The Hurdlemakers Arms in Maldon

Review of The Hurdlemakers Arms, Post Office Road, Woodham Mortimer, Maldon, CM9 6ST What a delightful evening meal in this ‘pub under the hill’ as-it-were out there in the back blocks of rural Essex. Inside the pub there’s a photo on the wall showing three kids in their late 19th C. clothes lined up in front of the entrance to the cottage that became the entrance to the pub. How old is the building? I didn’t think to ask … >200 years? There were five of us, three of whom had eaten at the Hurldemakers Arms for the first-time last year – and came away with a highly favourable impression – quality/foods, meals, service, prices and convenience. (Convenience, perhaps, comes from living in a neighbouring village – distances are short.) They’d encouraged us to return with them this second time … and our experience was much the same. If you’re looking for that quintessential English village pub with good food/services in the middle of nowhere – this is the place to go. We’d arrived ahead of our booking for 18.30 h that evening. The fence between the pub and Post Office Road was festooned with small England flags, and there was parking for half-dozen cars where the pub jutted out into the road. The main car park, however, is around the back which is where we parked. One of our group was unable to walk well and we took the convenient short path from the car park to the entrance. Enter the pub and there’s that delightful rural pub image of low ceilings and black beams/white walls everywhere - a sense of being underground. The bar is to one side and immediately in front of you. We had been allocated a table in the corner and adjacent to the window – to the right as you enter and a few metres from the bar. From the window you could look out to seating areas in the garden/grounds and, further away, a children’s playground. There was also a mid-size white marquee with tables/chairs inside and presumably for a private function. Our lounge/bar/dining area was all but empty, but this was likely to change during the next hour or so.* It was to our advantage to have arrived early – mine host was prompt to hand out menus and request our drinks order. Check out the reviews (32 of them since 2018) and you’ll note criticism/complaints for slow delivery of meals – sometimes harsh critique - wherein issues of kitchen capacity had cropped up. (Nettie’s chalk board in the pub contained a message requesting patience when the restaurant begins to fill.) First come – first served and there was no delay this time - the meals were delivered together 20-30 minutes after ordering. They were hot, delightful to look at and … wait for it … LARGE. In a sea of chips/salad my battered cod stretched from one side of the plate to the other. It was typical of a size that the pair of us normally share. Side dishes of peas and cauliflower were piled high. Other meals – skate, roast-of-the-day, etc. – were more one-person-size. No issue, however, the meals were delicious – setting the table for that England win later in the evening. Talking with mine-host after the meal, she said that we could have ordered smaller meals. Next time then. We paid £96.50 for our meal – five mains with a couple of dolce and drinks. So, good value at <£20/each. Check out the ‘in the middle’ menu where mains are within the range £16- £20; add an additional £5 if you’re after a steak. Good value too. In summary then, a fine table in an attractive restaurant with prompt services and delicious foods. Good value. And, in passing, what’s a hurdle? It’s a portable/lightweight fence section typically 1.80x0.90 m2 for sheep (and larger for cattle). Woven from split hazel/willow, hurdles were widely used in rural England from Medieval times through to the introduction of modern fencing materials from the 19th C on. Peter Steele 26 September 2024 *England was due to play The Netherlands in the semi-finals of the UEFA Euro 2024 (soccer for the ill-informed) in Dortmund 20.00 h UK time 10July24. We figured to be in, eat, out and return home to catch the start. There was a large TV set up inside the pub for those planning to watch the match over a pint or two with their mates/families. The match … was a bit of a ho-hum, then a cliff hanger until 90 minutes - with that winning goal from Ollie Watkins. Amazing.

This place is a favourite for lunch and on this occasion I had rib-eye steak whilst the others I was with had roasts and one a vegetarian option. All thoroughly enjoyed the food and the service was excellent. My steak was cooked exactly as ordered and those having roasts loved them. Will definitely be back soon.

Great food friendly staff very well priced will be back as soon as we can, looking very local pub can’t wait to try in the summer

Very crowded for Sunday lunch. We were party of six. We had to wait over an hour for the meal. Two of our group had beef which was uneatable as it was very tough. There was no apology for the delay: obviously under-staffed and very much a case of "ram in the customers at the expense of service". Apology for the beef was on the lines of "well, it's the luck of the draw with some meats"! No extra drinks to compensate for the delay though they did offer to serve more drinks (paid for by us). Portions far, far too big, both in terms of vegetables (though cooked nicely) and meat as was evident in what other customers were leaving.

Lovely old school country pub. Fresh, hot, good portions. The best Sunday roast ( beef ) I’ve had for a long time, and great cheesecake. Gets very busy so book ahead or be prepared to wait. Very very good, will definitely return soon.

Lovely little old school pub, with huge portions of tasty pub food. The staff were friendly & helpful.. nothing to complain about.

What a great dog friendly pub, portion sizes were enormous and all freshly cooked to order, lots of variety generous amounts of meat, potatoes and veg with the roast and really friendly staff who couldn’t do enough for us, even had a doggy bag to take away, it was quite a long wait for the food but definitely worth the wait, delicious food, great little play area for the kids, would definitely return and recommend

Absolutely bloody lovely food. Huge portions & extremely tasty. Definitely worth a visit. We will go back, homely little pub with great staff.

Don't waste your time, I have never had to wait so long for food in my life. Would not mind but booked and kept being told on the way. Surprised there are any customers.. landlords need to grow a pair and not let people speak to others like some people were.

Went to the Fawlty Towers of the pub world with the intention of enjoying a nice relaxing meal with friends. Very young children collecting glasses, 2 hour wait for food and lying staff is mostly the gist of this review. Arrived at 5.30 with a table booked for 6 and was met by (I assume) the landlady who must have just eaten a bag if lemons stating we could sit down but not order food until 6. One of the party bought an extortionatly priced round of drinks whilst we waited. At 10 past 6 , after being ignored by staff, we had to ask for service. The young chap that took the order was friendly enough but unfortunately as the night went on, relayed a never ending stream of porkies from the kitchen about our meals. Some of our party got starters but we stated we wanted our mains at the same time so we weren't waiting, a simple enough request you may think but oh no, not in this place. After 1 hour we asked about our meals and was told 10 minutes, in another 30 minutes we asked again and yep, you guessed it they said 10 minutes, after 2 hours had gone by we asked again and , blow me down they said 10 minutes. When that 10 minutes had passed we left. At least they got a few rounds of drinks out of us but I really didn't enjoy my 9pm burgerking. Trust me, give this place a wide berth. I did wonder if it was because we were obviously northern and had a Scot with us too as people arrived after us with local accents who appeared to be served before us.

I visited today with my daughter in law and grandson. The menu is great and the hardest part was choosing. Settled on chicken curry and chips for us adults and my grandson (aged 4) had sausage mash and peas. Everything was cooked beautifully. After another choice of desserts. Bread and butter pudding with custard to die for. Daughter in law had steamed sponge and custard which she said was gorgeous. Albert had a huge scoop of ice cream. The service was brilliant. The waitress chatted to Albert. I cannot recommend highly enough.

Wish I lived closer, so could visit often. Mussel and Clam Chowder was superb. A proper Chowder. Panini was lovely. We were there for lunch and saw several other dishes that looked wonderful. A bit off the beaten track, but worth the visit. Staff very friendly and helpful.

I cannot rate this pub high enough, staff so warm and friendly and the food is fantastic, all home cooked by Gary and such a extensive menu it's amazing he can produce so many fabulous meals . As with all pubs they are short staffed and food can be bit longer as you would expect with home cooked, believe me it is worth every minute of your wait. Well done Nettie, Gary and team. We have only been in area on 4 day break but have had 3 wonderful meals

We have been to The Hurdlemakers many times and have always enjoyed it. This was our first time eating in again since the end of lockdown, and we were a bit disappointed. We went on a Saturday night with two friends and we’re quite surprised that there were only one or two other tables taken. It was quite early, and probably about eight other diners came in later, but most tables remained empty. The worst thing about the evening was when we sat down at our table, which was so sticky the cutlery was actually stuck to it and had to be pulled up. The table wasn’t dirty, but most probably suffering from multiple layers of anti-bacterial spray that had built up. I know anti-bac is important, but a good old wash down with water and detergent would be helpful and overcome the stickiness. Our waitress was lovely however, and took our orders. The Hurdlemakers bases its reputation on the fact it doesn’t do fast food, and cooks from scratch so there may be a wait for orders to come up. However, we must have waited 20 minutes for our starters, which for two soups and two pates felt much longer than should have been necessary. We did all enjoy them when they arrived though. Main courses were all good, hot and plentiful including a great selection of vegetables. Loads of kidney in the steak and kidney pie. I had ice cream for dessert which unfortunately was crystallised, but the others all enjoyed theirs and the cheesecake was apparently very good. We all had coffees - two arrived promptly and two took a while. Overall, the experience was not as good as I expected, although the food was nice. I appreciate the difficulties the hospitality sector continues to experience, and don’t want to add to woes, but the sticky-table issue needs urgent attention, and service also needs some attention in terms of timeliness.

We have just left without eating/drinking. We rang to book but we’re told by the gentleman to ‘just come’ as they had the ‘largest beer garden’ in Essex. After arrival to a half-empty garden, we were told by the landlady that we couldn’t be served, because of the people that had booked and it would push everyone behind. I explained that we had rung and were told to ‘just come’, but she still refused to serve me, until my husband complained and she agreed to serve us ‘this time’. By that time I wouldn’t have enjoyed the meal so returned the menu and we left. The service has been slow in the past, and our meals were forgotten on the last visit, until I checked why they were taking even longer than usual, but this was final straw. So, the advice is, unless you have a lot of time, are very patient and are able to book directly with the landlady, don’t bother as the don’t have the right systems in place, don’t communicate between one another and the kitchen isn’t coping. I wish them luck and hope they manage to get themselves sorted out.

Haven’t been here for a few years , and again was not Disappointed book table was ready when arrived asked for name details etc for track and trace , which a load of places have stopped doing as they can’t be bothered the service and food was excellent we will be back again thank you to all the staff , we had a lovely evening x

Waited an hour to get our starters which was cold pâté, and microwaved cheesy bread which was sold as garlic bread. Then 25 minutes between starters and mains whilst stuck to a sticky table. The mains came out beef was dry, lamb was full of gristle and the chicken was void of any moisture at all. potatoes were shocking, black on the outside and soggy in the middle, when challenged about them I was told they were”fluffy” When the chef and his wife came out to see what the issue was I told them all these things and they said well bring you your bill and we’re asking you to leave the pub. He then gave me a discount of two full mains when he’d just stood in front of me and told me there was nothing wrong with the food. This is the second time I’ve had bad a experience here, last time the owner stood and argued with me at my table about it. Gave it the benefit of the doubt but will not be giving it any more chances. Very disappointing, and a very aggressive persona about the owners

This pub is tucked away down a quiet country lane. We first visited with a group of friends for lunch. The staff are very friendly and welcoming. The Covid measures put in place are excellent, much better than other pubs we've visited. The ale and cider selection is one of the things that attracted us to this pub and we were not disappointed. The ales and ciders served are changed regularly and are displayed above the bar. Great to see this pub supporting local breweries such as Mighty Oak, one of our favourites. The food is home cooked and therefore takes a bit longer but is well with the wait. My husband had the pigeon pie and said it was delicious. There is a lovely big garden with plenty of space. We've been back twice since finding this pub and we will be returning many times.

We visited the Hurdlemakers Arms on route back to Chelmsford in February. It was our first visit and we would def' return. The menu was extensive, the roast dinners were huge and crispy & the pudding menu (if you could fit a pudding in!) was huge. The chef clearly loves his job and is very talented. The staff were helpful, friendly and attentive and I had a lovely chat to the landlady about my home town of Ramsgate. I'd highly recommend this place... I can't wait to return for more yorkshire pudding! :) Thank you for welcoming us and feeding us! so well

First of all I'll start by saying that the food was fantastic! I had a Hurdlemaker Burger and it was so incredibly yummy! The chips were perfect and the burger was amazingly cooked. There is play equipment for children to have a play, always enjoyable. The food arrived very quickly and there were loads of us to serve so that was very pleasing. A great pub to visit and the staff were lovely!

Been in several times at various times and months of the year and has never disappointed, the service is friendly and the lovely couple who run the pub have an in-depth knowledge of its history and the surrounding area. Although food is a little on the expensive side this isn’t your typical ‘pub grub’ it’s fresh, full of flavour and something for everyone! I’m gluten intolerant and they had an exstensive menu full of options and even the specials could be adapted to suit. I happen to mention I had never eaten a gluten free scotch egg and was something I’d always wanted to try and whilst my husband and I were enjoying my meal the chef had kindly made me one ( his first) just for me at no extra charge and it was delicious and everything I’d hoped it would be- thank you lovely outdoor space for families, cosy inside with friendly staff. Would definitely recommend.

Appreciate this is a very old pub but found the inside somewhat dark. Had to wait quite a while for the food but we were a party of 8. Food was nice but on the expensive side as were the drinks. Wouldn't rush to go back.

Always great food . Very very popular so sometimes ther3 is a bit of a wait . . . But it’s all fresh food not fast food so well worth the wait

Huge portions and friendly staff are two major reasons for visiting here. Loads of choice on the menu especially the sweet board. Also great options here for allergy sufferers (especially gluten-free)

Packed to,the gunnels with noisy, screaming children. Appalling service, actually non existent. Almost and hour and half to get meal! NO staff interest in customers. Tables so closely packed you could have shared condiments with neighbouring diners. Revolting place and will never, ever, ever return under any circumstances. Not recommended on any level. This is just a money making machine establishment . Sad really because past customers have caused it to have favourable reviews,however, in ensuing years their standards have dropped to Rick bottom. If you want a stressful, noisy, mediocre night out then choose these dire place...if not steer well clear.

Arrived on the of chance hoping to get a Sunday evening meal and was greeted by an extremely polite and help young lady. We ordered the a Roast Pork Dinner and a Steak and Kidney Pie and were not disappointed. Haven’t been in this pub for 35 years and glad we came back and will definitely return, excellent service and very welcoming staff,even though they had a horrible customer complaining about his meal he had nothing to moan about by the look of his plate every thing eaten but handled very well by the landlady.

We use this pub for a Saturday night meal out for four myst as never been here before that the food was great if just a little over the top big meals may should try a small option as found it too much but can not win all it was well cook and the staff did a great job serving on a Saturday night with the many other customers in there yes would go back again thank you for a great evening

Loved this. Fish n chips and nut loaf. Both huge and delicious. I tried the stout ‘Old Man and the sea’ brewed nearby. Excellent selection: if you are CAMRA led this is the place for you. Cosy and very friendly. Perfect old fashioned pub.

We have eaten here many times with walking groups and always enjoyed this pub. This week we had a table for friends and we all had large plates of very tasty fresh food. Service was friendly and on a dull day with the log burner alight it was very cosy.

A very nice menu with lots of comfort food. The portions are huge and the prices are very reasonable. You certainly get value for money. Our meal were all very nice, especially the fish pie and duck starter. Be prepared to have a bit of a wait for you food as they get very busy.

Reviewed a year ago and nothing has changed - still good food and service though as slow as ever. For warned is forearmed so we arrived early, got our order in 15 minutes before food service officially began and enjoyed good bread and olives with a glass of wine while we waited.........and waited.

Shabby local pub which, a couple of years ago, was a regular for us on a Saturday evening or Sunday lunchtime. We stopped going because of a couple of disappointing meals but decided to give it a repeat visit as we were playing golf a couple of hundred yards away.

This is a traditionally, family owned pub of the old-school variety. It's not seen a lick of paint or trendy overhaul in years....and is all the better for it. Small, traditional and cosy.