Reviews in Bideford

Reserved a table for my son's birthday. My wife arrived with a birthday cake and asked if we could keep it in the kitchen for after our meal. With a dead straight face the manager said 'We do not allow outside food into our kitchen' . This man was so serious my wife thought he was joking but not so and that is where our dining experience started to nosedive. One person in our party had to pull out at the last minute and because of the empty seat nobody came over to serve us or ask if we would like drinks. Nothing. So after 15 minutes we had to walk up to the bar to ask for some menus and it was pointed out that our reservation was for 6 not 5. When the manager came over to take our order my wife apologised for not letting them no about the missing person in the party only for him to reply ' Well it doesn't take much to pick up the phone'. The cheek of it. If it wasn't for the fact it was my son's 12th birthday I would have upped and left. This man has a serious lack of people skills and comes across as rude and arrogant. When my son asked for a slice of lemon in his glass of water he rolled his eyes as if we were making his life difficult. The food on the other hand could not be faulted. Absolutely delicious! Pity really as we will never be going back.

well what can i say about this place. ive been twice for sit down meals and both times it was great,the staff are excellent especially roxy and the owner pete is great very welcoming.

Dont go there its! Stay away!.....That way it wont be fully booked when i next want to go!!!!

Ate here in May 08, on recommendation of our bed and breakfast accom. Delicious food, individually prepared, within a pub atmosphere., but not pub prices. However, you always pay more for quality food.

I visit this restaurant as often as possible, the food as always been top rate. The staff and owners are lovely; they also serve a nice pint of real ale.

We visit this restaurant frequently and never disappointed with the menu, food or service. The owners are charming hosts. It is very busy at weekends so advance booking is wise.

excellent food and a charming little place

Cannot believe how bad this place was. Arrived at 8:50 having booked for 9. No table free til 9:20. Looking around while we were there, it would seem that we were not the only ones who had been there some time without service.There is a reason for this - the abominable service overall. After waiting another 15 mins to order, and then 35 mins for the starter to arrive , it was cold!Unbelievable. Decided to cut our losses and left, having been in the place for an hour and 20 mins without eating anything!! DON'T GO THERE!!!

we went here last year for our wedding anniversary meal. It is the best meal we have ever tasted,and we eat out 4-5 times a month. 6 of us went and 5 of us had a fillet steak, ranging from rare to really well done. Once the food arrived, all the steaks looked the same from the outside, it was only once you cut through it did you notice if it was rare or well done, and the taste was amazing. The only problem is, it is 400 miles from home. highly recommended with 10/10 for service, food quality, and using local produce.

We stayed at Penhaven for a special family birthday weekend. The restaurant staff and food was good but that was about it! The customer service was awful - everything was hard work for the management staff and the rooms were substandard. If you have any problems during your stay, don't expect any help from the management!! The whole experience was a shambles and this put a bit of a dampener on our special weekend. Sian, London

The gentleman behind the bar is making major efforts with this pub and his service was excellent. However, we were made to feel very uncomfortable and unwelcome by a female member of staff who we presumed was landlady/chef. I was sitting in the only comfortable seat close to the fire and she stood behind me glaring at me for a number of minutes giving me the distinct impression that as an 'outsider' I should not be in the pub's comfy seat and my husband was 'told off' for touching her brass. If a pub is going to create a welcoming lounge-like atmosphere, it needs to accept that pokers in front of the fire may be touched from time to time. This unfortunately destroyed the experience for us, we had been considering returning but we would not do this as we feel that, if we stayed at this pub, we would be treated as 'outsiders' which is a shame. If the lady can develop a different approach then this pub has massive potential. The barman, possibly the landlord, had an excellent welcoming approach but this was destroyed by the lady. We were going to stay longer but, having been made to feel very uncomfortable we left.

As we were looking looking for property in Weare Giffard we felt it important to try out the village eatery and pub.We arrived mid-week expecting the place to be pretty quiet but what we saw was a lively hub of the local community.We were expecting run of the mill pub grub but what we got could rival any local quality restaurant.The food was cooked to order and everyone in our group choose something different. What we ended up doing was having a taste of everyones meal. Maybe not quite the done thing but rather necessary as all the meals were delicious.Well done. We'll be back.

A little gem. You would be hard put to find anywhere better. From Crab Salad to the Carvery, it caters for all tastes and I doubt that anyone going there for the first time will be disappointed and will want to make a return visit. My only regret is that I live 250 miles away and can only call in 3/4 times a year.

i found the meal on the whole excellent and shall in future visit this friendly establishment.

Service was great, smiley faces all round! Definitely go back again for the lasagne! Pub was clean and tidy and toilets were hygienic. Definitely recommend!!!

The Shepherds restaurant had an amazing array of food, much locally sourced. The lasagne was to die for - I asked for the recipe! The staff were brilliant and made us feel like we were long lost friends. The restaurant was tastefully decorated with fresh flowers on the tables and quaint ceramic cruets in the shape of sheep, available in the sheepy shop for a very reasonable price.

First time visit and had a superb Sunday lunch. Friendly staff and quality food.

We are regular visitors and have never had a poor meal yet. Good management, good staff, good food. If you know of any better, let me know where