Top Oak Restaurant & Pub Essex Venue Hire Stapleford Abbotts in Epping Forest

Incredibly boring menu, was seated right next to the bar where I had to suffer the locals loudly and drunkly shouting at each other. Staff were not very welcoming, they forgot to give us a menu. At least 3 meals they didn't have and parking was a nightmare as too small a carpark/people parking where they shouldn't of been (disabled bays, across lines. Finished my drink and went to The Orange Tree which has a much more interesting menu and better service all round. Won't be going back

After a long drive we stopped off here. Nothing too much trouble. Friendly Staff, Great Food even had Entertainment. Thanks!!

Disappointed they shut the pub at 9.30 pm

Stopped for quick pint while daughter was at the golf club training circuit

Nice pub in good location spoilt a little by early closing 9:30 most week days and closed on Monday.

Had a very nice lunch here, just the two of us. Ample parking spaces, walked in early without reservation and seated straightaway (although it did start to get busy about an hour after we arrived so a reservation for a late lunch might be good idea). Nice decor throughout. Waiting staff were very pleasant and helpful. Food arrived in good time between courses, not too late not too soon. Mussels, starter and Skate wing main with apple crumble for dessert, all delicious. Will definitely be returning to try the Sunday lunch, may just have found our new favourite local’. Cab next time so I can have a wine with my meal!

Went for some food in me own first time hear as not from around hear but was very nice food and sat out side lovely place to be fair kind staff as well thanks X i will be back

Honestly the food is brilliant but the apple crumble with custard is sensational! Please never remove it from the menu! <3

Average food, not too expensive but won't be rushing nack

Had an excellent meal last night in The Top Oak, Skate on specials board was beautiful. Service by our waitress Debbie was continually attentive throughout the evening….we couldn’t have asked for more.. Good Food, Great Atmosphere and Excellent Service. Looking forward to a return.

Food was delicious and generous portions.

Great little local pub, we called in for Sunday lunch today for the first time and was really impressed. The food was all home cooked and fresh, they had a good specials menu too on top of the main menu. All the staff were warm, welcoming and friendly. We will definitely be back.

Visited with my friend and really enjoyed ourselves . Very relaxed atmosphere and pleasant staff.The food was tasty and good value.They have outdoor area also.

First time there and definitely will come back. Lovely food and 1st class service. Thank you.

Quiet bar/restaurant. The food was pleasant and the staff were good to us and my fussy mother. I'd go back again for sure, but I didn't give it more stars as my ham wasn't anything special, but the others enjoyed their meals.

Lovely country pub. Friendly staff always welcoming. Good range of beers on tap. Recommend giving it a visit

Was at your place on Fri 15th March for a funeral wake your staff were brilliant friendly and couldn't do enough for everyone 👏

Visited here on a Sunday for lunch. The food is pretty standard pub food. Amazing staff service, all very attentive, friendly, and efficient. It was very packed inside and there were no spaces left in the car park. I would suggest getting there early if you need a space as it gets extremely full up. It isn't dog friendly inside just outside in the garden area.

Pub fare, Steak in Ale pie was good, creamy mash was a bit small, fish n chps was really nice, minted lamb chops were really good, desserts were good, was in the pub as opposed to restaurant, so pub tables and chairs, jeans n tee welcome. Was pretty decent.

Thank you to the lovely bar ladies and gentleman that helped me with petrol directions during a meltdown. I made it!! Thank you ;) xxx

This place is a little gem the food is outstanding the staff couldn't do enough for us and it was lovely and quiet.

Fab lunch as always at the top oak. The roast dinner was amazing and the service was impeccable!

Best roast we have encountered in the area. Been back now a few times and always very good.

Lovely Sunday lunch with friends, staff went above and beyond, and made it so much better.

I went here for Sunday lunch with my family. The food was lovely, wish I knew how they got their roast potatoes so good. Service was friendly and efficient with a great atmosphere.

Had to wait ages for main courses to arrive. Suggest car park needs lights as definitely a health & safety issue especially if unsteady on your feet it’s a death trap out there. Surprised not been reported.

Food and service, the atmosphere is absolutely excellent well worth a visit had a lovely afternoon didn't realise we had been there nearly 4 hours. There is no pressure at all from the staff to leave attentive to our needs without being pushy. Thoroughly enjoyable experience. Thank you, Top Oak.

Nice pub. Pleasant staff. Service a little slow (we were not in a hurry). On occasions had to go to the bar to find serving staff. A little pricey for a pub lunch.

Good food and lots of it. Nice and bright and airy. Perfect service at the right speed.

Had our wedding reception here 9/9/23, we cannot recommend this lovely venue high enough, the staff in the build up Louise and Amy were fantastic, on they day everything wS perfect the food was amazing and they just worked tirelessly to make sure our time there was everwe wanted and more thank you so much to everyone involved in making out day one to remember, sam and micky xx

Fantastic food, great service and lovely decking area. Great night all round

Fabulous pub wish we lived nearer!

Fish and chips perfection. Steak and ale pie perfection, too. Excellent service. 👍🏽😋

We had starters of specials of Beetroot and Giats Cheese Salad, Salt n Pepper Squid of the normal Sunday menu Buffalo Chicken Wings and Cockles. They were all really nice and served as expected. We then had roast beef, gammon roast, Steak and Ale pie, and I had a platter of meat roast. I tasted all meats pork, beef, chicken and gammon all were moist the accompanying Yorkshire pudding, wide ranging veg and roasties were lovely to. We had naughty sides of sausages in bacon lush, pork crackling double lush! And Cauliflower cheese. Everything was great! For desert i had Belgian Waffle with toffee sauce and fudge which was rich! Service friendly and lovely atmosphere! This place is worth a visit really lovely 😍

Cute inside friendly staff would highly recommend a little visit.

Visited a good few times, staff are lovely and friendly, roasts are good! Being vegetarian they catered for me well, two large Yorkshire puddings and extra potatoes! Lively and reasonably priced.

Had the best food in such a lovely pub. Very welcoming staff.

Love this place,Hard working Staff as well.Making sure your visit,will be the first of many.

I would recommend this place the staff were friendly and very helpful the whole place was clean and homely will definitely be going there again when I go down south again

Had a great family lunch here. The entrance isn't that inviting, but the restaurant area is really nice, and thankfully, air conditioned. Had the salt and pepper squid to start, and it was soft with a nice light batter - tasty and perfectly cooked. My partner had the gyoza, and they were also fresh, tasty, and perfectly cooked. We both had the pork roast. The meat was tender and tasty with a lovely rich gravy. Nice fresh veg and nicely cooked potatoes and parsnips. Finished off with gherkin biscoff cheesecake, which tasted bought in, but was still really nice. Service was friendly and just at the right speed. Definitely worth a visit if you are in the area, everyone enjoyed their lunch.

Want to say a huge thank you to all the staff who made my Dad's birthday the most amazing day! Nothing was too much trouble. Food was fantastic and the service second to none 😀

A clean, spacious pub/restaurant. Our food was hot, nicely presented and well cooked. Good portion sizes

We went on a whim today and the food was amazing! I wish I had taken some pictures. It was quiet and calm and quite relaxing in there. The waitress was very attentive and had lots of time for us even though she was quite busy. Will definitely be going again soon!!

My beef was overcooked but my friends was perfect, and it was swimming in too much gravey and vegetables overcooked,

Birthday meal yesterday I'm pretty fussy - our children have bets as to if I'm gonna send something back or not ha ha . Not been here in a while but it local so we decided to go here for the wife's birthday meal - got to say food was spot on tasty , plenty and great price and came up pretty fast when we eventually ordered - toilets always a niggle of mine - 100% spotless decor perfect very homely - will be back soon 100% recommended - our server was very patient and attentive with us as we were chatting away like good ones and not ready to order for ages . a couple of niggles - why of why did you take the pie n mash off the menu - was the best I've ever had . secondly service charge added to bill - no need you would have got a bigger tip had you left it to the customer - I totally disagree with service charges added automatically - it should be down to the customer simple . thank you very much for a great evening mv

The staff were so friendly and kind. the starters we had (squid and prawns) were absolutely delicious and served nice and hot. We enjoyed the mains too, we were nice and full after the meal. Had a great time all in all.

Had the roast, fantastic, staff very friendly and helpful

Excellent service and good food.

A very welcoming pub with amazing staff and great food. Would recommend a visit.

Wetherspoons quality food & Karen's Diner service at restaurant prices. Go elsewhere.

Customer service is perfect, friendly and sweet. The food I can't say anything wrong the curry was really tasty, the fish and chips delicious, and the pizzas 👍 what can I say! Amazing. Well recommended

Burger was amazing and can't fault it We pre ordered our food before arriving. Half the started never arrived. Room itself was rather small and parking was awful.

Smashing roast dinner. Excellently cooked, fresh veg good portions. Great service from friendly staff. Cannot be faulted.

A great place to eat. One of our favourites

Do not trust the gluten free selection, my wife became really ill after eating here, I called the manager later the following day to let him know, he told me he’d speak to the chef then call me straight back, that was almost 2 months ago. 🤬🤬

Fantastic meal on new year Eve! Steak and chicken was amazing ! Staff were so friendly and made us feel so welcome! Just to say ! Food was amazing!! Definitely coming again!!

Nice comfortable atmosphere, food very good, all staff very polite and helpful. Will go back in future. Car parking is good.

Great homemade pub food. Very pleasent staff

Lovely service, friendly staff and great food. Went for my boyfriend’s birthday( 6 people) and the total bill was around £300. We got so many rounds of drinks and food for each person, including one desert and coffees. A free drink at the end was also offered. My boyfriend comes here quite often and really enjoys the fish and chips.

One of the best roast dinners I've had. Staff were very attentive and friendly. Will definitely visit again. Thank you 😊

*They don't serve vegan roasts* I was visiting the local country park one day and this place looked like somewhere nice to get a Sunday roast after. Their website doesn't have the Sunday menu on it, so I called to firstly check that they served them, and that they served a vegan roast (one of the party is vegan). I was told yes, they serve roasts and have a vegan option - great, I booked a table. We ordered a first round of drinks then ordered (3 x meat roasts and one of the vegetarian roasts without the Yorkshire pudding to make it vegan (the waitress said that was the option available, which was great). The waitress returned 5 minutes later and informed us that they aren't able to serve a vegan roast as "the veg is cooked in butter and the gravy has meat juice". We wern't best pleased as I the told her that I had called in the week specifically to make sure they can make a vegan roast (which isn't exactly difficult to make). I asked to speak to the manager and again described why we were frustrated that we couldn't order what we were told we could. She went away to the kitchen back came back with the same response. She said they have alternate vegan options, or (reluctantly) if we really wanted the roast, it would be at least 45 minutes (and got the sense that the chef didn't want to make it). We decided to go elsewhere as we felt really let down by the poor service. The manger proportioned blame on one of the younger members of staff when I called getting mixed up "I tell them one thing and it goes out the other ear". The thing was, the manager sounded very much the same person as I had spoken to on the phone.... We were given our round of drinks free of charge, so that was some saving grace. But ultimately this was a really poor experience.

Lovely roast, great staff and lovely restaurant and bar.

How they did the amount of mussels for the price they charged is beyond me.Friendky stakk good good nice time

It is a nice enough pub with food. We had Sunday Roast that was ok and portions were big. Team was really nice and attentive, apart of a bit awkward male staff in a suit who dropped food next to our table and just left it on the floor 😀 one of the girls had to clear it what was strange. I would probably give only 4 stars but Amy looked after us so well. Thanks Amy!

Was a lovely roast although spuds could have been cooked a little longer, myself and my husband used to go on dates here 37 years ago so it was nice to go back for a date after all these years and we are still together ❤

The food is fantastic, everything is spotlessly clean very friendly polite staff, coffee very nice too. Nothing to complain about.

Always excellent food and service !

Took my mum for lunch and it was very enjoyable. Food was fantastic and the staff were very friendly and cheery. The place was a bit shabby but I was told it's closing for a few days for a refurbishment so it will be even better. A lovely place to go for lunch.

Roast potatoes under cooked. Beef a bit tough but the Eton mess dessert was delicious.

This is the first time I've visited this pub. Went for lunch and had the steak and ale pie which was delicious with generous portions. Everything was cooked to perfection. The decor inside the pub was nice and the staff were lovely too. The background music was a bit loud and I think the staff need to set up a proper music system as it kept cutting out. It also needs more easy going background music too, so customers can have conversations. Sadly, the time between ordering our dinner and recieving it was very slow, with one couple who had arrived after us receiving their dinner before us (funnily enough with the same two mains), so we couldn't stay for desert - maybe next time!

Sunny Sunday lunch at @thetopoak1 Shared breads and salt & pepper squid to start and enjoyed a sea bass fillet served on a tomato & pepper salsa, with sliced roasted potatoes, green beans and a balsamic jus...... Good food, good company, great location & service.

Had a lovey Sunday lunch at top oak yesterday, great food and atmosphere, fast and efficient staff, Jenny our waitress very friendly. Definitely would recommend. Sandy

Nice place but the staff let it down. Not overly friendly or helpful.

Great menu friendly service will definitely recommend.

The wing of skate was beautiful and great value at just £13! Lovely setting, decking area was great and restaurant looked lovely. Toilets could do with an update however. Overall would defo recommend and will be returning.

We had our Wedding and Evening reception here at the Top Oak. I can't thank Simon and the girls who looked after us enough! Food , drink ,service all amazing! It was the perfect venue and a perfect day! Thank you again so much !

Went to this pub,restaurant yesterday for a relatives 50th birthday! Very pleasantly surprised! Approximately 30 people catered for in our own covered area with lots of ceiling heaters and plenty of seating! Drinks are a little on the high side but good selection! The buffet put on was extremely good and plentiful! The bar staff were curtios and efficient! GREAT

Went here for a Wedding. What a nice cosy spot . Food was well set and the staff were on point with there service.

Is a very nice pub but the food isn't 100% amazing for the price. The gravy with the roast was like tasteless water which ruined the meal which was quite upsetting a bit for £21 I didn't waste it. My husbands glass was filthy wasnt impressed with that all at. Alot of money for ok food. Also watch out for the service charge on the bill so no need to leave a tip.

Great food and service really friendly in there clean and a great place to eat well priced too

Good food and drink. Nice staff

Visited here because it’s local and has good reviews, but I feel hoodwinked. I had the Sunday roast and it was the blandest meal I’ve ever had in my life. Not a grain of seasoning on that plate, I had to use the salt & pepper on the table to make it edible. The portion size was good and the plate well presented, but that’s pointless when the food doesn’t taste nice.

Friendly staff who made you feel most welcome. Food was well prepared and tasted excellent. Menu varied so everyone should find something and tables far enough spaced to enable comfortable seating.

One of the best restaurants in Essex.

Meal was OK but didn't see anywhere about a service charge. Didn't realise till later that added another £5 plus to the bill. We had left a tip as well. So be aware.

Lovely staff, plenty of room, food was delicious.

I had pre-ordered Cod and chips...The cod was placed on the chips which made the batter soggy underneath and the batter was stuck on the chips. So not pleasant. We had booked because we were told by the management, when lunching for my first time a month before, that there was a special Harry Chamberlain covering Luther Vandross singer. Other Diners talked all the way through the performance with one woman proceeding to "Swing" trapeze like from a wooden beam. So very disappointed that there was no respect for the performer or those people that had paid to be entertained and lack of control over the proceedings. Waiting staff were excellent food was delivered to our table with a smile so cannot fault the staff and polite friendly bar staff served us on entry.

Great place, awesome Sunday roast

I went for a Sunday roast . It was a very nice roast but a little overpriced compared to Sunday roasts just as good nearby.but that's just my opinion!!

Went on Thursday night in the restaurant ,really nice friendly staff ,food was average, seafood linguini not a lot of seafood plenty of pasta, maybe try bar food next time

Proper pub, with a great restaurant attached. Lovely place

Lovely food, lovely staff and was not rushed, perfect

The service was impeccable & the waitresses were very attentive. The food was delicious. Could not fault our experience with you. Thank you again.

First visit from out of area. Food was excellent. Staff helpful and fun. Was a busy pre - Xmas Sunday early dinner so was filled with kiddies for Santa's visit- a little loud but otherwise a great couple of hours! Definitely would return. Food was excellent for pub food - good restaurant quality. Large portion. No scrimping. Super tasty.

We were a large group for a Sunday, only bugbear was we had to preorder, good service and monster Yorkshire's - what's not to love about that. It was rammed, parking can be an issue

For a pub very expensive and for not really up to standard. Then to top it all tried to add 2 drinks and 2 desserts to the bill Good job I checked and would advise everyone to check the bill

I'll be honest, this was a random stop and one of the best places I've ever been to, the service was amazing, the food was brilliant and well priced.

Amazing food! And good service 👍

Really nice restaurant & pub, good food & beer, excellent service, fair prices, some disabled parking space, would recommend

Great staff and great food. The young lady singing was fantastic. Thoroughly enjoyed our evening and would recommend to anyone 👌