Bar staff had no personality, seemed like they didn’t want to be there , eventually found out which table we had reserved and asked for menu’s, ordered food at the bar after deciding what we wanted to then be told there were no steaks (should have told us that when menus were handed to us ) food was ok , not hot and not plentiful, unfortunately will not be returning
missmolliemaisiemay
I used to visit the bear & billet frequently and loved the authenticity of the pub. The staff previously had been engaged, friendly and accommodating. These days, they look they have just rocked up out of bed, simply ticking the boxes and counting down the hours until home time. Something has drastically gone down hill here and the bear and billet pub vibe has lost its soul.
michelle b
Booked here for a Sunday roast, had previously looked at the online roast options. Mentioned wanting a roast on the phone. Arrived to ask for our table, seemed to be a faff finding it , then was told table 6, no direction where that was. We had ordered drinks at the bar, sat down, was given a menu, no char from the waitress, I called her back and asked what the veggie option was for the roast, she went and checked, then returned saying they had no veggie option, as are short staffed, I attempted to say there is a veggie option on the online menu and that it should have been mentioned on the phone when booking, but she walked off. Poor communication. Poor service.
AJK0209
The manager Chris welcomed us into the pub , very sociable,his customer service was second to non, he made us feel we mattered. The pub was Ammaculate,warm and decorated lovely for the Christmas celebrations that had just passed. Chris said the history of the pub was interesting, he showed us around the various floors, one being the past hanging room , the pub was haunted due to past tragic events. Such history was eye an eye opener. Chris couldn't have been more hospitable THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR AN INTERESTING TIME.
Rixy09
What a great find this pub was. After roaming around Chester we came upon this pub in passing, decided to call in for a late lunch and so glad we did! The vegetarian curry was delicious and a fair price … only niggle was it could have been hotter, but nevertheless it was delicious. In addition the staff were really friendly and the little Christmas touches really made this old pub feel very Christmassy. Slightly off the beaten track, but well worth a detour!
715lesiaj
The pub looked very cosy and inviting as we were passing by. Very nice lunch (fish and chips) but what made our visit enjoyable was the friendly welcome and banter from the barman. Most appreciated in these days where indifference and disinterest are often the norm. Thank you!
foggy66
Called for a couple of drinks on a wet day. Very comfortable, very friendly with good beer. Ticked the box for us after a damp walk round the city walls.
Matt Samways
This was fine. I had a pint of Pow and it was one of the worst pints I've had in a while. It was flat, murky and felt like the barrel hadn't been changed in a long while. My mates other beers were fine (lager). The atmosphere is nice and it's a cosy little pub, but keep stock of your barrels.
Highlandmoo96
I’ll start off by saying Katie and the team are absolutely amazing. Know their products, can recommend on drinks and make the pub feel cosy. I used to frequent the bear and billet quite often but haven’t been able to in a while. You can really tell that there are new owners of the pub. They have changed the inside to reflect what can only be seen as an expensive weatherspoons. The previous comment about the signs inside such a beautiful building are correct. Huge, ghastly looking things which do not fit in with such an old building! The old specials board was enough and staff used to be able to tell you any deals which were on. They also have appeared to get rid of most, if not all of the beers that people prefer. Guinness? Gone. Amstel, Carling, Madri, gone. Even bottles of corona are now absent. Maybe if the new owners went around the pubs in Chester and saw how they decorate their buildings and see what they sell, they might be able to see how they’re meant to kit out the bear and billet. It certainly seems like they don’t know what to do with a building from the 1600s! It seems to feel like the new owners (whoever they may be!) have a vision in mind which doesn’t fit in with Chester and certainly doesn’t fit in with the building the bear and billet is in. It’s such as shame as mentioned previously, Katie and the team are always so welcoming, and it’s such a shame what they’ve done to what used to be a beautiful building.
petermU9772IO
What have they done to The Bear and Billet? The interior of the pub has been taken over by large, cheap looking signage which dominate the rooms and stairwell. Previous signs were few in number and relatively small, tasteful, plain blackboards with well written menu information. The much larger new ones look like they are a job lot from a closed down Wetherspoons. The building is Grade 1 listed and the previously limited internal signage reflected the character and appearance of such a precious building. The new signs have been screwed into the fabric of the building with total disregard to its listed status. It has changed the character of the pub from a genuine piece of history with an open fire ( adjacent to what is regarded by locals and tourists as the best two pub seats in Chester) to a caricature of a pub. With other genuinely characterful pubs in the vicinity, Cross Keys, Brewery Tap, The Albion, the Bear and Billet has made a real mistake by going down this route.
We nipped in for a quick lunch, the bar was nice, beer was good, food looked a bit expensive but we went ahead anyway. Of the 4 meals ordered 2 were cold and one was incorrect. We sent the cold ones back but kept the incorrect soup. The barman was very apologetic and arranged for them to be redone. When they returned one meal was warm, but the Brie wedges had completely lost any Brie, they were just breadcrumb shells. We sent them back and said don’t worry about replacing them as the other food was finished now. The barman was excellent apologised again and refunded the food. All in all a poor day for the chef corrected by the front of house.
Spillaartois
Seemed like one of those days for the staff today when I went in. I asked if they had any okells beer on and just received "whatever we've got then, pointing to the taps". Then my first choice was then taken off after two attempts. A keg pint, a fruit shoot and an appletizer set me back a tenner! Then to top it off they couldn't open the baby change facilities due to a theft of the radar key the day before
Tracx
Rude staff and cold food.ordered ham egg and chips and the ham was stone cold . When I asked about this I was told that’s how it comes .The attitude of the bar man was terrible. We paid 25 pounds for a sandwich and ham egg and chips . Would definitely not recommend and will not go there again
Mark Nicholson
Well worth breaking off the City walls walk at Bridgegate to visit this Grade I listed, 17th century building.
karen b
visited this pub twice on our 2 weeks stay in chester and found it to be friendly and staff very polite enjoyed it both times and second time liverpool was playing newcastle in the football and being a arsenal supporter i just sat and watched but was really great to see the passion in the liverpool supporters when they scored a late winner and lifted the roof off the pub yes we certainly enjoyed our time in this pub
Bar staff had no personality, seemed like they didn’t want to be there , eventually found out which table we had reserved and asked for menu’s, ordered food at the bar after deciding what we wanted to then be told there were no steaks (should have told us that when menus were handed to us ) food was ok , not hot and not plentiful, unfortunately will not be returning
I used to visit the bear & billet frequently and loved the authenticity of the pub. The staff previously had been engaged, friendly and accommodating. These days, they look they have just rocked up out of bed, simply ticking the boxes and counting down the hours until home time. Something has drastically gone down hill here and the bear and billet pub vibe has lost its soul.
Booked here for a Sunday roast, had previously looked at the online roast options. Mentioned wanting a roast on the phone. Arrived to ask for our table, seemed to be a faff finding it , then was told table 6, no direction where that was. We had ordered drinks at the bar, sat down, was given a menu, no char from the waitress, I called her back and asked what the veggie option was for the roast, she went and checked, then returned saying they had no veggie option, as are short staffed, I attempted to say there is a veggie option on the online menu and that it should have been mentioned on the phone when booking, but she walked off. Poor communication. Poor service.
The manager Chris welcomed us into the pub , very sociable,his customer service was second to non, he made us feel we mattered. The pub was Ammaculate,warm and decorated lovely for the Christmas celebrations that had just passed. Chris said the history of the pub was interesting, he showed us around the various floors, one being the past hanging room , the pub was haunted due to past tragic events. Such history was eye an eye opener. Chris couldn't have been more hospitable THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR AN INTERESTING TIME.
What a great find this pub was. After roaming around Chester we came upon this pub in passing, decided to call in for a late lunch and so glad we did! The vegetarian curry was delicious and a fair price … only niggle was it could have been hotter, but nevertheless it was delicious. In addition the staff were really friendly and the little Christmas touches really made this old pub feel very Christmassy. Slightly off the beaten track, but well worth a detour!
The pub looked very cosy and inviting as we were passing by. Very nice lunch (fish and chips) but what made our visit enjoyable was the friendly welcome and banter from the barman. Most appreciated in these days where indifference and disinterest are often the norm. Thank you!
Called for a couple of drinks on a wet day. Very comfortable, very friendly with good beer. Ticked the box for us after a damp walk round the city walls.
This was fine. I had a pint of Pow and it was one of the worst pints I've had in a while. It was flat, murky and felt like the barrel hadn't been changed in a long while. My mates other beers were fine (lager). The atmosphere is nice and it's a cosy little pub, but keep stock of your barrels.
I’ll start off by saying Katie and the team are absolutely amazing. Know their products, can recommend on drinks and make the pub feel cosy. I used to frequent the bear and billet quite often but haven’t been able to in a while. You can really tell that there are new owners of the pub. They have changed the inside to reflect what can only be seen as an expensive weatherspoons. The previous comment about the signs inside such a beautiful building are correct. Huge, ghastly looking things which do not fit in with such an old building! The old specials board was enough and staff used to be able to tell you any deals which were on. They also have appeared to get rid of most, if not all of the beers that people prefer. Guinness? Gone. Amstel, Carling, Madri, gone. Even bottles of corona are now absent. Maybe if the new owners went around the pubs in Chester and saw how they decorate their buildings and see what they sell, they might be able to see how they’re meant to kit out the bear and billet. It certainly seems like they don’t know what to do with a building from the 1600s! It seems to feel like the new owners (whoever they may be!) have a vision in mind which doesn’t fit in with Chester and certainly doesn’t fit in with the building the bear and billet is in. It’s such as shame as mentioned previously, Katie and the team are always so welcoming, and it’s such a shame what they’ve done to what used to be a beautiful building.
What have they done to The Bear and Billet? The interior of the pub has been taken over by large, cheap looking signage which dominate the rooms and stairwell. Previous signs were few in number and relatively small, tasteful, plain blackboards with well written menu information. The much larger new ones look like they are a job lot from a closed down Wetherspoons. The building is Grade 1 listed and the previously limited internal signage reflected the character and appearance of such a precious building. The new signs have been screwed into the fabric of the building with total disregard to its listed status. It has changed the character of the pub from a genuine piece of history with an open fire ( adjacent to what is regarded by locals and tourists as the best two pub seats in Chester) to a caricature of a pub. With other genuinely characterful pubs in the vicinity, Cross Keys, Brewery Tap, The Albion, the Bear and Billet has made a real mistake by going down this route.
Restaurantji Recommends
We nipped in for a quick lunch, the bar was nice, beer was good, food looked a bit expensive but we went ahead anyway. Of the 4 meals ordered 2 were cold and one was incorrect. We sent the cold ones back but kept the incorrect soup. The barman was very apologetic and arranged for them to be redone. When they returned one meal was warm, but the Brie wedges had completely lost any Brie, they were just breadcrumb shells. We sent them back and said don’t worry about replacing them as the other food was finished now. The barman was excellent apologised again and refunded the food. All in all a poor day for the chef corrected by the front of house.
Seemed like one of those days for the staff today when I went in. I asked if they had any okells beer on and just received "whatever we've got then, pointing to the taps". Then my first choice was then taken off after two attempts. A keg pint, a fruit shoot and an appletizer set me back a tenner! Then to top it off they couldn't open the baby change facilities due to a theft of the radar key the day before
Rude staff and cold food.ordered ham egg and chips and the ham was stone cold . When I asked about this I was told that’s how it comes .The attitude of the bar man was terrible. We paid 25 pounds for a sandwich and ham egg and chips . Would definitely not recommend and will not go there again
Well worth breaking off the City walls walk at Bridgegate to visit this Grade I listed, 17th century building.
visited this pub twice on our 2 weeks stay in chester and found it to be friendly and staff very polite enjoyed it both times and second time liverpool was playing newcastle in the football and being a arsenal supporter i just sat and watched but was really great to see the passion in the liverpool supporters when they scored a late winner and lifted the roof off the pub yes we certainly enjoyed our time in this pub