Pen & Cob in Bedford

The atmosphere does not at all reflect the quality of the food and drinks. The wine and steak was poor quality but the price reflected an upmarket meal. I would never eat here again.

Had dinner in the restaurant on a busy Saturday night. We were served by a lovely waitress called Emily. She was very welcoming and nothing was too much trouble. Despite the restaurant being rather full, Emily went round with a smile on her face and a spring in her step! We will definitely visit again!

I visited The Swan last week and had a lovely experience at dinner with my friends. Our waitress Emily particularly made the experience very enjoyable as she was so kind and attentive and was brilliant at her job. I would definitely recommend this restaurant and will be returning soon!

Lovely venue, it was our first visit and we will definitely return. The haddock and steak were delicious. Our waitress Holly was very attentive, we didn’t feel rushed and she was so polite and welcoming. Thank you Holly.

Holly was extremely accommodating and attentive. The duck recommendation was exceptional- thank you. We will be back soon to enjoy more delights.

Booked a table for 22 people for a surprise 80th party. The restaurant was incredibly busy but our server Holly was amazing. Attentive, helpful, professional,and didn't drop her smile once. Orders came quickly Food was lovely and very reasonably priced, atmosphere was great. Recommend for a great night out

The interior is beautiful, the service is ok. The poach eggs on toast were pathetic! The saddest plate of food I’ve ever seen. 2 eggs, one slice of dry toast! I’m not sure why I had to ask for butter!

Oh my what a lovely place The staff Evie & Stacy were fantastic also very lovely ladies Myself and my partner were celebrating our Anniversary and they made us feel so cared about Evie even said if there was anything we can do to make your anniversary feel special was lovely 10/10 We both had haddock and chips with peas,crispy capers absolutely delicious

Had a wonderful evening here. Atmosphere great, food delicious and an excellent customer service from all staff but especially Holly who went above and beyond to accommodate us. We look forward to returning, thank you so much!

Nice food and pretty place but the best thing by far was the service; Izzy was fantastic! Really warm and geniune hospitality is so rare and I felt very lucky to stumble on this place after a long day!

This place is amazing, the food is outstanding, the staff are polite and friendly, definitely worth a visit, we will certainly go again

We came for lunch as a walk in on a Saturday and were quickly seated. We were well looked after by Holly, she was really friendly and gave great service! The food was amazing and everything came out so quickly. Massive thank you to Holly and the team.

We came for lunch as a walk in on a Saturday and were quickly seated. We were well looked after by Holly, she was really friendly and gave great service! The food was amazing and everything came out so quickly. Massive thank you to Holly and the team.

Restaurant van The Swan Hotel. Twee avonden prima gegeten, uitgebreide kaart en goede wijn- en andere drankenselectie. Zeer vriendelijk en vooral gastvrij personeel.

Brilliant service from our waiter Jack. He is an absolute asset to the team and deserves the recognition he is owed. He was bubbly, had great recommendation on food and tried his absolute hardest to keep us happy (which we were). Despite a slight mix-up, it didn’t set the service back at all and the manageress (I presume) sorted it. It seems very clear that whoever is training these members of staff is extrodinary. Couldn’t recommend the Pen and Cob more. The food and drinks were also amazing. We will definetly be back when we are back in England in a couple of months. Thank you team.

Went along to the Sunday afternoon Soul factory disco in the Riverside terrace, what a fantastic event, great atmosphere, lovely vibes and efficient service from bar staff especially considering how busy it was, it’s the closest you will feel to being on holiday abroad in the UK, great call from Swan hotel management to host these events, Bedford needs more of these. Thank you

Went to dinner with a friend from the states and it was brilliant. I enjoyed the Mac and cheese starter but the falafel wasn’t great, and the beef shin was brilliant and my friend had the linguine which was also really good. The passion fruit martinis were also perfect. Our host Emily was so lovely and kind and did a great job recommending us dishes. Props to her, it’s because of service like that we will definitely be returning!

Reserved a table this evening and upon arrival we asked if we could sit outside, we were told to find an available table and given menus. There wasn't an outside table so we were loitering around the bar area untill someone helped us. We were taken to a table and advised our server Colin would come by, and he didn't. We ordered drinks with another lady, we were waiting and after 15mins we looked around to see if out drinks were coming, nothing. We waited and the servers were busy doing other things and we cancelled the drinks and left because of the length of time to come our table and the fact that other tables took precedent over us. It wasn't a nice atmosphere and I don't feel the staff were very nice. I would go here again out of choice.

Lovely outdoor area with great views over the river, didn’t try the food but it looked good 😊. Well worth a visit

Couldn’t have a better setting…overlooking the river with swans bobbing on the water. We have the rice bowls… very tasty and a good selection of drinks.

I hosted an event here. I'm sad to say I was highly disappointed. I had the garlic and herb chicken. There were no spices or flavours to the food. Even with the gravy, the chicken was dry. I left most of my food. Also, a couple of the cocktails weren't available. The ambience was nice, the restaurant was clean and spacious. The waitress Stacy was accommodating and nice.

Horrible service, abysmal management, the staff gave mixed information inside and outside, was told to order food from the bar, waited for 30 minutes, and told me no food could be served. Save yourself some time; don’t bother to come here. Worst experiences ever.

Service was pretty good except didn’t get extra drinks we ordered but at least they didn’t charge for it. Food was not great though, squid was overcooked and dry, whipped goat cheese wasn’t. Average food quality which was disappointing as usually much better.

Dreadful wait at the outside bar. Queue for drinks over 40 minutes. Spoiledthe vibes despite great tunes from the deejay. Avoid!

Good soul vibes, unfortunately very poor service at the bar, even though it wasn’t overly busy. Twenty minute wait in the sun for a drink. Lack of adequate seating for a Sunday ‘lounge’ event. Staff completely uninterested. No one ‘managing’ the event. Poor experience, we left after first drink. Shame… with the good weather had the potential to be a cool time. Don’t think we’ll try again. DJ was let down by the lack of consideration by the hosting venue.

Pen and cob is a beautiful establishment, great for a date or just to chill.I have been there twice for dinner and breakfast and have been disappointed with their food.I swore to myself never to return for food but just for drinks.

Breakfasts have been fine, if somewhat basic. The evening meals have been either lacking in taste or so heavily masked by sauces it's verged on ruining the meal. Tonight I couldn't finish my meal due to how much sauce was plastered over the food. Sadly not enjoyable and little value for money.

I have now had a response from thr Manager who is looking into my issues and retraining staff so hopefully the food and service will be much improved. UPDATE Have emailed as suggested and no response. Not professional. Dined there last night with friends. Food mediocre, service just appalling. Would definitely not recommend

Nice location and nice decor, I was a bit disappointed that the terrace wasn't open. The drinks were good and the afternoon tea was really delicious

A group of 11 of us dined last night at the Pen and Cob, to celebrate a family event. We couldn't have chosen a better venue. The hotel is visually stunning, staff were friendly and efficient and food was really exceptional. After our meal we moved to a 'lounge' where they brought out a birthday cake and served hot drinks. Nothing was too much trouble and everyone commented that they'd had a lovely evening. In summary, this is a great choice for excellent food, great ambience and exceptional service. Thank you.

We had a great evening here! Had lovely food and drinks, Emily our waitress helped with the GF menu which had great choice!

Had an absolutely amazing dinner & drinks at Pen&Cob. Our waitress Emily was such a delight and always so accommodating to us. Will definitely be returning soon!

Second visit and both times have been fantastic. The quality of food, level of service and atmosphere is superb. Particular mention to the bar staff who remembered our faces when we returned and to Emily for her fabulous table service and personality. We’ll be back.

Lovely meal celebrating birthdays multiple family birthdays! Good food and drinks, Stacy provided a great friendly service.

Superb service particularly Emily I is amazing and is an asset to your business Would highly recommend for food and drink it’s an Amazing experience

We were served by the waitress Sophie. She was very friendly and helped deliver all our food requests. Thank you for your great service. Will definitely be back.

We were staying for work purposes. Decided to go into the restaurant for dinner and we were not disappointed at all. We were served by India, who was very pleasant, tentative and gave good recommendations on the menu. Which is always good to hear. We started with the Calamari and sweetcorn fritters. Followed by fish and chips and the pie. Everything was beautifully presented and tasted delicious. The restaurant is beautifully decorated and the staff are all helpful, we are sure to visit again and would recommend it to anyone.

Good atmosphere and the staff are very friendly and helpful! Nice and quiet during weekdays.

First time here for bottomless brunch and I was very impressed. Good food and drinks & good atmosphere. We were served by Sophie B who was very helpful and friendly.

Excellent service by Sophie B, bottomless brunch with the girls! Recommend to others, looking forward to next time. Will recommend to others

This was a hard review to write, as I really like this restaurant. I've been here twice previously and had a lovely time. However this time I two of my friends and this was also their second visit. I live out of town and so does two of my friends I went with, one Northamptonshire and the other from London so this restaurant isn't very local to us. The food was really nice, we had many starters to share and for mains the califlower steaks and the salmon. I also really enjoyed my cocktails and my friends liked their Prosecco. I would also like to state that our waitress Arianna I think her name was? (Young girl with black curly hair) her customer service was great and she was a very lovely lady. However the reason for my 3 star review was because of the manager I think her name is Arianna? (Brown hair with glasses) When me and my friends were coming back from the toilet we was walking past the bar and we were laughing but we wasn't loud and the manager looked at us put her finger to her mouth and said "shhhh"!! Not only is this extremely rude, unprofessional, and uncalled for, it's also made us feel extremely uncomfortable to the point where we asked our waitress for our bill and left! I must state that there was only one other customer in the bar/restaurant at this time so our laughing wasn't affecting any other customers. After all driving nearly an hour + each and already having a bill of nearly £150 for a lunch we did plan to stay till the early evening to enjoy however after this approach we didn't feel comfortable staying. I'm not sure if I would return, because I am appalled by the customer service we received from a manager.

Our pre dinner drinks took about 25 minutes to arrive. When we queried the delay we were told they were on the bar waiting to be brought to the table ???? About 2 minutes after our drinks arrived our starters were brought to the table, which totally defeated the idea of having pre dinner drinks. The 2 bottles of wine we ordered did not arrive and when we queried this were told they did not have an order - we did it when we ordered food! We had to re order - and commented that we had now finished our starters and the white wine we had intended to drink with them had not arrived (although of course we had our pre-dinner drinks 😂😂). The waitress then virtually slammed a bottle of red wine and 4 glasses on the table- she didn't offer to open the wine. Our friend eventually went to the bar to ask where the white wine was and was told the order had only just come through. Again a waitress just brought the bottle to the table - plonked it down and walked away. At no point during any of this did we get any sort of apology. Eventually the manager came over and did offer a discount, but by this time the evening had been spoilt. We were entertaining friends from out of town and felt embarrassed by the service and attitudes we had encountered. Offering to take money off the bill does not compensate for bad and rude service. The food was okay, but nothing special. They need to train their staff better in customer service and how to manage procedures on a busy Saturday night. We will not be returning or recommending the Pen & Cob.

Visited yesterday for a brunch catch up with friends Sophie Beechey was excellent, very attentive and made sure all requests were accommodated and glasses always topped up! Despite being busy she always remained calm and smiling. A real credit to your team

As I'd reviewed the hotel and the Pen and Cob as part of our stay I wasn't going to leave another review here and then I saw their recent post (just days after our stay) on social media advertising how much they like to celebrate with guests. Showing a lady with a sparkler in her dessert smiling and their post states how to be sure to mention when celebrating birthdays/promotions etc as they love to celebrate with guests. This really rubbed salt in the wound as we stayed at the hotel and dined at the Pen and Cob on Good Friday. When we booked we put in the notes we were celebrating a big birthday. When we were seated our waitress asked us if we were celebrating anything that evening. We told them a big birthday and my partner even said which. The waitress - who was friendly wished us a happy birthday and that was it! No sparkler or candle in dessert, no touches whatsoever to help make our experience extra special. What we did get was slow service - for which she apologised and whilst the food was generally good the fish and chips my partner had was very lack lustre. We even had to walk to to the till to settle the bill as we'd had enough and couldn't wait any longer to be served. The noise from other guests including swearing and drunken shrieks didn't exactly give the atmosphere we expected from such an establishment. I'd have rated our experience 3* average but they lost a point when I politely pointed out on their Instagram post that in our very recent experience they do nothing to celebrate with guests - preferring to ignore celebrations. The reaction was to remove my comment. I felt the need to come on here because we booked this hotel after reading a selection of reviews and then looking at their social media to get a feel for the place. My feeling is both the Bedford Swan and the Pen and Cob are more style over substance and if they edit their social media to only show an image and not the reality it's not giving the true picture to potential guests. Who like us might come away feeling very disappointed we chose to spend such a special occasion at this establishment.

Lovely evening dinner at the Brasserie we had a lovely time celebrating our Anniversary Special thank you to the lady Manager Arianna We will be back

Very upsetting trip following a rude floor manager, in the end we had to call her manager after the attitude she had towards my family and other staff members. She openly shouted at a waitress in the middle of the restaurant leaving us feeling uncomfortable....

Went to Pen & Cob today for lunch with my family for Easter and was served by Sophie. Service was brilliant and food was great. Would 100% recommend.

Lovely, good quality food. I arrived on a Sunday so the restaurant was very busy. Book ahead. I had a reservation but still waited about 15 minutes to be seated. Very nicely decorated and friendly staff. I had the Sunday roast which was delicious. The brownie dessert was nice too though I did wait 40 minutes for it. Turned out my order had been forgotten. I received a cup of tea as an apology. I would return. I’d like to try the restaurant when they are not quite so busy!

Beautiful interior, staff was lovely and the full vege english breakfast was perfect. Great hot chocolate too. Will definitely be returning.

I follow the singer Anie. And as always she didn't disappoint. Please let me know when she next performance. Service was good . Didn't eat only had a few drinks at the bar area.

The evening started off well with a friendly waitress who quickly seated us and took our drinks order, however things soon started going downhill once we had ordered our food. We both ordered the chicken Caesar salad to start which arrived promptly minus the chicken....

Superb food wonderful waitress. Tracy our server was charming and helpful. Our drinks were served promptly, the lovely setting next to the river complemented the excellent food

SCROCCHIARELLA was excellent with goat's cheese, red onion, Balsamic glaze and rocket. Plus side salad perfected this! Great service too and the rhubarb creme brulé was three pieces of delicious perfection! ✅👍😀

The food was great, but the service was questionable. I am not sure why there is a point of booking a table in advance only to get there and your table isn't ready. The place was 1/3 full, and everyone elsewhere seemed to have their tables set and ready for them. When we asked to sit elsewhere, the manager wouldn't approve (according to the waiter). Which made it seem like it was ok for us to sit at a dirty table? Despite the waiter cleaning the table in a rush, it gave us the fast food restaurant feeling, where the tables are not clean.

The beverages ,seating,view,service,ambiance everything was superb

Poor service at the bar. Little care of customers.

We visited here for a Sunday lunch after it was recommended to us. We were not disappointed. The food was great and possibly one of the best Sunday lunches we have had and such great value too! The staff were all lovely and welcoming. Thank...

We came here to celebrate my grandma's 80th birthday. Upon arrival there was a sweet sign wishing her a happy birthday. We all had different main courses but everyone was really pleased! The linguine was excellent. The wine selection was great as well. A special...

a slight misunderstanding at the beginning, I didn’t realise you waited to be seated, staff were courteous and professional. The food is excellent, the ice cream is divine (not exaggerating) an overall lovely experience. I recommend coming here, for social occasions or just for a treat. Be mindful that It has mid range to high prices depending on what you order; (totally worth every penny though) the restaurant directly looks over the river, even on a colder day it’s wonderful to look at. Enjoy :))

Went for bottomless brunch in a group for mine and a friends birthday. Janette was the beta server, our glasses were never empty!!!! Amazing service, food, drinks and atmosphere, worth every penny

The worst restaurant/pub in UK with rude useless staff. We wanted drink mulled wine in the side of restaurant where is nice winter decoration. Useless staff said no they are not allowed to serve there, only in left side of restaurant. This message is to the owner of this restaurant. You should fired all staff and manager also there and asked them why they prepared Winter decoration and sofas there if customers are not allowed to drink mulled wine there. You just lost customer forever also in summer time. In every different place or even country where is snow you can drink mulled wine. Your staff is too lazy to bring hot drinks and open different door. You have no idea how to earn money, manager of this pub is the worst in UK probably.

Had a wonderful birthday brunch yesterday. The staff were lovely and the food was tasty. Always love coming here for celebrations, the ambience is great. Thank you.

Food was not particularly great. Need a better cook. Staff friendly and trying to do best.

Fantastic food served in a great location. Pen&Cobb, located as part of The Embankment hotel did not disappoint. Clearly very popular and I’m not surprised. Great staters, my Caesar Salad would pass as a main course. My steak pie was excellent, plus it came with...

I came here to watch the singer Saturday evening "Anie" and the evening far exceeded my expectations, she was amazing and I can't wait to come back again. Brilliant night!!

Family get together in the library and lounge, what an amazing day we had, room was decorated beautifully, we had a roast dinner which was very tasty and good portions, staff were amazing and couldn’t do enough for us, a special thank you to Arianna...

Great atmosphere, friendly and helpful staff! Fantastic choice of drinks and food! Facilities are very clean and tidy!

We visited for our annual Christmas meet-up with all the family. Food was great and service was exceptional. Arianna is an asset to the team! We will be back next year I hope :)

Lovely afternoon spent with friends in the Pen and Cob. We popped in on the off chance there would be a table available and fortunately the staff were kind enough to cater to us even though they were extremely busy. Cake of the day was...

Pop in on a Sunday after we have been for a walk down the river. Coffee great , staff amazing. Be back soon

Nice place to have a drink after a cold walk down the river staff were lovely, welcoming and helpful.hot drinks were great.😊

Had I lovely meal in a private room with all the family. Food came out all together, extras where requested. We had the roast on Sunday which was great with a large Yorkshire and extra gravy. All good food and the decor was nice. Will...

Great xmas get together with the family with amazing food! Best roast dinner I've ever had! Love the decor here too :)

We had a great time at our bottomless brunch at Pen and Cob. Our server Sophie made us feel welcome and was very friendly. We were never without an empty drink, Sophie was very attentive. Food was good and E very oh enjoyed themselves. Thank...

Asked for mulled wine which they had on their winter warmers menu and watched a bar man pour 2 wine glasses of mulled wine from a bottle and try and serve it to us, it was cold and contained no fruit, I asked the barman if he could heat it and he said his boss said it shouldn’t be heated! We obviously didn’t drink these and left.

Fantastic hotel fantastic staff

Lovely views & setting by the river embankment. Perfect meet up with friends. The Pen & Cob restaurant part of The Swan Hotel has a lovely ambience with comfortable seating and excellent table service. Reasonably priced. The terrace outside menu for the warmer months wasn't...

Wow!! I have never felt so at home. Can I just say a big thankyou to Lucas and Hannah. We felt so valued and they were really 10/10. They were so attentive and perfect. I would recommend the pen&cob for sure. Can't wait to come...

Lovely atmosphere, Hannah was quick polite and attentive! Food was amazing we will see you again soon :)

Lucas was fantastic. He was extremely attentive and did not stop until our table were happy! Atmosphere was fab. I would recommend a Friday night at the swan :) xxx

Great Friday evening food was amazing service was second to none I want to book my birthday party here next year LOVE IT!

Another great Friday night with friends and family .Staff were amazing as always.Lucas was amazing and Hannah was tentative as always and friendly.

Really nice food, would come back

The Pen and Cob is a beautiful location with a friendly atmosphere. The wine we chose was excellent but the food was disappointing for the price. I chose the pork which was tasty but on the dry side and didn’t come with any extra gravy. The green beans were undercooked. My husband had the burger and that was also dry. Not very good for £17.

Had a lovely meal with wonderful service from the excellent Francesca. Recommended the pumpkin burrito which was delightful.

Ipatingai nemalonus darbuotojai, lankomes cia jau ne pirma karta, toks vaizdas, kad esi jiems skolingas, kad cia lankaisi. Jokio profesionalumo, niekam gyvenime nerekomenduociau cia lankytis!

Spending £500 on food and staff members rude every single visit. Always some sort of issue. One of the staff members a couple days ago didn't let me leave and said I didn't pay. Even though I showed them the transaction on my banking application

Took 10 minutes to be seated at a time where restaurant only had a few other customers. Drinks arrived half way through our meals (had to chase this up). Had to stand up and look for staff to pay the bill. Restaurant was not busy and several members of staff were present yet service was poor. Very disappointing.

When arrived we were ignored by staff. Had to seat ourselves and ask for menus. Also had to order our drinks twice before being served. The manager was awful and her customer service was shockingly bad. If it wasn't for the 2 young waitresses that made up for the prior terrible service and the food being excellent we would of walked out. I will go back but I would advise management being trained in customer service and how to smile.

Had a lovely evening dining at the pen and cob brasserie 11/10/23. After a long day of meetings we were greeted by very welcoming staff. We were part of a table of 8 and our server Emily was very attentive and professional along with her...

Had a meal at pen & cob last Friday evening we were enjoying our meal when a drunk man walked in and began to be a nuisance to us and other people eating. A lady (Katie) quickly appeared and resolved the situation in seconds walking...

Terrible. From hostile staff to dirty teapots. On arrival we were stood waiting to be seen for 10 minutes whilst staff just loitered around. Once we were seen to, the host was very rude, informing us we were 45 minutes early so she had to...

Friday 29/09/23 at midday we popped in for a quick glass of wine before visiting the Spa. Ordered 1 SMALL medium white wine and 1 SMALL Sauvignon. Received one glass filled more than the other? When I mentioned this the Barman stated, you asked for...

Went with 10 of my family for Sunday Lunch. Food was preoreded and was served together and was nice and hot .service was very good and the restaurant was very busy.

Anniversary meal with family. Had a marvelous time at the Pen and cob. fppd and drinks were both superb. Would highly recomend.

A special lunch, food excellent as was the service and the very pleasant surroundings. When the staff found out it was my Birthday they came to my table with a desert topped with a candle and sang Happy Birthday! I was very impressed by the meal but this very kind gesture made it extra special.

Booked a table here for our anniversary. Love that you can park for free. Just make sure you register your vehicle at reception. We ordered the vegetarian sharing platter, which was lovely, could have done with less cheese and more pitta, haha. For mains, we ordered the veggie burger and the chicken with vegetables and cajun wedges. Both were delicious! After reading some of the negative reviews, I was apprehensive, but the service was good, even when a large party sat near us. We were served by Jeanette and Lexie, and they were lovely. Would return.

The large outside terrace was the perfect place to sit on a warm sunny day as it overlooks the river. We enjoyed two small bottles of prosecco which cost £16.

I can understand why so many of the reviews say bland food. Having ordered the "spicy cauliflower" I was surprised to find it as "cauliflower". The grilled vegetables that came with it (apart from the pepper & onion) were really poorly (over) cooked. I wouldn't recommend that dish at all. We also ordered the artisan bread starter. It came with balsamic vinegar and olive oil for dipping. My suggestion to the restaurant is to either reduce the amount of oil, or provide them in separate bowls. There was so much oil that getting to the balsamic vinegar meant soaking the (already soft) bread. The service was ok. When we turned up several of the staff walked past without any real acknowledgement. But they were pretty good with bringing the food and clearing the plates. Paying took a long time.

We called ahead to ask about afternoon tea: they said come any time, however when we arrived they had run out of scones. We decided to stay for some drinks, and the atmosphere and decor was nice, staff were friendly too but very slow. We sat for over 20 mins before even being served. The place was by no means busy, and still took way too long for our drinks to come. Don't think I will be returning due to poor service. Drinks were alright