The best restaurants in Rettendon and Runwell Chelmsford East of England

Fantastic restaurant, fantastic food and Michelin star service . Highly recommended. The whole experience is one i will never forget

Food was excellent, so good. The only thing to advise is check your bill, and the amount that’s put into the card machine as there was possibly, but maybe not, a £30 difference which I luckily noticed!

Great experience last night. The restaurant has lots of small rooms meaning plenty of seating but still able to maintain a good atmosphere. The food was excellent with really deep flavours. We got the meat platter which had a great variety of different dishes on one board. Owner was very friendly and chatty too which was nice. Plenty of parking out the back. We will definitely come back.

Great bar and staff, highly recommended

We booked at the Lodge today, for a Sunday Carvery with nine adults and three lively grand children in the party. From the moment we walked into the restaurant, we were taken care of by the excellent, capable and super helpful staff. Nothing was too much trouble for them and the young lady who took our varied orders for 12 meals must have a photographic memory as she didnt write it down but was 100% accurate when the drinks and food came out. Jane was running the carvery and had it well under control and was very helpful. where there was a lull in the carvery que, then Jane took the opportunity to check everyone was happy and even made time to entertain the grand children with funny hats etc. The service then, was excellent, so too was the food. The general cleanliness in the restaurant and toilets was also very good indeed. The quality of the carvery meat and associated veg etc was excellent and prices very reasonable. Two of our party are Vegan and were very happy with the nut roast that they had. I would therefore have no hesitation in recommending the Lodge for a Carvery or menu meal to anyone and I will for sure be returning there as soon as I get a chance for another carvery or a meal off the menu. SW Chelmsford 16.3.25

Me and bf decided to come here for lunch after a good day browsing and for our first time there it’s was excellent I had the bacon sandwiches along with salad and crisps and my bf had the sausage chips and egg meal and both our meals were delicious The staff and waitress were great and we had excellent service Overall me and my bf had a great meal and a great view of BattlesBridge on the top floor Completely recommend if your in the area or after a good day browsing at BattlesBridge Solid 5/5

In the afternoon, stopped here for a toilet break & cuppa, would go back to try their yummy menu. the food looked delish :)

I think this is our favourite nursery cafe. It's a bit dark inside and can be a bit noisy as it's so popular but the staff are great, offering table service, which is so convenient. We were between jobs so just stopped off for some toast and coffee. Very nice. Extra butter and marmite. Yummy.

Found this lovely pub on our way to see a comedy show at Southend. The food was good quality and well cooked. The sever was very friendly and professional.

Exceptional service by Sara!! Very friendly and great ambiance of the place is great as well! First time here and recommend any and everyone to pass By!!

Wonderful atmosphere, food and staff!

Update: 10 of us booked for sunday roast and what a fantastic meal it was! See my photos, everyone had a big smile. Lovely staff, good prices. Big thankyou to Deb the barmaid who always works so hard! A credit to your team. Now under new management it's the return of The Bell ! Some of the old ream, and a nice new manageress to get it back on its toes! Benefitting from a good deep clean, and brighter lighting its ready to welcome old and new customers back. Friendly service, Biker's welcome, onwards and upwards! Good luck to all !

Came here for food one evening recently. There was a large group of us and they handled us brilliantly. Coming in here feels like stepping back 20 years but that’s a good thing, it’s different to most places but I was most impressed by the menu. There was too much to chose from which is a good problem to have, slight bit of nostalgia with some of the dishes too. The food was brilliant and the portion sizes generous. The staff always had smiles on their faces and they were really friendly and attentive. Our waitress was excellent and had a great sense of humour. There is plenty of parking out the front of the building. Will come back again.

In a lovely setting, Frasers provided us with a wonderful family group afternoon tea. Plenty of excellent food and drink both hot and cold. Staff are friendly, attentive and quietly efficient. Excellent value. Lovely room and tables decorated nicely. A memorable event for us. Thank you. 😊

Lovely food,the owner was so welcoming even though you could see he was rushed of his feet,highly recommend for a spot of lunch.