The Horse & Chains in Hertsmere

We were a couple of weary travelers who had literally come in from a Thai holiday, very late and getting close to closing time, for a brief visit in Bushey before heading back home to Florida. I'm so sorry I didn't get their names, but the proprietors were attending, and an absolutely gem of a couple! We were welcomed straight away into this beautiful, clean pub where clearly the regulars were sat happily "at home" in this lovely place. We were served up (much needed!) lush ice cold brews and fantastic hospitable chit chat and convo. They made us feel like one of the family in no time, and in the short time we were there at that! We look forward to our next visit, to my husband's hometown of Bushey, with more time to spend in this wonderful establishment, hopefully to relax and listen to live music as I understand they are known for as well. HIGHLY recommend The Horse & Chains!

Grat pub restaurant withca goid live duo that night. We wil be back again.

Superb fish and chips, service with a smile and cosy atmosphere

The Horse & Chains Bushey, Hertfordshire I booked a table for a group of six for a triple birthday lunch today 28.01.2024. Having checked out the reviews on line, as we hadn’t been in a while, I read it was under new management so wasn’t sure what to expect. Our group all have different individual tastes so it's always a challenge to please all of us every time we eat out together. Today's experience was exceptional, nothing was too much trouble thanks to Gordon and his lovely wait staff who went the extra mile. Five of us had a superb roast and one of had the salmon which was given the thumbs up, my friend said it was cooked to perfection. We couldn't find fault in any of the food (or drink). In all, we all had a delicious, relaxing lunch and left very chilled. Can't wait to go back!

Haven't been to this establishment since before Covid. In the past had been very impressed with the food and ambience. Since my last visit it has changed hands, and seems to be less pretentious and more like your family pub. Our party of 6 all had lunch , 5 had the Sunday roast and 1 had the salmon. Food was very good all came with fresh vegetables and the roast was the choice of Beef, Pork or Turkey. You could be specific and just have one meat or you could order a combination of all three. What ever you order the meat was very good. Came with vegetables, Yorkshire pudding and horseradish sauce and home made gravy, if you wanted it. We all had drinks and the bill came to £178. Service was not included. The current license was a guy named Gordon who with his colleague was very attentive throughout and couldn't do enough to make our experience perfect. All in all a very enjoyable lunch and would definitely go back. Compared to our past experience i would say the food is less cheffy and more home made. Just a note all though the pub is dog friendly, dogs are not allowed in the restaurant.

An enjoyable atmosphere for a casual drink and also a nice Sunday lunch

Went between Christmas and New year so was relatively quiet. Food was of a very good standard and well presented. 4 of us and all plates were empty. Not a vast menu but better because it was well done and hot. Good selection of drinks and reasonably priced. Definitely will go back. If you haven't tried it you should.

Fun evening Xmas evening. Unfortunately no food available but service and atmosphere otherwise good

First visit and it seems like a nice pub on first impressions

The pub, service was lovely, the veg were unfortunately watery and bland, the potatoes probably would be lovely if fresh, but were chewy and dry. Considering price of roast dinner (c20) you would be better off in other pubs. Cauliflower cheese was lovely and to say the service was what saved our sun experience. One to try for yourself, but not sure we'd go there again sorry!

We went here for dinner. It was a quiet Tuesday. The service was quick, attentive and friendly. We felt really welcome. The pub is clean, well run and has good decor. The food came quite quickly and was hot, well-presented and there wasn't anything to dislike about it. However, the food is not what it used to be. Almost every dish had mashed potatoes (I think one had chips, I didn't see any other carb option. You can see that both our dishes were mash and the same veg with 'something'. I also find 'spray' cream disappointing too. We enjoyed it, but give us a few more options that aren't something with mash, and try and raise the food, by making a bit more from scratch maybe?

Great little pub with a small dining area and outside space too, and a great Sunday lunch, everything cooked well, the only criticism is the choice of veg - I don’t like cooked carrots, but Sunday roast comes with carrots and beans only, no cabbage option (or better still cavalo Nero). Extra cauliflower cheese is available and this was absolutely yummy I could have eaten 2 bowls! Really good. Choice of pork, lamb or turkey. Good gravy and roasties too! Love that the kitchen is semi open Didn’t try starters or deserts but we will be back to try the main menu We think this is under new management or owners as we were told they’ve only been here for 8 months. Hopefully the local residents will support the pub as it’s very friendly and seems to be trying to do all the right things Loads of parking space

Fantastic place. My mother was celebrating her 75th birthday and the venue we'd booked canceled on us last minute. The the horse and chains were so kind and opened up the kitchen early for us. And we felt like the other venue had done us a favour cancelling. We had a great time. Mum is celiac and the staff were so accommodating and even tweaked some dishes a bit for her. The food is really good. All.the staff so friendly. They gave mum a drink on the house for her birthday and even the chef came out to say hi. It was our first time visiting but it definitely won't be our last. Totally recommended 100%. Thank you all for helping to make mums 75th a great one.

If you haven’t heard about the AMAZING food at the Horse & Chains under new ownership, you have now. Everything is cooked to perfection and tastes delicious. Hertfordshire’s best kept secret. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

We visited for Sunday lunch and it was fantastic. Gordon couldn’t of been more helpful. He was attentive, funny and made the afternoon so much better. The food was delicious. Most of us had the roast but my mum didn’t fancy one so the kitchen kindly made her a burger even though it wasn’t on the Sunday menu. It really was a lovely surprise to find such a lovely pub with fantastic food pretty much on our doorstep.

This week we held my Uncle’s wake at the horse and chains pub for around 35 people held in the restaurant area. The team were fantastic, so accommodating and easy going. Thank you so much. The pub is comfortable, clean and roomy for this amount of guests to mingle. The food was great, plentiful, hot, tasty and a good choice all served on time for our guests. The service at the bar was swift and efficient when everyone turned up at the same time. It has everything you would need to hold this type of event, parking, indoor and outdoor space. So glad we chose your venue. We will definitely visit again as locals.

Great Sunday roast in a lovely pub. A little quiet so hard to comment on atmosphere, but I like it that way. Decent beers on tap. Nice beer garden. Will definitely revisit.

Lovely evening, great service and good food. Will be back!

Great people, fab food and great atmosphere

Cannot thank Gordon and all the team at Horse and Chains enough. Had a lovely meal for 16 of us for a graduation celebration. Food and service excellent, atmosphere great. Would highly recommend this venue.

Good food good beer what else is required. New people running the Horse v quite for a Friday evening.

Had veggie Sunday roast, felt like it was bought from the shop frozen and cooked in an oven. Potatoes were dry, gravy like jelly and cauliflower cheese tasted just like cheese sauce and was very watery. Maybe in-week food is better. Maybe because we got there late in the afternoon. But nothing tasted or felt fresh. Would come back for drinks but not food

Great pub now that Gordon has changed it back into a more traditional pub. Good food and lovely atmosphere.

Great Sunday lunch. Friendly staff and a nice ambience

Just had a beer and lunch at the new Horse & Chains. The burger was fantastic, like Honest Burger quality! The service was great and dog friendly, too. Will be back soon!

Great pub, great food and a friendly environment. There was a live singer on when i visited and made for a really enjoyable night.. I'd recommend to anyone looking for a great night out.

Went for Mother's Day lunch at the Horse & Chain. Was very disappointed with the menu as it was a very small 2 course set menu which we were not expecting. We were expecting the full menu. I went for the roast lamb, but was very disappointed with the food. My daughter and son in law when for the chicken. They were happy with their meal. We felt as if we paid so much for this. If we knew beforehand that it was going to be a set menu, we would not have booked this place. I could not recommend this. The place was also really cold and was not busy at all.

Nice old pub good food nice staff about £5 pound a pint

I recently had the pleasure of dining at The Horse & Chains pub in Bushey, and I must say that I was impressed with the service and food. From the moment I walked in, the staff was welcoming and attentive. They made sure that we had everything we needed throughout our meal and were always happy to answer any questions we had. It's great to see such good service, and it made the dining experience all the more enjoyable. As for the food, it was decent. The menu offered a good range of pub classics, and everything we tried was well-prepared and tasty. While it wasn't the most exceptional meal I've ever had, it was definitely satisfying and worth the price. Overall, I would recommend The Horse & Chains pub to anyone looking for a decent meal and good service. While it may not be the most exceptional dining experience, it's a solid choice for a casual meal with friends or family. I appreciated the attentiveness of the staff, and it made for an overall pleasant dining experience.

Friendly staff, for pub food was filling, tasty, good value. I heard it's changing owner but should be unaffected.

We went there last night for my father in law’s 60th and we’ve had such a lovely evening. The food was incredible and so fresh, plenty of options to choose from as some of us were vegetarian. We could not get over how fresh and tasty the food was and extremely generous portion sizes. The staff were so friendly and helpful and went out of their way to make sure we were well looked after, all 9 of us. We will definitely be returning.

It was a very disappointing experience for our visit to The Horse and Chains. Two different menus given out to our group of 10, so it was very confusing. When taking our orders, we were then told that there was limited availability, eg, 5 fish and 1 burger left! The fish itself was lovely and white and fresh, but the batter you needed a hammer to get through it, it was so hard. Friends that had the roast said it was very nice, however, but at £22 you would hope so. Hot drinks were not hot, and the girl said, "Sorry, we only have 1 teaspoon" and gave desert spoons to stir our drinks. Considering the prices charged for our meals, we were all very disappointed, and although it was a choice to pay the gratuity of 12 and a half %, which added another £34 to our bill this was far too excessive. The young staff worked very hard, but felt they needed training in their job, especially when putting teapots on the table, clearing the table, and reaching infront us to get plates etc, without an excuse me. We shall not return here, and would not recommend it.

Had the fish and chips fish was not great well over cooked and that was all of the 5 portions our group ordered 2 people sent there's back the chips were fine rest of the meals were very nice had coffee after but found these like warm pity as everything else was fine

I came here midweek for my birthday and was a little disappointed with the meal. I had the prawn starter which was very tasty once you got passed the 'back of the throat' spicyness of it, and for £9, I would have expected a few more prawns (dish had 3) and an extra slice of bread to mop up the sauce (I got 2). I then had the vegetarian enchilada (no meat option offered?) which was fine and it was a huge portion which I offered half to my friend as she had ordered the vegetarian curry, and was disappointed as the spice had overpowered everything (I also tried it), leaving the dish bland and tasteless. The restaurant was very quiet with around 3/4 other diners over the time period we were there so the member of staff wasn't exactly rushed off his feet but when my friend went up to him at the bar to order dessert he said "sorry, the kitchen's closed". I thought giving us the heads up and asking us if we wanted dessert ahead of the kitchen closing would have made far more sense! However, credit to him, he did organise it for us and we got an extra scoop of ice cream as an apology. I had the brownie dessert which was warm and tasty but, despite the lovely gesture of a free scoop, the ice cream was a bit claggy and heavy. Overall my dining experience was a bit "hit 'n' miss". It appears from the other reviews I've read, that the Sunday roast is the big winner at this pub, and maybe the midweek menu isn't getting the same focus and attention, which is a shame!

Lovely dog-friendly pub. Went there after a long walk on a hot day with my dog. On arrival at the pub, buddy was given a bowl of water with lots of ice cubes which he thoroughly enjoyed.

Lovely village (esq) pub, with l ovely and friendly locals. Great atmosphere.

Food was really good and enjoyed the party atmosphere. Would definitely recommend

Took the lads here for our Christmas works do. Staff were great especially considering we were noisy! All the lads said the food was great. Good range of beers and portions were very generous Llimited vegan choice but my Durban curry was excellent. Great pub

Popped in for a quick lunch on a freezing Friday. Only one member of staff behind the bar and ferrying food, but she did a brilliant job and was extremely friendly. Food was surprisingly good and while not 'cheap', I think it was worth it. Not busy for a Friday lunch, which is a little worrying. I hope to visit again soon.

Hot & spicy food. Nice stuff service.

Nice cozy pub, with a great roast dinner. Good variety of beers and ales. No parking on site though, so had to use the car park just down the road, about 200ft away - was free on a Sunday.

Really big good portions - such heart warming meals

Well nice fish truck in car park is discusting and will make u sick. As ive become unwel after eating the fish and chips from here. I came here last month. The pub had nothing to do with the food. They just rent out the space. I aint no liar

Lovely little traditional pub with a relaxed, calming atmosphere, friendly service, and a decent selection of beers.

👍🏽wonderful ambiance Roast!!...gorgeous Hospitality/staff...fabulous ❤

Great roast, same owners as royal Oak 🐱🤙

Great food, friendly staff worth a visit

Buena comida! La hamburguesa de pollo pica tela

Great staff , dog friendly and excellent Sunday roast. Real value for money.

BOOOOYA !! This is one clean plate - went for a pint but stayed for the Sunday Roast. The man pictured had to be restrained to prevent him licking the plate Accompanied by an ice cold beer - Fantastic food Can you think of a better way to spend a Sunday? I’ll wait… 10/10 would definitely recommend

We normally go to the branch in Pinner, but we have recently been a couple of times to their restaurant in Bushey. Same menu, same high standard of cooking and presentation. Very friendly and engaging staff. Their pasta is always good....so is their fish. Tiramisu is a definite crowd pleaser

Great pub with very good quality pub food, only one ale but good quality

Terrible service, I called up and made an reservation as I had a 25 minute journey and young baby. I arrive to be told we have run out of roast dinners. I said I called up and was told to pop down your table has been reserved for a Sunday roast. I hope this doesn’t happen every Sunday. Not nice when you have young children and have to bring them on a wasted journey

Really lovely atmosphere within the restaurant. I went for my fathers birthday surprise meal and it was a wonderful evening! Some nights there is live music was is always entertaining and enjoyable. The staff here are very friendly and professional. The food here also is delicious and there is something for everyone! 5 stats would recommend!

The food was delicious, friendly helpful staff and lovely ambience

Best Sunday Roast ever!!! Had the sirloin/rib eye beef which was cooked perfectly and literally melted in the mouth. The roast potatoes were delicious and according to my daughter, better than mine, which I’ll take as they were amazing. For me though it was the gravy; it was thick and absolutely delicious. Definitely the best roast dinner I’ve ever had. Bravo!!!

Went with friends last night, a reduced menu ( which we didn’t know about , that’s ok we thought, then told head chef is on holiday, still ok we thought, when our food arrived each dish was at the very best poor, then what followed was crazy, at 9.10pm when we asked for the dessert menu we were told the kitchen closes at 9.00pm , the chef has gone home , wouldn’t recommend this place to my worst enemy!

Friendly staff, good food, cold beer, lots of parking what more do you want from a pub

Good food and mid week atmosphere

22 sterling for a double G&T and Jack and coke and a plain coke. Where do you think you are Dublin:)

Was a great pub then turned into a very expensive south African themed pub .

Great food and drinks available

The atmosphere and vibe there was amazing. And the food over there is really good. If you go for a pint there do make sure you eat something too.

Bank holiday Monday- empty pub, weird , tiny menu, didn't stay to eat

Nice surprise. We were stuck on a Bank holiday Monday after visiting Aldenham Country Park where waiting times for food at the cafe were 30-40 mins so took a drive to Bushey to try and find something to eat. First place we tried also had 30-40 min wait times so decided to cut our losses and just go home for lunch however passing this place we thought we'd have one more try. Very touch and go eating at a pub you know nothing about however so glad we ended up here. Food was high quality, fresh and very delicious and the staff were friendly and very helpful. The only thing that slightly lets it down is the position being on a very busy main road which detracts from the outside ambience but would definitely visit again when in the area.

Staff friendly parking difficult, place felt cold.

A really great place to relax in with an unmistakable vibe! Really good food and excellent service from the very friendly staff as always. My favourite pub in Bushey!

Amazing place to go for lunch. Not too busy and good variety of tasty food. Friendly staff and great service.

Excellent service, excellent food quality, cooked to perfection 🥰

Our local for Sunday lunch. We’ve never been anything but delighted to visit and yesterday was just great. Food, service and the staff were so good I can’t see us going anywhere else. Probably the best roast we’ve had

Lovely environment, so friendly staff & good service. The food portion was pretty big but it was a bit salty for our taste and it was a bit pricey for the quality of the food.

Real charming local pub. Staff great and good pub grub...

Nice Pub and local too, a little on the cramp side to get any seating you must get there early evening. Menu has a nice variety of food. Plenty of different drinks available. There is a lot of outdoor seating with patio heaters installed, but on a very cold day they're not powerful enough to sit outside and have a meal. Not a bad place if you are thinking of going make a reservation and you'll enjoy it a lot more. All in all I,d still go there again just on a warm summers days.

Had very much enjoyed our burgers and a pleasant pint and glass of wine when completely out of the blue my wife fainted and collapsed. The response of all the staff was exemplary. They clearly knew what they were doing and nothing was too much trouble, including driving me home to collect my car. For well over an hour they watched over her carefully and sensitively. The true quality of an establishment is shown when something unexpected happens. We shall be back soon when we can hopefully focus on the food.

Food is fantastic, service was brilliant, a tiny bit pricey but quality was right up there. Highly recommended

Friendly staff and easy parking..

Nice pub with some lovely food on offer

Probably the best roast lunch I’ve had for many a year. Served with copious amounts of beef, veg and potatoes. Staff were fantastic and I could not recommend H&C higher than this.

Great local pub and restaurant, lovely friendly staff , good food. Best to book if eating on a busy days. Great place for a sociable drink .

Really polite staff, hard working and lovely food.

Came here for a first date, had some lovely ale and then we came inside for the food, lovely vegan burger. Will definitely be back

Really friendly place, lovely staff and great food

I don't know the Bushey area at all so used TA to find somewhere to eat and this place gets very well rated. We had the choice of sitting inside or out and my sister chose in as the beer garden is very close to the road. We were put in the snug, Duffy's room I think it is called. This was the only negative of our visit as the room was hot and stuffy without any fresh air and I had to head to the car park for some fresh air during our meal. Also the hard chairs were not very comfortable. Getting onto the food though we ordered roast dinners, two of us had the roast beef and two had the beef and lamb combo. There was a huge amount of meat - almost too much and it was super quality and beautifully cooked. The beef consisted of two cuts, sirloin and ribeye from memory. There were plenty of vegetables and again they were cooked to a very high standard and included Swiss chard which was a nice touch. Service was very friendly and attentive. When I ordered I thought the prices were rather high but once I saw the quality I understood why. Parking is very limited at the moment as there is a marquee in the car park to provide shelter for some of the outside tables

Dropped in to this very well run pub for Sunday lunch. Not had one since they reopened and it was the best we’ve had for, well, many a year. Fully recommend!

Poor food, slow service, very disappointing.

Very good food with a South African twist. Nicely presented and friendly service. Could have done with a couple of low calorie options but some nice meat and veggie options.

Staff are amazing they are so polite, efficient and could not be more helpful. The food is outstanding i cannot recommend this pub more, a joy to find such a place

Lovely staff. Great food. Sparkling clean toilets.

Nice location, staff are friendly, limited choice of food which was nice but a bit too expensive for what's on offer £15 for fish and chips is way too much. Nice atmosphere and would deffo go back

What a lovely pub. Friendly bar staff. Great beer and the food was excellent.

Very expensive for what we eat. Thier three cooked chips we thought was cooked on Thursday/ Friday and served on Saturday. Couldn't recommend this place

A bit on the expensive side food ok bar staff quite pleasant.

Went for a Sunday lunch. My partner went for the roast beef I opted for the roast pork belly. The beef was perfectly cooked, medium rare as described on menu. The roast pork belly was excellent with very nice crackling. Plentiful vegetables and rosemary roast potatoes with a large Yorkshire pudding. The gravy was really good. Superb Sunday lunch, staff friendly and service was good and attentive. Would certainly recommend, would also suggest booking just in case!

Amazing hospitality - fantastic food - just had the best time ever - staff are so friendly with great South African warmth - every meal was of superb quality

First time to the Horse and Chains for about two years. What a great experience. Sunday roast was top class and our two kids had stunning wings. Amy our lovely waitress was so helpful and nothing was too much trouble. Even offering the kids something not on the menu to make sure they were happy. Will definitely be making H&C a regular. Thank You!!!!!

Brilliant service, Lovely people, Excellent food.

My friend took me to the Horse and Chains pub for my birthday. We had the Sunday roast, which should have been retitled, the Sunday half and half. We both had the roast lamb which was very over cooked and tough as an old boot. Mine came home to my dog. Roast potatoes and Yorkshire pudding also very well done. My friend left half of hers because they were too hard to either cut or chew.The vegetables were the exact opposite, raw. I don’t suppose they had ever been near a saucepan and lm not keen on raw rhubarb being served as a vegetable.We did complain to the waitress but nothing was done about this. There was one delicious item on the plate, the gravy. Such an expensive meal £17.50 and such a disgrace.Whoever calls themselves the cook ??? should go for lessons in the Toby carvery just down the road. I can eat every thing on my plate when I go there.Whereas my friend and l left most of our Sunday joke. I did notice that most of my fellow diners sent back their plates with half eaten food on them. Shouldn’t that tell this pub that there is something seriously wrong. I for one will never darken their door again. Once bitten etc.

Really - Go Here! This place is owned by the same folks who also own the Royal Oak on Bushey Heath, and I assure you that they have worked their magic here. They have the ability to recruit the most friendly team member and get them to care about their customers. We went for a family meal, early supper time. Folks, the food was really amazing. We arrived just before the kitchen closed on the late May bank holiday. No problem at all. We we greeted and seated in a friendly manner. I had a South African borewors bbq which was utterly tasty. The kids loved their food and my wife was blown away by hers. (sorry can't remember what she had - poor on my part as I am writing a review.) I highly recommend this place. It has everything! Well done folks, I can't wait to visit again!

The new owners have made the place very comfortable and welcoming. We tried some of the South African options on the menu which were delicious. And the table service is amazing. I'll never go back to the bar!

This was my first visit to despite living literally next door for the past 3 years. As they say better late than never. The staff are incredibly friendly and attentive. They offer a great menu with some outstanding options. I'll definitely be going back again and again.Thanks for a lovely evening.