The Freemasons Arms of Nosterfield in Hambleton

Fantastic eatery with a traditional pub feel. Welcoming staff and a roaring fire made us feel relaxed as soon as we entered. Good range of drinks, including alcohol free and the menu is varied with some innovative dishes. I highly recommend the sourdough appetiser and the chicken gochujang spring roll starter, unbelievably tasty. We opted for fish and chips as mains, and again we weren’t disappointed, beautifully cooked with great sides, including a wee pot of curry sauce. Overall, a great experience from start to finish, staff were attentive and cheerful, without being intrusive, I highly recommend this place. 10/10.

If you’re looking for a top quality pub with quality food, that’s piping hot, tasty, fresh, good value and presentation appealing,then this is the perfect place 👌today we were hosted by Katie who is so friendly and attentive, and Stuart the same , both make you feel like family, as this has been our local for years, but recently taken over by new owners, Harry waited on us, such a lovely friendly lad, nice smile and good at his job, so I can confirm service is top quality, waiting time is spot on, and the pork crackling is to die for. Great menu, best I’ve seen on a Sunday , nice log burner keeping us warm and cosy and fantastic atmosphere, my partner had the roast beef, with roast potatoes, leeks, carrot, red cabbage, yorkshire pudding, broccoli, it’s not often broccoli comes hot but this was, and a jug of tasty gravy, I had roast pork with apple sauce and all as above, and they serve gin that is alcohol free, which tasted just like normal gin, keep up the excellent 10/10 for making our Sunday Roast a pleasure, see you all very soon We must support this amazing pub, even if you pop in for drinks only, 🙏X

After having lunch on sat 5th, I booked Sunday 6th for lunch. I had beef and my mother had pork roast dinners. Fantastic, we both had sweets cheese cake and sticky toffee pudding. The food both days were cooked fantastically and the service was good with a smile and a chat. My mother was happy so I was happy.

Such a beautiful little pub which offers the best food. Staff are so friendly and welcoming. If you do not visit when you’re in the area you really are missing out!

Food is amazing, perfectly seasoned and tasty ( had Scotch eggs and steak and fries). Best meal I had on my trip. Staff is so friendly you feel at home and the general atmosphere of the pub is very cozy. I highly recommend it.

So lucky to have The Freemasons as my local! A lovely, well kept pub serving great food & drink. I love the fact that so many dishes are uncompromisingly GF, so many places offer a small selection of bland dishes. The fish & chips are delicious, light, crispy batter, encasing fresh, flaky white fish served with chunky chips. Love the addition of curry sauce too! Highly recommended.

We visited for my dad's 60th, Katie was really helpful when we communicated via email. We had a few dietary requirements and a large group of 20. The food was delicious, they did forget to give us roast potatoes but we didn't miss them much as the rest was so delicious (especially the cauliflower cheese). They provided balloons and decorations as well as a candle for dad. The staff were lovely on the day and really helpful. Service was prompt without feeling rushed. Thanks for having us.

What a fantastic find! Set in a small village, this is an old building with a contemporary twist. Went for Sunday roast. Food was spot on as was the service. Can't fault it at the price.

Amazing food. Great service. Fabulous fish and chips the batter was so light. I would highly recommend the food here. I have never been disappointed. The staff are friendly and very welcoming. Lovely cozy atmosphere

Food quite average for the price - Yorkshire puddings were overcooked and the roast potatoes were very tough. Plates and side dishes were cleared away while one member of the party was still eating which made us all feel uncomfortable. No children’s options so paid full price (£25 approx) for sausage and chips, followed by 1 scoop of ice cream. Was really looking forward to our visit today but left feeling disappointed to have chosen here for Fathers Day.

Our meal last night was a real pleasure. Very friendly welcome, felt very much like a family / local place, not at all 'chain' or corporate. Food was excellent - not trying too hard, just really well cooked, very tasty. A very good menu too, plenty of options. Especially impressed with veggie / gluten free choices. We'll be back.

Family trip to Yorkshire for half term and we visited the Freemasons Arms twice for an evening meal. The decor and atmosphere is lovely as soon as you arrive. We had booked online and there were no issues. The menu had a good selection of dishes and there were steak and fish specials on the board. There is no children's menu but they will do smaller portions of all the main meals. My two had gammon and chips, and fish and chips. The full size adult meals were excellent. Good portion size and really tasty. Service was quick and very friendly. Would definately recommend.

Sunday lunch. Great service and very pleasant surroundings. Lunch ok not a plate full but ok with desert ok price acceptable

Beautiful old building, wonderfully welcoming staff, nice menu, excellent food, great value for money. Loved it! No wonder it was busy - definitely worth booking!

Lovely warm welcoming pub …great food …we have had several Sunday lunches , a birthday celebration with tasty bar snacks and drinks

Had a lovely evening celebrating last night The food was excellent, I had the fish and chips which was perfectly cooked and came with the most Devine dips inc a very special curry sauce twist on a traditional chop shop dip The beers and wines available are wonderful my personal fav is the Theakstons on tap The hosts are super friendly and can’t do enough for their guests and patrons Wonderful place will defo be back

Visited this place wednesday and Thursday this week as we visit Masham loads. The place has been closed for 18 months and we used to travel from Pontefract just to eat here so we expected big things now its reopened. We werent to be disappointed a lovely couple are running it with a small but concise menu which is btw gluten free optional, the food was to die for esp on the thursday when they put battered prawns and whitebait on which we had discussed on the wednesday (many thx for that). The chateaubriend was gorgeous and the medium rare steak i had melted in my mouth. Prices very reasonable food and beer. Lovely couple trying their best for this place i for one will be helping them🤣🤣🤣

£6 for 2 thin (supermarket sliced) slices of burnt sourdough bread is extremely steep. We brought this to the attention of the staff and we were offered more bread, however we were so disappointed we refused. We thought it would have been removed from our bill considering the complaint but we were still charged. We were considering coming as a family for a meal here, however after this experience we have been left completely underwhelmed. We also ordered 2 pints of beer and a glass of wine. The first pint of beer was quite warm & the second was ok. The wine also tasted as though it had been opened for a short while. Really disappointed with this visit as we really enjoyed it on our previous visit.

We were recommended this cosy gastro pub by a family member so thought we'd give it a try. We booked for a Sunday lunch and upon arrival, were met by the lovely hosts and also 2 roaring log burners. We had the homemade chicken parfait for starter with sourdough toast and homemade pickles, it was to die for. We followed this by choosing the lamb shank and roast pork loin. Both were cooked to perfection and came with carrots, roasties and an excellent yorkie. Brought separately to the table was an array of green veg and a lovely dish of extra creamy cauliflower cheese. We couldn't fit a dessert in but the choices looked lovely and all home made I believe. They serve local beers and have an extensive wine list to choose from. Our whole lunch with drinks was under £50, to eat in a lovely setting like this I think is well worth it and would definitely recommend if your in the area.

Delicious Sunday lunch! Has a lovely warm and welcoming atmosphere, with great service. We will definitely be going back.

We have eaten here many times and never been disappointed. Alas, there is always an exception to the rule. One of our party sent the “crispy” Pork Belly back twice. No crisp in site. An alternative wasn’t offered. Another member of our party ordered a side of veg which never arrived. We were charged for 6 glasses of wine when in fact we had four. The bill was rectified but we left feeling disappointed.

We booked a table for Sunday lunch prior to our arrival for a weeks holiday in the area. Came across some good reviews for the Freemasons, whilst doing a Google search, so decided to give it a try. We weren’t disappointed. The Sunday lunch menu was limited to about 4 starters, mains & desserts. We had two roasts, we both thoroughly enjoyed our meals. They came with a Yorkshire pudding, Chantenay carrots, gorgeous red cabbage, spring greens, which consisted of broccoli, mange-tout and peas. There was also a portion of cauliflower cheese, which was the best cauliflower cheese I’ve ever had on a meal out. There was only one criticism and that was the roast potatoes, which were a bit hard and not remotely crispy. Personally, I prefer a crispy roast potatoe with a soft centre, but that’s just my personal preference. We had sticky toffee pudding for afters. The meal came to just over £50 for the two of us, with a drink. From what I gather the pub has just been refurbished and re opened. It’s very nice inside, small but not pokey, with wooden floors, panelling and log burners. It felt a tad cool on arrival, but it soon warmed up as people arrived. The toilets were obviously brand new and tidy, just a bit tight on cubicle size. When we arrived we weren’t sure if the land opposite the pub was their car park, if it was, we didn’t see a sign to say so. We didn’t park there just in case. Based on our meal today, we would definitely recommend The Freemasons.

Visited last night with my husband and wow… had the 20oz sirloin sharing board .. the steak was cooked to perfection tender and tasty, plenty of food for two people. Lovely atmosphere pub was full at 6.15pm nice and warm very inviting will definitely visit again and highly recommend 😊🥩🥗🍺

Love the atmosphere of this place ,always delivers ,good platters ,and good wine , Just what a Friday night should be ,chilled start to the weekend ,perfect and so lucky to have it on our doorstep .

Before I go to eat out I look on TripAdvisor to see a meno and if it doesn’t show gf on the first page I just look for another restaurant that’s more aware, so the Freemasons has the answers to all my requests. You will be my big magnet after Christmas and thank you for getting me excited about eating out again

This is the first time we have visited and eat at the Freemasons arms, the menu was more limited than on the website so you maybe need to update that but we were still really happy with the menu and our choices. The food was excellent and so was the service, there was a young boy serving it was his first night front of house and he did an excellent job! Great to see you giving people a chance! Thanks again

Another excellent meal at the Freemasons Arms, great service and friendly staff as always. We started with the chilli prawns followed by the fish and chips sharing board. Desserts were on offer but we were too full. Definitely worth a visit on a Friday evening, but book to avoid disappointment.

We absolutely loved our visit here at the Freemasons Arms. Myself and my husband have been before but my family who came with us this particular night hadn't. The food was amazing, we had Prawns to start with and the camembert and then for mains we had the sharing boards, fish & chips and the steak. Everything was absolutely delicious. The Staff were very friendly and professional and made us very welcome as did Hannah as always. The Drinks were flowing and even had shots to finish the evening. We will definitely return along with my Family and will recommend to all our friends and family. A big thumbs up from us, amazing 👍🏻.. Jane & Mark and family x

Excellent meal in a warm and friendly atmosphere where everybody looked as happy as we were! The sharing plates have really taken off and are a great selection, something for everyone. Helpful staff and attentive service made for a very pleasant evening. We will be back!

We had such a wonderful evening, great food, drinks and a really warm welcome. Having just moved into the village it is wonderful to have such a friendly Pub, we look forward to many more visits to come

Having seen on Facebook that the Freemasons Arms were open on Fridays and pictures of their sharing boards we booked a table . We weren’t disappointed, There is a selection of starters on the menu, we opted for chilli prawns which were delicious main course we had the fish and chips sharing board which was cooked perfectly and more than enough for two people. Unfortunately we were too full to sample desserts which were on offer. The staff and service was excellent too, would definitely recommend the Freemasons arms. .

Delicious food and always a warm welcome, booked a table over the phone and managed to fit us in even when they were busy , will be back soon!

The Freemasons has a fabulous atmosphere, what better place to spend a Friday evening with friends sharing delicious food platters. Eight of us shared the steak & fish boards …..delicious and plenty food for us all from 4 x boards. Just wish the pub was open more nights! We’ll be back soon 💕

Toxic environment. When we were there we could hear arguing in the kitchen. The food was poor with my yorkshire pudding being very undercooked.... no one likes a undercooked Yorkshire pudding.

Pre booked a table as unsure whether it would be busy. It was pretty quiet. We were greeted by a young lady behind the bar and told we could sit anywhere. We took a table in front of the wonderful log fire. The menu was nice and my wife ordered chicken leek and mushroom pie from the specials board and I ordered pan fried venison. We didn’t wait too long to be served, but the food is cooked to order so a small wait is acceptable. Piping hot food was served by the young lady, who was very attentive and very thorough. The food was lovely, fresh, hot and tasty. Not much left by the time we had finished. We are back on the Dales between Christmas and the New Year, the food and service was that good we booked a table for that visit. Sorry I didn’t get the girls name, but thank you, and thank you Freemasons Arms.

This place is a little gem hidden away. The food is amazing, the staff can't do enough for you. Menu is fab and a big well done to the chefs. The food was so tasty. Garlic mushrooms, and beef roast. Beautiful cannot fault. Highly recommended.

Four of us went to this pub tonight after a friend had visited a couple of months back and told us how good it was I have to say we was very happy with the meal and the young ladies that was waiting on the tables were exceptional (down to earth friendly and generally a credit to the pub)we will be going back without a doubt..

I have recently returned to visiting the Freemasons since before the Covid19 pandemic, and found it to be just as good, if not better than before. A party of five of the family visited on my wife's birthday (Sat 13 Nov lunchtime) and four yesterday evening (Thursday 18 Nov) and sampled various different starters, mains and deserts, all excellent and good value for money. It is a warm and cosy pub, nice beer and drinks, very friendly and helpful staff. We have nothing but praise for our experiences and will be back.

Well worth the one hour drive to the Freemasons Arms. Weve been here before when staying in Masham so we know this place is amazing. Yet again food and service excellent, varied choice of meals even catering for gluten free. Will definately be back again!!!

We had Sunday lunch here and it was excellent. The food was delicious with generous portions and fairly priced.It was busy with a lovely atmosphere.The staff were very helpful and efficient and the young man who mainly dealt with our slightly chaotic party was friendly and professional although he had only been there for 3 months.We have been before and never been disappointed and will certainly return

Although the restaurant was not busy (Wednesday} the staff were absolutey first class. Nothing was too much trouble. The food was of a high standard. We have not visited The Freemasons Arms for some time and I understand that there was a period where standards had dropped. Not so now. We will be back and with friends in tow

We had a fabulous lunch here today. Lamb Henry and duck followed by apple crumble. It was the most delicious pub lunch we've eaten in a very long time. Lovely roaring fire on a cold day and excellent service. Thank you.

Comprehensive and competitively-priced menu, good pub atmosphere, friendly staff and excellent service

Three generations - including a 6-y-o and a 2-y-o - were made very welcome and a good time was had by all. Attentive, friendly, service. A menu that offered a fair degree of choice without being too large to be credible. Flexible approach to children's needs. Good food done well without fuss.

Our first visit to The Freeman’s Arms and it certainly won’t be the last.We received a warm welcome from friendly staff and were seated in a comfortable, well spaced dining room. I was spoilt for choice with such a lovely varied menu plus specials board.Service was quick and efficient, our food was piping hot, very generous portions and absolutely delicious. Homemade black pudding with poached egg and tempura king prawns for starters.Braised rib of beef and Thai green chicken curry for main course.Only one of us had room for a desert . . . Lemon curd cheesecake with lemon curd ice cream. Everything was super and very reasonably priced too!!Thank you Freemasons Arms for such an enjoyable evening. We’ll be back soon!!

On my visit to this venue, I found the staff very friendly and helpful. The food was delicious and highly recommend, the pub also has a very comfortable setting. 5*

Went for Sunday Lunch it was outstanding, everything was cooked to perfection and served piping hot by extremely pleasant staff.I had the lamb which was delicious and melted in my mouth followed by apple crumble and custard which was just perfect, my husband had the chicken leek and ham pie which he said was excellent, our grandaughter had fish goujons and chips and thoroughly enjoyed them followed by ice cream with fresh fruitOverall I couldn’t find fault with anything it was an extremely pleasant experience

This is an incredible pub restaurant and it is important to remember that it is a blend of both. Fantastic British pub fayre cooked so well. We visited for our wedding anniversary tonight and it was a fantastic evening.The pub is more than 120 years old and has a very rustic feel about it. Intimate seating creates a great atmosphere. The staff were very friendly, efficient and attentive. The menu was varied and it was quite refreshing to have so much choice that you need that extra five minutes to decide.When the food did arrive and I had the slowly braised rib of beef, it was perfect. Possibly the best I have ever had.This was an incredible find, one of the best places we have been to and within minutes of leaving we have invited some friends to join us for a meal there. Bloody good!!!

Outstanding food and service would highly recommend! Will not fail to satisfy you! We came away wanting more! Excellent!!

Called in for lunch and so glad we did. This is such a lovely place to visit. We were met with a warm welcome by the lovely staff and service throughout was brilliant, friendly, warm and caring. The food was spot on, beautifully presented and tasted wonderful. There is a wide range of dishes to choose from on the menu as well as specials and sandwiches from boards on walls.The building itself is beautiful with lovely old furniture, impeccably clean and with a log burner to give a welcoming warmth . I cannot recommend too highly. We will be back !

Did you know Prince William called into this place Varied menu and really full when we visited A worthy place for sunday lunch

The atmosphere at this gem of a place was perfect, service was impeccable and the food was out of this world - the cheesecake was to die for! I will definitely be back!! Thank you!

4 of us ate there this evening. Fantastic food all round and lovely staff providing excellent service. Very good menu choices and very generous portions. Very dog friendly, with water bowl and treats. Would definitely return and highly recommend to anyone else. Complete 5 star.

Well this is by far the best pub around this area, the most amazing food and amazing service, couldn't be faulted. Me and my boyfriend have visited 3 times in 1 week it is that good! Would 100% recommend to anyone... ALSO DOG FRIENDLY!!!

We dined here two nights weds and thursday and we had four fantastic starters and meals. The menu is excellent and cooked fresh as most meals are gluten free also even the desserts are gluten free. The staff are amazing really helpful and happy. What an amazing place will be going again even from Pontefract where were from!!

We had a Delicious Sunday dinner with friendly service. The tables were spacious, the dining area was spotlessly clean. Dogs are allowed in the bar area too.

We came here for the Sunday lunch and we were not disappointed. Between our group we ordered the pork, beef and lamb and we all thoroughly enjoyed our meals. Possibly the best roast dinners we’ve had in a restaurant. Highly recommended for a generous, tasty meal.

Amazing dinner for 3 incl pork belly, delicious fish with mussels in white wine sauce, burger with all trimmings (11y old v happy) rounded off with the most yummy lemon curd cheesecake. All beautifully cooked and presented. V friendly and welcoming staff. Lovely relaxed evening with our dog too (spoilt with dog biscuits from bar). Thank you for a wonderful evening. Would definitely return if back in the area.

So after lock down we decided to celebrate a bit of normality with a nice meal out. I searched on here for best places to go and booked a table for two.On arrival we received a warm friendly welcome and was shown to our table. We ordered drinks and found it hard to choose from the menu. In the end I had black pudding and a poached egg to start, which was amazing. Then roast lamb with mash potato. The flavors were amazing and the lamb cooked to perfection. My wife had white bait to start and pork belly for her main. It was all equally cooked perfectly. I decided for a cheese board and coffee at the end and the cheeses were a nice mix of different tastes and textures. At no time was the service rushing us, it was incredibly friendly but not intrusive. We absolutely loved it there and without doubt will return again.

Enjoyed a lovely meal here and would highly recommend. Good quality food and beautifully presented. Much better than most other pub restaurants.

We visited during a family week in the Dales and are so glad we did. Lovely place, with really, great friendly staff and DELICIOUS food! We did book online first, and it seemed busy so worth doing to avoid disappointment. We all ate different dishes and all were great! Hope to come back!

Facebook really got it right when The Freemasons Arms menu popped up on my newsfeed! Eating out when you are gluten intolerant can be challenging, There have been many occasions when I have been sat with a jacket potato as my husband tucked into a feast…. But not here! Lots of choice and excellent food. We are looking forward to returning in the near future.

We went at short notice, with our dog, and they happily found us a table. Service was good, and the food was brilliant. The wife is still raving about her duck main several days later. Proper gem of a place. We'd definitely go again.

Phenomenal service, the lady front of house is exceptional, food was fantastic. This was the best meal we have had in so long, we had almost forgotten what incredible customer service and mouth watering food, course after course, could be like! We will definitely be back and would highly recommend, even worth going out of your way for …

We had an incredible experience here with food that was our of this world. I have never had a cauliflower steak before and certainly was not disappointed. My partner has the duck and was really pleased with it. Whilst we rarely have desert we could not resist after such great food. Certainly highly recommended by myself

We visited this pub/restaurant on Saturday evening with some friends. Felt very safe and as we were expected we were shown straight to our table. I had the tempura prawns to start followed by sea bass…faultless. Others in our party had sirloin steak with red wine, cauliflower curry and then desserts. My first time there but it won’t be my last…very enjoyable and the service was great. Thank you everyone.

We were passing through on our way back to Leeds from a trip to Middlesborough. Stopped for lunch. The tempura prawns were delicious, as was the scampi. The single waiter was very attentive (despite being very busy). Would certainly go back again.

Visited here with friends last night. We've been for a drink a few times before but came for a meal this time. The food is genuinely top quality. Had tempura king prawn starters, and roast belly pork, black pudding and dauphinoise potatoes for main. Both courses were excellent. Artisan bread, hummus and oils to share between us, and some good quality but reasonably priced wine. Can't get much better.

We recently had a lovely Sunday lunch with starters here. It was very filling and tasty. Food was beautifully presented and service was very good. We would highly recommend the restaurant

We had dinner at this pub. We loved the food, the service was excellent, and we thought the price was good value for the quality of the meal. We'd definitely go there again, should be in the area!

Had the pleasure of a family Sunday lunch yesterday, as always fantastic service from Joy and the team, really welcoming & good fun too!Great menu, great choices, pub food done brilliantly well, we definitely recommend a visit here, a must book destination. Will definitely return soon.

A 5 star masterclass in how to excel in the hospitality business. From the friendly welcome to the exceptional service everything about our visit was first class. We all ordered Sunday dinner and we were served with probably one of the best Sunday roasts we have ever eaten. It’s a shame we don’t live locally because we probably wouldn’t ever cook again. Top marks all round. It would be very difficult to find anything better.

Ate here twice during our 7 night stay in the area. Both occasions were excellent. The staff couldn’t be more helpful and the food was the best we have encountered in a country pub for a long time. The Sunday roast is worth a special mention!!!

Good hand sanitiser outside, easy to see QR code for the Covid tracker. Pleasant staff, very Covid compliant. (Didn’t check temperatures like other local places though......) Visited on a Sunday having booked earlier in the week.Reasonable menu choice and what we had was just okay. Beef overdone and not pink, roast potatoes were a touch undercoooked in the middle. We were a bit perturbed though by the parsley garnish all over the deserts which was quite frankly odd! That aside it was just about okay, starter main and desert for 4 was 110 quid. Was it worth it? Possibly. Would I come back? Probably not sadly

Sunday Lunch fabulous with lovely service where nothing was too much trouble. The beef and chicken roasts both very nice. Thank you

Had Sunday lunch here today👍👍👍 I had the beef and my wife had the chicken. Both meals excellent Plus we shared an Eaton mess ( non fattening)😁😁😁😁 The service was brilliant.👍👍 Priced okay

We were soooo pleased The Freemasons reopened after lockdown and started serving food again. We have a holiday home nearby and we will certainly be regulars during our stays in the area. We ate there twice this weekend, everything was brilliant. We will be recommending to our guests and will be back ourselves. Although we were spoilt for choice, we look forward to the reintroduction of a fuller menu The beef Sunday lunch was the best I’ve had in a long time!

8 of us booked in for an evening meal. The food and service were excellent and very good value. Looking forward to another visit. Chris

Visited for Sunday lunch with friends. They found their meals to be OK. As I am vegetarian I was very pleased to see a vegetarian option on the menu. I ordered it and it was presented very nicely and was full of flavour but I ended up just as hungry after I had eaten it as I was before it arrived. I think it must have totalled about 200 calories more like a starter than a main. Sticky toffee pudding was good and filling. On the other hand my husband ordered rhubarb crumble which turned out to be a very small amount of rhubarb with a few fried crumbs on top which must have been the crumble topping. Nicely presented with rhubarb ice cream but not value for money. I won’t be visiting again

We all agreed that this was dining of the very highest standard!! Fabulous locally sourced food. Plentiful, and presented as perfectly as any top London Restaurant! This Pub should have Michelin star rating. We understand a 'new Chef' is behind this; she brings huge skill a imagination to the task!! Service staff very polite & ever attentive, Price for seven of us, including drinks, just under £200 was staggeringly modest; we anticipated twice that. Use this Pub to eat, you will not be disappointed! Very well done & Thanks...you made our night one to remember!

Absolutely brilliant meal on New Year’s Eve. Pigeon breast starter was excellent. Great evening thank you.

All I can say is our meal was absolutely delicious , thank you to the chefs and staff for a wonderful night

Our second visit some 18 months after the first. Thinking it might be busy, we booked a table for four, but there were only two other tables occupied! We were given a warm welcome and our orders taken promptly. Our starters arrived in good time and we're excellent, my tea smoked duck breast was excellent. Mains of salmon en papillotte also very good but a little pricey for a small piece of salmon. Roasted mixed veg were good but the roast potatoes were a little disappointing, the only minor criticism of the meal. Deserts pronounced very good, I passed! Drinks were reasonably priced. Service was very friendly and skilled. Overall, reasonable value for money and a very nice ambiance.

We have been coming to the Freemasons for many years as we used to live in the area. It was always one of our favourite places for a meal, great ambience and great food. The decor has changed in recent years, the wonderful array of WW1 memorabilia has been consigned to the history books but a good job has been done with the new look and still in working progress for completion to the end result. It has been nicely done and is still warm and cosy and staff helpful and efficient.Really don’t like to criticise but like to give honest and constructive feedback, so here goes...The last time we visited here for food last year, we were slightly disappointed, not because of the food but the portions were minuscule. Thought we would give it another go as places do change and chefs come and go. Whilst the quality of the food is still apparent, the portions were still ridiculously small for the price tag that are on these courses. £8.95 for four tiny, thinly-cut pieces of duck breast and I mean tiny - little bigger than an old 50p piece and so thin, could see daylight through it. Together with a dribble of pear sauce, it was simply not worth the money. My main course, although nicely cooked, sadly not enough of it. One of us had the fish bouillabaisse, it was starter size, in a small bowl and certainly did not warrant £18.95!! You have to now pay extra for vegetable side dishes as well, another example of jumping on the dining out `gravy train'. You never used to have to pay extra for your vegetables here, you got a varied choice and the portions used to fill you up.Freemasons, look, if you are going to charge these steep prices for food, then please at least deliver a decent portion which is worthy of your markup and please also give your customers more credit, they are not stupid and will vote with their feet.We left feeling that we needed to eat the whole lot again. Not enough on the plate as other reviews have stated and expensive for what you get. Since a famous royal couple visited here in 2011, this seems to have given them inflated ideas and have somehow lost their original values along the way.My advice to them would be to get back to 'basics' with the menu and produce some of their fantastic former dishes and give better value for money, like they used to. The last thing one wants when leaving a restaurant is to still feel hungry! We are not quantity over quality people, we are in the industry ourselves and know what is what. They have to ensure value as well as quality to justify their prices.Until it improves in this department then sorry we won't be returning. The biggest form of marketing is word of mouth and afraid we will not be recommending either. Unless you have a tiny appetite and don't mind being fleeced, then this is the place for you. There are other places nearby which can deliver better. A real shame.

The resteraunt was booked on a recommendation and what a surprise we had. Fully expecting the traditional village pub fayre we couldn't have been further away from the truth. From walking through the door we were met by a very friendly and attentive barman who couldn't do enough for us in such a friendly way with the drinks and then took our food order. The six of us all tried something different the only dish on the menu that was traditional pub grub was a burger which was excellent, everything else you would have expected to see on a city centre upmarket restaurant and the quality was just as good. Some of us managed a dessert which again was excellent. Would highly recommend if you are ever in the area, we'll certainly go back.

We booked here for Sunday lunch. We have been a few times before but we had heard it had changed hands so we thought we would give it another go. There were some nice specials (starters and mains) as well as the menu. I opted for the Sea Trout from the specials menu with the seaweed salad. My husband had the roast beef dinner which came with roast potatoes, roasted carrot, red cabbage and cauliflower cheese accompanied by gravy. All very lovely but no mash - this was an extra at £3.50. The sea trout was really lovely and the seaweed salad was quite different. The dish came with potatoes but I dont eat potatoes so had a salad. Most enjoyable. My husband enjoyed the beef and was too full for a dessert but had a coffee. I had the chocolate brioche pudding. This came with chocolate sauce and pouring cream. I am not sure what I was expecting but this came in a slab with decorations of raspberries and strawberries. It was nicely presented but for me a little tasteless. We had two beers and two gin and tonics. The bill wasnt cheap at £65. Nice place with a nice atmosphere and good service but we found it expensive for what it was.

Had visited once before two years and wanted to see if it was still as good for Sunday lunch. It was excellent. A really tasty quality roast beef and all the trimmings. Followed by a delightful chocolate brioche bread and butter pudding.The service was good and the staff very friendly. Nice pint of Theakstons Beat Bitter too! Well kept.This is a really nice country pub. If this was my local, I’d be a happy man.

Family lunch, warm welcome as we came into the pub! Great food, good portion sizes, lovely choice. Wouldn’t fault a thing! Thanks Freemasons

We frequent the Freemasons regularly however recently we have not had dinner following a number of poor meals. We decided to have dinner at the Freemasons last night, wow what a change, the food was amazing, simple and back to its best again! Let’s hope they maintain the high standard!!

We’re visiting the area from Cheddington, Buckinghamshire and staying in nearby Little Crakehall. I’d found this little gem online (top of my list!). We arrived too late for dinner on day 1, so after a hectic day of exploring on day 2, we called ahead to check we could arrive just before last food service and turned up at approx. 20:50 to a laid table in the bar area (we have a dog) and a warm welcome. The two drinks we had (Blonde Ale and Cornish Cider) were amazing, as was the food (Slow Cooked Pork Belly and Rump Steak) - truly outstanding. We thought it was extremely good value for money and will be returning before we go home (sorry to any other establishments on my list, this is too good!)

We appreciated the warm, attentive welcome and excellent service and food. Will visit again. Thankyou.

Stopped for lunch. Not been for a while. A lovely fire was burning and the welcome was as warm. Very much geared up for food with plenty of tables. Food appeared very quickly and was tasty. As one meal came with chips they gave the other chips too at no extra cost as my friend had threatened to pinch my chips! Nice. Good local beers. We’ll be back for dinner before too long - steak night on Tuesdays

We were self catering in the area and decided to try here. It's a step up from regular pub food (but you can have fish and chips etc). We both had the lamb wellington which was absolutely gorgeous - would recommend it. The wine by the glass was good too. We'd go back if we are in the area again.

Lovely meal, and extremely friendly, helpful staff. Made us feel very welcome, especially our two dogs.

We revisited this pub when staying nearby because we so enjoyed the food the last time we visited the area. We were not disappointed this time either.

Visited here on the recommendation of our host and we were not disappointed the food was absolutely fantastic, well presented and just melted in your mouth. I even ate all my veggies they were that nice!

We are back in West Tanfield for the third time this year and we couldn't come without visiting the Freemasons Arms. Warm welcome each time we've been by the staff, locals and Murphy . The food was amazing again too, a real hidden gem of a place.

Returned here after having such a wonderful meal previously. I am a vegetarian and it’s nice to see somewhere that caters for us with numerous options. I had the cauliflower steak followed by the baked caramel pineapple and they were both delicious. Staff very friendly, would highly recommend. I will be returning.

We called in at the Freemasons Arms one evening for a meal en route to the Dales - we had not booked. Everything about the meal was excellent. The food was very well cooked, the staff were very efficient and helpful, and we didn't have to wait too long for the food to arrive. All in all, we will certainly intend returning when next in the area.

Having had several excellent meals at The Freemasons, we booked again for Saturday dinner. The new summer menu has great choice and includes dishes and specials that mean the chefs have raised the standard even further. Our mains of Poached & Roasted Chicken and also the Sea Trout, both from the specials board, were beautifully cooked and delicious. For dessert we had Praline & Hazelnut Chocolate Bar with Blueberries and also the Lemon Curd Parfait with Raspberry Coulis & Sorbet - both absolutely amazing!! And filling! - Portion sizes are, as always, very generous. The staff are always friendly and welcoming, as is the atmosphere. A fantastic evening. Thank you.