The Royal Oak, Prestbury in Cheltenham

Absolutely loved this place had the Beef Sunday Roast and is was absolutely lovely 😍 Normally I take a photo as the meal turns up but this looked so nice I just tucked straight in. As you can see nothing left on the plate as it was gorgeous 🍽️😍😉😊❤️

The food and atmosphere were both exceptional! The service was first class,

Had a full english breakfast - we have dined at Royal Oak for many years and particularly looked forward to a very generous and amazing full english breakfasts. However - what was served this time was - frankly - a very poor excuse for a full english breakfast! There was a fried egg which was overcooked, there was one tiny piece of streaky bacon - again overcooked, there was a single tasteless hash brown, a small slice of black pudding (which was actually missing from my Wife’s plate!), there was a tiny overcooked half slice of tomato, a spoonful of baked beans, a small sausage which was “on the turn”, some button mushrooms and two half slices of toast - one half white bread toast - on half brown bread toast! And the cost for this disaster was £14.25 each breakfast ! All I can say is that it was shocking and a complete disappointment from what we used to enjoy with at least two of everything and good size portions ! In fact - we were so disappointed that we cancelled our Dinner Reservation for the same evening given that we feared being served with sub-standard fayre!

Interesting menu, with good service. Easy to park. A great pub.

Lovely very dog friendly pub where dog biscuit treats were on the table when we arrived. The food was delicious. The autumn crumble pudding was really lovely. We were visiting on holiday or we would be going back. Certainly worth a visit.

Great pub and the beer is fantastic. Best pub in prestbury by a country mile.

A lovely cosy pub, no loud music, great food beautifully presented by friendly staff. We are lucky to have The Royal Oak as our local 😀

Booked a table in the restaurant for after a funeral service. Everything was excellent.

Excellent food with very friendly and helpful staff.

Lovely atmosphere an friendly staff!

An excellent country pub with a good atmosphere

Very enjoyable Sunday lunch. Not rushed and no pressure to leave even though it was busy.

The four of us had really delicious meals, served with a lot of fun again.- pan fried Bream particularly good. Yes , we keep coming back here. Thank you , Nigel.

Perfect room to hold a wake , but extremely disappointed in food for the amount of money paid embarrassing ! 4 plates of door step sandwiches , 2 cakes ,2bowls of chips Ran out of tea and coffee staff disappeared leaving people at bar waiting so had go to the other bar ! Certainly will not be recommending anyone else !

Booked for a birthday party x 8. Had a private room which was lovely. Service was great. Most of the food was great but 2 x pie of the day/week & on the specials board was really not good! Not one to complain but on reflection we paid a lot of money for that lunch! Pie was undercooked, not much filling & no sauce? Very disappointed.

I never write reviews but having eaten here today, I cannot express just how awful the roast dinner I just had was. No flavour on anything, completely and utterly bland. Everything overcooked to baby food consistency. No seasoning - 100% the Yorkshire puddings were not fresh. Ordered extra cauliflower cheese and has only melted cheese on top and no sauce - and again, the cauliflower was so overcooked it was so watery. It's disappointing when you're sat there thinking, I could cook better at home. Also I will add £12.70 for a large glass of wine is pretty steep, even for Cheltenham. We wasn't offered a drinks menu so had of known the cost we probably would have ordered something else. The decor is fab and as a pub for a drink, it's got all the charms and would be absolutely fine and enjoyable. However, please eat your Sunday roast elsewhere. The main waiter/front of house has charm and seems a nice guy, I'm guessing he's the manager. Everyone else doesn't seem to care about customer service. £80+ for two poor roasts and 2x glasses of wine is outrageous.

Only downside was at 12.45 lunch time they ran out of one of the blackboard specials Gammon which I feel was not very good

Everything (ambience, service etc) was perfect but if I had a criticism it would be that the portions were perhaps slightly less than generous. For example, you could double the greens and chips that went with the pie. The pea risotto was 5 star. The chermoula aubergine did not taste very nice.

Went along at 7:20pm. The front door was locked and the place was closing. The barmaid offered us one drink but was closing the pub at 7:30pm on a Sunday night. That is so sad.

A really lovely pub, serving delicious food and our regular place to visit whenever we have family visiting.

Lovely location and large garden. Restaurant for Sunday lunch was busy but not over noisy. Food was good quality and well prepared. The special pie of the day while tasty was overpriced for its size .

Very nice old pub, great menu. Food was lovely. Nice beer, Real ales, Butcombe

On a Saturday lunchtime the pub was less busy than we expected and provided the perfect preparation for the visit to the football that afternoon. The attention from each member of staff was well-judged and the provision of an allergy table indispensable. The menu had a good variety of dishes (even though we stuck with very traditional choices!) and meals were prepared and served in good time. We shall make this the venue of choice next time we have a fixture in Cheltenham.

We had a lovely meal, food and service good. Waiting staff very pleasant. Olives disappointing.

Perfect dog friendly pub. Never disappoints. Staff very friendly.

Matt and the team warmly welcomed us for an evening at their private room to celebrate a family birthday and also for a Sunday lunch. The service was excellent, very attentive and food good value and tasty.

Not a happy visit as it was a wake after a family funeral. The staff were understandably very attentive, and the one beer I had was very well kept and of the sort of beer that goes down well in country pubs. If I lived local, I could see myself in here regularly.

Excellent service great atmosphere, tasty food

We hired out the function room for a party and the pub was fantastic. Communication with all staff over email was really easy and they were really accomodating. We were able to view the space and plan our party really easily. On the night, there was only one member of staff on the bar but he worked very hard and there weren't any issues. We could decorate how we liked and bring our own speaker (but they did have facilities for their sound system too). Overall super easy and good value for money compared to some places in cheltenham.

I was greeted with a smile and shown to my table with menu at the ready. We had the most wonderful supper with very tasty wine. The 25% Butcombe offer on a Wednesday was much appreciated and we will be back very soon I’m sure!

Had my Grandads 100th Birthday. Loved the venue, food was lovely too.

Excellent food. Decent pint.Very friendly helpful staff. Used before and will use again.

A beautiful country pub authentic to the surroundings.

Great place. We took Canadian family for a traditional English pub experience and The Royal Oak did not disappoint. Pie of the day was fab, 2x steak deal very good value for money accompanied by 2 glasses of wine. This is the 2nd time I have been here and will be returning for sure. Service was excellent, we didn't book but were given a lovely area to sit and chat. It was exactly what our Canadian visitors were looking for.

Great food able to sit outside in a lovely courtyard setting

The service was exceptional—the staff were friendly, attentive, and efficient. From the moment I walked in, the team made sure I felt welcome and taken care of. Highly recommended for anyone looking for great service and a pleasant atmosphere!

Wonderful pub with great food and friendly staff. Well worth the visit and will be returning again in the future. Nothing was too much for the General Manager. Thanks for a wonderful dinner. See you soon.

Outstanding diner at the Royal Oak. Great beer and amazing food. The team here are brilliant, and the garden when sunny is beautiful.

Staff were very friendly and food was delicious. Would definitely go back.

Lovely pub but service was dreadful Waited 50 minutes for hour first course to be delivered with no explanation I had fish and Chips for main course fish under cooked my wife had chicken which was over cooked I felt sorry for staff who were working obviously badly understaffed which made their job difficult. A simple explanation when we arrived would at least have prepared us Keith G

Great breakfast, with fresh ingredients, Service spot on,

First visit and unfortunately wouldn’t return. Very poor service and issues with the food, wellington was flavourless and a server came and asked 40 minutes after us ordering if it was supposed to be vegan or vegan. One vegan option on the menu for dessert which they’d run out of and the server walked off before we could even ask for an alternative.. Worst meal out I’ve had in a long time.

Now this is a proper boozer.....

Very pleasant lunch. We have been on other occasions and have always enjoyed our meal. The staff are friendly and most obliging

Great atmosphere, a proper pub, great food and service

Excellent Cotswolds pub, loads of outdoor seating too.

The best service we’ve seen in the Cotswolds so far.

Great food, great service and at a great place

A very friendly pub, great staff and good food. An excellent base for walking.

Beef tough. (Sandwich). No normal tomato juice Spicy one too much spice. Yes definitely the right place and I know what we had.

Very expensive with small portions, roast beef 1 slice plus veg £21.75

Extremely overpriced, food was really disappointing, had to eat something else after but was charged through the roof for what was not good enough to call a main course. Lots of green bottle flies around, on the food... £25 for 3 drinks and hidden service charge not itemized on bill....won't be returning.

Good food, good portions, friendly staff, lovely pub.

Very pleasant and helpful staff, perfect timing for food delivery with a lovely atmosphere, well priced for quality and quantity of food.

Lovely country pub with cozy spaces to sit by the fire. Restaurant is welcoming and food is lovely. Garden is surprisingly spacious with plenty of sunny spots or under cover seating. Great selection of drinks incudinf ales and lagers.

Very friendly pub with nice food. Accommodated my wife who is coeliac very well indeed. Only negative was that m-in-law who is just shy of 99 could have benefited from a child’s portion - way too much food for her.

Food is good and so is the beer. Beautiful location looking out at the Cotswold escarpment. Close to the racecourse. And fantastic garden and function suite. New ownership has upped the prices just before race week so is not as affordable as other pubs in the area. Hoping they come back down for the rest of th year? Downgraded food to 4 stars due to new pricing value and it feels the locals are going elsewhere hence atmos.

Excellent beer. Good atmosphere.

Me and partner booked in for breakfast ahead of the opening day of Cheltenham festival. We were the first people in on the day but by the time we left it was rammed. The staff were amazing, the breakfast was incredible and the atmosphere was perfect. Highly recommend 🙂

Cosy local pub serving a good range of drinks and food.

Great Sunday lunch. Good beer, nice friendly staff

Brilliant GF food. Friendly staff especially New manager Matt. Nothing was too much trouble. Will be back for sure .

Booked in here for lunch having visited a few of the Butcombe pubs previously. The team at The Royal Oak were really friendly and worked to look after us. Both the roast beef and their vegetarian roast were fantastic. Will certainly visit again!

The bartender made it really difficult when asking for a dog bowl. They first instructed me I had to go outside to get a dog bowl, which was fine and so I did but I didn't see any tap. When I came in to ask them to fill it up they said well there is a toilet you can fill it up or go back outside? They then filled it up by the tap after I was taken back by their reaction. It was a really unnecessary awkward moment and just put me off buying another round of drinks. Wouldn't come back.

Fabulous lunch menu, catering for both the vegan and the carnivores amongst our party. Food was well presented and beautifully cooked. We will book a table again and highly recommend The Royal Oak.

My daughter booked this venue for a surprise 70th birthday for myself the 6th Jan 2024, the venue was just perfect I have been to a couple of funeral wakes there before and the food provided was wonderful, unfortunately for my birthday it wasn't, my daughter had paid so much per head and we had around 35 guests including 10 children, she paid for 4 different fillings of sandwiches plus chips, the chips were only enough for the children and the sandwiches were not enough for the amount of people some didn't even get a sandwich, some sandwiches didn't have any filling at all, I have waited this long to leave a review because my daughter wrote a email of complaint straight away but has not heard anything back to date, I think its common courtesy to answer a email and its sad really because my wonderful special birthday was marred by the food provided...

We had a fab evening here - delicious food, cozy table by the fire and good service. Venison faggots highly recommended. We will definitely return to try the steak they’d sold out of. Thank you.

Good. Food was copious rather than refined but it's a good pub. We'll happily come back.

Great pub, good self drinks also have a private function room at the back, very helpful & friendly staff Didn't eat so i can't comment on food

Wonderful old fashioned public house. Called in after race's about a ten minute walk. Made to feel very welcome over a couple of pints. Didn't have food so only 4star review.

A really impressive experience on Christmas Eve. The food was phenomenal. Have had many a disappointing pub experience but for us, this was one of the best in the area. Thanks so much for a wonderful meal!

The Royal Oak at Prestbury was great for our Christmas lunch.

Lovely pub. Lots of seating outdoors, not as much indoors.

I recently visited the Royal Oak (solo) for some food and a drink. I ended up staying for a 3 course meal and several drinks. I find it incredibly hard to sit down and relax unless I am forced to on a train. The cozy atmosphere in this pub, which starts at the entrance with the very inviting candle lanterns and fairy lights, not only allowed me to relax, but I really enjoyed doing so. I sat by the fire and chose the pie from the menu after the manager, Matt, reccomemded it, I can hands down say this was the best pie I've ever eaten and I'm very fussy about my pies. Whilst I was waiting to let my pie go down I sat with my sketch book whilst soaking in the warmth from the fire and enjoying looking at the beautifully displayed, traditional Christmas decorations around me. I had a lovely chat with a local lady who was with her husband celebrating his birthday, she even reccomended a book for me to read which I ordered instantly. I then ordered the cheesecake and some more drinks and spent another hour or so soaking in the atmosphere whilst sketching in my sketchbook. The staff were incredibly friendly and accommodating. The manager approached each customer as though he was giving an individual tailored experience for each of them. I not only felt comfortable as a female sitting alone in the restaurant side of the pub, I felt like I was in the comfort of my own home without the pressures of "to do lists" surrounding me... I didn't want to leave.

Amazing place the pie was world class

My family and I were delightful to have our celebratory meal for my graduation. The food was delicious and warm. The service was prompt.

Really nice traditional country pub, Had a roast beef dinner which was good value and well presented, food was good quality, Good selection of quality beers. The service was quick and friendly. Would recommend and would go back.

Wine over priced Can you believe £30.50 for a bottle of a mediocre merlot When challenged told this price was fair Yeah!

Excellent food, service and atmosphere. We will be back soon!

Food was great and service was brilliant too. Would definitely go again.

A wonderful pub which we would highly recommend. Beautifully cooked food. Homemade desserts which were absolutely delicious. Very friendly service. Definitely would go again.

I was walking past the building at night and saw a black figure in the window we all know prestbury is haunted

Great food and experience as usual after day at the races. Top notch food. Only improvement would be if someone could have called us a cab as in previous years. We were just given a number and we did struggle after a few beers to arrange two that were needed!

Fabulous Location - Great Staff - terrific food - a very welcoming venue

Wonderful restaurant and bar. Amazing service and delicious food. A+++++++

A wonderful oldie worldie pub with fantastic food and lovely staff

Only slight issue was that we were in rather a dim corner of the room. Everything else was great. Thank you.

Quirky place, very old and traditional but great to visit. The food is fantastic and the rear garden is spacious and relaxing. Apparently, it's located in the most haunted village in Britain 👻

Food and staff excellent as always

Welcoming, friendly staff with a varied menu and tasty food. Had a lovely lunch in nice surroundings. Happy to recommend!

We had a very nice meal in very comfortable surroundings. My sister lives in Hampshire and loved the village pub atmosphere. The service was a little slow and we had to ask for water twice, but the food was very tasty. We would definitely visit again. Loved the kedgeree.

I been many time with funerals never knew you had tables at back for drinks thank you.great.

Friendly staff & great pub grub.

Good good, great beer. Strangely quiet…

Our waitress was delightful and helpful. We enjoyed the free birthday bottle of prosecco. Thank you.

,The food was imaginative and well prepared and the service was excellent. First class.

Imaginative menu - some interesting twists on pub grub, all served beautifully. Staff really friendly and helpful - accommodated last minute changes to table and a request to bring in a birthday cake. Really enjoyable afternoon!

Really lovely pub with great staff and good food. I'll be going again.

Wonderful pub just outside Cheltenham. Great range of Butcombe real ales. All on top form. Food was excellent. Service was really good provided by fairly young staff. Will happily go back.

Why if virtually everything on the menu is gluten free is nothing marked as 'gf' at all when many things are marked with the less important 'pb' or 'pbo'. 'gf' is a serious health condition but 'pb' is just a lifestyle choice - wierd. Was promised a call (by the Butcombe Reservations Manager) by the staff re gluten free options before we arrived, did not happen. Then the waiter did not even realise we had a gluten free member of our party from our booking - not really 'joined up' in their communication. But we had a good meal.