks ago. Had gone once before with my partners family and whilst the food was lovely the wait was quite bad. This had put others off but just me and partner thought we would come back. This however turned out to be a mistake!We arrived and ended up being told by the lady greeting to hold on whilst she was doing something. She then said that the table was not quite ready so we had to wait out in a side porch for 10 minutes. I would have thought it would of been productive to of asked us what to drink at this stage!! She then came and got us 10 minutes later and we had a table right by the food. There was a lot of people there and waiting and it seemed like one other chap was complaining about the wait so I asked a waiter how long it would be. He said it would be a long time because of people ahead of us. I was pretty annoyed as they asked us to come at 2:30 to help straggle out the wait and we still be waiting for ages. The lady who greeted never once came back to us to mention about any wait. By this point we had enough so called in 10 minutes down the road elsewhere to a place we have been before where we were greeted with a friendly face and went straight up to collect a lovely carvery.Its such a shame because the food looks lovely but the organisation is a complete mess and ruins what could be a lovely place.

Acabo de regresar a casa después de disfrutar de sus magníficos asados de domingo. La comida es espectacular con tan muchas opciones. Las carnes eran turquía, asado de cerdo asado de cerdo del vientre conjuntas, y carne, y puedes tener algunas de cada una si lo desea. Las verduras eran zanahorias, guisantes, coliflor, brócoli, financiarlo, queso en salsa de puerros, patatas asadas, precioso nuevo asado, patatas, pelotas de relleno, Patacas Chirivías pudines yorkshire precioso, todas las salsas salsa sabrosa y rica. Nick el propietario sirve la carne desea usted y ayuda a todos los otros encantadores bits. Realmente encantador personal muy servicial y ambiente super. Sin duda es el mejor Asador Domingo en cualquier lugar. Ubicado en los jardines con la burra y super gansos geniales para los niños y una encantadora zona de juegos para ellos. Te puedes sentar dentro o fuera del restaurante super cuando el clima es agradable. Hay una tienda que vende alimentos pegado granja encantadora. Me di cuenta de que hacer algo realmente bueno en cuanto a la comida italiana noches temáticas, Español, etc. así definitivamente. Una verdadera joya de un establecimiento muy afortunados de tenerlo en nuestra zona. Aunque si viviera lejos sin duda hacer el esfuerzo de ir sobre una base regular. Esperamos nuestra próxima visita soooooon.

Fuimos para el almuerzo del 30 de marzo. No es un gran fan de asados, así que teníamos jamón, huevos y patatas fritas, que era muy bueno, con una enorme ayuda del jamón esculpido. Los otros dos clientes tenían al asador y quedamos muy satisfechos con la variedad de carne, verduras frescas y el sabroso.

Some good food in an unfussy buffet based restaurant.

Possibly the best carvery I have ever had, more than generous portions, well presented, tremendous variety of vegetables tasty. I even had a dessert which I never do, could not resist. We were a party of ten with 2 disabled family members service fantastic, staff showed a commitment to assist in very busy circumstances. Having worked in the hospitality industry I appreciate all the above // top marks we will return and have no hesitation to recommend well done all and thank you.

Recientemente visité aquí (segunda vez) para un almuerzo inpromtu con mi pareja, mi hermana y mi suegra. Hacen todo tipo de comidas aquí, pero necesitas tener el carvery, precios razonables y si caminas con hambre que eso es a usted. Lo que se puede esperar, el chef carvery, es tan acogedor, tengo un poco de cada carne (codicioso o qué), no nos molestó. Había mucha gente, pero lo que me gusta ver son los partidos de personas, especialmente la generación mayor, porque le permite ser honesto si no es una buena relación calidad-precio, entonces no. poco lejos de todo, pero bien vale la pena una visita, especialmente en el verano con todos los gansos y animales en los campos. El personal en el camino antes de que me olvide, en el clavo

Visited today 8.45 am for Breakfast, rang the number on the door as there is no opening times shown for customers!my call was finally answered after a few attempts to be told we dont open 9.00 . we were taking our car into Blade Suzuki for a service so thought ideal pop in for a hearty breakfast . We returned after 10 , no one in the restaurant and no wonder it was freezing cold no heating on , one male on duty but he did not speak as we entered we sat down after a few minutes we went to get a menu as it was not offered and my husband went to the loo .My husband returned and still the member of staff ignored us and sat behind the bar area did not ask did we want to order so we decided do you know what do i want to sit in my coat and eat a breakfast in a bleak cold unwelcoming place NO THEY DO NOT DESERVE THE BUSINESS .So we left !! and returned to Weston Super Mare to MILTON LARDER for our breakfast which is - Warm -Welcoming-with customers-at a fairprice- serving good quality food,

We recently ate at the agreedy agoose and visited the adjoining farm shopHam was really niceBought unusual jam and relishes. Really niceWe will certainly return and have already recommended this place to friendsDon't drive past if you are that wayPop in and buy fresh local produceYou'll be pleasantly surprised at what you findWe will return

This is a great place to visit with the family. There's several animals to see, ducks, geese, donkey, ponys and a small play area (could do with a bit more stuff). The inside of the restaurant is a bit dated but that kind of brings a pleasant very informal atmosphere which is what we just fancy sometimes especially as we have two noises children. The food is good, nothing fancy just large portions of wholesome grub. The paninis are huge and really good value for money. The staff are a real mix, some will bend over backwards for you and some barely muster a smile.Despite the negatives this is a good place to visit for a simple meal when you're hungry and have the benefit of being able to walk off the food in the lovely farm grounds.

If you require good quality fresh local produce then make your way to this farm shop. As well as fresh fruit & vegetables they also sell good quality meats & a large selection of cheeses & preserves as well as other mouth watering items. Whilst you are there you could also pop next door & sample some excellent food in their restaurant aptly named the Greedy Goose.

I returned here for a breakfast with some work colleagues and found it to still be a very good meal. There is a good of choice of items on the buffet, which are all hot and well cooked. It is quite a challenge to eat 2 of the large sausages, as they are massive and solidly packed with meat. Definitely worth a visit.

I have lived in Bristol for 5 years and situated at the end of my road (3-4mins drive) is this beautiful little Farm shop. In the 5 years that I've been here, I have never visited it until we decided we would plan a Team lunch for Christmas. I honestly don't know why I've never been there, I feel I've missed out on this little gem. Although the name doesn't give you the impression of a restaurant The Gatcombe Farm Shop is something else. There is obviously a shop on site and also animals for children to see but it also has a large eating area. They have a nice menu and are renowned for their carvery. The staff are really friendly and once we were all seated came over and took our drinks order which didn't take long at be brought to our table. We all decided to have the seasonal carvery and none of us were disappointed. It was one of the best meals I've ever had. There was a choice of 3 meats, Yorkshire pudding, stuffing and seasonal veg. Their cauliflower cheese tastes so good - I could have just eaten a plate of that on it's own. Everything was cooked t0 perfection and the waiters, once they knew we were all okay and had what we wanted left us to enjoy our meals. I would definitely recommend this place and I'm definitely going to go back there myself.

Had a couple of very nice breakfast fry-ups here.

As ever we had a nice welcome ( our friend lives in Long Ashton) we got there about 12.30 with plenty of choice of tables.My husband and friend had an OAP carvery and I had a huge turkey, bacon and advacardo sandwhich with crisps and salad.It got busier as is usual as good value!

Visited today with my Mum and daughter, Mum has difficulty walking and a member of staff came outside as we arrived , offered her a chair and said she would find us a table inside near the door so we wouldn't have to walk far. The carvery was just about finishing but it was all delicious, the vegetables were obviously fresh not frozen and everything was hot and the gravy was tasty. Mums fish was a little overdone but was fine and could not fault the staff everyone very kind and considerate and really friendly. I also visited the farm shop and got a beautiful piece of pork I'm looking forward to roasting for dinner tomorrow. I will definitely return and have no hesitation in recommending anyone to visit .

Breakfast was fantastic. The best value for money I have been to in Bristol and surroundings

Very good carvery and friendly staff

A party of us visited Gatcombe Farm restaurant for Sunday breakfast, we were disappointed after we had heard such good reports on the lunches. Admittedly you had plenty of food. The sausages were huge extremely meaty..too meaty to be honest very dense and the pork was very strong in them. I always buy good sausages at least 97% pork but these were wrong. Bacon good. The bubble and squeak was bizarre tasted 'soapy' also the hash browns were not good I think the oil/fat they are using needs changing as it made everything taste odd. Toast was like concrete!We would not recommend it and certainly won't go again...sorry Gatcombe Farm as I do use your farm shop all the time!

First trip here for a while and found things very different. Beginning to look a bit more like a transport cafe these days. Plastic table cloths and a man eating his meal in his white vest! The waiter served us in his outdoor coat! Hmm not quite what I expected from this previously lovely cafe.The food was its usual good standard but will go some where else in the future. What a shame.

Very child unfrieldly. Electric fence at child hight separating car park from animals. Got a severe telling off for feeding 14 month old lunch (with food purchased from shop) on picnic table outside. Including lecture on the amount of rates they pay. All this "for reference next time I come". I don't think so.

Travelling form Bristol Airport and needed a coffee. We have been looking for somewhere to break the journey to the airport and thought to try this out. We arrived at about 5pm on a grey afternoon. Some very uninterested staff on duty, and subsequent surly service. They were obviously tidying up to close, but nevertheless they could have been more pleasant, we weren't going to be there that long!We had coffees and a slice of cake, which were alright, we wouldn't return for that HOWEVER the farm shop was a different matter - a lovely lady serving. The produce was fresh and keenly priced. We stocked up and off we went.

You can't get the meat more local the this an it really show through in the flavour. Plenty of veg to go at too but the meat is the main attraction. They also do a non-carvery menu which has a good cooked breakfast/brunch. A popular spot on a sunny day and you need to book at the weekends. There are distinct sittings for the carvery so phone ahead. It's one of our local favourites and the farm shop is also excellent. To be slightly critical the veg is a bit overlooked but that's my preference and the meat quality easily makes up for it.

Love this place for its food and eat as much as you like veg.. The carver is always generous and you will fill your plate like everyone else does... To the brim. It's tasty and reasonable priced. Large families and locals fill this place, so walk ins are turned away on Sundays. Nice to go once on a while.

Been a couple of times. Carvery very good. Cakes homemade and coffee good. This is a farm shed converted to a cafe/restaurant. Very homemade, family orientated but cheerful staff. Felt like you could have a really good laugh. They have a fabulous farm shop. Meat especially good. Outside they have ducks and kiwis!! donkeys, a pond. You can sit outside and eat or just relax and watch animals. They also have a field that is let out for stag and hen parties. My husband and I went on a Saturday and there were several parties out in the field having a great time. I love it but it's not for the black tie and tiara type.

We went there for a family lunch and although I was not impressed by the place itself, I have to admit that the food was pretty good. Pork, chicken and beef were very tasty and so were all the vegetables. The service was pretty good too and staff was very helpfully. The shop next door is quite nice too and sell lovely ice creams. Would go back for the food, very good value too.

Local farm shop always provides excellent service and outstanding food. Meat counter is a particular favourite. Recommended to all!!

Came here to lunch today with teenage daughters and elderly parents. Booked for 12 but the variety wasn't ready til after 12.30. This didn't bother me but my parents were agitated! The menus were splattered in gravy and the place was cold and a bit like a canteen. The staff were OK but not very helpful or attentive. There was plenty of meat and veg but the parsnips were inedible as they were undercooked. The cheese sauces on the leeks and cauliflower were tasteless and very yellow!When my father mentioned some of our problems he got a vague sorry but nothing else.Not terribly impressed.

I recently paid a visit to this Carvery, having been told about it by a friend, and it was everything he told me.Lovely food, all locally produced. It's very popular, so I would suggest booking, as I did'When I visited, albeit early in the week, it was busy then.The Carvery had a choice of large or small plates, so unless you were very hungry, it would seem most people opted for the smaller choice as I & my family did. Whatever you choose I'm sure you won't be disappointed.The restaurant area is fairly basic, not posh, typical farmhouse, comfortable surroundings.

Good food & Service, Nice place. Book in advance very popular & difficult to get in at short notice.

After reading some of the reviews for the carvery i am so pleased we went what a lovely place food was good fresh veg cooked just right meat so tender plenty of it will defiantly return

A party of six came here on a Sunday after a few recommends from friends & it's safe to say we won't be returning Firstly they didn't have our booking even though the person I gave the booking to had taken my name & a contact number so who knows where he wrote it. On a positive note though they did accommodate us which I appreciate The overall appearance of the place was like a canteen & we had mismatching place mats on old paper tablecloth which still had some of the last sittings dinner in on it There was also flys everywhere. I appreciate it is a farm but alongside the diary table setting it started to put us all off When we were seated nobody said a word & just walked off. We then sat there for over 20minutes not understanding the process as this was our first time here & it was clear the food wasn't ready either Eventually we ordered some drinks which came wrong & had to then ask the waitress how it all worked as still we had no idea how we would be getting our carvery I find the the fact they don't ask you when your seated if you have been here before silly. They also didn't appear to have any waitresses assigned to certain tables they just milled about doing nothing, which meant we were left feeling overlooked The only positive was the food, it was tasty & well cooked although even that ended in a negative as we were on beef rations as not enough was cooked so everyone was only allowed one slice including anybody who didn't like turkey or gammon (which I think is a disgrace after the money you pay) As I stayed this review saying, the six of us will not be returning or recommending. As nice as the food was, the experience was uncomfortable & substandard

Ate here recently for Sunday lunch with a party of 8, have also been for breakfast.. Cannot fault the food although the salad bar looked as though it had seen better days. Not a cosy place to eat, bit like a canteen and could be made much nicer. Tables dirty. Trays dirty. Floor dirty. Dead flies on the windowsills. Toilets grim! Staff abrupt. All of those things would put me off returning. We were overcharged by £15 so be careful.By the way this place is in Long Ashton not Kingswood.

Was working in the area for 2 weeks and found this little gem on the main rd to Long Ashdon. A group of us had breakfast here daily cause it was a clean friendly. The breakfast was awesome and really good value for money. The staff always spoke to us like we were old friends everyday. We had tea at lunchtime as they do a great looking carvery but we couldn't have eaten at that time of day as we wouldn't want to go back to work. Lots of choices with huge plates. It has a nice farm shop next door also a butchers. Will bring the wife here when we visit Bristol and the lovely surrounding country side in the near future. If your in Bristol this place is worth the drive to. About 15 mins from the town centre towards Long Ashdon.

We had a lovely midweek lunch with an elderly relative. Good choice of food including nice salads and freshly made sandwiches. All easy and level access from the car park. Friendly and helpful staff. A cool oasis - sitting out in the shade of the veranda - on a very hot day! It really did feel like being abroad. We will definitely come again

Gatcombe Farm CarveryHaving been to the same restaurant every week for the last three years or more for our carvery fix (now sadly closed), we were on the lookout for somewhere new to take my elderly dad for lunch every Tuesday. Many places serve a carvery on Sundays, but finding somewhere that does it during the week was proving a little difficult. Gatcombe Farm is a working farm, with a farm shop and a tea room/carvery next door. As my dad is disabled, we were pleased to find that there was (almost) level access from the car park to the front door with just a gentle slope to negotiate. Their website suggests booking at table, so I rang them at 16:20 on Monday afternoon, having checked the opening times on the web site (until 16:30), so I was a little disappointed to find that the restaurant staff had all gone home and the girl who answered the phone in the shop was unable to help. I was able to book a table the next morning, however, so all was well. A nice young man greeted us when we arrived and checked which table was ours. There were no signs telling us to order at the counter, so we went to sit down at the table, waiting for the waiter to take our order. Although he did eventually come over to our table with a pad, it seems from watching everyone else, that you don't get table service for ordering. Oh well, we'll know next time. No menus were offered, but as we just wanted the carvery, we didn't really need one. At no point when taking the order did the waiter mention that the carvery came in two different sizes (adult and small), which was a shame as my father doesn't eat much and ended up having to pay for a regular sized plate when he in fact asked for a small portion of meat at the serving counter. The carvery is served from 12:00 and there are normally three meats – turkey, pork and beef. “Normally”, being the important word here – they were running a little behind this morning (what the staff member told my husband when he went up to the counter to ask if there was anyone serving...?) and the carvery eventually opened at 12:20. Also there were only two meats – gammon and beef (despite the sign saying 'pork'). When I asked if there was any turkey, I got a sarcastic answer with a hand pointing at the empty space: “does it say turkey?” The meat was delicious and the vegetables were very nice and hot, although some of them looked like they'd been out stewing under the lights for some considerable time, as they were very dry and curling up at the edges. Maybe my expectations were too high, and maybe I shouldn't compare Gatcombe Farm with the Carvery Company (hard not to when we have been going there every week for so long), but there were petty little things that annoyed me: the draught from the door which often seemed to get left open (there was a notice asking to close the door properly but it appeared to have fallen down and was lying on a window sill a few feet away from the door); the fact that no-one asked us if everything was OK with our meals despite walking past our table to deliver food to other diners; the temperature in the room (it was quite chilly - I wish I'd brought a jacket!); the fact that you don't get table service, even when paying for the meal; the fact that as we were leaving we held the door open for the waitress who smiled sweetly, but there was no “thanks very much, goodbye”; the fact that no-one came over to the table to apologise for the delay in getting the food out, and the price (it was nearly 30% more expensive than we have been paying for similar food elsewhere). We are willing to give it a second chance, and hopefully by knowing what to expect, things will go a little smoother then. PS The photo shown above does not look anything like the Gatcombe Farm Carvery, which has much more a canteen look about it.

I have visited quite a few times for their carvery which is just great value for money and very tasty. There are always 3 meats to choose from and a huge selection of fresh veg including cauliflower cheese, leeks in cheese sauce etc, roasters and boiled potatoes and a huge pot of really good gravy. You certainly get a lot of meat, not like some places where you get 2 slices of wafer thin meat. I prefer to visit on Saturdays as it gets really busy on Sundays. All in all one of the best places I've been to for a carvery.

after reading the review by Mark Taylor in the Evening Post recently, I thought I would give Gatcombe a try, a carvery can always tempt me into a place. Well, to say I was very disappointed is an understatement, the turkey was good, the beef tasted as if it had been burnt and the veggies were all under cooked. The whole place was cold, and not very welcoming at all, in fact the staff at the drinks counter, didn't seem to have a clue how to deal with people. If Mark Taylor believes that he would find it hard to beat this carvery, he need only go to the Salutation at Henbury, and that place would win hands down!!! Sorry Gatcombe, but it didn't work for me.