The Hare and Hounds in East Devon

Fabulous food and excellent service

You can see why the surrounding pubs are closed at lunchtime. Perfect location and a building that’s well designed for a busy but efficient service, good value for money. Carvery was excellent but the bar team lacked the experience to deal with multiple guests arriving to the bar. This didn’t detract from our visit just a note for management to work on.

Very busy - the price you pay for being the best!

Outstanding food excellent valve for money 👌

Wonderful food quality, one of the best in the area, and a few kind, genuine staff. It's a terrific, large, charming building, full of character, and a cheery open fireplace. When the kind staff are there, it's a lovely experience. But I'm substantially trained in ethics/observation, and this pub has some concerning morals at senior/management level. I'll mention a few of a handful I've seen: The desserts cost circa £28 approx to buy whole from the distributor/maker (we buy them, so we know). This pub charges £7-8+ for tiny portions of desserts, so they are likely receiving £110 per whole dessert. How much profit do you need? Please can we have fairer (larger) sized portions? You'd still make an enormous profit. The OAP carvery is unavailable on Friday evenings etc, so members of my large family can't eat the cheap OAP carvery on those days. We understand you're busy on certain days of the week, and grateful that you do help, but OAPs matter everyday. Genuine kindness can't be turned on/off. We always have low money. The carvery almost always shuts significantly before the stated 9pm time (not just 8:40-8:45). We understand pubs/restaurants need time to clear away, but customers are often hurried by staff, then chased if not coming, at 8pm. We've watched it happen to many customers, and experienced it once ourselves, it seems a bit mean. Customers make mistakes and staff make mistakes, we're all there to have a pleasant time. All we ask is a bit more kindness, please. Sometimes customers have very tough lives (I'm sure staff do to), that kindness can make a huge difference.

This was the best Cavery I have ever eaten. It was hot and very tasty. Just like a home cooked roast.❤️All the staff were very friendly and cheerful.

Dog friendly and really nice staff. Food was good but some a bits overpriced.

Great food with beautiful surroundings, would recommend.

Booked as a birthday meal for parents Deluxe ploughman's looked like it had been thrown onto plate the beef that came with was almost mooing Veg was rock hard on the Tuscan chicken the french fries were all crisp no potatoe left in them & the lady waitress that brought our food was rude and ignorant such & toilets were dirty needed a good clean such a shame as drove 40 miles to get there spoilt dad's day would not recommend

Fantastic Sunday carvery. Really well priced at £17,50. You won't be disappointed. Usually at least 3 meats available.

We had booked a table for five plus dog while on a weekend break. It’s a lovely pub - very popular on Sundays certainly with a carvery running alongside its normal menu and specials. The service was excellent, as was the food. I had a steak with a lovely mushroom sauce although I must say the carvery one of my friends had looked delicious. I was very impressed by the way they co-ordinated the delivery of food from the standard menu with the carvery orders, so that we all received our meals at the same time. An excellent lunch with a friendly staff.

Fabulous carvery in a fabulous pub and served by fabulous staff

Afraid I didn't stop... just pulled in to the car park make a phone call. Seems to be very popular, but as a consequence can be very short of parking at the weekend.

The best carvery ever! Have been coming here for years. Great to break a journey to Cornwall or back! Has been improved a lot over the years but the food quality has remained the same. You really feel that the meet is selected for quality and the veg and accompaniments are great - like the stuffing balls and sausages. plenty of parking and not far off the A30.

Terrible food. We had chicken chilli noodles and beef suet pudding, both "specials". Noodles stodgy, ribs salty and tasteless. Suet pudding hard and inedible in places. Prawn crackers had very hard uncooked bits in them. Think Wetherspoons on a bad day.

Amazing lunch (Roast Beef) as always the best 👌

Rubbish!! Well, we now find ourselves eating back in Honiton. Sadly The Hare & Hounds has become quite customer unfriendly during the pandemic and beyond! We booked in this evening for my husband, daughter & I to eat with my daughter being gluten free and who has other food intolerances too. Considering how many older people live in the area, they have decided to change their main menu and specials like the turkey curry to be either spicy hot or super tomatoey. Why on earth have they done away with the Hunters Chicken???!!! This was GF, really tasty, plain and filling for those with intolerances. Now it’s been exchanged for spinach (which my daughter can’t eat, as it’s a thyroid receptor blocker) and sun dried tomato dish. The staff don’t seem to give a **** either!!! The Hare & Hounds seem to be relying on their old reputation but the prices have just gone up massively for not just the food but you won’t get a decent glass of wine for under £10! We will not be back…and we’re locals!! Had enough of this place! Plus the roast beef on the carvery is always red and bleeding everywhere. Completely undercooked!! Such a shame!!

A well established pub with an excellent carvery. Open seven days a week, a rarity.

The carvery is subpar at best. Meat slapped on the plate as if he was serving food in a boarding school foodhall. No, not everyone eats roast beef that is still mooing. The vegetables were over cooked and the selection was of a poor standard... kale, red cabbage, cauliflower and carrots. Cannot complain about the service as there was none. The best thing I can say about the experience was that the company snd the weather were good.

Fantastic Carvery.....pork and crackling lovely.

My partner and I went to the Hare and Hounds today for lunch (03/03/25) , while the staff were friendly the food was really not up to scratch. We both had the turkey and ham pie, mine with chips and my partners with mash. the pastry on the pie was very thick in places and the mash was lumpy. Would think twice about going there again.

Agree with some of the other reviews that the carvery is run if the mill. Beef was excellent, pork not so good. Veg was average. Unfortunately the worst part was not the pub’s fault but a very rude old lady accused me of tasting the sauces which I did not - I was smelling them as my sight is poor in low light. Her sight was not so good either but her attitude was one of an angry oap. Some elders have no respect!

Was brought here for my birthday, I had the gluten free fish and chips (gluten intolerant myself), and it was huge! Really impressed with the taste and the portion size. Had a lovely cider too. Definitely recommend this lobely pub hidden away.

Good solid pub food, hearty food!

The best carvery ever . All meats melt in your mouth! also a very fair price.

Plenty of home cooked food on the menu as well as a carvery plenty to choose from. And very dog friendly our dog Daisy was given some turkey.

Loved it. My number 1 spot for Sunday roast. Took my puppy with me, super nice for dogs as well.

The first time we have been here, often passed and looked inviting. The only reason I have given 4 is the bar area is where you check in for your booked table seemed chaotic. There was no orderly queue, with people pushing in. The bar staff and restaurant staff were so friendly and helpful though taking into consideration how busy and hard they work. Food was delicious, we had the carvery. All very clean, well cooked and presented. Although there are two car parks, because of the popularity of the pub both were full and waited for people to leave. We have booked again for a family birthday and hope the bar area is less chaotic.

Good once you’re seated and the carvery was very nice, but entry and the initial seating process is chaos. We walked in to find approximately 25 people all standing right in front of the door, all seemingly having booked. But instead of seating people, staff insisted on doing each party’s drink order before they could access a table, resulting in everyone waiting a long time in a small area. I eventually had to jump the queue simply to ask for our table number - I made clear I wasn’t after drinks and we would find the table ourselves, but a member of our party was a disabled and partially sighted 87 year old lady who was not capable of standing long, let alone in that scrum. I was met with anger and huffing from two members of staff and I then got a barrage of aggression from another customer who objected to my question. The behaviour of a customer is not the pub’s problem, but it was absolutely caused by their poor management upon entry. Numerous people were complaining about the wait. When it’s busy, seat people and ask them to return to the bar to order or take their order at the table. And when you have severely disabled customers, behave as you would want someone to treat you in that situation.

Lovely cosy pub with big fire and wide selection of food. Friendly staff. Dogs welcome

Just had our first visit dropping in on a whim, we have a large dog so tend to be nervous when visiting new places, what a little treasure this place is and can’t believe it’s taken so long to drop in.the carvery was very tasty with plenty to choose from and definitely lived up to expectations. Our Dog was treated like a king, first he was given a nice cosy blanket and a bowl of water followed by a large handful of fresh cooked meat and lots of fuss, needless to say we all left feeling well fed and happy, we will definitely be back soon. 5 🌟 for all the staff who were extremely helpful and full of friendly smiles.

I’d to sum up my trip to the hairy hounds in a few words. See below. A little background into me. 67. OAP. Husband. Parrot whisperer. Dementia. 67. I was walking from sidmouth to honiton to keep the joints active with family friends. We will call the relevant ones to this review Auntie A and Auntie B. 7°. High winds. Joint pain. Auntie B says to Subject A, “want to go to the H&H?”. “Most humbly”, returned Auntie A. So we took a short break from our endeavours and entered the facility. We each ordered a standard Calvary. My favourite auntie paying for mine of course. The time came where we rose from our seats to fill our plates. This is when the Martin moment hit me. This. Is. The. LIFE. We returned to our tables and began munching and crunching. Pint in one hand, roastie in the other. It was as good as my aunties mystery casserole. Overall, I would say that if you needed a replenishment in times of need. The hairy hounds will thirst your quench! All from mart x

Best roast I’ve had. Would definitely recommend this place! You seriously need to try their carvery😋

Excellent carvery most days. This is my 7th visit before I decided to review it. Great service and food. Obviously a well run premises !

We booked a table for 3 at 2pm on a Sunday Now I know it’s probably the busiest day of the week and didn’t expect it to be quiet. However this place does not care in the slightest for its customers . It’s seems they want to cram as many people in as possible at the detriment of the customers comfort. Firstly the car park was horrendously busy and took an ages to find a space. The layout and state of it need addressing by a business that is clearly making lots of money. Then we entered the pub which was like a mad house with what appeared to be a changeovers of shift between the 12pm and 2pm sittings. You could hardest move around the bar and it was total chaos. Then we ordered drinks and paid for our meal. We were served by a really surly slim female blonde middle aged bar staff member who clearly wasn’t wanting to be there. She made us feel so unwelcome. Then we were shown to table 58. Which is right next to the smaller of the 2 carvery areas. This has to be the worst table I have ever had the displeasure to eat a meal at. Situated right next to the carvery, it had a constant queue of people stood right next to us, the place was so busy and overcrowded that the people queuing may have well been sat on my lap they were so close! The meal itself was a run of the mill carvery. I have had better and had worse. Not once during the meal did any staff member check to see if everything was ok. After a meal which was totally spoilt by the terrible experience of sitting right next to the crowded carvery area we couldn’t wait to leave. Due to proximity of the carvery to where we sat we smelt as if we had cooked the meal our selves our clothes smelt so badly. On the way out I highlighted our poor experience to a staff member and asked if a manager was around. She seemed very dismissive and seemed to not care in the slightest. In a nutshell it was one of the worst restaurant experiences I have ever had in my life We will never be returning and I would recommend you spend your money somewhere much better like the Sidmouth Arns or The Greyhound which are much better at a similar price .

Sunday Perfection!! Best carvery I’ve ver had…easily, the beef was perfect, so much choice, worth every penny 🥰 lovely, friendly staff, great atmosphere, all round amazing pub! Well done guys x

No issue with the pub / food but parking on a Sunday for the 2pm slot is chaos in the back carpark! No lines people park anywhere up on the grass verge, took over 15 mins to park, a lot of space in between cars could easy fit more if had painted lines ! Just a thought

Great carvery, served very efficiently.

What a disappointment, we came here before they had a refurb and the food was gorgeous, a let down as no option to have a big or small roast, no peas the beef was very rare (not to my taste) the turkey, pork and gammon was cut too thick to enjoy and the choice of veg was poor, all in all a disappointing meal, will probably not visit again, sorry.

Booked for a group Christmas lunch. We'd pre-booked our selections, including allergy requirements, and booked for 1 o'clock. Those of us who'd chosen the carvery had to wait until 2.15 for our main course, as they hadn't cooked what the vegetarian had pre-ordered and we weren't allowed up to the carvery until the "kitchen food" had been served. The dairy and gluten allergy requirements had been mislaid somehow so several dishes had to be returned and replaced. We're not being faddy, these were genuine health issues that could have put my friends in hospital for Christmas. It made them very nervous about trusting what was being served. Sadly we did not have a good experience here and would not come as a group again.

Great carvery plus a varied additional menu. The desserts are amazing.

We had an exceptional outing here to celebrate dual birthdays and the atmosphere alone was perfectly catered to being both comfortable and welcoming. The food choices were exceptional with many variations on offerings and food that was well suited for all tastes. The food was also cooked extremely well and everything was fresh alongside quick and friendly service. Hare and Hounds is certainly a place we enjoyed very much and are looking forward to visiting again. Highly recommended!

I really like this place, it’s huge and plenty of seating inside as well as outside. The daily roast dinner are delicious and not to be missed. On this occasion I decided to go for their Devon beef burger. I was a little disappointed with what came out as it was all quite basic. I’ll keep to the roast dinners here from now on as they are really good and plenty of meat is served unlike a Toby carvery… The staff are all really helpful and the place attracts a diverse of customers. There are plenty of tables in the bar area so your pets are welcome to sit with you while you eat. There is a cool children’s play area outside and popular for a beer in the sunshine while your kids play. Good to see a nice variety of soft drinks for the kids as well as alcoholic beverages for the adults. The deserts are tasty and the kids ice cream portions are plentiful. There are 2 carparks and plenty of spaces.

Really busy but enjoyable and well looked after

The carvery was so good. Meat and veg fresh. Portion size was really good, I had small and that was really filling.

Unfortunately, they have set a standard for us, which means other places can not match!!! Had a Christmas meal elsewhere in Devon and it wasn't as good as the Hare and Hounds every day carvery. We always look forward to visiting. Great for dog walking as well.

Cracking meal here mid afternoon when in the area. Very friendly locals also dining so a very good sign of lovely food. Varied menu, difficult to choose. Dogs welcome & spoilt except restaurant end. Very worth a visit

This is a large popular pub. The speciality is a daily carvery. Vegetarians can enjoy a large selection of vegetables as a cheaper option. Usually very busy but plenty of car parking front and rear. Large outdoor play area. The food is of a good quality and value for money.

To the floor manager who seemed visibly annoyed when I politely asked them to check again to find the person who had blocked me in an hour away from my home and in the middle of nowhere. Good news we found them. Next time lease make more of an effort.

We had a family gathering for lunch today. We are a large family, 35 of us in number. We had a brilliant carvery and the staff went out of their way to accommodate us. So many thanks to everyone involved and Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year to you all.

We called in for a meal around 3pm on a week day. It wasn't very busy. We waited forever for our food to arrive. When it finally did we were very disappointed. My husbands "deluxe Ploughman's" was literally green leaves & pepper's thrown on a plate with a pot of coleslaw/ Branston pickle/ bread roll and a small amount of meat and cheese. Other ingredients that were on the menu were missing. The cost of £19.50 was far to expensive for what was on the plate. My meal a small lasagne was very very small for the price of £11.00. Again a few lettuce leaves with pepper's and half a bread roll. One more criticism, the staff were extremely miserable the whole experience was a total let down as we had driven a long way to eat there.

Attended with NHS work Colleague for evening Christmas dinner 04/12/2024. Poor table service and attitude from staff- slow service. Colleagues all paid individually for drinks and food. Yet at the end of the evening 5 staff out of 20 colleagues were approached , informed by the manager that there was an outstanding tab to be paid. No evidence was offered, only a verbal requested. we suggested that we would be back at work in the morning to find out further information and get back to them. This was vehemently, aggressively declined from the manager insisting we pay £6.55 ! ,when we stated we will not pay until we establish the facts , we were threatened that they will contact the police. The overall experience was not only disappointing, unprofessional way of conducting a business , and accusing customers of stealing alcohol without substantial evidence. Not only this , the pub make contact with the colleague who organised the event the following morning threatening her with the police also. Left colleagues feeling humiliated, and embarrassed by the conduct of the pub representatives. To the point where it has left us to take this experience further.

Great food and big portions. Desert choices were amazing! This is what happens when it’s ‘help yourself’ carvery 🫢😂

Excellent service, great food, hospitable staff, eaasy parking and great surroundings. What else would you want! Cannot wait to go back.

Allways a great meal, full menu + carvery.

Very popular with plus 60's and they know it, so literally EVERYTHING is about 40% more expensive than everywhere else. First place in Devon I've paid 6.50 per pint of Madri

Excellent food great staff and very clean

I really want like the place as it's local and accessible but I was so disappointed. The waitresses were fine - no problem, the lad my husband placed the order with was indifferent and mumbled a number at him which he then realised was the price....no niceties or 'that will be £69 please' just 69.... The food was nothing special - perhaps it would have been better if we ate meat. My large pinot grigio (£9.50) was warm........... Just need to up their game a bit for customers who are not there for the carvery.

Excellent carvery, good service, very enjoyable indeed. The staff went well beyond helpfulness when 6 of them helped push our van out of the back field. Really appreciated their good humour and helpfulness! Highly recommended.

Allways busy and allway nice a must visit if your over that way or even travel if ur in Exeter like I do also the sister pub in newtonabot is nice but this one definitely the best 10/10 2 different carvery set ups with wide selection

Great food, came here for a family party the day after our wedding.

Went on a Sunday. You have to book. The beef was excellent . Would I go back ? Probably not. Very very busy.

Went with my sister very disappointed.felt atmosphere was flat staff seemed very stressed I had a nut roast didn't even bother to complain just ate the potatoes and veggies and left the nutroast after one bite.dont particularly like giving negative reviews as life's hard as it is but I have to be honest.for me I'll somewhere else next time

Excellent carvery hot and plenty of choice . Super service we hadn't booked and arrived after 2pm on a Wednesday. Pub was busy, warm and comfortable easy parking.

Enjoyed our meal had the carvery. Generous portions for main and dessert. We went on a Monday the place was full. Have recommended it to friends

We ate off the menu, big mistake, not great. But the carvery looked good, bit pricey though for 1 course.

Stunning food, fairly priced with helpful and friendly staff

Excellent Carvery, the meats melt in your mouth, Proper gravy made with meat juices, highly recommend this pub.

Great food - 5 different carvery meats and all delicious - I was visiting friends in the area and will defintely be back soon so will try and visit again !

Perfect country pub with wide range of ales, beer, wine and spirits. One of the best carveries we have been to across Devon, Somerset and Dorset!

What a gem food was great but you need to book as very busy

Excellent food and very friendly and obliging staff.

Came here for the carvery. The selection of food was brilliant with excellent quality ingredients. The meat was cooked to perfection and the dessert cabinet may well be emptied prior to our leaving. Thank you for a fab birthday lunch x

Very good food and nice to bring your dog

Wow I've not had a carvery this good in a long time. Was really nice, will be looking forward to next time.

First time trying the Hare on Hounds and definitely won't be the last! Friendly service, great Carvery and atmosphere.

A great roast lunch. Friendly service and very comfortable environment. Just add roast Parsnips and it would be the finishing touch

The most dog friendly pub ever with the best carvery absolute pleasure palace

Great atmosphere.Very welcoming.Helpful staff.

A stones throw from our camp site this is a gorgeous cosy place to visit. We only had a small bite to eat but the roasties and gravy were great value, quite unique on a menu and bloody tasty! The staff were very friendly and welcoming. The lady was also very welcoming of our Peggy the whippet who was greeted with a treat and a fuss. Well worth a visit, the carvery looked good, maybe next time. We highly recommend a visit if you’re passing.

Carvery wasn’t up to usual standard, good meal but the vegetables were almost cold Disappointed

Busy place. Good atmosphere. But young barmaid kept throwing empty bottles in the bin, which was loud and annoyed people. Did the same next time we visited.

Have visited Hare and Hounds many times, when on holiday in the area. Consistently excellent!

A fantastic Pub with first class food and service They love your four legged friends and they treated ours with roast chicken and very thankful were the 2 Wheaties & golden doodle. The portion size , quality & choice of the food was fantastic. Highly recommend to all. We had suckulent roast beef chiabata with roast potatoes and gravy & turkey bacon cheese & tomato toasties with a portion of fries and onion rings which were of very generous size, and fairly priced. Thanks to all the staff

Great food great staff will recommend it to friends who come down on holiday

Great food, quick service and friendly staff.

Good food , carvery, served nice and hot.

Found this by chance lovely pub that serves home made food .

Lovely pub Sunday Roast was gorgeous would highly recommend.

Unable to find our booking that we made last August for a celebration meal. Booking could not be found so had to re-book. On the day after the meal asked for the bill, which after paying was not a complete amount. Reservation times put on table which you feel the you had to be gone by the times stated. Long wait to clear table for dessert. Not a very welcoming experience.

100% you get what you pay for! A great roast dinner.

Tried to book by phone, unsuccessful on three attempts, so emailed a request this was acknowledged very quickly. However when we arrived, no booking, until I queried, then informed "oh yes it's there" Told the table number but no indication as to where the table was. Table not reserved or cutlery in situ. Very poor staff interaction from behind the bar. Generally a lack of information regarding the carvery and the menu. It was extremely busy and obviously very busy. The chef on the carvery was very pleasant to all his customers myself included. The food was very good and a good variety to choose from. Over all the experience was disappointing.

Best roast we've had in a long time 😋 We will be back 😁

A dog-friendly, warmly light cozy establishment. I was not left wanting at the portion sizing, the food arrived: well presented, warm but not scolding, and in a timely manner. Staff were on it. Sole complaint is that the table had been mildly sticky on one side - which was quickly rectified by asking for a cloth to wipe it with - and the ambience felt a bit bustling (very normal for ANY food service establishment, the decor and ambience was merely something I subjectively didn't click with *e.g. a sign jokingly listing prices for which staff can 'lie to your wife about'if she comes looking for you at the bar - but this is culterally quite normalised*).

A great location with views looking south towards Sidmouth on a clear day, which on our visit was nice and sunny. We were glad to have booked a table as although an ordinary Monday the place was soon full of happy eaters. The carvery was 1st class on both the meats and choice of fresh Vegatables.

Terrible. By far the worst customer service I've ever experienced. The tall, weathered-faced angry looking woman who seemed to be in charge served me at the bar, already looking peeved, yes i then forgot my table number, went to look then came back, man she's huffing and puffing, tapping fingers, a 50 year old acting like a stroppy teenager. Finally transaction went through, she walked off not even offering a receipt, i had to overtly request it, she gave it reluctantly. Then the food, barely adequate, undercooked, overpriced. Very odd atmosphere, also young staff look clueless, all just standing around looking uninterested in working. Lazy staff. Terrible place. Avoid like the plague.

Damn good carvery. Timed it well so didn't have to book.. and good meat choice! Mmm mmmm....

A young lad now carving the meat being a little tight on what he carves and puts on your plate. I am not a massive veg fan so the meat is important. I thought I would give a second chance but same again. Not that cheap anymore so I expect a good cut of meat. Sorry just being honest. Shame I use to love it.

Lovely late lunch , just a light snack

Big and very dog friendly pub restaurant, with good quality pub grub. Orders places at bar.