The Royal Oak - East Sussex in Lewes

Empty on a Friday night, awful service, burger poor, salad off, no atmosphere save for solo drinkers at bar.. unapologetic, back to an average pub and all glory gone. So sad that such an iconic country gastronomic pub has been reduced to this.

Barcombe is a sweet village to visit at the best of times and the Royal Oak is the heart of it. Since the pub was taken over by Sean, it's getting better every day. The food and service is excellent and personal. Since my first visit I've been known by name. We love what Sean has done to improve the place. The garden is now reopening and the front benches are always busy now. This has now become our firm local favourite and is rapidly becoming the 'local' for the wider area. The food is really good and if you fancy artisan pizza, Thai or something a little different they play host to guest kitchens and street food on a Monday and Tuesday. Not sure where the bad review of the landlord comes from on this site. Couldn't be further from our experience.

We went for a family meal and the food was excellent. Mitch and Ellie the owners are so relaxed and welcoming and the service was faultless. Great wine list and good beer ! Will be back very soon !

What an amazing revamp the pub has had looks beautiful.. I had goats cheese sandwich for lunch tasted amazing service was amazing the young server was only on her 3rd shift and she was so attentive, would defiantly recommend staff and owners are lovely thank you for a lively day/evening look forward to next time

The lunch here was great, good large servings, they catered for the children well also, great playground, interesting interior comments and old photos great

My wife and I popped into The Royal Oak for a lunchtime snack and found the place really friendly. We were given a menu and ordered a couple of Sunday Roast Ciabattas and drinks as we were not that hungry. We found the place very clean and plenty of room to sit. The Beef Ciabattas arrived with chips which were probably the best we have ever had. The Ciabattas were really fresh, the beef was perfectly cooked and the chips were also lovely. We came away really satisfied with the food, by the excellent level of service and the drinks could also not be faulted. We noticed a couple eating a Sunday Roast while we were there and it looked amazing so we are planning a roast next week! 11/10 (Forgot to mention it was only £5.95 each which was a steal)

Had lunch here, tried the Fish & Chips as the Menu now has little choice, came in good time, but Fish was only warm and just a few Chips and some Mushy Peas.Sweet Menu now also small so had Ice Cream which was OK.This pub was so good for food but it is not what it was. Nice people but need to improve on the food and selection available.

Since the management has changed, the Royal Oak is so much friendlier and more welcoming. There's a really busy and great atmosphere on every night of the week. But I hadn't had a chance to try the food until last weekend. The roasts are AMAZING. Really good quality and huge portions (maybe a bit too much!). Love the new Royal Oak.

Whilst this pub used to be a regular and pleasent visit for us on the ale trial im afraid the owners arent as good as they like to think. The bar staff seem disintersted and very rarely talk to non friends and have littlle knowledge of the products on offer. Not having eaten there yet i can not comment on the food but having heard from a few people its not top of my list of places to go. Preveious reviews seem worringly like friends and family of the business.It also shows to me that when a pub starts doing so many offers and deals that it is clutching at straws.I hope they can change it around and make a descent go as i would hate to see another pub lost.

44 of us booked a skittle evening on Friday evening, room was a little bit crowded,Bar staff attentive but it stopped there the buffet they served was appalling, sandwiches,and more sandwiches, the salad was literally a bowl of lettuce, some bread and spare ribs with another dish of some kind of chicken Kebab, we gathered the pub had changed hands shame the previous Landord did us proud that's why we returned,I will never return, Ladies get some sort of a discount on a Thursday -dread to think as to what they will be served

Came here with the family for a birthday lunch! Lovely food, drink and brilliant staff! 100% recommend! Will return in the future!

Very nice setting & location. Food very average but expensive. Had 5 bean chilli. Very bland. Waited too long. We only had an hour so had to eat fast!

We booked this venue with the Skittle hall for a surprise gathering for our Mums 60th. We went with the venue as it is a family run pub and we wanted to give our business to a local community with local people as opposed to a chain. Big mistake. Poor communication. I had to ring 3-4 times to ask for menus to confirm what food we wanted for the buffet and to confirm numbers. The communication was so poor I ended up asking my brother to visit the pub (as he is fairly local) to speak with the staff and take a photo of the menu so we as a paying customer could see what food options were available. Staff attitudes. 25 to 30 guests came from all over the UK. We had pre-ordered and paid for 25 Adults (there were actually 20 adults 10 children) with 2 different buffets some hot some cold. Only 10 large plates and 10 saucer style plates were put out, a guest asked for more plates, none came, so I went and asked for more plates to be told: I would need "to pay £9.50 per plate" as we were "getting half a free buffet" (How they managed to come up with that I have no idea seeing as I'd ordered enough food for 25 adults, and I was asking for the RIGHT number of plates for the food ordered, and no extra food. Highly embarrassing that Adults were having to try and eat hot food from a saucer!). - I was also told whilst asking for additional plates that "it's too much hassle". I then asked to speak to the Manager to resolve this issue and report the poor attitudes of the staff members, but alas no Manager was available to talk to. FoodThe food that we had paid £200.00 for was put out for 1 hour and then removed without confirming with anyone whether this was okay to do. In addition to this the food that had hardly been touched (seeing as it was only there 1 hour and there were 30 guests some of whom hadn't seen each other in 5+years therefore were chatting whilst eating as expected) was not boxed up for us to take away, nor were we given any options to bring the food back out. Thankfully the room where we were hosting this family gathering, was away from the main area so Mum didn't have to see or hear any of the above issues. I then phoned the pub at 10:00 am on a Wed morning to speak to the Manager 3 days later to make a complaint. - The Man that answered the phone told me they were "too busy at the moment" and I would need to call back the following day (even though I had said I would like to speak with the person responsible for the pub to make a complaint)- When I said I didn't "think that was a good way to handle the call when someone wants to make a complaint and that I would like to talk to someone today please" he passed me to a Woman (the Landlady and Mum of staff). - Rude, obnoxious and just as poor an attitude as the children (staff) - not only did she not want to listen to the complaint, she didn't acknowledge any of the points I mention above, she talked over me, she told me that the events I was mentioning "didn't happen" even though she was not there, nor involved and nor had I ever had any communication with her prior to this. - She told me that the £200.00 paid for the food, but when I asked why the food was not given to us to take away she said "the food was not yours" !!!- She also said to me "it's not my problem your guests didn't eat the food" and when I replied to say they hadn't had a chance as it was only left for 1 hour, and no one checked it was okay to take the food away, she told me her daughter had asked me. I think i'd have remembered that, don't you?- Some of our guests arrived at 11, to which she told me they had "done me a favor" by letting them in as they don't open until 11.30 on a Sunday, yet on their website it says their opening hours Sunday 11-5. - She advised I had been told all of the necessary information such as menu choices, opening hours etc but when I asked when, by who and in what method she could not confirm. She then did 'remember' and advised it was by email. I have not received 1 email from then in the 6 months that were between the initial 'thinking of booking stage' to the actual event. I have never been so disappointed in a place. To have the day marred by the above issues, and then to have the Landlady behave is such an appalling way is a disgrace. There are plenty of fantastic pubs to see, eat and drink in in our beautiful country side, but this absolutely not one of them. Don't waste your money or time.

We have an annual family party at the Royal Oak and hire the private skittles room for just £20. Perfect for about 20 of us, including young children. Excellent food, I like menu A with beef stew, cottage pie, fish cakes, veggie sausages and plenty of veg, followed by apple pie. Family run pub by brother and sister, dad does the cooking, mum helps out too.

A group of 20 people enjoyed a good mid week lunch. The food was booked in advance as we were such a large group. Our reserved tables were ready for us when we arrived and the food was served quickly and the staff were helpful. Everyone enjoyed their meals.

Went for a traditional Sunday roast here with the family and were very happy with the friendly, relaxed staff and the great food (like to point out that they were offering very good vegetarian roasts, which can sometimes be hard to come across!). Served promptly and the pub had a really nice atmosphere to it and we were made to feel welcome.Also a great choice of beers for the traditional ale drinker.Will certainly go again, and would recommend going there!

My family were camping near Barcombe and found the Royal Oak en route. What a find it turned out to be! The pub is run by a brother and sister and their parents work in the kitchen - dad was a chef for many years. The service is excellent and the food superb and being a Harvey's pub, the real ale was great. In total we ate there 3 times and were not disappointed at any time with the food we had. Tasty and plenty of it. We can't recommend it enough.

We often visit this pub you can rely on honest home cooked pub food served by a friendly family.Always a good selection available.

The Skittle Alley at The Royal Oak, in the tiny village of Barcombe, near Lewes, is a major attraction - but you'll have to book in advance if you and your friends want to try it. Not for skittles experts, perhaps, but still great fun. There's good food and very well-kept beer on offer too, in this picturesque and quintessentially English country pub. Pity the staff are a bit stroppy.

We visited this pub at a quiet January night and seemed to be the only eating guests. Thus, we were happily sitting at a cosy table next to the warming fire and enjoyed the atmosphere. It's truly a nice pub, inviting and seems to get many locals that come for a drink. The food we got was ok, what you can expect from a pub, filling your stomach for a not all too hefty price. Unfortunately, taste was rather bland although the quality of ingrediences was good. But what was offputting, was that our glasses of red only got filled 2/3 - I don't know if you have to be a local to get a full one? And the lady who seemed to be the owner passed by our table several times with any greeting word, what we've never experienced anywhere else - being not a busy night at all. Can only recommend if you're local.

Last week I had the pleasure of a Night Out playing skittles with a group of friends at the Royal Oak. If you want to do something different as a group, give it a try. You get a private room where you can play your music, have fun making a fool of yourself while you attempt to play skittles and then sit down to a well earned buffet. Everybody enjoyed it and we have already decided that it is our choice of venue for our next pre Christmas event. The buffet was excellent. We had the cold meat selection. The food was well presented and there was plenty to choose from and enough for people to go back for seconds.Service was great and we felt well looked after.A really fun evening.

A group of 20 walkers stopped here for a mid week pub lunch and all enjoyed an excellent meal. We'd prebooked our meals and it was served quite quickly, the portions a good size, the food excellent and staff friendly and helpful.

We had a decent meal which was reasonably priced and portions were very good along with the puddings. It's a nice pub without doubt and one that is certainly worth a go.

For a great lunch time meal, where one can relax and feel at home, this is the place to visit.Every one is pleasent and always ready to help and the food is just the best!Happy to accept Walkers with not the cleanest of boots, just pleased to welcome you.This is so nice as some Public Houses 'do look down at a walker in more ways than one'Will always go here for lunch when walking in the area, many thanks.

Hired the skittle alley adjoining the pub. Owners very pleasant and booking easy. Choice of hot/cold menu. We went for cold salad buffet at £9 a head - fantastic value and excellent selection. Refurbishment has taken place in the bar area, a lot brighter and skittle alley spruced up. Great for a private function. Despite heaters, hall still on the chilly side - take a jumper.

This is a delightful pub - a real gem. The young couple who run the place have got it just right. The food is good, hot and reasonable with roasts on Sunday and a more varied menu midweek. Unlike some village pubs it isnt 'cliquey' and even though we are not locals have always found a friendly atmosphere, which is why we travel quite a distance to eat there. Nice log fire as well.

Family run with a warm welcome on a wet weekend. Home-made soups and wide choice of hot and cold bar foods. Clean and homely, with local characters in the bar. Children welcome. Great selection of drinks and very generous portions in meals. Recommended.