The Beckford Arms

We went for dinner on a Friday night as a last minute thing, and they were able to fit us in. The service was excellent from start to finish, and it's incredibly well run. The atmosphere is cosy and the building is beautifully done overall. We ate at the cheaper end of the menu, and the food was very nice. It's hard to judge too much from a posh pub burger, but I can't fault it and the chips were outstanding! The only downside is that it's pricey, a little above other similar pubs in the area, but I'd go back for the service even so. Bonus points for the fact there were quite a few dogs there.

Love this pub and the Fonthill estate! It has an almost magical feel to it. Have visited many times over the years. Today we did a walk and stopped by the pub for the squash soup. And an excellent soup it was! Also, a lovely log fire - perfect for a cold, sunny day!

My parents recently moved to the area and this has quickly become one of our favourite places around. Whilst visiting them, I’ve been for a drink on several occasions and a meal once too. Everything has always been brilliant, from the beer to the cocktails and the food to the service. I couldn’t recommend this place enough!

The pub itself is lovely, with lots of character and quirky bits of history. Service is also top notch. Sunday lunch was decent, although again there wasn't much for vegans - the "Sunday Roast" was leeks and other vegetables, with nothing like a nut roast, or mushroom wellington to go with them. It wasn't cheap either. The dishes aren't marked on the menu as vegetarian or vegan so you have to query which are suitable. ||It's a decent pub, but firmly aimed at the meat / fish eater.

A pleasant rural location. Room was pleasant, with a very comfortable bed. Dinner was excellent, breakfast had a good selection of hot and cold options. The bar area was relaxing, aided by a blazing log fire.

What a fantastic lunch at the Beckford Arms today. |Smoked Chalk Trout was delightful, the Pork Chop amazing and to finish with Mince pies and clotted cream really completed a fantastic lunch. Travelled 2 hours to meet family here and delighted we did. The service was spot on.|Would highly recommend.

Family lunch on a Thursday. Tricky parking as car park is quite small, not helped by large pub sign taking up one space and staff cars. Nice outside eating area. Drinks so slow to arrive was convinced they had forgotten us. Focaccia: 2 half- slices of the least-focaccia-like bread I’ve ever had for £4.50. Husband’s fish & chips was good. Sons had burgers, burgers themselves were fine but presentation extremely poor. Burgers & chips (small portion in my sons’ view) dumped on plates, no effort to present attractively, no accompanying salad etc. My chicken with charred corn and chorizo was ok (so I should hope for £25) but again awful presentation. Mum said her sweetcorn soup tasted ok but was really thick and had a skin on the top (probably left under heatlights waiting for the other dishes to be ready) and served with tiny piece of same focaccia. She mentioned this to waitress who came back offering free dessert, kind offer, but she didn’t want one. Plum pavlova was fine, “burnt cream” also fine although again no effort to present attractively. |Staff friendly enough although not the quickest and difficult to get their attention as they whizzed away from other tables so quickly without glancing around to check if anyone else needed them. Rather disappointed with the whole place, especially given its reputation and that we’d driven 50 mins to get there.

Birthday lunch in this elegant, relaxed, beautifully maintained hostelry with welcoming log fire and impeccable service. Delicious lunch and an amusing tutorial on the origins of ploughman's lunch (invented in the 1950s by the Cheese Council) by our divine waitress - how did she know that!? We've been coming here on and off for 20 years and right now the Beckford Arms is at the top of its game and that. We had a lovely time.

The perfect couples' retreat for a long weekend away from London. Highlights include wood burning stove, bathtub with a view, nearby woods for long walks in fresh air and great locally sourced pub food. I booked a weekend at the Beckford Arms after searching quite a while for a British gastro pub with attached inn. I loved the idea of getting out of London for a long weekend and not dealing with an airport. And, most importantly, getting great food. It took a lot of Googling before I found Beckford Arms, which had good reviews, is about a 2.5 hour drive out of south London and had rooms avail for £95/night including breakfast in the attached pub (closest contenders clocked in around £150/night and upward). Then I found their lodges. The mini lodges (there are just two) are two minutes away from the pub/inn, and cost a bit more. But lodges include a kitchen, wood burning stove, living room/dining area, and an upstairs mezzanine level with a roll top bath with an amazing view over the Fonthill Estate, which included a lake, trees and lovely green fields full of sheep and horses. Breakfast is included in the price, and with the lodge, you could choose to have breakfast in the pub, or they would stock your kitchen and you could cook your own whatever time you felt like it. We went for the lodge and it was so worth the extra cost. Service: Everyone, from the person I emailed with back and forth leading up to the visit to set up dinner and lunch reservations during our stay (they are very popular) was really helpful. Servers in the pub were super friendly and efficient and the woman who popped by our lodge to offer clean towels and more kindling was lovely. We booked in-room massages from their recommended masseuse and she was wonderful, one of the best massages I've ever had. Food: Pretty damn good. I had a breaded chicken, bacon and avocado sandwich with fries and salad that was a huge portion though a tad on the greasy side. For our Saturday night dinner out we shared the 22 oz coute de bouf steak for two with heaping sides of salad and chips and peppercorn sauce. It was incredible, and per our request, dined by the real fire in the sitting room. The breakfast was fantastic as well, the eggs benedict divine. Accommodation: Perfect. The lodges are the perfect size and they do not allow children, they are set back from the road and there are only two of them - so it is the perfect couples' retreat. The entire upper floor is loft/mezzanine style, allowing views out the floor to ceiling windows toward the lake. The wood burning stove warms the whole lodge wonderfully. The bed was big and comfy, the bath is placed with a great view over the fields and lake. The kitchen is small but well stocked - it meant we could bring a few items from home to save eating in the pub every meal (like popcorn and sandwich fixings) and they provided a kettle, coffee/tea and milk. Wifi is provided and it was pretty good. Area: Beautiful! Driving in from the A303 meant driving through a beautiful stone arch into the grounds that feels magical. The Fonthill Estate is gorgeous and a five mile walk is plotted out (including photos so you don't get lost) on pamphlets you can pick up in the pub. You'll walk around a lake, through forest and fields and get a great view of the village from up high and see sheep, horses, dogs, swans and more.

YES: The rooms, the surroundings, the staff, the breakfast, the coffee. DON'T: ...expect scones with your tea - or gastro food (but it's very solid pub grub - think Soho House).

Comfortable and welcoming, in beautiful surroundings; attentive and thoughtful staff and very good food. We stayed for one night, and the room was comfortable and very nicely presented, with a lot of thoughtful little extras like bath salts, a spare toothbrush and a spare razor.