The Old Swan at Astwood in Milton Keynes

Lovely food cooked exactly as you would like it, wine list excellent from very tasty reasonably priced wines to very good more expensive wines, staff are very friendly and helpful, pricing of food very very good considering how excellent it is, well worth a visit either as a couple or family.

A lovely village pub in beautiful grounds. Very friendly staff but we felt a bit rushed when we went here for an evening meal. The quality of the food is excellent and our steaks were cooked to perfection.

wszystko było bardzo dobre, miła obsługa zawsze usmiechnieta polecam wszystkim. super jedzenie ok. napewno wroce

Arrived a few minutes early greeted friendly staff and landlord served drinks and ask if we would like to go through to the restaurant orders taken food served absolutely delicious will definitely recommend the old Swan for the quality of food and service

Had a nice meal at lunch time very professional staff and food to natch. Will be back very soon . It was a bit pricey but worth it . Bob

I have just returned home after having fish and chips at The Old Swan Astwood. It's a very welcoming pub and I have to say it's the best Fish and Chips I have eaten for some time.

fantastic place very welcoming and still has all its traditinal values looking after the locals we would highly recommend this place for any purpose we have never been disappointed

Always a great place to eat and meet friends. The owner Chef always puts on a great menu with the specials always something different and great to try.

Well-appointed and welcoming. Warm atmosphere and friendly welcome. Wholesome and beautifully presented food. Good wine list. Highly recommended.

This was recommended to us by a friend some years ago and since then we have been back many times; the last time on FridayJanet and Bob are very welcoming and the food is never less than faultless.You know it is going to be excellent as soon as you walk in; the property is spotless, warm and welcoming.I cannot rate this highly enough!

Re-Visited The Old Swan at Astwood , in October 2015. There is one word that describes our experience to a T . " SUPERB "We were greeted with a smile , and felt really welcome in such a beautiful location and pub.The food was outstanding , and if Egon Ronay were alive today , He would have definitely put The Old Swan on his bucket list of return visits to a best pub recommendation ..Thank you Old Swan at Astwood .. Marks out of 10 ? We'd give you 11 ...Look forward to return visit soon ...It was awesome . Thank you Chris & Linz

Really enjoyed our second visit to this great pub/restaurant. Great food, friendly and attentive service. Food is over and above the usual pub food that you come to expect and very nicely presented. Will definitely visit again.

My party were the only diners that day so we were given the full treatment by mine host. The service was impeccable and the menu was generous in content with the added bonus of the " specials"board.The service was good and the food was served on hot plates ( a particular fad of mine). All my party expressed great satisfaction with their choices and it would be difficult to single out one specific item. A good choice something extra special.

Booked a table for Sunday lunch. Pub is quite charming with old fashioned decor. Ordered the oven roasted leg of lamb from the lunchtime menu. What was delivered was a lamb shank. It had no flavour and I suspect it was boil in the bag or microwaved. In fact the whole meal apart from the gravy was flavourless. Vegetables were very ordinary - peas and carrots.Previous reviews mention friendly service. I think this is for the locals only. We were not asked if we wanted a drink with our meal and had to go to the bar ourselves. As soon as our plates were taken away, we were asked if we wanted dessert. I like to have a break between courses so said no to dessert but maybe later. This didn't seem to go down too well and the menus were taken away and we were not asked again later.Overall a disappointing meal, was expecting much more

We visited The Old Swan at Astwood on Saturday 16th May 2015. The party consisted of 5 couples , What a fabulous pub , to celebrate my wife's birthday . We were greeted by a lovely charming lady called Janet . Our tables were located in a beautiful restaurant which formed part of this gorgeous pub. We were able to choose from the finest selection of wines and beers , very impressive .Janet took our orders , and it wasn't long before we were thoroughly enjoying the most equisite food we had tasted for a long time . It was top drawer standard . Quality , tastey food . Served with a smile , and I can confirm that the other 9 people in our party were as happy with the five star service , food and wine as I was personally writing this review . The Old Swan at Astwood has to be one of the best pubs , location and hosts in Bucks . My wife is a personal friend of a famous chef . It proves what a fantastic all round experience we had here , when She can feedback so positively and recommend that He visits this establishment at his earliest convenience .We asked to thank the chef , and it was a nice touch that He was able to introduce himself as Bob , the owner . His cooking skills were in a league of their own as pure excellence . The service was excellent , and the hostess Janet turned out to be Bob's wife . What a brilliant team , what an awesome pub and restaurant . Thank you The Old Swan at Astwood . Can't wait to return !!!!!!Regards Chris , Linz , Ian, Sue , Chris , Josie , Tracey , Terry , Pat , and Bryan

We decided try this restaurant as we were staying nearby on business, despite recent reviews stating that the service was less than friendly. I must report that this could not be further from the truth!! Both Bob and Janet were extremely welcoming and made sure we were attended to very well. The food was delicious and cooked perfectly, with a great menu choice. The price seemed very reasonable based on the brilliant meal and service. We will definitely be returning!!

I was looking for somewhere local to take some friends for Saturday lunch and I decided to try the Old Swan at Astwood.It was not very busy on our arrival.We were recommended by the host lady to try the fish and chips so we did. It was very nice, and as we did not want a big lunch it turned out to be ideal for us.The pub was full of Old World Charm and as it was so quiet I would think it was used mainly by locals.

Decided to try this restaurant for a Sunday lunch and felt that we had made an excellent choice. The staff were very friendly, we had excellent service and the food was superb. We all had the roast lamb and not one of us was disappointed. Very tasty and plenty of it. We had different desserts and all of us had an ample serving. Good home cooking all round and great value for money. Thank you for a lovely meal.

I want to start by saying that I like the food here. The chef/owner clearly knows what he's doing here. Particularly like the steak guiness casserole. Good range of dishes/specials. My experience of the service is that it isn't always as friendly as other reviewers have reported - perhaps it's me?

I really liked the old school bar atmosphere of the Frog and Nightgown bar at the back. Carpet on the floor, dark wood furniture and quite cosy. The sandwiches we bought those were overpriced at 7GBP a head. Nice but a bit too expensive. They have a useful small car park at the back too. Nice for a quick business lunch, but a little expensive

Took friends of ours out to thank them. We were made to feel extremely welcome and the chef came out to talk to us about the menu. Starters were outstanding. When it came to main course both men enjoyed the venison, I loved the quail and my friend tells me the fish was the best she has ever had. None of us had room for a pudding although the menu looked great. It is not cheap but not too expensive either but worth every penny. Wine was not too expensive for a good bottle, the men told me the beer was excellent and a good time was had by all. Great for a celebration or just because you fancy a good meal well cooked and in great surroundings. Would recommend. PS Their bar meals are great too.

Outstanding place to visit - sooooo friendly, excellent service, wonderful food and a very memorable afternoon. Thank you.

An attractive, thatched pub in this small village it benefits from a beer garden at the rear with some well-tended shrubbery as well as a few tables and chairs overlooking the village green opposite. The pub is privately owned and the current landlord has been there about twelve years. Apparently he has turned it from something that was rather tired and shabby in to the very pleasant pub that it is today.Inside it consists of two rooms, an L-shape bar and a cosy restaurant area. The main bar has some well-polished flagstones on the floor, plenty of black beams on the ceiling and the obligatory selection of horse brasses, country water colours and framed salmon as well as a large collection of keys. At one end was a large dresser with a huge selection of pottery and there were a couple of brick fire-places with wood burning stoves, piles of logs and copper pans. The restaurant area looked to have similar décor with a carpeted floor and an even lower ceiling. Food wise, the menu offered a good selection of dishes, perhaps a step or two up from your usual pub grub, although there were still pub favourites such as Fish & Chips, Chicken Tikka Masala and a Beef & Guinness Pie. Most of these were around the £10 - £12 mark, although some of the steaks were obviously more. There were also another half dozen or so dishes chalked up on a specials board. My Chicken in a Creamy Vermouth & Mushroom sauce was a pleasant and tasty dish, although if I were being critical I would say it was a little on the small side for £10.95. I was especially disappointed that I got charged an extra £2.50 for a side dish of vegetables. I queried this and was assured that this was stated on the menu, which it may well have been, but when you’re asked if you’d like “chips or potatoes with your meal” as opposed to “would you like some vegetables with your meal” then the implication is that they’re included. Together with the fact that the meal would have been very one dimensional without them, and this is a pub, not a top restaurant, this somewhat soured what was otherwise a very pleasant visit. Beers on tap were just London Pride and HSB. There was a third pump on the bar that appeared unused, so there may on occasions be another choice. The solitary cider was Stowford Press which makes a pleasant change from the usual dross around these parts. Overall, I’ve mixed feelings about this. It’s certainly a very nice pub in an attractive setting, but the unexpected charge for the vegetables and the somewhat uninspiring beer choice detract from it somewhat.

I was first taken here by my father In law and was so impressed decided to have my company Christmas lunch here and booth times the food and service is great, they also had no problem with special dietary requirements. It is also a lovely building internally and externally.

A very friendly welcome and time for a drink in the comfortable bar. The dining room was a lovely room. Our food could not have been better - unusual and tasty starters, venison and chicken to die for .... and the desserts!!!! All melted in the mouth, especially the pavlova and the bill was not exorbitant. The chef appeared several times and the waitress service was spot on, even though they had several tables and a very large family sitting . We felt very welcome, we were well fed and we will certainly be visiting again.

Four of us went after Xmas . Fish tagine,sole,medallions and chicken were all top quality. One with gluten problems and they were superb in organizing the menu.Friendly unobtrusive service.All in all an excellent experience.We live close and will definitely return.

There is always a warm welcome at the Old Swan. As ever a really nice menu with some good specials on offer. At lunchtime you can opt for a light bite ,soups ,baguettes etc. or like us go for the three courses. Three of us had the sea food platter and this was delicious, I had hoped for the grouse for main,unfortunately this was not available so I joined with two others and had the venison which was really tender. My only criticism is that vegetables are charged as an extra. I didn't have room for a dessert but my husband's syrup sponge was sufficiently large for me to have two or three spoonfuls! Together with a nice wine this was a very pleasant experience.

Re visited the Old Swan at Astwood, on Sunday 11th August 2013. To be greeted by the most friendly hostess imaginable. Turns out this gem of a lady, was actually the landlady.I had two pints of London Pride, which was an amazing two pints. Best pint of bitter Iv`e had in ages. Then we ordered roast dinners, which were fabulous. The Chef brought them to our table, and this diamond of a man turned out to be the landlord.The Service, drinks, and quality of food was outstanding.We would recommend the hot choc fudge cake with ice cream to finish, as that put the icing on the cake.All the customers, whom we didn`t know, were extremely friendly and spoke just as highly of the pub, its staff, and food as we found out for ourselves.In fact we can`t recommend this pub highly enough. The Location and decor complement its excellent food, service and choice of fine beers, wines, and spirits.Thank you The Old Swan at Astwood, we love you ! Thumb`s up from all of us. Would highly recommend. 10/10 4 Star

Unless you like rude, arrogant little people who think their pub is a private domain to treat non-regular visitors badly - then this place should be avoided.Imagine standing at the bar to buy drinks as the landlady chats to a regular whilst completely ignoring you. And then the landlord finally serves you in total silence without even thanking you. Very odd pair to run a pub where customer service should be their first role.And when asking about eating a meal, being told that as we'd not booked and that they are busy, we should order from the menu in the next 2 minutes. Could we take a bit longer to decide? Roll of the eyes, red face, silence, walks off in disgust !! However, there were just a handful of other customers so I would not describe it as busy. Seems that they just do not want to put the effort in and non-locals are an inconvenience to them. So in summary, this place has a terrible atmosphere making you feel most unwelcome. The 5 of us who were intending to eat meals in fact left after our drinks and found a friendly place down the road. I would not visit this pub again under any circumstances. Rudeness is not acceptable.

Decided to meet some friends for a drink and something to eat and chose The Old Swan at Atwood. Arrived just after 6:30pm, husband went into the bar to get a couple of drinks whilst we got acquainted in the pub garden, was faced with an awfully abrupt barman, no actually, he was rude as it happens... who as it turns out was the pub landlord who behaved like we were intruding in his public house. We then asked about eating and were told they were too busy to fit us in. Realising their rudeness, he then offered if we were ready to order immediately, having only just been handed the menus and the special board carried over for us to look at. We asked if they would give us a few minutes, the landlord walked back inside without responding and looked quite annoyed, at which point we decided they simply do not deserve our business, we subsequently finished our drinks and left. Avoid this place at all costs especially if your looking for a nice welcoming place who appreciate you choosing to spend your hard earned cash with them. in fact McDonald's customer service offers a higher standard than this and show more gratitude when you ask if you can order some food and spend your money ! Shocking and so disappointing, surprised they remain in business.

A group of 5 of us visited this pub this evening with the intention of eating. When we asked for the menus, the landlady, rather haughtily advised that, as we hadn't booked, she would serve us but was very busy. The landlord was just as disdainful. According to their website, they "welcome you" and there is no mention on booking being a requirement. We left very quickly, without even bothering to look at the menus as we were so disgusted with their attitude. Such as shame as it seems a lovely pub in pleasant surroundings.

A lovely pub with very pleasant restaurant run by the owners. The food was good and well presented with a good selection. We were shown a backboard with specials which, of those we tried, were very good. Our only reservation is that this is a restaurant where you get looked after if you are known, or regulars, but the lady owner comes across as unfriendly and is just about putting up with customers, who really are a bit of a nuisance. From other reviews we were clearly not alone in finding this. A great pity as it could be such a great place to eat..

we stumbled accross the old swan at Astwood and so glad we did the food is all home cooked and creative the couple who run it could not be nicer and more welcoming we loved it and cant wait to go back you will not be dissapointed

Me and my partner was having a dinner in the old swan 2 weeks ago while we are in Cranfield. I must said the food was good as I had the morocco fish tangine and my partner had lamb and we are shock when they charge the 500ml sparkling mineral water for GBP 3.50 & again extra charge for vegi as well. Chef is friendly & service is ok

Potential cosy, traditional pub, spoiled by pretentious music, staff and atmosphere, what a shame. Food was ok, but the atmosphere was not conducive with a relaxed evening with friends unfortunately.

Food is very good - their website does not do them justice, met the chef who is also the owner's Bob and Janet who is out front. Who are very pleasant and clearly support the village.Food is consistent and good, the Old Swan is situated in the middle of Astwood - the trouble is no one would ever know its there - this traditional bit of England but hidden away. Well worth a visit - great place to meet up with friends and family.

We have eaten at the Swan many times and also use it for special occassions as the food and service never disappoint. I can truly recommend the steaks, which have been among the best I have ever had, and the specials are well worth a try and we have found nothing is too much trouble. Its always a very busy pub so best to book, especially at weekends, its popularity should assure you of the quality of both food and service.

Good menu with a decent selection of dishes. The prices of the dishes indicated a gastro pub and our expectations were high for well presented meals with high quality service. Unfortunately we were disappointed. The lamb & apricot casserole (£10.95) was sadly lacking of lamb and apricots with only 4 small cubes of lamb in one bowl.. When my partner pointed this out to the proprietor, the response was belittling and rude, with no offer of remedial action. Our dessert was flavoursome - but not necessarily in line with the desciption, and was quite expensive at nearly £7. In the end we were not charged for one of the maincourses - but without any communication indicating that this was going to be their response to our concerns. There was every opportunity for the proprietor to recover the sitation - unfortunately her service skills weren't in tune with her customer's needs.

First visit with several family members. There is a good to varied menu - not all suitable to perhaps teenagers(would advise checking out the menu on the web site). Starters quite expensive but good quality and presented nicely. Main courses start from £10.00 - I feel a few more dishes could be added for individuals on calorie controlled diets or wanting light meals. Desserts(expensive but good sized portions) were a little limiting - again lighter options would be a good idea. With starters and puds at just a little under £6.00+ then add main dish £10.00+ £22.00 without drinks. The service was overly fast!!! So if you want to relax between courses best to state this.Several items were either left out or confused. The proprietors take the orders. It's a husband and wife team. Unfortunately(when we were there) , they lack a sense of humour and were very put out if their lack of service was pointed out. The customer is definitely not right at this venue. There were occasions when the female proprietor(looking and sounding like a stern head mistress was politely asked appropriate questions when she made you feel like a naughty school child. However the food is definitely worth a try and I would recommend this venue.