The Spring Inn in West Berkshire

I am here now, four staff members, arrived at 5.30 it is now 6.30 two tables have walked out due to lack of service - we ordered three drinks at 5.40 we are still waiting!!! Never again !!

I'm convinced that The Spring Inn writes their reviews. On Saturday evening 26th Oct 2024, we dined out at the Spring Inn, hoping to have a romantic dinner for two, although we made a reservation, hoping to be seated in a friendly environment, we were taken upstairs to the Gallery, where we then were seated in a dingy dirty looking corner, with stained chairs, and no other guest. The whole evening was a complete disaster when I spoke to a member of staff, we were told that there was no seating in the dining lounge. However, when we mentioned it again, we were told they THOUGHT there was no room in the dining lounge and had no apology from management, and still haven't. My advice would be to give the Spring Inn and its extortionate prices a wide berth. Amen.

Nice food, but mad expensive for pub grub. Steak and Ale pie was £20. Sandwich was £15.

The Sunday roast was one of the best I've had in a long time! I had the roast trio, and each meat was cooked perfectly! The potatoes were lovely and crispy and even the vegetables were super tasty! It was overall a very lovely experience and a great lunch! Spring Inn will definitely be at the forefront of my mind for future Sunday Roasts!

Always love coming to the Spring Inn. We hadn’t been for a while. Scrumptious pies with creamy mash and fresh greens, and delicious bread & butter pudding with a caramelised crust and ice cream. Reliable and friendly service with a smile and warm atmosphere. Really good coffee too !! Thank you Spring Inn !!

The food was absolutely delicious, I had a focaccia and a chicken schnitzel. The focaccia was so soft on the inside and ever so slightly crunchy on the outside. The chicken schnitzel was mouthwatering. Can’t wait to go back for more! The staff were attentive and went above and beyond to cater to my dietary requirements. What a lovely place with stunning decor. Looks very well taken care of!!

Ordered the Angus sirloin beef sandwich and the Cajun chicken sandwich with fries. The beef was the poorest bit of meat I’ve ever seen! Fatty and chewy with little to endear it to the pallet! The chicken sandwich was so oily that BP tried to erect a rig on it. Service was a little slow and the staff were quite indifferent to our observations regards the food! Also note that this establishment offer the silly smaller 200ml bottles of Diet Coke instead of the proper 250ml ones… WHY? Inside is a little unwelcoming and the heating could do with being cranked up a notch or three! Tho the penguins moving in didn’t seem to mind! Where a jumper if you dare stand in the colder months is my advice. Over all, a poor experience, poor food & poor service… best avoided!

Sunday lunch was dreadful . I choose the beef Sunday lunch. The meat was so red and raw it was underdone and very tough to cut. The knife wouldn’t cut through it and the plate was oval and very small and so very difficult to place vegetables on it. Very overpriced at 24.99 for a Sunday lunch. The server was French and had to keep coming back to check what we had ordered. We both had the starter prawn cocktail and avocado which was bland and lacking taste. I haven’t been here for awhile and it’s a shame very disappointing.

I had read reviews that weren't not so.good. It was delicious and the staff couldn't do enough for us

Pub has a lovely setting, but the service was the part that let the place down. There was a single person trying to serve the tables and bar, so he was in a tough spot. However being ignored as a customer and eventually having to give up on asking for the drink that was missed from our order was a bit too much for me. Unless the service improves I couldn’t recommend it.

Like this pub. Nice open place. Plenty of tables. Nice people and service. Food served after 6pm though which was a little annoying.

Lovely food and the server was very polite and helpful.

Incredible service from Bilal! I’ve never felt so valued during a dining experience, 100% coming back

Quite possibly the worst experience I have ever had. It took 3 trys to get some slop that even looked and tasted like a pint..... Ended up with cider and I'm now sat on their Khazi emptying insides.

Great evening with friends from the US last Saturday. Wanted it to be good and it was. The team on duty was working so hard to please everyone. They seemed very busy but nothing was too much trouble for them. All young and a real credit to themselves. A big call out for the chef. The food was excellent. Our US visitors were pleased with the vegetarian option and the pies. I had plaice which was very excellent. The desserts did not disappoint. The bread and butter pudding with a crème brûlée topping was exquisite. As good as the top restaurants.

Had the most amazing Sunday roast here last week for a friends birthday! Food was great and the staff were super friendly and very accommodating, especially Tom who served us. Will definitely be back!

The food in the restaurant is amazing and the service is great. The menu hit all the right spots for a Sunday meal and the apple crumble was fab. Added bonus is how inviting the restaurant looks from the outside. I’d come back when I’m in in the Reading area again!

We had a fantastic experience. The burger was incredibly juicy, and cooked to perfection. The service was attentive, and friendly. Definitely a 10/10 experience, and we will absolutely be coming back again!

Review after today's lunch. Food was good, decent portions. The interior has changed a lot since time we visited a year ago, and IMO for the worse.. fake industrial. What wasn't fake was the grubbiness.. we had to clean our own sticky table with a hand wipe which went black. No complaints regarding the service from Bruno.

Table was booked for 7:30, drinks ordered but one member of our group had to ask twice for her drink. We were told a party of 30 were sitting upstairs so our food would take a bit longer. Food arrived around 9pm, except one member of the group who’s order was wrong so she then had to wait whilst the rest of us ate, cutlery was taken away with the starters so even though the food was given to us we then had to try wait to try catch someone walking past before we could eat it. The young girl serving our food didn’t know which flavour pie she had hold of and had to go back to kitchen and check allergies as one member of our group is gluten free and she didn’t know if the meal was. However…. The actual food was delicious! Presented well and complement to the chef. Service just needs addressing.for a booking of 7:30pm we left at around 11:15pm!

As a rare family treat, we took our children here. It was even recommended. The food was good, good portion size and really tasty. However, the service was awful. The First Lady serving us was amazing. Once our food came it was like we were invisible. Had to ask for more drinks. The staff wondered round in a daze. They took way too long to clear our table along with 2 lots of glasses of 5 people. So I took them to the bar myself to make space. We waited 20 minutes and no one came to ask if we wanted pudding. We did. Then a lady walked in with her dog and the staff couldn’t be more attentive to the dog. Rushing around to get it water and making a fuss. Shouldn’t paying customers be treated with that kind of service?! A dog got better treatment than paying humans!! I couldn’t believe what I was seeing and hearing, over a dog! Will never come back and will definitely tell people to avoid unless you have 4 legs and a waggy tail because you get forgotten about and treated like garbage. The lady behind the bar (blonde hair) needs some lessons on customer service. Smirking whilst my husband spoke to the manager about what had happened. Disrespectful and embarrassing for her.

Tom at the bar was very good, and very welcoming. He made my friend and I very welcome with his knowledge of drinks and food. Not to mention his attention to clients making sure we were all happy with the service his team provided including the fantastic pies they have which I highly recommend. Thank you Tom the fly half at Spring Inn. We will be back to try more ale and pies.

Food was presented well but overly salty for the salmon . French fries were actually best I've tasted. Just a shame the decor and musty smell esp in toilets and cleanliness let's this place down. It looks gorgeous from outside but really needs a makeover that I think may have started but not finished. Not sure if chairs were dirty or intentionally distressed on the covers. Service was OK and attentive but suggest better standards of dress also.

Went here for lunch .was greeted by a grumpy faced front of house. He was rude and clearly over stretched. The food was nice but when we were asked why we didn't want to buy the service charge. We said we wasn't really happy with the service received. We were then faced with the same gentleman on leaving. I have never felt so unwelcome. He was an older guy so quite possibly the manager. We enjoyed the food but I would never go back again to be made to feel so uncomfortable.

Had lunch with a friend. The food was great. We had the slow cooked lamb, and it was superb and so tender. Staff friendly and chatty without being overpowering.

Nice little stop Along the A4, very young staff, but very friendly service. Sunday Beef roast was pricey for what it was. Bathrooms and doors need a deep clean, a little TLC would greatly improve the site. Managers are very kind and supportive. It was a relaxing place to sit outside and have a quiet meal.

We were in today for my daughter's 40th birthday party. Adam greeted us upstairs and was so attentive from the start, helping put up the decorations and asking if we needed drinks. Constantly on hand during the meal and sadly I think he had finished his shift before we had left!! There were three little children running around and generally feeling free, and nobody objected as we basically had the upstairs to ourselves with our party of twelve!!! Apart from the private dining room party. The food, as everyone agreed was delicious. I personally had the roast shoulder of lamb, which basically melted in the mouth!!! 😋 We seem to only come on family occasions but every time is a lovely experience.

I had the lamb shoulder which was nicely cooked apart from the amount of salt which somewhat masked the taste of the lamb. The main issue was the green beans which came with a thick layer of salt sprinkled over the top. No one asked how we found the meal so I mentioned this as we paid. The attitude was totally dismissive - our chef is classically trained and all good chef present the food this way. I pointed out that additional salt after cooking was surely the customers option and the reason salt pots are put on the table but again the answer was the chef has worked in top hotels and this is how it should be done. Needless to say we refused the ‘optional’ service charge.

Not bad food but a tad expensive for what it is. What really lets this place down is the decor… tired, unimaginative and grubby. The floor in particular is badly in need of repolishing… it looks as if rubbish has been thrown all over it, which actually is the white showing through on the badly chipped surface. Other reviews are saying the same thing so this be place needs to up its game. It isn’t on my list for a return visit at the moment

First time visiting nice atmosphere and pleasant staff and very clean .havnt marked food as only stopped for a drink

There were a couple of vegan options on the lunch menu, so we ordered those with some chips as a starter. The only thing close to a vegan starter they had was focaccia bread with butter and olives. No non-dairy butter or hummus was available according to the person who took our order, so we passed on that. Mushroom risotto and curry were both nice enough; very rich, so not the perfect thing for a light lunch on a hot, muggy day, but there you have it. Chips were good, as was the cider. There was one other table near us occupied, and we had trouble hearing each other over their conversation. It must be deafening when the place is busy. All the walls, floors, and furnishings are hard; nothing to absorb sound, so it just reflects around. Some rugs or tapestries would help with that. Prices were plenty high; two dishes, no dessert, and just tap water and a pint of cider each to drink, and it was over £50. I suppose they're used to having a captive audience since they're the only dining option within walking distance of the canal in the area and are across the street from the cricket pitch.

First time back at the Spring Inn for a few years. Lunch with friends was very good. We all had the slow cooked lamb, and it was superb and melted in the mouth. For dessert, we had the crumble , bread and butter pudding, and butterscotch cheesecake, and everybody enjoyed it. Staff were friendly ,helpful, and chatty without being overpowering. We will return.

Not the same as it used to be, the place was not busy like it always used to be. The food was not as good as it was the last time we visited and the price of the beer was silly money.

The Staff were very welcoming and served us some delicious food. Will definitely be returning in the near future!

The staff accommodated our large group really well. All the food we ate was great. Only issue we had was our bill was challenging. There were things on there we didn’t order or eat and it took a long time to settle.

Great food, good attentive service. Decor is a bit tired though.

We visited this pub on a Saturday afternoon just after the lunchtime rush and were quite disappointed. The beer is extremely overpriced, so be cautious. The food is also not worth the high prices. For example, the burger came only with fries and lacked any garnish, coleslaw, or salad. The fish and chips were also poor, with soggy and bland batter. The staff were unprofessional. Each time we’ve visited, we've noticed that the waitresses wear excessively short skirts. The manager/barman was quite loud and kept making strange comments like “what have I done to deserve this torture?!” to his staff. Although it seemed like an inside joke, it was very annoying to hear repeatedly while trying to have a conversation. Additionally, although we were offered water and accepted, it was never brought to our table. To top it off, they tried to add a £6 service charge to our bill despite the poor service. When I asked for it to be removed, the barman muttered about it to a waitress. The hand drier in the ladies' restroom didn’t work either. This pub used to be magical, with mouth watering burgers and the scallops for starters were exceptional, but it has lost its charm and the food that made it worth the prices they charge. I would recommend avoiding it. We won’t be back.

Tables and floor sticky, not cleaned properly. Drinks very expensive. Food not delivered together. Disappointing would not recommend.

We had a group lunch there on the weekend. Delicious pies! Great schnitzel & caesar salad. Good kids menu & wine list. Friendly staff.

Good service, all 4 of us enjoyed our meal

Website says they “are nearly 100% gluten free”, in which case this review is nearly 100% positive. There are some gluten free options on the menu but they are few and far between. Food all round was underwhelming and service was very slow. Very disappointing for the price, there are many better options in the area. Take your money to the Fox and Hounds at Theale instead (with whom I have no affiliation, just had an excellent meal there recently!).

Stunning food but I can only give 3 stars as the gents needs a good clean. The basins were grubby and I dare not mention the wall below the hand dryer. Also the woodwork needs a good clean. Sadly, this spoiled my enjoyment of my meal.

We had a really lovely meal here tonight and the staff couldn’t do enough for us. Highly recommended

Beautiful little pub. Food was delicious, I totally recommend the Beef Bourguignon! Melt in your mouth! Staff are all lovely, attentive without being overbearing. Highly recommend.

Food good but children's menu could do with having mashed potatoes as an alternative to chips all the time. Very accommodating as they brought a small curry off main menu for my granddaughter. Fish and chips very good.

Fantastic service! Food was so nice, no complaints! Had the slow cooked lamb and it was amazing, will defo be going back :)

Had a very nice roast lamb on a Bank Holiday monday. Well worth the money and great service.

Great tasty Sunday Roast. We picked this place because it always seems busy when we drive by....and will definitely return. The team are attentive and polite - as it should be. We both had the roast beef - this was perfectly cooked and seasoned so full marks to the chef/kitchen. The roasties were amazing - crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. In terms of decor - meh it's a typical pub but it does have a nice vibe and was most definitely value for money. We will be back.

I recommend the squid starter. It was delicious. For the main I had a sea bass dish. This was fantastic. The staff were lovely. 10/10 experience, I do recommend

Terrible lunch experience! Both our squid starter and fish and chipa mains were returned. We weft hungry and disappointed. The service was awful and clearly very understaffed. It's such a nice pub and setting, but they clearly got the food and service wrong on this occasion.

Haven’t been for a few years. Very disappointed . Food was okay but the decor and cleanliness has lot to be desired. Won’t be rushing mainly due to the cleanliness. The decor could do with some work too!

Mediocre overpriced food. Unsure why this has so many good reviews. Fishy smell on entry. Had lunch menu sandwiches which none of us finished because were not that nice. Calamari was battered like greasy onion rings, not crisp breadcrumbs. Basically greasy and yucky squid rings that no-one could finish. Steak sandwich had tough onion skin inside that I thought was paper at first. Pint was more expensive than a mocktail (over £5 for an ale) and an apple juice was £3.55. Understand pubs are suffering from costs. Service good and not the fault of staff but shan’t be back. Can still taste yucky onion from steak sandwich.

Nice pub in great location. The food was nice, but I thought it was expensive for what we had. Our friends had a curry and pie. However, the pie was only served on its own (although it had the mash and peas within the pie), and the curry would have benefitted from a small side like poppadoms or bhaji. My fish and chips were very nice and more plentiful.

Nice enough roadhouse, a bit empty, near police training estate

Been before and had great food so was looking forward to going back. I had the trio roast in the evening and two meats were not worth having so should have stuck with one. The beef and lamb were both over done. Then the bill came that automatically came with a 10% service charge. So not going back.

Décor was poor and the place had an unpleasant smell, like a butchers shop. We waited an hour for our food to arrive, and it only arrived because i called the server and told them i was leaving. The food suddenly arrived (fish and chips) and the fish was not cooked and cold inside so I sent it back. The lamb tagine was very average and not worth the £26 price tag. I felt sorry for the young man serving us as he was obviously embarrassed by the situation. Summing up I would say it has gone down hill since I last visited the place apx 2 yrs ago, overpriced and poor food quality. They did not charge for the fish n chips, although I think they should not have charged us anything. The worst dining experience i have had in the last 5 years, i score it 1 out of 10

Decor average , toilets poor … dirty , hand dryer not working , toilet paper everywhere no paper towels . Dinner took an hour to arrive even though we asked what was happening twice , were ready to walk out . Dinner arrived , fish and chips not cooked , cold had to send back , Moroccan tagine , average but not worth the money £25/£26 . Only positive review was for our poor waiter who couldn’t apologise more . Won’t be going back !!!

We really enjoyed our Chicken, ham and leek pie, fish pie and fish and chips. They were perfect! Thank you

Service was excellent. Cannot fault the team here. Food was timely as were drinks! However i found the sunday lunch menu quite limited unless you want a roast. I had the curry and for £18 it was just that.. rice and a small portion of curry. No sides or a single popadom, naan or even mango chutney. Would be ok for £10-12.. but i was disappointed. Roasts my family had looked good!

Probably the best burger and chips I have ever had which was coupled with very good service. The place could have been a little cleaner and felt a little tired, but the quality of the food overcame any down points. In the summer it is lovely to eat out but not in this weather!

The food does not match the decor. When we first arrived I wondered whether we had turned up at the wrong place. It feels like it is about to fall down and is very run down. All of the staff were lovely but did seem slightly harrassed! However the food was top notch! There were four of us and we all had very different dishes, I could not fault it! Really lovely!

We have visited the Spring Inn infrequently over the year, and it's good to say that it's a hit or miss restaurant. We had the Sunday roast chicken, which didn't have the wow factor and was a bit disappointing. Even more so, when the waitress had her thumb in my gravy, when she was serving it, but never apologised. Also we had a long wait for the plates to be cleared, which was disappointing. Finally for dessert, we had sticky toffee pudding, which was extremely tasty. Oh, they automatically add a service charge to the bill, which is a bit cheeky....

The food is really good and very tasty. We're usually picky about where we eat, but this place was great. The lamb and beef were delicious. I'd definitely recommend it, even for a Sunday roast. They also have good options for gluten-free meals.

Excellent meal and dessert, friendly staff and a great atmosphere/interior design. Highly recommend!

Lovely evening catching up with a friend. Lovely service and delicious steak and ale pie. Would definitely recommend!

We have been infrequent visitors to The Spring Inn over about 5 or 6 years but we have always had a good meal and the staff have been very good. We were there for lunch last weekend and the food was excellent, our best meal so far at this venue. Duck salad starter was way better than described on the menu, salmon main course was cooked to perfection as was the Chicken Schnitzel. Fairly priced wine made it a great lunch - we will be back very soon!!

We won a competition for a meal for 4 through the Village Eye magazine. We went on Saturday as an early Mother's Day dinner, and it was such a wonderful evening. The service and food was excellent. The restaurant was really busy, but we didn't have to chase the staff for anything. They were very attentive. We had a really great time, and will definitely be returning!

We had really nice food that came out in good time. Was waiting a bit too long to pay so needed to go up but apart from that all the staff were really good

Awful meal , dirty venue and gone totally downhill . Had a foul meal when we called the manager over he was totally disinterested no word of apology and said he would take them off the bill . Bill came only one meal removed and a service charge …. He refused to take the second off and was downright rude . The staff need some serious training not an ounce of customer service experience between them. Avoid there are a lot nicer restaurants in the area with better food and nicer staff !!

The new owners are doing a grand job. The Sunday roast was lovely, the veg is beautifully cooked. No room for a sweet. Well priced. Enjoyed the house red wine!

Food was good besides the bread pudding. Service was just OK but venue is just a bit boring and needs some updating.

Choice of vegetarian or meat courses. The Spring Inn was very busy and some people were complaining about slow service and we had some time between courses. It wasn't a problem. Good quality food.

Visited the Spring Inn tonight (February 20th) with family to celebrate our daughter’s 19th birthday. A warm & friendly welcome followed by some great food & service & a few Aperol spritz made for a very enjoyable evening. Keep doing what you’re doing, we will be back soon.

Honestly one of the best places to drop in to for dinner. We had the beef short rib pie and beef burger, both of which were excellent. 100% recommend. Also real easy to get to when travelling along the M4.

Booked a surprise party for my partners 40th Birthday celebrations.. Staff were really accommodating and helpful throughout! Food and atmosphere was great and the party was enjoyed by all.. Thank you for making our celebrations so special!

I had chicken schnitzel which was a bit dry and came with rocket 'salad' which was bland and just a plate filler. My wife has battered fish . The batter was a bit soggy. We were placed upstairs . It was fairly cold and the radiators were not on. We were told there was a fault with the plumbing but when we went back to the ground floor it was warm. I remember coming to this place a few years ago and it was cold upstairs. It would definitely put me off coming back in winter. Service was ok though and the starters we had were alright

I have been coming here for many years. Today was such a disappointment. Sticky tables ( must be wrong cleaning product being used), Friend’s GF fish was dry and size of a fish finger, music too loud, soup arrived with no spoon. Prices are expensive.Staff were good.

Superb service, I have never had such good service from staff. The service charge was included however you would never refute it! The food was very nice and the atmosphere was good.

It was very nice here and we ate well

What a wonderful find, superb food. Served to a large family group with a variety of requests, all handled by kitchen and staff really really professionally and we will definitely be back. Thank you to the whole team.

We were a table of 18 celebrating my birthday on Sunday and I couldn’t fault the food or the service. Will definitely return

Food was a disappointment, especially for the price. Burger and chips was exactly that, no side salad, nothing: Some salad on the burger, but not much. Chicken Schnitzel with a small rocket salad with chips was uninspiring. Staff were friendly and efficient, but food-wise, we won't be back. Oh, and they automatically add 10% service charge to the bill, which I think is a bit cheeky.

Food was very good quality, portion sizes decent, but generally thought that the menu was over priced (£20 for a burger seems a little too much, although im sure that it was as good a quality as the dishes we had (Fish Risotto and Ox Cheek bourginoun)) The Staff were very engaging and efficient. There was a large private party going on when we were there, but the service was still attentive and as prompt as it could be

Very nice, plenty of places to sit and eat,.didn't have a meal but looked nice. Was there for a family get together.

Reopened under new management I believe, we certainly had a fabulous family meal. Food was superb, spoilt for choice and the service was great, friendly, attentive and sincere without being in your face. The interior is nice, maybe in need of a little freshen up in places, I'm sure this will be on the cards for the spring. Will definitely be going back. Keep it up!

Amazing lunch today as we had the mushroom soup, fish cake, and beef pie that were delicious and well presented. Attentive staff, and lovely and warm interior. Great experience highly recommended!

Christmas dinner at the Spring Inn was the best! We had a lovely afternoon. The food was utterly lovely and the service was awesome. It felt like all the staff were enjoying themselves and happy to be there. The atmosphere was amazing. A huge thanks to the team for managing to squeeze us in. Will 100% book for next time!!

Great atmosphere and loverly service. We had waiter Abel serve us he was amazing help and gave us lovely suggestions. Food was super tasty definitely coming again.

Absolutely fabulous Christmas day dinner Amazing food , service and atmosphere- well done to the whole team xxx

We had Christmas lunch two courses My sister chose the turkey and trimmings which was good. Lots of veg and Roasties. The Beef B. was tasty but not worth that title (more like braised steak) The pear tart was excellent . I left feeling full but won't be having Christmas lunch there again

Excellent food. The mussels starter was a real highlight!

Came to try the new menu, amazing roast - 10/10

Had a lovely experience this evening, food was lovely and staff were extremely friendly and attentive! Slightly slow to take our order but food came out quickly. Have been coming here for years and will continue to visit under the new owners 😊

Totally recommend this lovely pub . Great food, clearly labelled for intolerances too. Friendly service. And a welcoming comfortable atmosphere.

Our first visit. Really impressed with our dishes, the beef cheeks and stone bass were delicious. Great service. Thumbs up and we will definitely return!

Unfortunately based on our experience, we will not be returning ever again. Our children were eating their chicken goujons and chips and only when over 50% had been eaten did we discover the chicken was raw (completely pink on the inside)! It was both of the children’s portions too! The staff were understandably embarrassed however this is completely unacceptable. I worry for the food standard procedures (or lack of) followed in the kitchen. Last but not least, we also had roast dinners which were lacking in flavour, undercooked parsnips and burned Yorkshire puddings. Definitely not worth the £25+ price tag. There are plenty other lovely pubs in and around Reading. I hope the management take this review into account to make some major improvements.

I've eaten here twice in the last year, and both times my meal was awful, and really overpriced. Today I paid £31 for fish and chips and tap Pepsi. Peas were still raw, fish just tasted of stale oil. I won't ever be returning - there are far nicer pubs in Pangbourne which I would legitimately call 'gastropubs'. It's a shame as it's a good location and beautiful surroundings.

Nice beer and food. Bit on the pricey side

The staff were attentive and polite. The food did take a while to arrive. ( we think because there was a big table) plus a staff member did not know what the sauce was that went with the Salmon but we enjoyed ourselves

Great food, salmon, and the beef pie were really good. The only downside was the very sticky tables and dusty light fittings, but hey, ain't all pubs. Would I go again, oh yes, for the food.