The Fox at Willian

We celebrated a 60th birthday with our family. We were allowed to have a room early, to settle our dog whilst 8 of us enjoyed a delicious lunch. We sat in a separate area of the restaurant which enabled us to have a quite space, to hear without too much external noise. Gluten and dairy free diets were very well catered for by knowledgeable staff. The food, presentation and service were superb. As was the full breakfast, served in the comfortable bar area which is dog friendly, the following morning. Thank you very much. The room was comfortable, although there was noise from the room above- the fan and shower. Worth noting-Not all of the rooms have rooms above.

We were visiting one of our sons who lives nearby. We stayed in room 7 which, although it faced the road, was very quiet. Bed was very comfortable and the linen kept us warm. Breakfast was excellent as was the evening meal. Staff were excellent, cheerful, helpful and there when you wanted them but not hovering so close as to be intrusive. If you have reason to be in the Stevenage/Hitchen/Letchworth area, STAY HERE! You won't regret it!

Beautifully presented plates, and great atmosphere, unfortunately the food was only appealing visually, taste wise there is plenty of room for improvements. I had the clams chowder and that was poor, the cream was extremely tick and overwhelming to the point that you couldn't taste any clams. The lobster oil was there but didn't add much to it. Same problem with the potato covered cod, the fried potato crust was too greasy and the peas were completely covering the cod flavour, not a well balanced plate. I will return to try other dishes hoping that this was just a bad day.

Another brilliant meal and the service was outstanding, thanks to Jude! He was super efficient and always on the ball. The food and drinks were top-notch, and the atmosphere was spot on. Only thing I'd suggest is a quick deep clean or a diffuser for the toilets, as they were a bit smelly. Overall, a fantastic experience that I'll definitely be back for!

Unfortunately three of the four Sunday lunch offerings had to be sent back as they were cold. The veg consisted of half a carrot and a spoonful of cabbage which I feel is pretty poor. The staff were very friendly but after asking for ice for the wine three times we still didn’t receive any. The food however once it arrived hot was very tasty. Not sure we will return which is sad as it’s a lovely place with a great atmosphere.

Went here for a weekend away and was not disappointed the room was beautifully decorated warm and welcoming. The food was delicious and the staff were lovely and friendly. Would definitely recommend

We’ve been coming here for years and have always enjoyed meeting friends here, which makes this review especially disappointing to write. Sadly, this visit was a real let-down. The food was poor and vastly overpriced for what was served. My husband’s meal was honestly reminiscent of something you’d expect from a school dinner decades ago. The steaks that three of us ordered arrived barely warm and in very small portions, completely unacceptable given the price. Although we were offered two desserts by way of apology, it did little to soften the blow of a bill of over £240 for four people. It simply didn’t reflect the quality of what we received. The only shining light was our waitress, who was an absolute delight. Her service was excellent and if it hadn’t been for her, we would have walked out without finishing the meal. We’ve always spoken highly of this place in the past, but after this experience we left feeling disappointed and unlikely to rush back.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A truly welcoming country pub! The Fox Inn at Willian is a fantastic place to relax, enjoy great food, and feel genuinely looked after. The atmosphere is warm and inviting, and the service is always spot-on. A special mention to Irmina, who is always smiling and goes out of her way to make guests feel welcome. She’s attentive, friendly, and incredibly helpful — a real credit to the team and one of the reasons we keep coming back. Highly recommended for anyone looking for great food, excellent service, and a proper village pub

Great pub to drink and socialize - we had a blast there and made two new friends! The whole little village there (Willian) and the church next door, is quaint and beautiful. It fancies itself as a gastro-pub but like a couple of others that experienced on this trip we were somewhat disappointed with the food, the menu etc somewhat pretentious, they try too hard and end up with no stellar result to validate the term gastropub in my opinion. That said - I will be back for drinks on my next visit to the UK

The Fox is an up market restaurant/pub set in the beautiful village of Willian, near Hitchin. Their food is absolutely amazing, and the service is great to. This is my favourite place to eat! It's quite pricey, but very worth it for a special occasion. They specialise in fish dishes, but their non-fish dishes are fab too. The only down side to their menu is the fact that they tend to only have one vegetarian option, so I don't think it's the best place to eat at for vegetarians.

Just on the edge of Letchworth, Willian is a pretty little village. The Fox combines a pub and restaurant next to the village pond, specialising in seafood brought in fresh from Norfolk, and meat from the farm next door. This is a restaurant that takes full advantage of the freshest, seasonal ingredients, and the service is good too. I haven't tried their fish and chips yet, but they won the award for the best fish and chips in the country at the Great British Pub Food Awards 2010. I'll be trying it soon! As a bonus, in a little building at the back, you will find a farm shop, containing fresh fruit and vegetables, wine and an excellent fishmonger. I'm a regular visitor, picking up Cromer crab, sacks full of mussels, plaice, monkfish, mackerel, or whatever else came in fresh that morning.

This is a top class restaurant and gastro pub in the lovely little village of Willian. It's run by the same people who own the White Horse restaurant in North Norfolk which some people may know. It's a regular entrant in the 'Good Food Guide' and other restaurant review books and rightly so. The food is lovely, beautifully cooked and presented. The wine and beer list are extensive too. The atmosphere is congenial, not at all snooty and the staff are attentive and friendly. But cheap it is not - in fact it's quite pricey. I wish I had the cash to eat here more often but for me it's definitely a special occasion type of place I go to maybe twice a year. Maybe when I win the lottery I'll go more often ...

Love this pub!!! Every time I visit my sister we will always come here. The food and atmosphere is great, the pub is clean, the staff is amazing !!! Just love it .

Excellent country pub with a restaurant. Food is to a high standard and bar area is also great.

Amazing food and a great choice of drinks. So many wines by the glass. You can choose between the restaurant bit or the more laid back bar. They also do great one off events and the menu is always seasonal. A great place to reward yourself after a walk around the arboretum! Or just a walk from the car!

Lovely mealinteresting menu and the food was well prepared and quality high. The service was good, but a bit confused at the bar. We ate in the lovely garden, a good setting for lunch. Food was £20-25 per person for lunch, two courses.

Been there for lunch a couple of times, it is a lovely gastro pub, that serves wonderful food... im sure ill be back again!

In over twenty visits, we've encountered close to 100% consistent delivery of professionally cooked and presented food. Service has been variable, but has been OK to excellent, never poor. And we come for the food, mainly. The menu changes often enough to give an idea of the kitchen's range. It is, at times, staid, but this may sadly!! reflect clientele's taste. Quality of produce (meat, fish, vegetables) is pretty consistently first-rate. In the past year we've tasted excellent, and excellently cooked and presented, pork, venison, oysters, beef, and lamb here. It is probably worth noting that it is fairly unusual for a good restaurant, even a 'gastropub', to offer such generous portions. There are also, as a 'starter' rather interesting slices of bread. These are all well and good, but our only (extremely slight) complaint would stem from the (apparently recent) drive to use 'British' rapeseed oil where good old olive oil (or British butter!) would have done better.