The best restaurants in South East

Stopped here for an early Saturday dinner when it was still quiet. Great friendly service, gorgeous old building, cozy fires were already lit. Prices very reasonable. I had a T-Bone, the others had some scampi and other more "standard" choices. All the food was decent, steak was very generous and with possibly the most chunky, crisp chips I've had in a long time. Selection of drinks seemed decent as well, though we didn't partake.

A Masterclass in Mediocrity: A Cautionary Tale from The Hand of Flowers We recently visited The Hand of Flowers in Marlow to celebrate my partner’s 60th birthday — a milestone occasion that we had hoped to mark with something truly special. What we received instead was an experience so deeply underwhelming, so bereft of imagination, and so riddled with pretension that it left us questioning whether the Tom Kerridge brand has simply become a machine for monetising celebrity rather than delivering quality. Let’s start with the menu. (Which we had to read from a tablet as the can’t afford to write out on proper menu cards) We chose a three-course set menu. However, with just two choices per course is not fine dining — it’s a lazy offering dressed up in self-importance. The fact that both the stater & the mains involved mini pastry pies speaks volumes about the lack of creativity coming out of the kitchen. A Michelin-starred establishment..? It felt more like a rudimentary pub lunch than the elevated cuisine you’d expect from a place bearing such accolades. Worse still, the quality of the food was shockingly poor. Overly rich, uninspired, and plated without any flair — it was culinary monotony at its most expensive. The dessert, if it can even be called that, was the final insult. Unmemorable, uninspired, and utterly joyless. It felt like something knocked up at the last minute, with no attention to detail or interest in delighting the diner. For a venue supposedly at the pinnacle of British pub dining, the lack of effort was staggering. But the food was only half the disaster. The service? Aloof and tinged with an arrogance that suggested we ought to be grateful simply to be seated there. One waiter snatched the napkin ring from the table with such haste and suspicion you’d think we were planning to pocket it. The overall attitude of the front-of-house team reeked of entitlement — as though the reputation of the restaurant absolved them from having to make any effort toward hospitality or warmth. The atmosphere was cold, the experience transactional, and the staff seemed entirely disinterested in whether guests were enjoying themselves. It’s hard to shake the sense that Tom Kerridge and his team are simply trading on his name — banking on the public’s goodwill and affection while delivering a product that’s light-years away from its marketing. If they think this is Michelin-star standard, they’re either deluded or laughing at the customers all the way to the bank. The truth is, there are thousands — yes, thousands — of countryside pubs across the UK serving better food, with more charm and genuine hospitality, at a fraction of the price. The Hand of Flowers is a case study in what happens when complacency meets commercial exploitation. It’s a rip-off wrapped in PR. To those considering booking, don’t. Save your money. Go somewhere that still cares about food, service, and customer experience. The Hand of Flowers is not that place. Tom Kerridge and his team should hang their heads in shame. They’ve forgotten what it means to earn loyalty — and more importantly, they’ve clearly stopped caring..

Mid, at best. Very small portions at a high cost. Vegetables were stale on some dishes. Waiting staff were attentive but we had to ask where our food and drinks were multiple times (our drinks were on the bar for 20 minutes). The highly regarded sundaes were mostly melted by the time they arrived at the table.

Lefti very helpful and attentive, but not intrusive. Food good as usual. Hot and well presented. Ample portions

if you want a kebab. Just go Mr Pizza - it's much better.

Tang and let me add to order. Great service again

Overall a very enjoyable meal, reasonably priced and delicious. Only downside was both our pork fillets were a bit tough and dry, could have done with a steak knife to cut it, a minor minus against, hence the drop of 1 star for the food

Amazing pub which serves delicious food, really recommend the turkey as it was very tender and flavoursome. The garden is great as it backs on to the river. Easy 5 stars

Just wanted to thank the staff at The Buddle Inn for a wonderful stay. Our room was perfect, overlooking the sea. It was exceptionally clean and furnished well and the bathroom was lovely too. We have a wonderful dinner in the evening and an amazing breakfast the next morning. Would definitely recommend this gorgeous hidden gem and look forward to returning one day.

We hadn't eaten in the Fox and Hounds for a couple of years as our last experience wasn't great. I am pleased to say we gave it another go. They even did their set menu on a Bank Holiday Monday. We all had 3 courses and all were very good. Delicious home made soup, 3 different main courses and treacle tart and sticky toffee pudding. However without doubt the stand out dish was the caprese salad. It was soooo good! Also a massive shout out to Rebecca, a true hospitality professional and a credit to the Fox and Hounds. We will be back 🙂

We booked a table for Sunday lunch here at 3-30 after having a booking at another pub cancelled due to no chef, we were so glad we chose The Cricketers, we arrived a little early but thought we would have a drink before eating, we were served at the bar by a very pleasant young lady ( sorry we didn’t get your name) who we informed that we had a reservation, which was no problem, we were shown to our table straight away and there was no rush to order any food so we were able to enjoy a drink before ordering, we then both chose the lunch of roast lamb with roast potatoes and seasonal vegetables with the accompaniment of cauliflower cheese it was fabulous, and the gravy was just as we liked it, it was so good we highly recommend it to anyone, a while after we had eaten the main course we ordered the cheese plate, that consisted of four different slices of cheese, grapes, bread and biscuits and also various pickles, it was lovely and and great accompaniment to finish our meal, the total cost of the meal with drinks we considered very reasonable, so just to say thank you all for excellent service and an excellent meal, The Cricketer’s comes highly recommended and when back in Brighton we will definitely visit again.

Excellent menu ,fantastic staff , fantastic food ,great selection for vegetarian, vegan it showed how good it is . The place was packed on a Thursday lunch time so you will have a wait for your meal but well worth it.

The Bear Inn, Oxford – Overpriced and Underwhelming We stopped by The Bear Inn expecting some classic Oxford charm, but unfortunately left feeling a bit ripped off. £6.20 for a small bottle of Asahi? That’s literally double what most other nearby pubs charge for the same thing — and for what? The setting is cozy enough, and the pub has a decent historical vibe, but the prices just don’t match the experience. You’d think for those kinds of prices there’d be something special about the place, but honestly, there are better pubs around with more character and far better value for money. Shame really, as it could be a great spot if they weren’t taking the mick with the drink prices.

Very poor service. Very unfriendly. Not even a word when they brought our food over. Ice cream also wasn’t very good. Beautiful decor though.

The waitress made a lunch very special. Went the extra mile, polite helpful and cheerful. Food and service top class. Lovely atmosphere. Free parking.