The Bull on Bell Street in South Oxfordshire

Booked Sunday lunch to celebrate joint birthdays. We all ordered Sunday Roast. Each roast came with 2 very small roast potatoes. We asked for some extra potatoes which when arrived it was a smal dish which contained 4 potatoes which was the equivalent of maybe 1 large potatoe cut up. On requesting the bill we had been charged 4.25 for this. We asked the waitres to remove this but she said she would need to ask the manager. She then returned and said no. Very diaspointing and due to this attitude we said fine we would decline leaving a tip. The waitress then became very moody. Snatched the payment terminal from our friends hands and was clearly seen moaning about us to another colleague. Very disappointed . Had much better service in other places and would not recommend or return.

I was so looking forward to this meal. I booked for 6pm today (Friday) as was going to The Kenton Theatre after dinner. My husband and I arrived early and were actually seated at 5:50pm. I asked about timings of food arriving as we needed to be at the theatre to meet friends at 7:15pm as we had their tickets. We ordered drinks and our food (Starters and mains) at 6:05pm. To be fair it was a good start and our starters were delicious, hence I have given the food 2 stars, they came quickly and were cleared away by 6:30pm. We then waited for our mains to arrive. My husband had ordered the fillet steak snd I ordered the lamb shank with chorizo mash. A table of four people were seated next to us shortly after our starters had been cleared. At 6:50pm I asked waiter (Carl) where our ‘mains’ were? He apologised that they were not with us and went to chase them up for us. He was gone for 5 mins then came back and said they would be with us very soon. At 6:58pm a waitress came towards our table with 2 lamb shanks in her hand and proceeded to place them on the table of 4 next to us. Shortly after her another waitress came with another 2 plates (1 steak and another lamb shank). When I got ready to receive them her response was “Oh these aren’t for you! These are for this table” and placed them on the table of four next to us again! The table that had been seated 35 minutes after us!! I then got up and proceeded to go towards the kitchen. I asked the group of staff there, as we had been waiting for our mains for at least 25mins when ours would be served? One lady (who I assumed must have had the most responsibility-manager?) answered quite rudely “which table are you, because it depends what you ordered as to how long it will take?” Carl (our waiter) arrived at that point and said that we were table 44. (In an exasperated tone, making me feel that he had already asked this question on our behalf and had been fobbed off) She then said they were plating it now. Carl brought the food to our table and apologised again. He did offer us a drink on the house but as we only now had 10 minutes to eat the food we declined saying we wouldn’t have time to drink it as well as eat and therefore could we just have the bill. While he went to get the bill we started our food. Mine was luke warm at best. When Carl bought the bill to us it was £105.50 I told him then that I couldn’t eat my lamb as it was luke warm and if we had more time I would have sent it back to the kitchen but as we didn’t I wasn’t going to eat it! Also that I was NOT going to therefore pay for it. Carl took the bill away. We put on our coats and Carl came back with a revised bill. With £21.12 (20%) taken off! This is less than the cost of the lamb and his words were I’m really sorry but this is all she will reduce it by! I was furious! I would have walked out and not paid a penny because of the way the manager lady made me feel. My husband just got his card out and paid the £84.48 left and we left. Something went wrong tonight in your restaurant, these things happen, BUT it’s how you make them right with the customer, or in this case didn’t, that counts. The Manager (or supervisor) didn’t take responsibility, made me feel like it was what I ordered that made it take so long, didn’t apologise and made Carl (our lovely waiter) be a scapegoat and take all the flack. I am not impressed in the slightest. The table of 4 next to us were also really embarrassed that they were served before us and were also appalled that were we charged at all! I don’t ever complain let alone write a bad review but, I’m afraid, ‘The Bull on Bell Street’ I couldn’t let this go.

Went here because it said that they had a good selection of gluten free . I chose something from the menu only to be told it was no longer gluten free although on the menu it was . Choices in the end were steak at £30+ or risotto so we left . Evidently they got a new menu last week and hadn't checked it

What a great place we had lunch at today staying near at Swiss Farm. They accepted our 2 dogs and the ribs were to die for. Indie our waitress for the afternoon was first class. Truly recommend it and we will be back next time we are in area. Well done all 👌

Service was very slow we had to wait a long time for our drinks, the roast chicken dinner wasn’t as good as it normally is not enough gravy and the Yorkshire puddings were virtually inedible no stuffing was served either we’ve been to The Bull multiple times and it’s just a shame that the last couple of times we’ve been here it’s definitely dropped in service and quality of food.

Lovely! Will definitely be returning 😍

Visited midweek for afternoon tea, first thing to say is portion sizes of sandwiches were massive, I was very pleased by this although was a little too much for my wife, all very tasty though. Scones were not warm which we prefer but nice, good choice of cakes, all very good but not exceptional. Service was spot on and the cocktails (pornstar martini and mojito) were yummy. Claim is the best afternoon tea in Henley, can’t argue otherwise based on our experiences.

Haven’t been to the Bell for a long time. It’s been done up and they’ve made a great job of it. I had a pizza and Diane has the Lamb Rump. Both were really good. Great service by all the staff. Food arrived quickly and it was hot. It’s now a very big pub with lots of different eating options inside. Cost wise for Henley really good value. We will go again for sure and that’s quite a compliment for the area. Well done all round 😁

Came for my Mum’s birthday meal. The roast was exceptional and the staff are so friendly. I highly recommend this place.

Lovely ambience probably nice for a pint but my Fisherman’s pie was cold inside the middle. They reheated and brought it back with the broccoli. An apology from a nice waitress - what a shame!

Very good food and service. The Rosemary and Potato Sourdough was superb.

No so great with service and rude really. We are full try next door was the response after waitingm20mins just to be looked at by 3 different staff in the time. Not even apologetic.

Really wonderful atmosphere and lovely service with good food. Stef was wonderful!

We were staying in Henley and having read the reviews booked here for my granddaughters 8th birthday. We arrived at 1.10 , took a while for our order to be taken . Starters arrived Goats cheese and pate, both good. Our main courses took ages, not good with 2 youngsters wanting to eat. We waited 1 hour 50 mins from arriving before the mains were finally served. My peri chicken was fine, my daughters mussels were luke warm , tiny and basically inedible. I had complained to a member of staff who went to check how long the food was going to be. Never came back to us. Poor customer service , if someone has a justifiable complaint ,follow it up and check they are ok. The whole experience spoilt my granddaughters birthday meal. Would never go here again. It wasn't even that busy so no idea what the problems were with the kitchen , but there are plenty of other places to eat locally.

Disappointing meals poor value pizza and chicken salad

A pretty lovely space, which appears to be let down by it's kitchen. Maybe they have too many tables for the kitchen capacity. We arrived on Saturday at 6pm. Our order was taken about 6.15. The food finally arrived at about 7.10pm. We'd given ourselves a relaxing hour and a half for dinner, before our event, but apparently that wasn't enough. We ended up skipping desert, which is sad for the business as they make more profit on desert Once the food came out, it was underwhelming. While nothing was bad enough to send back, it was close. Everything was warm, and not hot, and just not great.

We had a very good early evening meal at the The Bell (4 of us, 2 vegetarian).

Staff and pub amazing especially Stef x

Gorgeous food and friendly staff. We took our 10 month old and the facilities were great for her too!

Thoroughly enjoyed our evening meal for 12, Pre ordered all came out looking fantastic and tasted amazing So good we've booked for Christmas. Cannot fault attentive staff and attention to detail. Highly recommended

Cam was great, kind and professional. He helped me plan a dinner for 25 people. The food was great.

Stunning place and service, couldn't fault it

Lovely service from Stef and the team

Amazing atmosphere and service from stef. The food is great and really reasonably prices for portions

IS THE BEST EVER staff frenley 5 star the courtyard best up to 150 people food oh my God best pizza same as Domino's

The pub used to have solid staff and clearly great training but that time has now passed. I have taken groups of people for drinks and meals, visitors and family members many times over the years but I will never go back after today. On this occasion I stopped on my dog walk and had a pint outside. A really officious staff member asked if I was having dinner there and I said no - I would just have a pint and will be gone in 10 min. There were only three tables out of perhaps 30 occupied; we had sat there many times over the years just with a drink but often for a meal on our walks. This older, officious male staff member then said sorry but this is reserved for people who are dining you will have to leave the area . This was really embarrassing as I had to get up and leave so now he had 28 empty tables rather than 27! For this person to embarrass anyone in front of other customers is unforgivable and as good as the food was, there are a lot of great places to eat in Henley from The Argyle, Coppa, Cote, Hotel de Vin, The Relais , little angel, Angel on the bridge and many more - without the danger of being asked to leave. We dine at all of these and will continue to do so. A young person from behind the bar then followed me and asked if there was anything he could do. I did not say this but if I had the best I could suggest for him find another facility in town that matches his values. If they were all like this person they would once again have that great pub they once had and be competitive with others in town. These are all great pubs so why take the risk with The Bull on Bell? I left my 10% consumed Beer and departed the facility. At least they made a profit on my last visit there. There were no signs anywhere and no indication that this was a prohibited area if you were only having a drink. I am ok as I now know where to avoid - Henley is a great place and so are ALMOST all the establishments here.

The bar staff are rude and unfriendly. The food was inedible and the place looked unclean. The loos were disgusting. The only good thing was our waiter. Nice young man but the rest of the staff are really unprofessional Do not go !!!!

The staff was very unfriendly and showed no empathy at all. Having a food allergy, i ordered a disk without the sauce and the food arrived dried and over cooked. It was not eatable ! When i mentioned it to the staff, they did not offer an alternative or express any empathy. The chef could have suggested another dish to me if they knew the sauce was key ingredient of that dish ! So i got no advice on the choice of food, no empathy, no alternative and no compensation and no complimentary anything as a gesture … what a shame ! It is such a lovely decorated restaurant with NO SOUL, no warmth ! Such a pity !! I hope the management will improve things and retrain the staff to show a better attitude.

Table booked for 7pm for 8 people We arrived 10mins early Didn’t get a drink for 40mins , ordered food finally at 8pm after several times of asking Finally got starters around 8.30pm After speaking to a manager main course was served , without starter plates even being cleared I could go on and on but to be honest it was a total shambles and completely disorganised a total disappointment Would definitely not recommend

We booked for a birthday dinner for 8 people on Sunday bank holiday and were seated in the al fresco area. Drinks took a while but came and then we waited and waited for a food order. And we waited. We were then told that the roasts option had run out of beef and Yorkshire Puddings. OK - so we ordered and then waited for starters. I’ll not labour the point but there were just not enough staff to deliver, collect and take any care about what we wanted. We are Henley residents and I think The Bull is off our list of venues as this isn’t the first time it’s felt under staffed. The staff that were there were apologetic but they were embarrassed. I wouldn’t be surprised if they left and worked somewhere with some structure. I always pay a service charge but last night I asked for it to be taken off.

Celebrate my 21st birthday here! Lovely atmosphere for a special occasion but the food is average. Definitely recommend trying it out for drinks though, they serve lovely g&t and espresso martini . Xx

The service was probably the worst I have ever received in a restaurant. We ordered our meals, carried on ordering drinks for an hour whilst we waited. When I felt we had waited too long ( an hour) we tried to ask three staff members where our meals were. Eventually spoke to the manager who said he would find out. After another 15 minutes of waiting we found him again and his response was ‘we have run out of roasts’. We asked him when he was going to tell us that information and he said he was too busy. Such shocking, humiliating service and at no point did he apologise. He also short changed us when we asked for a refund of our meals which we were clearly never going to get. I never thought that I would receive this appalling level of service in an English so-called gastro pub. The food may have been ok, but I was never to find out as they had run out out without telling me!

Just the friendliest place wth the most wonderful food. If you have preconceptions about Henley being overpriced and pretentious, The Bull will dispel these. We will be back

Staff was amazing especially stef and food was excellent

Amazing atmosphere,food and service what more can I say

What a terrible experience ! The staff was very unfriendly and showed no empathy at all. Having a food allergy, i ordered a disk without the sauce and the food arrived dried and over cooked. It was not eatable ! When i mentioned it to the staff, they did not offer an alternative or express any empathy. The chef could have suggested another dish to me if they knew the sauce was key ingredient of that dish ! So i got no advice on the choice of food, no empathy, no alternative and no compensation and no complimentary anything as a gesture … what a shame ! It is such a lovely decorated restaurant with NO SOUL, no warmth ! Such a pity !! I hope the management will improve things and retrain the staff to show a better attitude.

Make sure you read the small signs on the way to the restaurant that they only accept card because they wont tell you when you sit down, and try and embarass you for trying to pay cash and not reading every sign you walk past. Young guy who was serving was really polite but the guy waltzing around in his own clothes is condescending and a bit rude. Venison was nice, sticky toffee pudding was good, but the other mains we had were very average.

Great bar, drinks selection was excellent and the rear courtyard beautiful

My god, that was the best fillet steak I've ever had, and the fish pie was to die for. 😋

Beautiful setting. We had drinks here with friends and it had a lovely atmosphere.

Amazing Cocktails!!! Don’t miss this if you are in Henley. If you want a great cocktail then speak to Cam. This guy is a professional mixologist in the making.

Avoid!! Disappointed ☹️ Bad costumer services from the team, the first waiter don’t accept us and he apologised because the place is so busy however we find a table for two persons available for dinner online, we have book it straight away and we come back however the other waiter straight away said that they are fully booked which really make me upset after long journey (from Wokingham to Henley). We tried to showed her the confirmation by email and she said that they are fully booked, however we can see tables are available no sign of reserved on it even the garden wasn’t fully booked😣 My first experience was good that’s why i come back but never again and never recommend this place again…

Sophia was our server and was great - very helpful

Wonderful, super tasty food, friendly staff, absolutely beautiful decor, fairy lights, stunning inside seating and the courtyard is such a feature, atmosphere is great, lovely venue! Family friendly and dog friendly!

Great food and service and dog friendly. Went here for lunch yesterday and it was so good that we're going again today.

Excellent food, great atmosphere

Lovely food and atmosphere. Service from Maddie was exceptional

I gave it 5 stars because the atmosphere and the service are really lovely!! But average food. Not bad, but not exceptional.

Very fun place, all different rooms to eat in and good comfy food to close from!

Amazing atmosphere 👏 delicious meals. Make sure you book your table in advance.

Really poor quality breakfast - go elsewhere!

A really great place with good food and atmosphere.

Never had food so can’t comment. The pub has a very good vibe and atmosphere and staff are welcoming.

Amazing place, great food, vibe, and space. Prices are pretty good as well.

We stayed in the coach house (next door)

Absolutely fabulous roast today , the lamb rump roast was the best we’ve had this year , we are regular visitors, the staff are always professional and friendly ,highly recommended

Wanted a quick mid week lunch, was a nice day headed to the garden, host was at the back so no one to greet us. Chose a table and told there was no table service in that area, which was fine but not great. Headed to the bar to order drinks which were put on a dirty tray, 3 members of staff behind the bar but had to take the tray myself no one offered to help. Took the tray back as didn't want it on our table was mistaken for a member of staff by another table, hilarious, clearly i was the only one that apeared to be doing any work. Back to the bar to order food told a dish we chose not available so had to head to the table to choose another. Ordered 3 main dishes which took nearly 45mins had to go back up to the bar to ask how much longer it would take, wasn't busy enough to warrant a delay. No one came to say there was a delay or apologise for it either. Food finally arrives no cutlery had to wait for that to be dropped off. Food was warm, pie was very small with a bit of mashed carrot, poor portion for the price. No one checked on us, went to pay at the bar lots of tables with plates that needed clearing. Quite shocked at the level (lack) of service, value and quality of food. Really gone downhill, such a shame

Great atmosphere although staff could be a bit more friendly.

Andy the manager was fantastic. Large group of us turned up with no reservation. Really accommodating with a smile. Defo recommend to anyone particularly large groups, just ask for Andy.

The interior design was lovely, with a beautiful colour palette and well-chosen fixtures. The cocktails were also quite enjoyable.😃

Great service and friendly helpful staff, didn't have any food.

Really terrible value for money here. The salads look like a canteen salad with dressing made from vegetable oil

Thank you so much to everyone at The Bull for hosting our incredible wedding day. We had the most amazing time and Samantha and all the staff couldn't have been more helpful in ensuring the day ran smoothly. The venue was beautiful and plenty of space for a band and dancing. Would highly recommend!

Loved this quirky place, beautifully decorated, lots of different seating areas inside and out and a great menu, best fish pie i ever had, really friendly helpful staff, wud definitely go again when in Henley

We like this place. All kinds of different atmospheres to choose from. Had a sandwich. It was good. A little pricey.

Another visit to the Bull. Probably the best pub in Henley with consistently good food, well presented with friendly efficiency. Asked to move to a booth table as we were a group of 4 which they did without fuss. Recommended...again!

Service is horrible here. Walked in on a holiday, not busy. Not a person saw us, acknowledged us or offered to take an order. Tables hadn't been cleared. Really a sorry excuse for a pub in a classy town. After waiting, we followed another couple out who seem to leave for the same reasons. Left and went to Coppa Club nearby and were greeted at the door and at the bar.

Avoid. Service was very poor, drinks came after the food, wrongly charged and they made it our problem. Food is just pub level and over-priced. Better off at 'spoons! Shame, as actual venue is great.

Very disappointed. Last November we had a good meal here, and thought we'd go back, but things have obviously changed. Firstly I think they lost our order as we had to chase it up after about an hour. When the food arrived the portions were tiny, like a teaspoon of coleslaw with the chicken, and the fish pie was a few tiny bits of fish and mostly mashed potato, but only a thin layer of food in the bottom of a small dish. The prices are on the high side for a pub meal, but the quantity of food and poor service left us unimpressed, and we won't be going back.

Ate here with my wife for her birthday yesterday. Nicely presented dining areas, very trendy decor. Service was OK but a bit impersonal. However we were very disappointed with the food. We had artisan potato bread to start which was clearly premade/frozen and hadn't been properly warmed so still very cold in the centre. We both had pizza which was at best average with poor toppings and overly crispy. Sticky toffee pudding was OK but the key lime meringue was laughable, again clearly frozen and the tiniest £9 dessert I've ever experienced. I complained but was just told my comments would be passed on. Nice place but don't get excited about the food.

The waitress looking after us was miserable and pretentious.

Breakspeare run pub in the centre of Henley. Nice indoor seating with sofas and fire at the front and then tables and service at the back. Large covered/ glass orangerie style seating area outside, which is excellent in the spring/summer. Service is good, Albeit you might need to book in advance. Food is nice - pub classics - albeit on the expensive side. Accessibility isn't great for prams or wheelchairs. Would recommend, just book ahead unless you don't mind chancing it!

Setting is lovely and service was good but felt the afternoon tea wasn’t quite the best value for money. Sausage rolls very small, very small scones too so felt 2 each rather than one would be better. Good selection of cakes tho.

Stef & Sasha really looked after us & we thoroughly enjoyed our afternoon

27th April, 80th birthday with 26 friends and family. Food excellent,service polite,atmosphere warm and friendly. All in all a great experience.

Gorgeous Sunday roast, staff were really helpful, also doggy treats . . . Thanku Sam, Jean, Steve and Sarah - Cannock 🙏

Excellent service by Andy as always.

Choose this restaurant for my birthday lunch having never dined here. Nice atmosphere, unfortunately service spoilt by lack of waiting staff. Also the smell of stale urinals in the gents toilets was a bit over powering especially having to visit during meal. Two attempts at coffee, still served luke warm. Overall a bit of a disappointment for a special day.

Love this pub and restaurant and totally recommend it, but very dismayed to find they have gone cashless! This is not right and should be addressed.

We booked a table for 15 people (mix of adults and kids) on Good Friday. We were asked to pre order our food, which was a little annoying but also understandable. The pub reserved a private dining room for us which we thought was a fantastic idea. Unfortunately a few of us were over an hour late due to horrible traffic but the pub staff were very accommodating and allowed us to stay in the room beyond the two hour reservation. Once everyone had arrived we asked for our starters, this took at least 45 minutes to arrive, the same again for the main courses and the desserts. The food was good but not as good as some of the other reviewers have stated. The kids portions were tiny and the desserts were too sweet, particularly the lemon meringue dessert. The pichana steak, although cooked as suggested was very tough to chew, the flavour was nice. We spoke to the waitress who said if it is sliced in a different direction it would be less chewy!!! If that was the case then the chef should slice it before serving! The waitress asked if we wanted a replacement dish but the food had already taken so long, we were hungry so we persevered! I appreciate that we were late but the kitchen was informed and they knew what we had ordered, we felt like they had forgotten about us most of the time. We don’t live in the area so we won’t be going back!

Samantha, Sophia and the rest of the team hosted our club for drinks after our annual club dinner. Fantastic organisation and co operation with us to make the event run smoothly. The staff were brilliant with excellent service, we had rented out the outside area of the bar where we had a DJ, plenty of space and heaters to keep us warm! A very aesthetic outdoor area perfect for events like this. As a club we would like to say a massive thank you on behalf of everyone, hopefully we can come again as it was an amazing experience! Thank you very much again to the team at the bull!

Chloe was so patient and smiley throughout the whole evening great place

All the staff are absolutely amazing

Very good food and not very expensive.

Food was great, Steph our waitress was lovely !!!

Served by Josh today. Really superb service from this young man. Friendly, engaging, great communication skills. A natural and relaxed style combined with genuine care for good customer service. Sadly, skills that seem to be rarely found in many hospitality outlets these days. Well done Josh and good luck with your career! As a side note I have assessed service and quality in hospitality and tourism worldwide for 13 years for a living....so hope my comments come with some credentials. Other staff today were also friendly and professional. An outstanding pub with staff to match....well done!

Visiting Henley and had great service

Called in on Saturday afternoon hoping dog friendly. We were four adults and four dogs (two of them huge!!). Place was very busy but they put themselves out to accommodate us to the extent that one drink turned into several and meals. Staff, food, atmosphere and prices were all brilliant. Words really don’t do the Bull justice absolutely outstanding.

The octopus in romescu sauce was very tender and flavoursome . Brazilian steak was very tender and excellent taste . Boys loved the sticky toffee pudding . Sophia was very friendly and attentive . Good evening had by all

Such a brilliant afternoon tea, great food and service. Chloe was a wonderful server! Great value for money too. Definitely coming back

Lovely visit, amazing service and food❤️

Our waiter, Stef, was delightful and attentive. The squid starter is spectacular, almost a meal in itself. The chicken and chorizo burger was served with the freshest tomato I’ve had in England in years, and the chicken fillet was succulent and cooked to perfection. Full marks to the Bull and to Stef. Geoff Steve Gerald Dave.

Fantastic experience back at the Bull on the Bell. We sat in the orangery which was lovely and had great service from Steff who was polite and helpful the whole way through. Positives: - speedy service - delicious food (especially the roasts which were cooked perfectly) - the decor - dog friendly - helpful staff Negatives: ......

Nice surroundings good service fro Stef and excellent pianist plus nice Sunday roast. Well done

Really lovely atmosphere with the pianist and lovely food. The service is always really good.

Food is always great. Bar is a bit pricey but the vibes make up for it. Had a 30th birthday party here last year, and it was a good event. Food for the event wasn’t nearly enough for the number of people I had ordered it for, and I ended up ordering more food for everyone on the night.

Great food, great service by Steph! Highly recommend !

Stef was fantastic. Very attentive. Service was great!

Amazing experience, would certainly recommend

Delicious food and great atmosphere as always. Stef was really attentive.