The Red Lion in Central Bedfordshire

We have been eating here for the last 25 years, and unfortunately, we felt the standard of food was only adequate this time. The 'sticky pudding' was soggy and drenched in a sugary sauce, not the light sponge and delicious caramel sauce we are used to. The main meal of a burger and fries was ordinary and on the small side. The waiters were really helpful, but the landlady appeared unfriendly and more interested in the locals and eating her meal at the bar. At no time were we asked if everything was ok. There is just a sense here that you are lucky to be dining there, rather than a focus on customer service. Staff at the top, you need to sort this. Such a beautiful venue.

My wife and I keep going back to this very pretty pub in the lovely village of Milton Bryan. We keep going back, even though it usually disappoints. My wife and I went yesterday for a late lunch. We were in a bit of a hurry, but was seated promptly. We ordered the chicken wings to share, which were very nice, but crazy spicy. My wife had the Cauliflower Cheese soup which turned up with bread and a small dish of butter. I had the Black and Blue Burger with hand cut chips. Both the soup and the burger were unbelievably salty, to the point of ridiculous. Even the dish of butter had more salt sprinkled on top of it. The chef obviously has a real passion for salt. Nobody came to check if our meal was ok, and as we had somewhere to be afterwards, we persevered with the meal. We’re not usually complainer’s, and prefer to just put it down to experience rather than ruin the occasion, as was the case yesterday. We both spent the rest of the day drinking glass after glass of water. We have had very nice meals in the past at this pub, but we have also had several bad experiences with the quality of the food and poor service. It’s reasonably local to us so we really want to support it, but I don’t think it’s actually as good as the owners think it is. What a shame.

Once again we had an excellent Sunday lunch, The dog was given a Sunday lunch which she thoroughly enjoyed. The roast dinner was generous with ample well cooked meat and a wide variety of vegetables. Definitely going back.

Have visited the Red Lion a few times in the last year and each time the food is superb and the service and warm welcome excellent

We had an excellent meal for our valentines lunch today. It’s 7 tears ago today my husband and I had our first meal out in this beautiful restaurant and the food has never once disappointed us, if anything it gets better and better. The chef is clearly very passionate about his food and the waiting staff are always attentive. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend The Red Lion whether for a casual meal out or a very special occasion .

Wonderful food was from a fantastic menu. Each course was delicious. Main course was large and range of vegetables also.

Wow, wow, wow....what an amazing Christmas day meal we had yesterday!! Four of us went for the 12pm 'sitting' and we were not disappointed with either the food, which was fabulous or the service, which was fast! Our plates were groaning with the amount of dinner that was on them...the turkey was melt in the mouth! We were made to feel very welcome and nothing was too much bother. It really made a wonderful Christmas day for all of us! Thank you and very well done Red Lion, we'll definitely be back!

A fantastic pub and one to be on your top 5. Great food and friendly atmosphere. Look forward to going agsin

If you never experience the British tradition of the Sundays Roast, you are in for a great experience. Picture a large plate filled with a deep bed of cooked vegetables (peas, potatoes, carrots,...), with a large thick slice of meat (beef, pork or lamb) and on top an gigantic piece of Yorkshire pudding. Add to that a few pints of local ale and you won't need any other food for the next 24 hours!

I haven’t been to the Red Lion Milton Bryan for many years and some friends suggested a visit for Sunday lunch, the roast dinners were superb! I had the lamb and it was lovely, plenty of vegetables etc and pleased to have cauliflower cheeses included with no extra cost which was a bonus. A lovely lady served us and was attentive but not overbearing. Will definitely go again soon!

We went to the Red Lion, for the first time in years, for lunch in September 2023. We ate outdoors, sunny and warm. We had 3 courses each, a bottle of wine and 3 other drinks. All lovely, served with good cheer. It cost £62 each including service. We really enjoyed ourselves, a lovely relaxed lunch.

Warm and welcoming. A very popular pub with friendly and helpful staff. Had a great lunch at a bar table. Two great choices - Moroccan Lamb Cannon & The Black and Blue burger. Will definitely be returning.

My treated us to a Sunday roast here , not her first visit but it was mine and can confidently state it will not be my last . My wife had the roast beef and I the mini hog roast . The presentation , quantity and quality of our meals were top notch . The pub is of the old English type , lots of character and the service like the aforementioned food was excellent .

Never been here before, but decided to try it after some recommendations. From the moment we walked through the door, we were welcomed and served promptly and politely. The menu is vast, and the drinks menu is well-considered. The food we ordered - croquettes and squid to start, and the house burger and ham and eggs for mains - was exceptional. Staff were attentive throughout our visits, offering extra drinks and condiments. We absolutely loved our visit, and enjoyed the individuality of not another chain restaurant. We left already planning our next visit!

This pub is excellent, the food is top notch and is cooked fresh to order which is why the waiting times for food are probably longer than other places which I really don't mind. I've been here quite a few times in the last 4 years and the food is always amazing. The staff are friendly and have always been really engaging when I've visited so was surprised to read some of the negative reviews. I can't wait to come back here again!

Absolutely love this place. Fantastic food, especially the Sunday roast, really lovely and attentive staff. Great place in the summer too to sit out in the garden. There are no negatives for us. Well done and keep up the fantastic work.

The food is great but service is very slow. Many tables but very limited waiters/staff. There seems to be one person taking orders, one delivering and one at the bar. We could see our drinks sitting at the bar for 5 minutes but no one...

It's such a shame that the food has always been good at the Red Lion, but they just never quite get it right with regard to waiting times. Why is it that other restaurants in the area serve within reasonable times, but the Red Lion...

We came to the Red Lion for my Wife’s birthday meal and it was a night to forget. We waited over 1.5 hours for our food with a young hungry child and asking if we could have his ASAP which wasn’t even noted. We watched...

had a lovely dinner with friends , good service & excellent food i will be back!! Even got to speak to the chefs. 10/10 Big up Red Lion!!

Fantastic location, welcoming staff that go that extra mile and excellent food that cannot be faulted.

Visiting from the Outer Hebrides and the Red Lian was Highly recommended from locals in Toddington, when we arrived the car park was almost full and the premises busy so we expected to have a wait and with it being a Lovely Sunday what was...

Picked this pub as somewhere mid way to meet up with family. We were made most welcome and all really enjoyed the food. Definitely much more interesting than ‘normal’ pub food. I had duck salad which was so tasty. Others had lamb and sea bream....

We came here for my dad's birthday after a not so great experience somewhere else the day before and was somewhat apprehensive, but this place did not disappoint. I was initially concerned as some of the dishes were sold out with it being a bank...

Love this pub. A new menu too! We walked the dog nearby and came with friends to the Red Lion and were served by Karen and Lyn. The beer of choice was Tim Taylors landlords which always goes down (too) well. Nice relaxed setting in...

We celebrated my mothers 91st birthday with a family Sunday Lunch. The staff were wonderfully attentive and kindly quickly fed our 2 year old grandchild who was hungry. We were able to get ourselves settled and look at the menu before our drinks and food...

A nice village pub with a cozy feel. We tried to engage in conversation with the barmaid but she wasn’t too interested. Would like to try the food as we only had drinks. Would certainly give it another try!

Staff, particularly Narelle was distant and very unwelcoming. Couldn’t be bothered. Avoid at all costs. They do not deserve the business in these challenging times. Extremely high staff turnover demonstrates the causes. Much better alternatives close by. They do not deserve the custom.

Mid week meal for two celebrating my wife’s birthday. Had grilled king prawns in garlic & chilli oil, plus duck pate. Both lovely. For mains I had flame grilled Aubrey Allen dry aged ribeye steak and wife had seafood linguini. Now, I love steak, usually...

Went yesterday, 22nd January 2023 for lunch with a friend. What a lovely pub. Had a sunday roast with beef and all the trimming and it was awesome. Hot and plenty of it. I can also recommend the blackforest crumble it was heavenly. Can't wait...

Very cold premise’s asked for the fire to be lit twice Pleasant lady took the order and then it went wrong , 6 of us and each couple had the same meal All of the burger list the two who ordered normal burgers one wanted...

We went for a Sunday roast and we all said it was one of, if not the best roast dinner in a pub we’ve ever had. Vegetables cooked to perfection, meat beautifully cooked and portions were generous. Service was really good and very friendly. We...

Reccomended to go here by our air b and b host. We had 2 dogs and a baby in a pram, made to feel very welcome. We both had the nut roast (we visited on a Sunday). It was the best nut roast we ever...

Lovely warm pub with very friendly service throughout. The food was very tasty. We had to wait about 45mins for the starter with a total meal time of around 3hrs. With the quality of food and standard of service it’d be harsh to mark it...

Service was appalling - waited 40 mins for our order and then was told that one of the items were unavailable so by the time we reordered we had waited over 1 hour 15 mins for any food to arrive. It’s a shame because when...

Really lovely food - im very picky with roast dinners but this one was particularly good! Great service, and gorgeous cozy little pub. Will definitely return

I was the first customer in for lunch so service and food was spot on. Hand cut chips possibly the best I’ve had. Loved the mayo, really unique. Fresh coleslaw and delicious gravy (I’m very fussy about my gravy). Would definitely return when back in...

Disappointed tonight many a great visit here, food was good but such a long wait between starter and main (hour plus) when others who arrived after had starters and main When asked to speak to manager, young staff member said I guess that’s me Love...

About a month ago went for a drink at this pub Saturday afternoon. The only free table outside was dirty, with remnants of food and drink spillages. We sat down and my husband went to get the drinks and asked for our table to be...

Food was good but service was very slow Waited over an hour for the meal Also rather overpriced for what was offered

Don’t use - they don’t care! Got a call (and cancellation of my booking online) at 7pm on Friday to say our our booking (placed for a week) for dinner on Fathers Day had to be cancelled. They close at 6pm?! even though they book...

The chef was great and the food had inventive flavours. The space was cozy with a fun atmosphere and environment. Went with my family and everyone enjoyed, overall great experience.

I had a absolutely delightful time here with my family. The service was fantastic our server was so kind and helpful. Although it was a bit of a wait for the food, it was one hundred percent worth it. Brilliant flavour and great combo of...

Lovely food fresh and seasonal. Very nice staff. Lovely place to eat. Great place to be with friends.

Came here with mum for lunch on the spur of the moment. Highly recommend it here! The lady that served us was polite, friendly and extremely helpful. The food was fresh and tasty and my two tiny niggles were rectified instantly without fuss but with...

I have not visited this pub for a few years as I live away, so booked Sunday lunch for my mum and sister, lovely pub/restaurant lovely atmosphere, myself and mum had the roast chicken, and my sister had the roast beef, absolutely delicious, perfectly cooked,...

The service was poor, waited an hour for our starters but the mains arrived , asked about our starters and waitress went to investigate , came back saying the other young waitress didn’t put them through , we enjoyed the salmon , and then ordered...

Such a shame. Visited here for a family dinner, tbh the food was great but the service was absolutely shocking. Waited for over a hour and 20 mins for our dinner. We ordered a round of drinks when we arrived and for a hour we...

Excellent friendly service, the food took a while to come but was so well worth the wait, really well cooked tasty food at a really good price. This was one of the best roast dinners we have had recently, cannot fault anything. Great credit to...

Amazing food atmosphere and service throughly recommend ! The food was amazing from beginning to end, and great service and music

We were really looking forward to getting out and enjoying a nice meal. The restaurant felt cold and a bit lifeless. We had burger and fish & chips. The food was mediocre at best. Sadly disappointing.

My husband and I enjoyed a fabulous Christmas Lunch. We were worried that it might be cancelled as per last year but thankfully it went ahead. The food was excellent, as we are used to here. The place was really busy with parties of people...

Table of four . Had to wait 1 hour 20 minutes for food, then the four dishes did not arrive together, one person had to wait another 10 minutes for their dish. Expensive for a mediocre meal.

Having been in the restaurant business I understand all the reasons and excuses for the majority of issues that diners experience when eating out. I therefore hope that this review will be taken as constructive criticism and not just a moan and groan review. Firstly...

This was the first time I had visited the restaurant, following previous changes of management. It was a delightful surprise, the environment was cozy and inviting while the service was, despite being a little slow (isn’t it everywhere since COVID) was excellent and very courteous....

We used to love this place. The food and service was excellent but now it just seems to have lost its way. The food was still good but the service was awful. I brought my sister here for her birthday treat. To wait for nearly...

Lovely food, tagliatelle with mixed seafood was very good. Service a little slow, but they were quite busy.

Dined here with my mother in Monday. She said the chicken Ceasar salad was the best she'd ever eaten. High praise indeed! My burger and chips was of a gourmet standard. Would recommend to anyone. I will return.

This is our go to pub for both food and drink. Karen and the girls are friendly, welcoming and always happy to take time for a chat. The food is delicious! Today we had starters of garlic prawns and tandoori chicken pieces and couldn’t fault...

Went for lunch - friendly staff - nice food but the wait and service was a little slow considering there wasn’t a lot of people dining. Lovely place though and would go again.

This was our first visit to The Red Lion, (following a recommendation by a family member). On arrival at the bar we were warmly welcomed and shown to our table in the restaurant - there is also dining in the bar area (dog friendly) and...

Took almost exactly 2 hours to serve us a 2 course meal. The main course turned up before the starter so we, of course, sent them away and then there was a long wait, with no apology, for the starters. When they did finally come...

Arrived at 19;40 shown to table, 15 minutes before drinks order taken, menus looked at, lady came to take our order and we were told what was not available, which was fair enough. We ordered starters and main courses, 25 minutes main courses arrived with...

I am a fairly regular customer in the restaurant. The food is always good, the staff friendly. The decor is sympathetic to the timber frames and very contemporary. I try to make different choices but I find the scotch eggs delicious as a starter. The...

The Red Lion ticks every box as a country pub and has to work hard to draw in punters as there can't be more than a handful of people who live within walking distance along a quiet old B road in the heart of farmland....

Lovely setting, nice a clean with a good varietyof drinks. Attentive staff , nice sunday lunch but the butcher needs changing , great varieties of vegetables but beef rather disappointing, bit fatty didnt look like nice roast beef . Shame as the chicken looked good...

What a great place, lovely location, great food and excellent service. They were really busy but managed to bring out really good food, wine was a bit late, but I can’t complain as I was drinking beer. Really great afternoon with some excellent food .

No complaints with the food, menu offers a good selection without going overboard. Service friendly although a touch slow at times, but preferable to being rushed I suppose. Will happily go back.

A delicious meal served by a friendly team . Felt very safe with all appropriate covid measures in place whilst still retaining a warm and welcoming environment . Highly recommend !!

We came to the red lion on saturday and had an exceptional meal as always, 2x hake and chips and a burger. The front of house staff were clearly under pressure, but do need to be commended. They worked very hard, had to deal with...

Great location, lovely pub. Beer and food as good as any pub. Let down by management system or a lack of interest by certain staff or both. On two separate occasion's resulted in poor experience. First time 55 minute wait for food due to them...

Copy of email sent to The Red Lion with no response from them “Attention of Narelle Turner May I bring this matter to your attention, last night we visited your restaurant having booked an early evening meal for 4. The first problem started when we...

Decent food, big selection at lunch. BUT...... we were beyond enjoying it because we almost passed out from hunger, waiting 20 mins to be asked for our drinks order, another 10 mins to be asked what food we wanted....which took over another hour to arrive....

First time here and was very impressed. Lovely venue. Food was excellent. ******** Will definitely return. Service was great choice of beers fantastic

Third visit and just keeps getting better. Always serve an outstanding Sunday Lunch, I’m struggling to think of a better place to get a Sunday Roast. Everything on my plate was cooked to perfection and was absolutely delicious. I can’t wait to visit again.

It was our second visit for a family celebration and this time of course under quite different circumstances and the Red Lion handled it brilliantly. Booking process, table on terrace, COVID safety precautions all in place and handled sensibly. Full menu available and we had several starters to share and main courses from burgers, fish of the day and excellent Hake and Chips. Service for drinks and food was friendly and timely. This is our "go to" place for family between Bicester and Cambridge.

Went at lunchtime & quickly offered an unreserved table in the spacious garden. Parking 10/10Location 10/10Ambiance & social distancing in the garden: Very good Service 10/10Drinks service 8/10Food 10/10 Helpful Staff : well doneBeen coming to the Red Lion since 1991 and it’s always a pleasant journey to get there & enjoyable occasion.

A bit chaotic, with people waiting half an hour for their drinks, and an hour for food. Food itself was good quality, and hopefully the team here adjust and improve with the new covid serving requirements. (Bluetooth table buttons, app ordering etc). As with many other pubs, they seem overwhelmed when there is a sunny day and a lot of customers, and the young team, though friendly and trying their best did appear to need some management and structure. I saw many people waiting for a while at the door, but no staff to be seen to meet and greet and they wandered off. People around us were getting frustrated with the waiting time. My burger was a decent size, and tasty enough - the chips were lovely!

So lockdown two has ended and now we can drink at the pub with a substantial meal. Service excellent, booking very simple via the website or by phone. Very generous portions, delicious food and reasonably priced for the high quality. Cannot fault, keep it up!

Went to the pub a while back for my parent's anniversary dinner! Amazing, friendly service and the lamb curry was definitely the best I've ever tasted!! A fabulous pub.

From the second we walked through the door - the staff on duty tonight really couldn't care less...Booked a table for 3 and were sat at a table for two and told by the server "thats all we've got" even though there was a plethora of empty tables for four.....so thinking they would soon be filled by larger parties i accepted the reason.Drinks order taken and delivered to the table were were left to choose our meals.Once we made our choices, linguini, burger & haike we had a few nibbles whilst we waited.Mains arrived and by this time, drinks were nearly finished.The waitress served our meals and took away our plates for our nibbles - NOT A WORD SPOKEN.We had our mains - which were pretty good.Table cleared by the waitress - NOT A WORD SPOKEN - even to see if out empty glasses needed topping up or to ask if the food was ok.At this point the staffs CBA attitude led us to an overwhelming consensus not to spend any more money here.We eventually got the staffs attention and asked for our bill (15 mins later) at which point someone asked if we wanted dessert - no thanks.To top off the evening, we sat and watched two couples being sat at the tables for four that were empty when we arrived - go figure.In these COVID times, I would have thought hospitality businesses would go all out to ensure patrons returned to their establishments - NOT The Red Lion.....Thanks for a poor end to a great birthday I had been having up until that point....Will we return - not lightly...

Great meal and service, recommend the lamb curry best ever. Most enjoyable evening, will be back in the near future.

What a find and what a gem! We had an amazing Sunday lunch here. 2 adults and 2 kids. The kids had plenty to choose from and lived their food. My wife had the lamb roast and I had the pork roast. I honestly can't praise the food enough. One of the best roasts I've ever had.The restaurant is lovely inside and their covid secure conditions excellent.Well done to the team. A friendly bunch of staff serving delicious food.

The Food was delicious and the presentation and service was outstanding. I would definitely recommend eating here

This afternoon my husband and I had a lovely Sunday lunch with friends. The service on arrival we very good. After we were seated we had amazing meals and service. Can't wait until our next visit. Highly recommended.

A wonderful evening, great food and excellent service. Everyone commented on the quality of the food. My daughter & I had the lamb curry which we both thought was the best curry we had ever tasted. Many thanks

A lovely menu with plenty of choice ! Lots of new things to try ?A great choice of fish and meat dishes and a good choice of drinks !Staff all friendly and can answer questions about the menu !Definitely Worth a visit great meal !

Just returned from a lovely evening meal at the Red Lion. Very well organised place during the pandemic. Decent amount of space between tables, waitresses wearing masks and of course plenty of hand sanitiser. We haven't ventured out much during these times but this place certainly improves ones confidence in getting back out but in a safe way.....well done guys! The food was very nice and was not rushed. Will definitely go again.

Went for Sunday lunch with family while visiting near by. We booked a table for 6 and were showed to a table for 2, the mistake was rectified. The food was outstanding, the staff are understandably busy but there’s no need for rudeness. We have never been before and as they didn’t explain orders would be taken at the table we thought you ordered at the bar, only to be barked at by a young blonde girl. Then later the same girl told us to “ask someone else I’m really busy” when we asked for more mint sauce as there was only 2 for 6 of us

We have just returned from a lovely meal this evening, friendly and attentive staff and great food! On this occasion we where very pleased that we could have a meal out in these difficult times with help from the government scheme , but would certainly return discount or not.

Food delicious, lighting was not ambient but some of the other tables had better lighting. The young waitress was very efficient while an older staff member (Manager) was not masked at all. Our Food was excellent particularly the Steak which was superb. The most concerning aspect of our visit when the Owner took our steaks to another table where the customers advised her they were not there order and she actually put the plates on the table and then she realised her mistake and walked past our table and said THESE ARE YOUR Steaks and tried to give them to us. We refused these because the other customers had breathed all over them. My partner is a Nurse and pointed out that we did not want them. She told us she was the owner and that he would replace the Steaks with new ones. We had no apology and no extra nibbles while we waited and she seemed quite affronted that we should refuse the Steaks in the first place. I would not go again with the current Covid situation demonstrated quite poor practice keeping people safe from Covid. It ruined a nice Steak meal and the evening will be remembered for the wrong reasons.

We have visited many times sometimes just the two of us or other times with various other couples/friends.This is the place to eat. It stands out way above most others we visit. Friendly staff who fall over backwards to help, good menu at relatively average prices and, probably most important a massive selection of gin labels for my partner!Recent reviewers giving only two stars is something we cannot understand. Obviously it's personal choice.Their Sunday Roast is excellent and you can order reasonably priced extras not that they are necessarily needed but I do love a good roasted potato and extra gravy.Need to book quite well in advance and make sure your booking is confirmed by the online booking website.

So decided to take advantage of the Government initiative to support the pubs and restaurants. 3 of us had a meal at lunchtime (inside with the flies) nice start to a meal..... we had a starter to share, 2 glasses of wine, 1 g&t, 2 diet cokes, main meal each, £87 before discount. (Oh and I was served a child’s portion of pasta). As you don’t see a “drinks list” you don’t actually know at what price you are ordering at. The drinks cost nearly half of the meals. If I had an adults portion (it was linguine by the way and not seasoned) the meal would have been nearly £100. The food was average at best. It’s not until you get home and you’ve had time to think that you feel a bit annoyed, if our village gastro pub levied such heavy charges we wouldn’t go back. Sadly I won’t be returning to this lovely pub, in such a lovely area, I know it’s been awful this lockdown but the drinks were overpriced......ask for a drinks menu if you go here...

Went on Wednesday for dinner . Which we’d not bothered . Awful service and lots of excuses . Waited 30 mins for starter ( bread and olives so not too difficult). Waited a further 1 hour for our mains. Not advised of long wait by waiting staff . We’re told that the Asahi, Kozel and another lager were all off. ( seriously out of 3 types of lager in a pub!?) So ordered a wine instead . Then short time later saw the bar staff pull a pint of asahi !! Poor communication, staff not trained to bring out cutlery etc , kept having to ask for things that should be basic service skills . Far better pubs in the nearby area - won’t be back .

Lovely late lunch on the garden patio with my sister and family.The setting is beautiful and the atmosphere is relaxed.This is not McDonald's! Everything is freshly cooked and the service staff are friendly and efficient.The food quality is right up there with the best.Cannot recommend enough.

We have just come back from a lovely evening at the red lion for our wedding anniversary, the food was amazing and cooked to perfection we opted for the surf and turf which I would highly recommend! Very friendly staff and great table service.I would like to add that this was my first time eating out since lockdown being in the vulnerable category and I would like to say how SAFE I felt there! Thankyou to all the staff for giving me the confidence to visit again!

Excellent service and surroundings excellent price and proper food top marks will return soon as many thanks

Such a beautiful old pub in a lovely setting but unfortunately the food and particularly the service (or lack of it) really lets it down.We had Sunday roast, and it was very poor quality, badly cooked meat, with loads of cheap veg. and lumpy gravy to fill the plate, and then there was the non-existent service ... definitely one to avoid.

Just had the best tomahawk steak ever. Cooked to perfection. Thanks to Dan for his masterful cookery!

As always the atmosphere, service and food was excellent! We have always experienced great food at The Red Lion and last night was no exception.I would highlight the lady who served our meal to us, she was friendly and professional. The food was served with no delays and was superb! I had sirloin which was cooked to perfection and my wife had the fish curry which was also amazing.