The Red Lion in Derbyshire Dales

Very nice pub lovely pies great desert would highly recommend. Steak and stilton pie was amazing followed by cheese cake for pudding.

My first time here in over 30 years and I really won't leave it this long again, along with five friends we had a great evening and it was pie night, enough said, the choice was incredible and the staff were exceptional and did a wonderful job. Beer choice great and prices spot on, we loved it. Thank you Red Lion

We booked for my birthday meal sat down to a lovely card waiting on the table for me so kind! We had the Wednesday pie meal for two with bottle of wine for £30 absolutely brilliant value. The pies were delicious peppered steak and mince&onion,cauliflower cheese was delicious. I cannot recommend this place enough my daughter has already booked,staff really are kind,polite&very attentive.

Had a lovely time at The Red Lion. Easily booked, good drink selection, food (pie, obviously) was incredible with an amazing selection of pie, plus sized and tasty gravy. There’s more to the menu than pie but this is the main draw. Food served suitably quickly. Children’s menu was the standard stuff but tasted great.

We have been here several times in the last few months after a recommendation from a friend. The Red Lion is a traditional country pub, no frills, just really good food, especially pies, which they are known for. There's not a lot of parking and the pub can get very busy. Booking is definitely advised, especially as there are only about 10 tables, as well as a separate bar area. As well as pies they have a main menu which includes pizzas, grills and classics, but for us it is all about the pies. There were 15 different pies to choose from and a large choice of potato options, veg options and gravy options, all for £14.50. They have a small selection of veggie options and gluten-free options and the portion sizes are decent, so it is good value for money. My hubby enjoyed the cauliflower cheese side with his pie and said it was "proper" cauliflower cheese and the best he's had in years. I like the fact they don't skimp on the gravy. You can't have pie and mash without a good gravy covering! All the desserts are homemade. Hubby particularly enjoyed the trifle on one visit and I can recommend their brownies. Other points to mention include the fact the pub is dog friendly, they have a nice outdoor seating area and the staff are friendly. The only real negatives were the menus. The main menus were very sticky and the dessert menu was dirty and ripped. It's only a small piece of paper, so not hard to reprint to create a good impression . We will definitely be back. It's a nice little drive to get here too, although my Mum wasn't a fan of the country lanes in the dark! A must-visit if you like a good pie.

Visited this pub whilst on holiday in the area with a friend. The menu offers a wide choice of food but the speciality is pies. My wife had cheese & onion, I had venison and red wine, and our friend had steak and ale. We all chose to accompany the pies with a hearty portion of homemade cauliflower cheese, hand cut chips and our choice of gravy. We all loved the pies and I was the only one to manage a dessert. Highly recommended but advisable to reserve a table so as not to be disappointed.

Been before and pies were great. Wanted to visit Wednesday for lunch. Online information said open 12-3 and option to book a table for food with availability for 1.15, 1.30, 1.45. We didn't book as were not sure what time we would be so i rang instead at 1.05 and asked for a table for 20 minutes time. Lady on phone said they wouldnt be serving food then. When asked when they would stop serving food was just told twice "in about 20 minutes." Was very abrupt and gave no explanation. What sort of pub only serves food until 1.25pm? Took custom elsewhere!!

Outstanding experience on every front. From the village pub atmosphere and decor through to the wonderful food. I last visited in the early ‘80’s when it was a pub and have hazy memories of playing darts when I was in the Ashbourne Smiths Tavern darts team. The beer was good then but the pint of Bass I enjoyed last night was the best I have tasted. The pie menu is superb. The food exquisite and tremendous value. And it’s a dog friendly restaurant too! I don’t write many trip advisor reviews but this visit deserves a glowing one. Congratulations to the owner, his team and his supporters. Fabulous. So many pies to try. We will be back.

Had a Sunday dinner from the red lion and it exceeded all expectations. Meat was moist and everything was deliciously tasty. I would also like to give a big shout out to Layla who is an absolute credit to the team. Well done guys.👏🏻

Another absolutely sensational family lunch. The manager is quite simply the most welcoming, lovely, polite, accommodating and genuine guy and makes you feel like nothing is too much trouble. We sat outside in the sunshine this time and the view is to die for. All the pies were delicious and served with a smile from the lovely waitress. The delicious puddings were just an added bonus. Can’t rate this pub enough … it’s become our family favourite. Thank you!

Our friends recommended going here for a Saturday night meal as we like a good pie and this is their specialty. It’s in a lovely country setting not far from the Derby Ashbourne road. We had a reservation which seemed essential for a weekend. Interior was as you would expect from a typical British country pub and 3 different areas with tables. The staff were excellent all night despite having a lot of people in that night. Whilst there is a good ‘normal’ menu as well it’s the pie menu which we concentrated on - and what a menu it is. Approx 12 different pies, 12 different carbs (mainly different mashes and chips), 12 different sides (mushy peas etc) and 12 different gravies! Must be a nightmare in the kitchen but they make it work. The food was excellent - pies full of good quality meat, smooth mash and tasty thick gravy. Changed my mind so many times before ordering I can’t remember which pie I had but it was great! We will be back - often!

Lovely pub in a beautiful spot. We were a party of eight, for lunch. The food was amazing, everything arrived piping hot and we all received our meals at the same time. Good value, too. Highly recommended!

Cracking Sunday roast (beef and pork) and desserts (crunchie cheesecake and brownie) for Mother’s Day. Welcoming and cosy pub, we’ll be back to try the pies!!

Friendly welcome on a very cold night. Great pie menu plus additional dishes. They also allowed our dog in. Good pub grub, sensibly priced , ample portions -worth a visit !

Landlord was lovely and friendly, food was great and good value . Dog friendly and my new fav place. Love the Wall of Fame story

Great food, great service - lovely local pub! We really enjoyed all our food - portions are very generous - you won’t leave hungry! Lasagne was so delicious and my husband loved his Pie - thank you - we will be back

Booked a table as the pub in the village we were staying in was closed due to a leak. What a find, the food was delicious and roasting hot. Steak and ale pie with bacon mash and peas with mushroom gravy, my wife had gammon and hand cut chips. Service with a smile from the young waitress , who we found out at the end was the daughter of the person who owned the Airbnb we were staying in. Would definitely visit again if we are in the area.👍

Chose this for a family birthday meal based on reviews on here and it didn't disappoint! Known for its pies (lots of other choices if you don't like pies) the choice was incredible plus the same for the different mashes and gravies. Definitely the best Pie & Mash we have ever eaten and a nice setting to boot.

Fantastic food. All served hot. The young girl serving was polite and chatty. The bar staff also very friendly.

I booked a table for 14 for lunch today. It was our first visit. We received a warm welcome and had lovely meals. Some of our party had various pies and others Sunday lunches. The food was plentiful, well cooked and nice and hot. The staff worked very hard and nothing was to much trouble. The venue was very busy and popular and I think booking is advisable. Nowadays there seem to be a lot of modern, similar and dare I say upmarket eateries with prices to match and questionable food but today was a delight to eat good quality, tasty wholesome food which was also reasonably priced in a lovely homely environment with friendly hardworking staff. The selection of drinks at the bar were good too. Thank you for making us so welcome. We will be back!

5 out of 5 could not fault it. Clean plates all around. Great staff beautiful setting highly recommended. There's no wonder they are busy. Had the steak and stilton pie with red wine gravy. What more could you ask for.

I visited this pub with my friends last night and I absolutely loved the place. The three of us all chose the pies from the great selection they have on offer. Pies tasted great. The pub itself is a lovely British pub, cosy and friendly and will definitely be going again. If you love a pie, this is the place to go.

What a fantastic place. We are out & about in the countryside frequently, which often results in a pub lunch. We spotted this place a few weeks back online, but haven't been in the Ashbourne area much of late. We will be now. What a fantastic place. We have plenty of poor, average & good meals but most are like for like. Remember the pubs you can get good honest homemade/well cooked piping hot food. The Red Lion is for you. Two pints of pedigree, two hot pies with mash, peas & gravy. All situated in rural countryside. The pub has that feel of the pub you knew growing up. Just a fantastic place. Landlord most accommodating & nothing too much trouble. No ordering at the bar, pay for drinks at the end & relaxing. If I didn't have to drive, it is the sort of pub you can spend most of the day in. It's not all the extensive pie menu, plenty of alternatives. Finished off with the cheese board which just summed up a great couple of hours. Well worth a visit even for a drink. Will be back soon.

Friendly pub, great prices, massive portions. Excellent. The pie menu is amazing value and quality, and there's loads of choice.

Pie Night - Wow!!! Such a large selection of pies with a multiple choice of sides too! Choose your mash, veg and gravy, then tuck in. Delicious and so filling. Would definitely go back every Tuesday if we lived closer! Dog friendly, great atmosphere and lovely food.

So of all the restaurants in Derbyshire, my teenage daughter chose the Red Lion for her birthday meal and yet again, it was outstanding. The guy in charge couldn’t have made us feel more welcome… from the moment we phoned to make our reservation, to bringing my daughter’s cake out at the end … the staff went above and beyond for us. We felt so so welcome. The views are to die for (even on a rainy August day!) and then there’s the food. We had a large party, yet every different meal and side dish came out at once, piping hot and absolutely delicious. The kids won’t stop raving about the divine cauliflower cheese! All washed down with a gorgeous glass of house wine in a beautiful venue … the Red Lion remains our absolute fave. Thank you!

visited this pub last night. once again the meal lived up to the pubs reputation as the place to visit for a really good pie. just a shame about the foul mouthed locals who could be heard all around the pub.

We visited today for lunch whilst visiting the area and wow, what an awesome pub! Lunch was amazing - we all had pies which were absolutely delicious! Nothing was too much for the team - we arrive early for our booking but they seated us...

Had to do a review of our evening meal last night. We managed to get a last minute table at 17.30 and we were so pleased. The service was top notch and the food equally to. Our meals were so yummy. Pie's were tasty tasty....

Had to share our first visit tonThe Red Lion, after someone had recommended it to us. The pub has everything you would want in a cosy country pub, awesome food, great beer (I had Bass and it was 100%) comfy sofas and a real fire…I...

Dog friendly and limited gluten free menu but at the end of the day it’s a pie pub but seems to be popular Staff were short staffed and worked really hard

Very good Sunday lunch, just as it should be; plenty of everything, tender meat, fresh vegetables, plenty of gravy and any sauce you wanted. Good glass of wine, little'un served promptly, all in all happy diners.

8 of us visited for a family meal, including 2 kids. We had such a brilliant time. The pub was already busy with a great atmosphere when we arrived at 5pm. The staff were warm, and friendly and made us feel very welcome. Warm and...

Great characterful pub. Welcoming host and WOW!! Pies, the best pie, mash and peas I’ve ever had. The gravy is to die for, ask for a spoon!!

Dined here on a Saturday afternoon recovering from the night before. A great selection of pies and accompaniments. I had Steak & Ale pie with cheesy mash, mushroom gravy & chipshop mushy peas. Wife had Steak & Stilton pie with chips, stilton gravy & chipshop...

A good down to earth local that specialises in home made pie main courses, but a variety of other dishes are available. Great beer and friendly staff.

Absolutely amazing food and service in a beautiful pub set amongst gorgeous countryside. The menu is vast with plenty to choose from. Superb 5*

Myself and my girlfriend booked a table for a Monday night pie each! Never been here b4, but WOW, what a lovely experience! First we chose our pie from at least 10 options, then there is a selection of various mash or chips, along with...

Booked in last night for a meal on a friends recommendation. Mince and potato pie to die for followed by rhubarb crumble and custard, what more could you ask for.

First time visiting The Red Lion and were not disappointed. We were staying at a local cottage for three nights and booked a table again for our second night, the food was that good. I had spinach and cheese pie and my partner had chicken...

From the moment we walked in we were given a very warm welcome. The pies were all so tasty, the mash creamy & the gravy was just another level of taste! Great service from the waitress (Caitlyn possibly - rubbish with names) and the chap...

Brilliant meal, very well organised with COVID restrictions. Food brilliant so went two nights during our week in Derbyshire. Pie menu amazing...

Had a really good pie and mash meal with a drink as a Groupon deal. My partner really enjoyed his meal -chicken and mushroom pie with bacon mash and cauliflower cheese so gets a big thumbs up! Follow the sign for Main Street Hollington rather than the postcode.

We enjoyed an excellent meal of steak and ale pie with chips, peas and gravy. Very well prepared. Lots of choice on the menu. The landlord was extremely friendly, welcoming and helpful. Superb views of the beautiful countryside. Very quiet and peaceful. Thank you.

Excellent experience at The Red Lion, excellent food and service, loved the pie selection! Super clean and within walking distance of our holiday rental

Went to the Red Lion in Hollington yesterday. Was like they knew a Wiganer was coming. Steak & ale pie, mustard mash, minted peas & mushroom gravy. Was delicious. Recommended

Great food. Lots of choice from the pie menu where you can mix and match pies, sides and flavoured gravies. Lovely location, welcoming staff, would visit again if we are in the area.

Delicious Sunday Lunch - friendly service - great value for money. We opted for starters Baked Camembert & seafood platter - then a Roast lunch . All delicious served with loads of lovely vegetables- definitely no room for desert - just had to look !The staff were all really friendly & service was excellent. We will be back

The pies were lovely. We opted for mash as a side, and then hand cut chips as well. Glad we did! We were rolling out of the pub afterwards but the food was absolutely delicious. Very reasonably priced as well. I’ll definitely be back.

If you want a Pie, the red lion is the place. The food was fantastic, multiple gravy/side choices,all reasonably priced. There were plenty of beer choices .The new patio area was very smart. They probably needed an extra staff member on the day we visited. We had to wait at the bar for over 5mins. The overall experience was brill! A MUST STOP!

We came here last night for a family meal, it was a great setting with friendly staff. The food was lovely however there was room for improvement. Firstly we were informed that all burgers and lasagne were unavailable, which left a limited choice of food, disappointing the majority of my family. The nachos were served with a poor quality guacamole, seemingly from a squeezy bottle, which unfortunately ruined the starter. The scampi and chips I had was very nice however, the ketchup was horrendous and cheap - inedible. My daughter had the mixed grill which was all unreal except the steak, as she was not asked how she wanted it cooked and it arrived very rare which she does not like. The pie, mash and mushy peas as well as the trio of sausages were very tasty. All deserts were nice.

Friendly service, great sized portions. Dog friendly. Absolute bargain with the eat out to help out scheme! 100% recommend the pies - huge selection to choose from for meat eater and veggie couple. Really hard working waitresses and bar staff. Thank you!!

From start to finish we received a warm welcome, as a group of 10 we were looked after very well and nothing was too much trouble. The quality of food and service was excellent and we would certainly recommend anyone visiting the area to look up this little gem. The menu of pies and gravy with 2 sides of your choice is extensive and portion size will not leave you hungry. The food is clearly home made and tasty to boute. Our vegetarians in the group were accommodated with lots of different choices and the whole experience was a talking point.

Love this pub, the best place we’ve been for pie and mash. The menu for pies is extensive, with every type of mash you can think of, we have been 4-5 times now. ( you can thanks the dog in this pub)

The Red Lion is a quaint old country inn dating back to the 1700’s, situated in a nice village near Ashbourne.The main draw food wise is the huge selection of pies - every type you can think of. They do also serve other meals for non pie lovers.My Steak and Stilton pie was really good - great pastry, plenty of filling (although a little more Stilton would have made it better). Sides were good quality, and the gravy was excellent. In fact they make about 12 types of gravy!Desserts were huge and really tasty. All in all a nice evening in a lovely old fashioned pub.

17 members of our walking group had lunch here after a very muddy 6 mile walk. We were made very welcome and well looked after. All food arrived together and was very good, served on hot plates. Sure will return sometime.

What a lovely pub! Staff are friendly & welcoming & the beer is well looked after. The food is fantastic...you simply have to have the pie!!!

Been here a few times, usually when fridge is bare and we fancy a cheap and cheerful pub meal. Pies are good but could I say that mushy peas are not simply garden peas mushed up so please get some proper mushy peas in. Otherwise all good and look forward to returning.

Average meal, average service but above average price and poor choice of beers. There far better places than this locally and won’t be going back.

Booked in for last Saturday and as we’d been before knew what we were getting. Took a while to decide which pie to plump for as they all sound tasty. Settled on steak and ale, chips, garden peas and mushroom gravy. My partner had lamb, onion mash, mushy peas and pepper gravy. Both were delicious!

Local to the holiday barn we stayed in. Staff friendly and efficient and great food, particularly the great pies, I had the lamb and leek which was delicious. Good value too.

After ordering a steak and ale pie, I received a steak and Stilton. After they took that away I was then given a new pie a 1few minutes later that had been microwaved so therefore the pastry was soggy and inedible; additionally the mash was barely warm! Very disappointed - and after telling the staff of the soggy pastry I wasn’t even offered any discount or even an apology!

Dan and Hannah do a great job running this proper pub with proper food and ale . This really is the place for pies and good ale in a friendly relaxed atmosphere.

This was the local pub to our holiday cottage and although the menu seems restrictive it’s well worth a visit. Apart from the normal run of the mill menu you can build your own pie ! On a blackboard is a spreadsheet of options with 4 columns of choices to add to the pie of your choice. Novel and tasty. The staff were very friendly and helpful and although it’s on the outskirts of a tiny hamlet it gets busy even on weeknights. Would I return, you bet.

Popped in for lunch after seeing a review. Really nice polite and helpful staff and excellent pies. We will definitely return. Good walks from the area as well so will have to tie it in next visit.

Popped into The Red Lion while out with a friend.

Visited today after reading their website. Not a good experience for us I’m afraid. I booked a table for two the day before for 1.30 (Sunday lunch) and we arrived at 1.15. There were only about eight people in the pub, which made me fear the worst, as the best pubs from experience (even the country ones) are full to bursting for Sunday lunch. The eight people soon turned to about four as people in the bar left. This left only ourselves to serve as the rest were already eating.

Nice characterful pub without being 'overdone', a few miles off the Ashbourne to Derby road.

We recently visited for lunch as a party of six after a walk in the vicinity. The pub specialises in a range of home made pies along with various accommayments. The food was hot well presented, tasty and reasonably priced. In addition to the to the pies there seemed to be a limited menu of sandwiches etc.

Lovely oldy worldy pub. Nice atmosphere. Friendly bar staff. Food delicious. We had a pie meal. Numerous different pies, mash ,vegetables & gravy’s to choose from. Enjoyed our meal & will definitely go back.

Visited today and had the pie, mash, side n gravy. Really enjoyed it all with around 10 choices of pie and and great choices of mash, ( butter, onion, horseradish, mustard etc) not to mention excellent fresh cut chips, similarly with the gravy choices, mint, red wine, etc. Choices for everyone. We'll be going back.

Visited on Friday lunch, a very warm friendly welcome

We booked a table from the website we stated that we had a gourmet society card which entitles us to 241 deal

Visited while staying nearby. Excellent home made pies, lots of choice of fillings, served promptly with mash (again lots of choice), peas/carrots and gravy. Really good sticky toffee pudding too. Can’t beat this for £15pp! Good honest food, nice log fire too. Wished we lived nearer...

Excellent night with friends. Great food and great hosts. Proper local country pub I’ll definitely be back and bring more people.

Six of us had a meal on Saturday night and Sunday lunch time, no complaints from anybody food very good.

Absolutely superb pie and pudding very welcoming and friendly. Great atmosphere too with great friends.

A group of us ate here recently and we can not fault it. Although they were busy all the staff were very friendly. The pies were great with very generous portions. Would definitely recommend it.

Great choice of pies - excellent service and great atmosphere - highly recommended. Steak and Ale and Steak and Stilton pies both excellent. Great value for money.

Pie night - absolutely delicious! proper pies! definitely need to return to try the veggie option! Service prompt, and Friendly staff.

Absolutely wonderful pies and brilliant service for the large group. Large parties should be assured that the food was hot and prompt.

Lovely local Derbyshire pub. Good food, great pint and friendly service. Definitely going back there. Highly recommended.

Excellent pies and very good service and great company,will definitely be going back for more,great value for money too

We visited for a meal on a Saturday evening which we had pre-booked. There were 7 of us & we all thoroughly enjoyed our meals. We’d visited for drinks the previous evening & had been drawn back by the extensive freshly made pie menu. The cheesy mash was a massive hit & staff were attentive & friendly

My wife and I called with a couple of good friends who had booked for a pie and pint lunch. We have been before and had smashing food and great service but the last time was a couple of years ago and you are never sure whether standards have been maintained.

I hole heartedly can recommend this place! For a wholesome, tasty, filling meal mean that won't break the bank. This place is a true country local style pub that's relaxing and calm enough to enjoy.

Visited for lunch, which we used to do quite regularly but hadn’t in a while. We had a fantastic meal (fish and chips and a burger) and it was delicious. Service was as friendly and efficient as ever and the surroundings were lovely and cosy despite the cold weather outside. The pub sits in the middle of lots of fields and the view is beautiful. We will not leave it so long to visit again. Thank you!

Very friendly, warm and cosy pub. Food excellent, great menu choice. Would highly recommend. Located in a small village. Well worth the visit

Came back for Tuesday night pie night with some friends and we had a really tasty meal of various pie and mash combo's. It is straight forward well presented and tasty food. Yep we like pie night :-)

Well I will start with the positives. Nice looking pub in a lovely village but that's where it ends. I went for lunch with my family including my 92 year old mother and 87 year old aunt. When we arrived, the restaurant was empty except for a table of 2, yet the table we were given was possibly the worst in the restaurant, right next to the door (on a cold November day), we were frozen. I was seated at the end of the table so that I was closer to the only other diners in the restaurant than I was my own party. I had given prior notice that there was a vegan in our party, yet the food they provided for her was poor and lacked any effort. It was a complete mish mash of anything that happened to be vegan in the kitchen - like eating left overs. As for the rest of the group, our food was mediocre at best. The website advertises main courses at £9.50, yet everything on the menu was around £4.00-5.00 more. Nothing worse than an out-dated website with false information! I ordered 2 halves of pedigree shandy -the bar man gave me 2 pints, I corrected him and finally got 2 halves. When I got home I found he had charged me for 2 pints! This type of incompetence and poor customer service is unacceptable and I will certainly not return.

Called in while on holiday great pie selection choices of potato sides and vegetable sides and choice of gravies. Excellent value. Well worth a visit. They have pie nights and steak nights. Service excellent

Had a great meal here the homemade pie and mash was lovely would definatley visit again.Real country pub in the middle of country village.

Excellent starters and main course. Hearty portions so no room for desserts. The only thing that lets this pub down is the menu on their website. E.g. fish and chips shown as £10 whereas it's really £13.50. Surely a website menu is quicker and easier to amend than a printed one?

We visited the Red Lion with a groupon deal, the landlord is very friendly and welcoming as soon as you walk in. The pies and chips are excellent, homemade and very good value for money. The pub was fairly quiet for a lunchtime but deserves to be a lot busier considering the quality of the food. Well worth a visit and will return to try another flavour pie.

First time visit for us tonight after a walk out with our dog. We both those from the our menu and they were absolutely spot on.

We were looking somewhere to get some nice food outside and we found a gem! Extensive pie menu with a good choice of sides and great value for money. Friendly staff, good quick service and excellent food. We got a nice table (picnic bench) with a lovely view of the countryside and sunset. They are currently accepting the taste card which makes it even better value.

We had a great family dinner here in old pub. The Sunday roasts were fantastic and we'd truly recommend. Staff very friendly. The pie menu looks superb and will defo return to sample. Views across the Countryside very nice too. Highly recommend.

This is an unspoilt pub that still has some locals in the bar. It has a specialist pie menu. The pies were simple and unpretentious but really well cooked; well-filled and excellent pastry. The mash was really nice. There are a number of gastro pubs in the area but this is real pub grub and beats them hands-down. If we lived in the area it would be a regular Friday night treat,especially at these prices.

Went with friends whilst on holiday nearby...it was pie night! Just about perfect. So went again 2 nights later..had the fish. Again coulnd`t fault it. Decided to finish of with something `near` to knickerbocker glory...to die for! Do not miss going here if reasonably nearby.

Visited it with friends who were staying in the village. Nice beer garden close to the road. Traffic is not a problem, very few vehicles passed whilst we were there. Now down to the pub. Good range of ales and wine's and largers. Two cask ales were available on this visit. The menu is interesting with a good range. Although Pies are a speciality. There were 7 different pies on the board on this visit. All home made. Delisous. The chips are hand cut. OK but I have had better. Staff friendly and professional. Happy to help one out.