The Wheatsheaf in Braintree

Real, home-cooked pie chips and gravy and good old fashioned puddings. The landlord and landlady are sweet and the bar area feels welcoming. Mind you don't kick Fred, the giant tortoise as he lopes across the carpet to sit by the fire. This feels like a proper old village pub. We love it here.

Very quiet at the time of our visit, one local and us. A party of hikers arrived and livened the bar up. We asked about food and was told we could have sandwiches, which was OK, no menu but Ham and Pickle and cheese only were offered, very basic but at least fresh. Outside seating in the carpark. Won`t bother to return.

Completely ruined our day. The food was a joke and my friends and I actually laughed when our order was bought out. Cold, congealed and just disgusting.

After a bit of a wet day visiting castle Hedingham and the cafe there only good for tea and cakes we called up last minute to see if lunch was still being served after 2pm. The patron was very accommodating on the phone and even started to lay a table of 6 out. Only a couple of locals inside watching the Rugby and no one else eating. Wasn’t expecting much in terms of food other than a sandwich but we were offered a lovely selection of meals to choose from. Steak and kidney pie (loads of filling) with homemade pastry, baby corn and sprouts with chantenay carrots and proper gravy. Kids had scampi and chips which they enjoyed. Honestly food was delicious and a couple of home made desserts to finish off. Bread and butter pudding, apple pie and homemade custard. Even made a decent coffee all for just over £80 for 6 people including soft drinks. Hidden gem. The decor was oldie worldie with dark beams and an extra seating area on a mezzanine level. Pleasantly surprised. Don’t normally write reviews but the patron went out of his way for us. Would definitely be back if in the area again. Thank you

We had a lovely meal here last week approaching Christmas. Excellent staff and service thank you we will be back again :)

Waited ages for food and when it came it was cold. Pretty shabby inside and generally an unpleasant experience.

We only had a beer here but the landlord and patrons were very friendly. A thank you to the landlord who held the door open when we were carrying our beers out to the garden. There are lovely views and plenty of sun in the beer garden.

A n excellent 'pub' in the traditional manner. Steve serves a good pint of beer and cooks an excellent plate of food. The locals are a mix of interesting and friendly people, happy to help if you need it. Sally, the Landlady, has a welcome for all.

a tightly run sports pub with simple food. couple of stair to access. nice grassy beer garden with a 10 year old tortoise

Went in for a coffee/beer just before 11am. Warm welcome and good coffee. After visiting the Castle we decided to go back as the aroma of the Sunday roast cooking was most enticing. We were not disappointed! We all had the roast beef which was served with a variety of perfectly cooked fresh veg and all the usual trimmings. This was so filling we declined a sweet which was a pity as the bread and butter pudding would have been delicious. We chose this pub over a more modern looking, renovated establishment, as we wanted to give our overseas visitors a taste of good, old style pub atmosphere. The new style of bland dinning experience in a soulless, so called, upmarket pub is not for us. The Wheatsheaf fitted the bill perfectly. Thank you for a very pleasant visit.

Never been in a place like this!! Cold and bad cooked food!! Bad smell when walking inside, waitress keep drinking wine while serving customers, not so nice!! Price very high, portions very small... jacket potatoes cold, lasagna cold, glasses very dirty, filthy!! Place like this should be avoided!!

Went in and received a warm welcome from the landlord and lady. Was a last minute decision and a good one. The landlord was happy to serve us despite the hour and cooked us up a lovely fresh meal,and attended to our needs with great hospitality. A friendly atmostphere,great for conversation and meeting people Thanks

Don't bother the cottage pie was like dog food with a lump of mash on it . Tasteless veg . My son could not stomach the burger . My friend laughed at the food .worst lunch out ever and never will I eat or go there again

Went here earlier this evening for a meal. What a mistake? My husband ordered the hunters chicken, but asked for extra chips instead of salad and coleslaw. I ordered the ham egg and chips. Waited quite a while for food and people who ordered after us were served before us! Lady behind bar had a real go at whoever was cooking and said about plates being cold. I figured at least ours should be warm after this. Not the case. My husband's meal had salad and coleslaw! The chicken had clearly been warmed in the microwave and wasn't hot. My eggs were very well crispy on one side, but uncooked around the yolk. The chips were hard in places - the only saving grace was the ham. My husband went over to pay, but lady behind the bar was too busy watching the TV. We just left £20 on the table and walked out. Neither her, nor the man cooking should be running a pub, and how they ever manage to cook a Sunday roast is beyond us. Very very disappointing. Would not recommend this place to anybody.

We ordered food, which then took an hour to arrive and when it did it was cold. One of the dinners was then microwaved to within an inch of its life. The gravy was like dishwater, no taste and hardly any gravy in it. The only thing hot was our plates, which had to be handed to us via a disgustingly dirty tea towel. When we complained we were told that the usual chef doesn't work on a Sunday and one of the barmaid's partners had stepped in to help!! Why serve food on a Sunday if the chef doesn't work...it makes no sense. It was a lame excuse for extremely poor food and service. Nothing was offered in return for complaining, which is poor customer service. The customers on the table next to us were so fed up of waiting for the food they ordered that they eventually gave up and walked out. We ate there because it was recommended to us!!! Never again! I will be getting married at Hedingham Castle next year and I certainly will not be recommending this place to any of my family or friends to stay or eat at!!!

Having visited Castle Hedingham my fiancee and her parents went looking for somewhere to eat. We were advised to try The Wheatsheaf and we did. The bar is an odd shape with a very small walkway from one bar to another. Not helped by peole completely blocking this area and having to be asked repeatidly to move. The two barmaids looked stressed and we only got sherved when one asked the other to come and serve us. The pub was full but not packed. We were directed to a kind of mezzanine floor with tables and chairs. Staff repeatedly apologised for it being so cold, before telling us its always cold up there! The staff were stressed and apparently under pressure. We ordered four meals and waited. 30mins later a member of staff stated that out the three meats to choose from there was only beef. 40 mins later my vegetarian lasagne, baked beans was served. It was cold. I asked the waitress for it to be heated. She then sulked off with my food. It returned later heated up. The other three meals had two thin slices of beef, three small baked potatoe halfs and two small bowls of insipid looking veg and watery tastless gravy. Went to pay the bill and was presented with a bill for the wrong table. Informed staff of very poor food to be told the chef has Sundays off!!!!!. Uninterested staff. Poor and cold seating area. Exceptionally long and unreasonable waiting times. Poor and nearly inedible food. Poor service. Unorganised. To conclude no toilet paper in ladies toilet despite staff being told to the point i retrieved a toilet roll from the gents for ny fiancee to take in with her. I will never take anyone back there again and i advise you not to either

The service was absolutely abysmal, we were told to find a seat and that menus would be brought over. Fifteen minutes later we had to go and ask again for menus and were told by the bar staff that they would rather we just had the Sunday roast and all they had left was beef. They reluctantly handed over their menu books, one of which only contained empty plastic wallets. We ordered food and drinks but nothing had arrived in twenty minutes so we asked at the bar and ended up just having to re-order everything since they had no record of our order. The table next to us were given cold food, which was sent back and the waitress was rude to them about how busy she was. We were in there a total of an hour and a half before giving up and leaving, after being told our food was supposedly going to take a further fifteen minutes. I have never walked out of a restaurant after ordering before, but never have I experienced such appalling service.

4 of us ate dinner here. Staff were friendly, helpful and very accommodating. Food was good and the price was very reasonable. Totally worth a visit in my opinion. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

Visitamos los sábados por la tarde y tuvimos una comida en el jardín. Lo mejor fue las campanas de la iglesia mientras comíamos, absolutamente gloriosa. La comida era buena, que era muy agradable chili y compañero tenía un hamburguesa y patatas fritas, que era preciosa. Realmente disfrutamos de nuestro almuerzo.

Nos encontramos con una cálida bienvenida cuando visitamos el trigos que ahora está bajo una nueva administración. El pastel de carne con cerveza era preciosa, el puré de patatas y verduras todos eran frescos y perfectamente preparado. Me dijeron que la ale era excelente y volveremos a probar el almuerzo de domingo muy pronto. . No estaba muy lleno, pero creo que pueden cambiar! ! . Muy buena relación calidad-precio.

Bajo una nueva administración con opción de cuatro cervezas siempre cambia siempre en buenas condiciones. Precios por debajo de la media. Ahora haciendo la comida. Tenía un excelente asado los domingos. Sky y Deportes bt pero no entrometido en diners. Jukebox genial. Bonito jardín. Un pueblo tradicional de pub sin pretensiones que ha mantenido su alma y carácter

Exactly what you want from a village pub. Great food, we kept beers, friendly landlord. What more do you need.

Simplemente horrible. La comida era horrible (ver foto), el servicio era pésima. Cuando llegamos la mesa de al lado estaban siendo pidió disculpas a la espera, 5 minutos más tarde otra mesa. Tenían nuestra orden equivocada, nadie compró cubiertos, incluso dieron la cuenta equivocada.

Visitamos esta noche, excelente servicio, "bistec especial" preparado a la perfección y muy muy sabrosa. Stella Artois, servida en un vaso helado "wow" añade otra dimensión al sabor del lager cuidado como debería ser. Volveremos más

Great Sunday roast and an extensive menu with good service and fine ales will be a regular. The weekday menu looks good also with all the usual a you would expect from a village pub, I think it will be steak and ribs for us, can't wait

I am a memeber of a local walking group and yesterday took lunch at the Wheatsheaf, one word - Brilliant, they catered for 2 groups both of about 18-20 people, not that you would know, service was great, freindly ans quick and the food was good, served well and warm depite the numbers. Great service, decent prices and freindly staff, what's not to like?

Six of us tried The Wheatsheaf for the first time today for Sunday lunch and we were not disappointed. Excellent meal. Well cooked and plenty of it. Pleasant staff.

Good quality, great service, warm welcome, good pleasant staff !!! What more do you need !!! Couldn't manage a dessert though as the first two courses filled me up, but the desserts looked amazing on the other tables !!!

Superb lamb roast with all the trimmings! Oh and great yorkshires!Very warm welcome! Was much needed after the fabulous Valentine's Dance that they arranged the evening before! Thank u Nick & Jo!

What a wonderful lunch we've just had at The Wheatsheaf in Castle Hedingham. Beautifully cooked roast lamb with all the trimmings. Roaring 'proper' open fire and a fabulous setting in one of Essex's most stunning villages. Enjoy!

3 of us had a meal, the man who owned it was the chefsent meal back as destroyed, the locals do not eat here I know why, charged for someone else's bill too whichwas more than what ours should have beennot

I hate to write really negative reviews as I think everywhere can have an 'off day' and there are often far more good experiences and when you read TA reviews, you have to make up your own mind. We like to support local businesses as much as possible and this pub is fairly nearby. It used to be the 'local' of choice for my husband and friends; but they have started to look at alternatives now. As we had not eaten there for a while and since it changed hands; we decided to give it a go.However, the atmosphere seems to have been lost from previous years, the staff whilst pleasant were not very welcoming or attentive and the food on the day we visited was not at all good.4 of us had a roast. The plates were tepid, the meat tough, we were not offered any condiments, the potatoes tasted stale and the vegetables were VERY hard. We all decided to forgo dessert and instead two of us ordered coffee. We waited some time only to hear upon enquiring that we had been forgotten, despite a half empty pub. When the coffee arrived in was in two mugs, one of which was chipped and cracked. We were horrified and will certainly not be eating there again. Such a shame, the food used to be really good and the place was always full.

Visited after finishing walk early hoping we were not too late for food. No problem - staff welcoming, food home cooked with generous portions of delicious veg. We had a superb relaxed meal, thanks.

Very nice food had by the whole group.... The staff were friendly and the place was clean & welcoming...

This pub has just gone up market.The landlord has moved on to go into the antiques Business .New Menue is good and it has not lost its pub feel.Ales are good and the staff very friendly and welcoming

The inaugural Shed Fest yesterday was absolutely superb! The food, beer, company and music were all excellent. Everything was beautifully well-organised.Music highlights were Alice Walker's funny, extremely professional set and Strangers Know More were astounding. One of the best events Castle Hedingham has seen in the last 30 years!

Straight up pub grub done to an extremely hi quality Staff v friendly and helpful, recommend pulled pork but everything good

Visited castle with some friends see there was amazing reviews on this place being in the trade myself I am very fussy the place was very quiet but village life in a midweek afternoon is part of the charm wow what a surprise when I got talking to the chef the man sure knows his stuff and knows how to knock up gourmet burgers we had the longhorn beef and the old spot pulled pork I would have to say it would be hard to beat this buns he produces and he spoke of his new shredded duck bun I'm having that on my next visit the place is a real gem and should be packed everyday from the food there serving and local ales to wash it down with perfect thanks Nik Neil and Joanne hope to see you all again soon

Arranged to meet friends in Castle hedingham and we all decided to try this village pub.... Simply amazing food...great selection of local beers and a lovely garden..Definitely worth another visit....this pub does everything from burgers to lobster... Great place

We visited this establishment today on the strength of Trip Advisor reviews. We just didn't recognise it as being the same place! The general atmosphere was dull and dingy, the staff less than welcoming, the menu dog eared and very limited. Perhaps we caught them on a bad day! We left.

Hard working, pleasant new owners! Dinner was amazing - Lobster & Crab Burgers with Home made Chips! Very Yummy. Moules fantastic! Kind Mannered Staff. Pub's environment improved- newly painted. Quieter & cleaner.... Congratulations!! ⭐️

One of the few places in Castle Headingham not closed on this Summer afternoon. After a short wait in the nearly empty bar the landlord/owner appeared and apologised for the wait. A nice cooling pint of local Bishop Nick Heresy ale was ordered,However, despite all the paraphernalia of being a food pub, after this demonstration of lack of pace of delivery, it was decided not to order any food…

We visited the Wheatsheaf after a recommendation from our neighbours. We were not disappointed! The pub has a new chef, Neil. His food is imaginative and very tasty. They were running a special of lobsters. My husband had never had lobster before and he is a convert! I had pulled pork which melted in the mouth. The house salad was delicious. The homemade aioli superb! Looking forward to going back soon! The roast dinners are the best in the area.

The Wheatsheaf doesnt look enticing from the outside but once you step inside (or take up residence in the beer garden) you will know you have made the right choice in choosing this charming village pub.We sat in the sunshine in the glorious, peaceful garden (which had a bit of shade and grass for the kiddies) and enjoyed a wonderful Sunday afternoon lunch with friends. Plenty of choice on the menu (would be even better if there was a small childrens menu - the basics such as pasta, fish fingers etc would suffice) I highly reccomend the beef burger - i would go as far to say it is one of the best i have ever eaten in a pub! Great value for money - priced just right!Food was outstanding, the pub is charming and the ale was delicious - we cant wait to return and only wish we lived closer!

Went hear for a meal with family .. The food was great and people was very friendly would recommend we will be going again

Organised a dinner for an expat, from the village.Surf & Turf brief was presented as a Tapas extravaganza. Great food, great service, thanks Guys.

Me & my partner went along for lunch on bank holiday Monday to meet my family (04/05/2015) and we had a very pleasant time. The food was simply delicious. I had the pulled pork and my boyfriend had the ribs. My dish was extremely tasty and the meat was fab along with the hand cut chips & my boyfriend said the meat on his ribs just fell off the bone. I would highly recommend trying this pub for the food - the new chef is doing a great job. See you soon!

We have often used The Wheatsheaf which has recently changed hands. The menu offered excellent pub food at a fair price. The menu is fairly limited in range, but this provided for better quality, and specialist evenings do provide themed dishes. The chef seems keen to expand the variety of cuisine, and has established a Dinner Club to facilitate this which we signed up for. The ales on draught often featured local brews. The Wheatsheaf is well placed to offer real competition to other established eateries.

Super yummy food :) New Menu is great.. Staff are friendly and make you feel comfortable.Great prices and great portions.Francesca

Having arrived in a large family group, although pre-booked, we were all trilled to have been served one of the best pub meals ever, all at the same, and in good time. This new chef really knows his business. The menu, in my opinion was on point, all fresh and 'home' made. Having tried the Thai butternut squash soup and blackened salmon on this visit - I can't wait to go back and sample some of the other dishes on offer. All this and is local for us too. Great!!!

Myself and my family visited on Monday 4th May and had the most amazing meal! There is a new chef there and with him comes a new menu which had many choices. Mad my decision very hard! Loved the decor of the place and was presented with a very warm welcome. We shall be back 100% thank you for a lovely day

I visited The Wheatsheaf with my family for a bank holiday lunch yesterday there were 14 of us in total, we had booked in advance and were pleased to see two lovely tables reserved for us in the resturant area. There is a new chef with a great new menu with lots of variety.. I went for the Squid followed by pulled pork in a bun.... You will not be dissopointed!!!! Great meal enjoyed by everyone, warm friendly welcome. We will definately be back soon!! :) Thank you.

Average country pub, temperature slightly chilly and furnishings could be more comfortable. We enjoyed a Sunday roast, potatoes slightly dry and beef a little overlooked, reminded me of my grandmothers cooking. Reasonable price. I doubt we would rush back, felt that it was a pub that preferred locals.

great varied menu, from cottage pie to tapas and great service. really warm cosy atmosphere in a lovely village setting.

Now under new ownership and has an injection of new ideas and friendly service. Tapas on Saturdays, Burger Night on Fridays, Sunday roasts and occasional live music on Sunday's. Really impressively tasty Tapas and quite simply the best burger I've tasted for years with an impossible choice of American, French, Mexican plus wild boar and Venison. Can't recommend highly enough. Word will get round very quickly. We wish them well.

Have eaten here now a few times since the new owners have taken over - not once had a bad experience, enjoyable every time, beautifully cooked food, friendly staff and relaxed atmosphere. Highly recommend the nachos and burgers!

Further to my previous review, I have now had the opportunity to stay here and sample the B&B service provided. The room was extremely comfortable and the breakfast delicious (and welcome after a night of drinking). Cannot fault this pub and would definitely stay again.

We had bacon and other sandwiches, a ham "Huffer" (massive bap!) and drinks in the pleasant garden/patio. Staff were friendly, parking easy and the ale was good!

This is predominately a pub in the heart of Castle Hedingham that also does a varied lunchtime menu that has a choice of traditional pub grub or "huffers" (essentially a very, very big butty with a selection of fillings for the larger appetite). I have heard that they also do an excellent Sunday lunch so will be checking this out the next time I am down there. Reservations are advised for the Sunday menu but during the week, there are usually tables available. The atmosphere is so good here that I have struggled to find anywhere so welcoming since I moved away from the area. I still consider it my local, even though I now live over 200 miles away. When people talk about Castle Hedingham, they often refer to The Bell. Whilst that also does good food, The Wheatsheaf presents an excellent alternative which more people should consider.