Red Lion Inn & Motel in York

My wife made a telephone booking for a family group of 15 as a birthday treat for me, a Sunday carvery. That booking was made in August, the table was booked for Sunday October 27th at 2pm. When we turned up, we were told that they had no record of any booking for our group and could not accommodate us for over an hour. We had travelled from York, Scarborough, Ripon and Easingwold to meet for this occasion, so to be told, in a disinterested manner that we couldn't be served was very upsetting and annoying. We were then told, after several protests that their sister establishment in Haxby would be able to accommodate us, but only with a standard menu, not carvery, which is what everyone wanted. Reluctantly we went to the Cottage Inn at Haxby, which had staffing issues, the wait was almost an hour for what was disappointing food. After speaking to the manager, my wife and I were offered a free carvery at the Red Lion in the future. Everyone in our group agreed that after this awful experience we will not be returning to either establishment, nor will we be recommending them to anyone else. It is sad that I wasn't able to share a positive review, we didn't get to enjoy the food that has been given good reviews, which, after poor service from the previous owners, we were all so looking forward to returning. Our agreed opinion is that the booking system requires urgent attention, as well as the front of house manner.

Stayed one night b&b king-size bedroom plenty of room and clean. Breakfast super hot and tasty. All staff very welcoming and friendly.

Friendly & helpful staff and a reasonable room rate. The room was impeccably clean. Having read previous reviews, I can confidently state that whilst in our room we experienced no noise pollution & slept soundly. An Uber into York centre was approx. £9.

I called in for lunch after a family funeral.

Absolutely great pub, ideal for motorhome or campervans ,food amazing and the barman was so helpful and very funny The yorkshire pudding wrap was amazing 👏

My wife and I popped into the red lion on our way back from Harrogate at the weekend. We were desperately hungry and weren’t expecting anything special, but to our surprise the food is absolutely wonderful. The staff were really accommodating and friendly, The chef had no problem adapting anything on the menu to gluten-free. My wife said that her steak was one of the best you ever had. We will definitely be popping in for food again next time we’re passing.

Had a lovely family meal here. Staff were friendly and welcoming and the food was delicious. Sadly too full to sample the dessert board but we're planning to come back and leave more room :)

Pass this place often while commuting so decided to give it a go. The best pub food I've ever had in my life. Waitress was lovely and chefs obviously know their craft. Will be back again soon

Lovely pub, friendly staff and great food at a good price . Would definitely call in here again

Service so slow not sure if barmaid knew what she was doing

Lovely warmly kept pub friendly atmosphere and lovely food a must visit ample of parking space

The rooms are very nice the food amazing loads of character Excellent service the staff very welcoming. Truly recommend to stay here.

Well run family Inn which needs an upgrade.

Party of 17 for my sister's 70th we couldn't fault the hospitality of the staff, the food we choose the carvery,one of the best we've had 100% we will return... complements to the chef and staff of this local motel

Just called for food. Yorkshire pudding wrap with beef was absolutely superb thanks. Not sure the thyme on the chips worked. Sad we couldn’t tip waitress on card machine and we had no cash. But very impressed with food.

Called in on our way to and from york races.lovely little bar and bar staff made us welcome

Not a bad little place just outside York. Easy access to town.

Good location and food. Warm, welcoming staff. Comfy beds, but bathrooms looking a little tired. Road quite loud if a light sleeper but earplugs are provided!

cant praise this motel enough we stayed 3 days and staff were so plesant and beyond helpful food stunning and so nice words cant desgribe....grounds lovely and as im disabled found everything accesible for me ..room was spotlessand cant fault ...would stay here again...love the red lion...

Incredible reception by staff . So friendly and courteous. Slight downside mear a road but not to busy

We took my mum for lunch here on a very wet day with 3 dogs in tow. They let us choose a table tucked out of the way in their cosy, beautifully presented bar room. The service was friendly and efficient and all our food was fresh and delicious. I would definitely eat here again.

Food is 5 star 🌟 the young girl who works on the bar was very rude and a bad attitude because of that I give a 3 star came out with a my wife and children for a good time and nice food spending money to be made to feel un welcome I hope this was jus a one off and she was having a bad day witch we all have But still don't take it out on your customers please

An American style motel attached to a pub a few miles outside of York. Nothing fancy but comfortable. Customisable breakfast which can end up being rather large. Rooms facing main road, so can be noisy. Park and Ride locations nearby making it easy to enter York. Far cheaper than looking and paying for parking. Closest has limited time table.

Red Lion Inn & Motel. Stayed one night at the end of a golf weekend away. Very friendly staff. Brilliant food. The best food we had on the whole of our trip. Evening meal and breakfast were both great value very tasty and well presented. Can not fault the food or bar. The room was comfortable clean and well presented, maybe just a little dated in decor, but things like this don't bother me. The shower was OK, nice and hot, just lacking a little bit of power. Bed was comfy with clean sheets. Pillow was lacking just a bit for me, but that's personal taste. It is located near a road, so noise may be an issue for some people. Overall, it was great value, and I would stay again without question.

I stayed here for 2 nights and it was awesome! The rooms were very reasonably priced and included breakfast. It was a much better deal than anything else in York. The place was just cozy and comfortable. The food was also great. I had the scotch eggs as a starter and they were amazing. Then I had a flat iron steak, which was also 10/10. Overall, it was a fantastic experience. The landlord, Will, was super friendly and all the other staff were great. I'll definitely be back next time I'm in York.

Thank you so much for hosting our get together after Dad’s funeral. Brilliant location and venue. Food was perfect and very reasonable. Thank you, you made a difficult day much easier.

Absolutely wonderful meal and staff were great ,we were staying in a campsite just down the road so was very handy.the steak and ale pie was so succulent and the gravy for the chips was delicious also the hunters chicken was scrumptious will definitely be going again x

Such a wonderful stay. Great location and the service was second to none Holly and Will were the best hosts. Nothing was too much trouble for them Delicious home cooked food with high quality local products. I would highly recommend a stay here. So sad to leave 😢

The food was amazing. The staff were really friendly and very helpful. We stayed over and had breakfast included. They let us in earlier as we had work earlier, so went out of their way to accommodate us

Great service from the owner, he was very chatty and happy. Had a good burger and wedges, plus a beer, good value for money. It was a shame about the tradeys that were in at the same time, who had parked their vans in the disabled spot and were throwing stuff around the car park.

Stayed here Saturday night and had food too. I had steak and my partner had gammon was really great food and service was great. Very good atmosphere. Would definitely recommend

Don’t underestimate this privately run, classic British pub. We loved the cosy fireplace, beer selection, palatable wines and well presented, hearty food, totally justifying previous reviews. The rooms are comfortable, we had a great nights sleep. Our worries about road noise (you are quite adjacent to a main road) were proved wrong. All in all, a great expert and very reasonable pricing. Recommended.

Excellent food venison pie and sherpard pie.10/10 I was just driving past when we decided to pop in.very impressed great food..excellent customer service. Hi would highly recommend this fine establishment..keep up the great work 👍

Excellent atmosphere and food, I had the surf and turf and it was cooked to perfection. Attentive and accommodating staff. Many thanks for a thoroughly enjoyable experience. 10/10 highly recommend!

We were a party of 9 people. I ordered steak with prawns. Triple cooked chips were burnt, when I said they looked burnt, the reply was they were supposed to look like that. (Eaten in a lot of restaurants and never been served them black and over crispy ). Steak and mushrooms were both cold. Husband had horseshoe gammon, it was not like any horse shoe gammon he had before. It was Luke warm and very very fatty. Three other people's food were Luke warm. One staff to run bar and serve on was maybe the reason. We were the only people in the room (on a Saturday night ) and I came away thinking I know why. Do not normally write a bad review but this was our observation.

Delicious food and great value for money. Live music on Saturday night was excellent and deserves be better attended than it was.

Amazing carvery. A lovely selection of veg and meats. It was delicious and omg the Yorkshire pudding were to die for. It was myself and the little one and we actually finished all our meal which can be more than said for most places we have ever tried. There was a lovely selection of desserts however I couldn’t possibly fit one in, the child however demolished a lemon cheese cake with ice cream that looked lovely. The staff were really helpful and friendly from the moment we walked in even tho it was so busy and they didn’t really have the time to talk never mind be friendly and fuss the the little one. Nothing was too much for them. It’s a beautiful looking pub and very welcoming. Will 100% be back again to try the pizza night that I think is coming on a Wednesday (don’t quote me tho). I think booking is key for this place as it’s so popular and I’m not surprised as to why. Well done to all the staff your a credit to your boss! See you real soon to try the normal menu.

Great live music and lovely food on a Saturday night.

Jess is a lovely manageress who cannot do enough for you Will return in the future. Edited.. let’s hope the new owner keeps the high benchmark up, unlucky ????

Stopped here for a pub lunch and got a warm welcome and amazing food. A lovely cosy pub with a really nice atmosphere

Called in there boxing Day evening even though we were the only ones there they were very hospitable and we said we would be back.We returned last night 20th of January to find there was entertainment going on in the bar(female singer) we ordered a meal which came to us very well presented one of the best pub meals we've had in a long time. The staff were very attentive and hospitable we really enjoyed our evening thank you, and once again we will be back. Definitely worth a visit.

Had Sunday lunch there today. Food was absolutely amazing!! Meat cooked perfectly, and all the veg etc was perfect; will absolutely be back. Service from Will, Holly and the team was as usual perfect! Thanks guys!!

Sunday dinner is lush well worth a try.

Beaut spot, great food, great service!

Food was delicious! Gorgeous decor & atmosphere and a very warm welcome. Great location to visit York. Food was all high quality ingredients and good portions. Large parking area for our campervan. We had an unplanned overnight stay - Will did everything possible to accommodate us and sorted an extra bed for our son. Amazing customer service. The bed was so comfortable. Road noise didn’t bother us. Stylish room & en suite. We will return when in the York area again. 5 star food, location and service. Thank you!

The food and service was excellent!! Definitely will return

The most delicious carvery I’ve ever had! Passed by whilst visiting York as we saw it did a Sunday carvery. Needed somewhere that was dog friendly and they had a large bar area with comfortable seating that suited us perfectly. We were lucky as we hadn’t booked. Was very quiet for a Sunday so was apprehensive about the food. But the carvery was the tastiest I’ve ever had, good selection of meat, good selection of vegetables. One of our party was vegetarian and the kitchen staff were quick to sort her out vegetarian gravy. The staff were perfectly attentive! Very good prices also. Would highly recommend

We had our Motor Club meet here for the first time to try it out. Will the landlord, Olli the bar person, Holly the waitress greeted us cheerfully. They looked after us really well and I'm sure we will be going back. Menu looked good. Large car park. Thank you for your time.

Great service & v friendly atmosphere Had lunch & food was delicious & of high standard. This venue will soon be in high demand we were impressed & plan on returning soon.

5* We came in as a table of 7 with no reservation, the gent behind the bar was fantastic and very tentative to our needs. Food was brilliant and came quick enough but not too quick like the microwave chef meals! Will definitely visit again, toad in the hole with hog sausages was divine! Thank you!

Unfortunately quite disappointing from the moment we walked through the door to the moment we left. Asked at the bar where we could sit as we wanted to eat, and the bar staff were not very helpful told us to sit in the bar but didn't give us menu or tell us about the Carvery. Also had no idea on what we had ordered when it came to paying. Service was painful and very disorganised. There was a young blonde girl who was very good but clearly run off her feet and didn't seem to be getting any help from others. Had to wait over half an hour to be allowed to go up for carvery. Had to ask for sauces which arrived without spoons. Some of the carvery was meant to be brought to our table and it never arrived. Food was ok and quite reasonable, good portion of meat, but not worth the wait.

Passed the pub on my way to York. Lovely atmosphere, real friendly chap behind the bar, good selection of ales and I had the best sausage roll during my week here (chorizo and feta). Their menu looked delicious too. They apparently just renovated and the place looks real good. Keep it up! Definitely recommend.

We had a lovely meal here we will definitely be returning 😊

Incredible food! One of the best places we have ever eaten. Kids meals were also amazing, our son epecially loved the 'tadpole in the hole'. Will visit again soon.

We called for food but the kitchen was closed for refurbing. the landlord was really frendly

10 minutes drive to the centre of York

The worst hotel experience of my life. Room was ok for what it was, nothing special. Shower head looked like it hadn't been cleaned in months. A LOT of noise from nearby road.We arrived 15mins before check in (as had 3 other couples).Pub all locked up, no staff on reception - not a good start. Walked through and found the head chef who was deeply unhappy at having to book the guests in. Ate in the pub for the first night and the food was pleasant, however breakfast was a completely different story- the milk was off and when staff brought out more bread it was all mouldy. We decided not to eat in the pub for the rest of our stay after this. On both occasions we returned from our day out, staff were smoking marijuana, with the manager openly telling my husband she wouldn't come any closer to him as she was 'smoking a joint' but it was ok because in her words 'she deserved it'! Would not recommend this place to my worst enemy.