The Punch Bowl Inn in Erewash

Loved it tonight. Sat with a friend, amazing staff and amazing beer! Had a great night with no issues at all. Plenty more nights to come!

Our group consisted of 8 people which upon arrival we were told they could accommodate for with tables near each other inside. When we arrived this was not possible and due to the tables not being close together we then had to separate our group, ruining our night, after we organised to meet up after not seeing each other for so long due to covid. Not only that but we were left to wait 35 minutes whilst staff were seen to be stood behind the bar doing nothing, even one on his phone, which we were later to be told was the landlord for our drinks order to be taken. When this was confronted by the member of staff serving they became very defensive and argued they were busy and under staffed (they had 4 members on shift whilst we were there and it wasn’t to busy) Later on that night the landlady appeared and started shouting at some children (guessing hers) in-front of customers and even at a customer in an unprofessional manner to ‘shut the f*** up, otherwise they’d have licensing shut them down’. This made our group very uncomfortable and it’s safe to say we won’t be making a return which is sad as it used to be such a lovely village pub when Sarah and Scott had it.

After arriving for drink (4 girls) we were approached by a group of 30 year old men who began touching and groping us while we were sat at our table, after physically pushing them away, said man walked around to the front of the table and exposed himself in front of us, after telling members of staff, they replied ‘not again’ and went to talk to the manager who continued to serve them after what they’d done. After being ‘spoken to’ they still continued. It wasn’t until one of them was sick that they were made to leave. Absolutely vile.

Got to be one of the best Carvery,s around nice friendly bar staff great atmosphere landlord and landlady couldn’t wish for a better couple to run A village pub Pure quality

The names of pubs say a lot. What a tip; wipe your feet on the way out please. I mean it could be a lovely place ... if it closed, had a deep clean and the bar staff replaced .. apart from that it’s lovely best place to get a corona 🙄

Excellent service from the very bubbly bar staff, food tasty, filling and well worth the price, a little tlc may be needed around the edges but this is a typical village pub and I thoroughly enjoyed being here.

Wonderful Sunday meal. Thank you for my vegetarian coeliac meal and gravy. The whole family really enjoyed it. Very well organised and relaxing.

Visiting this pub for a family celebration had the misfortune of buying a pint of Pedigree. To say this was awful is an understatement. Flat as a pancake, odd taste. I gave it back after one sip was told the Manager wouldn’t change it. I went to see Sarah the Landlady who said there was nothing wrong with it and if she changed all drinks people didn’t like she would be out of business. Perhaps this says something about the beer as if it wasn’t a problem she wouldn’t be asked to change so many. Refused point blank to exchange. On the positive side staff were very friendly and helpful, the food was good (large portions) and excellent value for money. At the end of the meal I gave the Vile Pedigree which was still on the bill back to Sarah who refused my generosity. Would revisit but stay well clear of real ales there are far more better pubs locally who serve a much superior pint of Pedigree.

The food and atmosphere in this little village pub was fantastic. The Sunday roast was cooked beautifully, and there was an excellent choice of meat, veggies and sauces. Our children loved the extra sausage as well as their carvery meat! The staff were more than friendly - a waitress helped one of our daughters get her vegetables when we were busy getting the othe family members sorted. Would highly recommend!

Came in for a carvery today, first time in about 4 years, my word how I've missed this carvery, the food quality and taste are head and shoulders above the rest, best carvery in the area.

Visited with friends who for them its their local, always a good atmosphere, reasonable priced lager on draught with good staff, whats not to like, well worth a pint.

Well worth the slight detour off the midshires way for food and drinks into west hallam punchbowl pub! Book in advance to avoid disappointment. Absolutely amazing food, drinks and atmosphere. Log/coal burners, flag stone floors, pork scratchings from literally round the corner and if you ring on route then they can set you up with a takeaway meal if you ask in advance. Many thanks from us all.

Went along for the Sunday carvery, but didn't manage to get one! We arrived, bought drinks and the carvery tokens, then were told to take a seat and that someone would take us through to the food. 30 MINUTES passed and no one did, so we returned to the bar to ask. We were then informed that they do the carvery in 'sittings', and seem to serve tables at a time. We were told they still had 15 people to serve before us and we would have to wait another 30 minutes at least. We would have appreciated being told about the wait initially, and would have chosen to go elsewhere if we had known. They did seem very under-staffed and disorganised, so maybe a few more staff would help out with this problem! We had never been here before, and assumed it would be a 'help yourself' carvery like usual, but they seem to have different sittings and table service, so this should be explained to guests when they arrive. Also no vegetarian options available without booking in advance. And was still going to have to pay full price for the carvery despite only being able to eat potatoes and veg.

£3.50 a pint of Carlsberg. Car park needs pot hole repairs. BT sport. Does food at certain times. Clean and quiet

Although local to the pub had never eaten there, so tried it last week and was very pleasantly surprised at how nice the food was. Both of us had steak pie with fresh veg and homemade chips and also a pudding, both of which were amazing. Landlady chatted to us and was very friendly and made us feel welcome. If you've not eaten here before, would definitely recommend you try it, will be visiting again soon.....

The nachos for starters wear absolutely beautiful hand made and truly tasty some of the best I've ever tasted. The sirloin steak was cooked to perfection and very well presented. over all one of the best meals out in a long time would highly recommended the punch bowl. A credit to the chef as is cooking skills and experience are top quality

I'd never been to this pub before but a group of us went on Wednesday evening and it was very busy, which says a lot to me. Lovely staff, nice beer and nice food. Love those chips. Ample of parking and decent toilets Recommended

Called in here last wednesday at lunchtime. I had the Mince, and onion pie. With chips, peas, carrots, and broccoli. My wife had Steak and ale pie, with new potatoes, and the same veg. We both really enjoyed the meal, and where both podged. The capacinno's are very nice to.

Went for a carvery today food and service was excellent apart the flys that were landing on the meat we were sat down for ten minutes and others before we could go up to be served in which time flys were landing on the beef,i know they can't be help in this weather but better precautions should be taken to cover food up when left standing,i shall be returning again but think i shall wait to the winter when there will be no flys around.

The food and staff were excellent for a pub carvery. I was greeted personally by the staff and shown to my seat. The selection of meats and vegetables were good (loads of love crackling!) and well prepared. I was asked during my meal how things were and if I needed anything. Sweets were available to order but I was too full.

Having visited The Punch Bowl several times it's clear this establishment has massive potential, it is situated in leafy West Hallam and with some investment could become a veru much needed Gastro Pub for the surrounding areas.

Only a small bar area, sometimes has football on, can be a bit cramped when busy, but staff are friendly and it has a good selection of alcohol, nice atmosphere, food looks good and heard the Sunday meal was very much value for money by friends who frequent, well worth a pint.

This Was our first visit we like to travel quite a lot to many diffrent pubs for a meal.

Went last Saturday for their fine dining night and wasn’t disappointed. Scallops to start, followed by fillet steak, beautifully cooked and accompanied with fondant potato and broccoli. Desert was called chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate- a melt in the middle chocolate pudding with salted caramel inside - divine. Had a very nice bottle of red and was pleasantly surprised how reasonable the bill was. Will definitely go again.

We went to a Fine Dining evening last night and had a delicious meal! Scallops to start, although I had mushroom soufflé(don’t like any fish) which was so light and tasty, followed by a fillet steak that was beautifully cooked and then a chocolate salted caramel dessert that was scrummy!! Well done to Daniel, Sarah and the team, it was definitely a success!! it will be repeated.

We went here with some friends and the cider I had which was Thatcher gold was flat so I said to the bar lady would you mind swoping my drink as it is flat she did replace it with another pint of Thatcher which I tried and was also flat so I went back to the bar to the same last and she said is everything ok I said no it's the same so she then fetched the manager where I was told you have had it changed once be thankful you've had it changed there is nothing wrong with the cider she told me that Thatcher 's gold is a flat cider this is news to me as this is all i drink and never known it to be a flat cider the landlady people skill are not very good I will never go back in this pub again and would not recommend.....

Second time in a fortnight me and my wife have been for dinner........had two great meals. Just had the best burger and home made coleslaw I can remember. Staff are really friendly and it has the feel of a nice local pub. Looking forward to eating there in summer with our little one.

My wife and I had eaten here a couple of weeks ago, so when friends (also keen foodies) came to stay, we thought we would treat them to dinner. None of us were disappointed.

Last night along with my daughter who was celebrating her 18th birthday, family and friends we went to the Punch Bowl at West Hallam for a beautiful meal. We had a great choice of dishes to choose from their winter menu and burger menu

Having visited the punchbowl several times recently, for both carvery and food from the normal menu I have never been disappointed with the wonderful food and service! The new Chef is an asset to the pub and I hope he continues to impress with his menu's and excellent execution of the food! Would recommend strongly to anyone thinking of visiting.

We regularly go to the punch bowl for the Sunday carvery which is lovely and great value at £8. We decided to go in on a Thursday night and I fancied pie (after reading all the great reviews) and my husband fancied a burger off the new burger menu. Well the pie arrived and the whole thing was soggy, not one bit was pastry like, it was tiny and the beef inside was dry (see the photo). The chips were really, really salty too but would have been nice if they hadn't been. My husband's burger was OK, nothing special for £11 and he said he wouldn't order it again. He had sweet potato fries which he said would have been nice if they were covered in salt too. My daughter had sausage and chips off the kids menu, the sausage wasn't great, a bit like a Richmond sausage but thicker, the chips were also super salty (she's 2!) so we only let her eat a couple. Why can't you just let the customer add the salt? And the amount of salt on a kids meal is bad. I'm really really disappointed :( mainly of the pie after the such good reviews I've read. Maybe it was a one off but it'll definitely make us hesitate returning on any day but a Sunday. Ladies serving were lovely though.

Lovely village pub, great landlords and now new chef. Excellent food, particularly the home made pies !! Great carvery restaurant. Sunday lunch a must.

Popped in before Christmas and had an excellent meal, would go back again. Compliments to the chef..

The first thing to point out about The Punch Bowl is that, contrary to the address given on tripadvisor, the pub is actually in the village of West Hallam, and not Ilkeston.

A good friendly pub which serves brilliant food. This establishment caters for just about everybody, families, friends, singles. The first thing I noticed was that the locals spoke as I entered, they made room for me to get to the bar where I was met by the landlady. I ordered the drinks and then looked at the menu. A good selection with themed days and we ordered, within a very short time our meals arrived all different and piping hot. We couldn't complain and infact the chef came out and brought us extra chips and gravy ( We think he had cooked too many).

We have been going to the local in WestHallam for the past two years, we have always enjoyed the great real ale selection, along with pie night and the Sunday carvery.

Last Saturday I had cajun chicken burger(actually a chicken breast) with the lightest battered onion rings, roasted baby potatoes and sweetcorn mayo and my husband had cod loin with chips and mushy peas. Both meals were delicious, Well done Daniel!!

We are regulars of the Carvery but decided to try the new menu... food was fantastic (as you can see by the pictures).. staff all polite and very relaxed in the restaurant.. highly recommend xx

Been going to the punch bowl for some time now.. Great food. But went in for food and a drink on Wednesday pie night two drinks and tow pies paid on my card 23 pounds ish not a problem. It was packed so food would be about 20/30 mins so we had our drinks awaiting our food. Went to the bar to get a couple more drinks on my card I was told it's a 10 pound minimum on cards.? I said I am waiting for food and have just spent 20 odd pounds with you on food and a drink. Was. Told nothing we can do ten pounds on cards. So went back to our table waiting for our food. Was not happy. Lost sale for the pub. Think it was out of order. So went to the carpenters arms no small order charge on cards and only charge 30pence for a card transaction. Might try this place for food next time.

great sunday lunch. Choice of three meats. good fresh selection. they so three sittings not.on website cosy waiting area no rushing at self selection good sauces available. cost £7 .friendly staff . Booking advisable.

Teníamos 4 cumpleaños en una semana, así que encontramos en el bowl ponche para comer el domingo maravillosa comida de buenas opciones calientes y muy muy sabroso

well it was my sisters birthday and she is always banging on about this pie night at the punch bowl so of we went for her treat night, and what can i say it was so good, home made pies, veg and home made chips to die for, gravy so tasty, all for £5.50. we will be paying another visit soon.

Great choice of veg, lovely meat.The gravy is so tasty and all veg is refreshed ..Friendly atmosphere! The pie nights are lovely too ..One of my favourite places to eat On a Sunday

By far one of the best steak & ale pies I've ever tasted. All homemade and excellent value for money. I certainly will be coming most weeks for this. Scott & Sarah are lovely too. Always very welcoming.

Very nice..good selection..bit basic but not off putting.. plenty of choice. Will definitely go again.

We visited The Punch Bowl for a meal in November 2016, having arrived 15 minutes before we were due to sit for our meal, we headed straight to the bar where we were met by an extremely hostile and disinterested bunch of bar staff who stood chatting amongst each other rather than serve us, when they finally got round to doing so, I asked if I could have two straws for our children's drinks which were literally thrown onto the bar in a puddle of someone else's spillage, I also had my pint practically thrown at me so therefor politely asked that it be topped up, which was met with more disdain, contempt and an unwillingness to be helpful. After 10 minutes or so we moved through into the restaurant area which seemed fine initially, until my wife asked for some more vegetables as there were none left (we had the carvery) the man serving was not in the slightest bit helpful, exhaling loudly and muttering to himself, he then disappeared and returned nearly 10 minutes later with no fresh vegetables and covered in gravy! we asked once again and finally got them, by which point my wife's food was all but cold, the food would pass as acceptable however the service was appalling. We were then not so politely asked to move back into the bar area as they needed to make room for other diners, so off we went, marched away from our table the very second we had finished! In the bar, my partner had a wine which was a good measure short of 'medium' so once again returned to ask that the glass be filled to the line, the women serving (a different member of staff from previous) claimed that it had already been drank from!? I explained that we hadn't even sat down and that my wife hadn't touched it and once again, begrudgingly she refilled, before leaving the glass at the opposite end of the bar then storming off! At this point we couldn't wait to get out of there so drank as quickly as possible, In the end my wife had to go and stand outside with our children as the language from some of the locals was disgusting, I'm not completely adverse to colourful language but this was a perpetual tirade of bad language between several locals yelling from one side of the bar to the other. We were not expecting the red carpet to be rolled out or the food to be exquisite and we appreciate that you may well encounter some bad language from time to time, but we were so disappointed in pretty much all aspects of this pub and are not in a rush to return as a result! A definite thumbs down.

Held a function for over 20 people at the Punch Bowl, from the initial planning meeting to the event itself the Landlady (Sarah) and her staff were always professional , helpful and very flexible in supporting our event. The buffet provided was plentiful and excellent value , the venue of a pub with log fires and old world charm all contributed to a very successful event. The age group of our attendees was very diverse but all were catered for with a smile and efficient service. Thanks

Called with my family for a drink recently. Young lady behind the bar never spoke once. Not 'Hello', 'What can i get for you all', didnt even tell me how much the round of drinks for us all was - i had to guess, then when i had paid nearly £20, not even a 'thank you' either. My kids shouted 'good bye' as we left, but no reply.

This friendly local is situated in the centre of the village. It is cosy in the cooler evenings with log burning stoves. The drinks are reasonably priced . I understand pie night is excellent. There is a quiz on Monday evenings, which is free,with a nice cheese and biscuit supper half way through. The winners get a bottle of wine The front has recently had a makeover so looks quite smart but in keeping with its surroundings.

Great food, good service, excellent value for money! There were seven adults and four children and we all enjoyed our food.

Exellent Cavery bright clean restaraunt great play area for kids did not book but got a table best to book as is busy would visit again

We visited here as my sister lives locally and enjoys the Sunday carvery. We have also visited a few times over the years and are never disappointed. Booking is essential as the pub is very popular and carvery lunch is done over a couple of sittings. After paying at the bar (around £9ish for adult or approx £5 for children/OAP/ the smaller appetite) you are given a plastic credit card size voucher and this is given to the staff behind the carvery so you get the large or small plate. A selection of turkey, beef or pork plus sausage, Yorkshire puds, stuffing, roasts, mash, new potatoes, peas, cabbage and red cabbage, carrots, cauliflower cheese, apple sauce amongst others and gravy. This is an excellent selection and is far too much for a large size, although boxes can be provided for leftovers. Very good food and pleasant ambience inside. The outside is currently undergoing renovation with lots of scaffolding and a careless painter that has dropped paint down the windows! We had 3 adult plates and 1 small and cost was £32, which was very reasonable.

We stay with friends in West Hallam every year and we always find ourselves in the Punch Bowl. It's better than any other pub in the local area. I've been to the weekly quiz and also just popped in for a pint on the way to the shops. The Punch Bowl is a lovely pub in a lovely village.

Ate here a few times on a Sunday and Wednesday , really nice food at great prices.Nice staff, nice pub

Sarah and Scott are very friendly with the latter usually working in the kitchens. They do a pie night on a Wednsday which sees a special price on the pies, but the menu is full and varied. His pies are to dream about as are the chips. Other assets worthy of note are their Sunday lunches, but booking is highly recommended. It's a carvery and is extremely nice. The other being their outside facilities, whilst the pub is very child friendly, the children themselves may enjoy their outside facilities, especially during the summer months (or day as it was this year) hehe. There's also an outside area where drinks and food maybe enjoyed while not being subjected to the inside smoking ban. I would recommend to new potential users to try this pub either just for drinks or enjoy the delicious food on offer in front of the open fires during the winter months.

This restaurant/pub works very hard at providing good quality food, and does this very well. The Sunday lunch carvery is their piece de resistance, but there is also a varied selection of bar snacks too, served most days until around 8pm. Sarah is the landlady and provides a friendly environment within the bar. Scott works mainly in the kitchen and makes his own pies amongst other things. The pies are served most days, but Wednesday all day is pie day and a discount is offered on that day only. The pies are seriously nice and served with homemade chips and if you like mushy peas. This venue is well worth a visit but if wanting to eat you`ll need to book, especially on Wednesdays for pie day and Sunday Lunches. Happy dining

As regular visitors to the Punchbowl we have had numerous Carverys on a Sunday..we always get gorgeous, homemade, fresh food.. A big choice of vegetables..3 choices of meat, along with sausage, stuffing and yorkshire pudding..i would suggest booking a table to ensure you can get in.. Must try pie night next!

A group of friends and their children visited to have a carvery We were placed in the back room which was slightly tight but the food was tremendous would definately refer this to other people very nice

We booked as a large family group and requested seating in the main dining area so that the whole party could be together. There is a smaller dining area attached to the main area which we did not want simply because it was important for us to all sit together. Management were happy to accommodate us with this so the booking was made. On arrival we found that our party had been split between the two areas: we had specifically asked not to be split up. If, at booking we had been told this was not possible, we would have sought another venue, so we feel they made promises they could not fulfill just to secure our booking.The entire dining area was very uncomfortable, feeling squashed, excessively hot and the tiled floor was slippery to the extent that a few of us had minor slips and the eldest member of the family was actually scared to walk on it and clung onto others to reach her seat. A highchair we had requested was not ready for us. Service of dessert was very slow and only 3 or 4 of us could eat at a time due to this. No-one came to ask if our meals were okay. Fortunately, the food itself was good.We felt very disappointed that we were unable to eat as a family on a special occasion where we could have a rare get-together. When we asked to speak to management to express how let down we felt, we were initially told that one manager was unable to speak to us as he was in the kitchen and the other was looking after her children and could not come. They asked the bar staff to deal with us but gave their staff no authority to discuss the matter of how we might be satisfied with a discount. When eventually a member of management was able to speak to us, she had zero interest in hearing about our experience, she just made an offer of a small discount. When I asked to be allowed to explain our situation, she cut me off with "the situation is I have offered you this discount". I insisted on giving feedback about our experience and at every point I was met with an unhelpful and uncaring attitude and the inference that the situation was certainly not their fault. Ultimately, what should have been a lovely, special family occasion felt flat and uncomfortable. I parted from some relatives at the end of the meal promising to 'catch up soon' - when surely that was exactly what we should have been able to do during our meal at the Punch Bowl. I am astounded that people working in the hospitality industry could be so disinterested in the customer feedback and ensuring that we all had a good time.One final note - the waiting staff had forgotten to add our desserts to the bill but rather than taking advantage of this oversight, we corrected it. We felt as though we treated the staff at The Punch Bowl a great deal better than they treated us. I have never ever felt the need to write a bad review but as the staff at The Punch Bowl didn't want to listen to half of the points raised here, I feel this is a necessary review to write.

Lovely home cooked fayre great choice and good surroundings Booking recommended Large car park to the rear

Tasty food, excellent quality and value for money. The staff are always friendly and welcoming. Washed down with a Thatchers cider..............great!!!!

Mind blowing food. Pie night is incredible. Great value for money, same goes for the carvery. Mouthwatering stuff

Mothers Day: Very busy. Excellent portions of Carvery meat. Several Veg and Potatoes. Good honest Pub food. Excellent value for Money. Great Atmosphere in the bar area. Separate eating area available too.