Visited for a spur-of-the-moment weekday lunch. Driven past many times, and now wish I'd been in before. Great food, attentive staff, a nice range of drinks. Will visit again.
Nicola
I went along to the reopening of the pub after refurbishment. There wasn't a normal menu just canapes. These were nice but we were missed out on some of the rounds and still hungry when we left. Nice buzzy atmosphere, slow service but then it was v busy.
Sam Goodman
Lovely food, especially the blackberry and liquorice
Deborah Toynbee
We were out for a walk along the Basingstoke canal and stopped here for lunch. We immediately had a warm welcome and prompt service. French onion soup and crusty bread with Marmite butter - all really tasty and reasonably priced! Will definitely visit again and try some more of the menu which looked great.
Marta Waszkiewicz
AVOID. We went for a meal for Mother's day (10.03.23) here and based on very good reviews we thought this will be a nice treat for all of us. We booked a table and preordered food in advance. Upon arrival our table was not ready and we had to wait half an hour for it to be available. Whilst we waited, we were offered a free drink, which was appreciated. Once the table was finally free, we were sat down and waitress brought our nibbles after about 10-15 min from sitting us down, which we basically inhaled as were very hungry at that point. Once we finished, we were waiting another 15-20 min we were served our starters. After we finished eating starters and plates were cleared, we waited another 30 min for mains. After the plates were cleared after mains, again we waited another half hour for desserts, which at that point we did not enjoy anymore. I appreciate, that this is one of the busiest days in pub's calendar, but if we were asked to preorder our meals to avoid delays, not sure why then a lunch which should have taken an 1.5 hr max turned to 3 hour event. The wait inbetween meals was exhausting and no updates were given as to why food was delayed, other than sorry. Additionally, food was not the best, pork was uncooked in places, mushroom wellington was bland and dry. We paid full price for this and service charge. I would not recommend this place, food is not worth the money. And a day which should have been a nice familly gathering was spoilt and made us feeling very dissapointed.
Sarah Kilpatrick
Food was really good, especially the Bang-bang cauliflower. Friendly staff and good service. Will come
Loretto Wren
Having arrived at 5.30 pm two of our party of 7 ordered monkfish which was off the menu. We ordered our starters, and only as they arrived they informed us that they had no scallops?. Sadly being same person who wanted the monkfish, this was very poor. Portions very small. Nobody came and asked if we’d like more drinks. Ladies toilets one was blocked and flush broken, second toilet very difficult to get inside, and low on toilet paper. We will not return. We used to really love this restaurant, had it been busy we could understand, but very quiet at the time of our sitting. As a Mother’s Day celebration it was really poor.
M X
Disappointed that I didn’t even get the common courtesy of a response to my two emails to book for the locals evening! Checked my junk emails too.
Shelley “Pawwavingpuppy” Tilley
Had a lovely Sunday roast here today, with family. Despite being really busy, the staff were very efficient and helpful. The sirloin of beef was cooked to perfection, medium rare, my husband had the roast lamb, which was equally well cooked, he also said he had some sort of shredded lamb served with it, which was extremely tasty, any chance of the recipe please?? ? the veggies were also well cooked, just right, I normally find they're normally practically raw in most restaurants but these were lovely and not crunchy....A nice selection of desserts with some different things for a change...beware these are large!!!!.A lovely meal with family, and very well cooked, despite the pub being full.Doggy friendly (you wouldn't know our dog was there, he just lays under the table)Good size car park.Highly recommended!!!!
Being refurbished when we visited so will return to try the menu, heard good reports.
Debbie Pettifor
Very disappointing. We chose The Exchequer on a cold damp night because of its real fire and cosiness - no fire on, no radiators on either and a freezing draught coming up from the cellar. We just wanted two burgers, which we’d had before but did not want the house sauce or pickles and ordinary ketchup and mayonnaise. One burger arrived with pickles hidden under the lettuce, the other slathered in the house sauce which contains pickles. The waitress did bring a fresh bun and fresh salad to replace the one covered in house sauce, and just said sorry but she had noted it down on our order. The chips were not particularly hot and the burgers cooled quickly with the chilly temperature inside the restaurant. We asked for the bill and were shocked to see a service charge added too. The Exchequer is not what it was, and seems well over priced for what you actually get on your plate - we realised when we got home there were no crispy onions either which were on the description in the menu. Not somewhere to return to.
Mark Rees
Firstly the positive – the staff were friendly and accommodating.But sadly, now the negatives – although this pubs' website states "Our spacious patio area is ideal for soaking up some summer sun after a local dog walk", it did not mention that dogs are allowed in the restaurant area. I am allergic to dog hair and both my partner and I think it's unhygienic to have dogs around dining tables. There were so many of them on the day we visited it felt like we were having lunch in Crufts !!! Also, the food is VERY expensive for what is basically pub grub (over £120 for three meals with no starters, 2 cokes and two glasses of wine !). Our roasts were ok (although both the lamb and beef were not very tender) and we've had far better food that is less expensive elsewhere. We won't be returning.
Devon McCallum
Great pub.
William B
We celebrated my daughter’s ’Baby shower’ here today with afternoon tea for 4 adults and the 3 children ate from the children’s menu. The whole experience was fantastic, The afternoon tea was really delicious: plenty of very tasty finger sandwiches; freshly baked scones, jam and clotted cream and beautifully crafted miniature cakes. The tea and coffee supplies were indeed ‘bottomless’ and the children’s meals were generous, well priced and enjoyed. The staff were attentive and very helpful We have eaten many afternoon teas, as a family , and I must say that this one certainly rates amongst the best. The food was excellent and extremely good value. Thank you - we will definitely be back.
Good food, excellent
Visited for a spur-of-the-moment weekday lunch. Driven past many times, and now wish I'd been in before. Great food, attentive staff, a nice range of drinks. Will visit again.
I went along to the reopening of the pub after refurbishment. There wasn't a normal menu just canapes. These were nice but we were missed out on some of the rounds and still hungry when we left. Nice buzzy atmosphere, slow service but then it was v busy.
Lovely food, especially the blackberry and liquorice
We were out for a walk along the Basingstoke canal and stopped here for lunch. We immediately had a warm welcome and prompt service. French onion soup and crusty bread with Marmite butter - all really tasty and reasonably priced! Will definitely visit again and try some more of the menu which looked great.
AVOID. We went for a meal for Mother's day (10.03.23) here and based on very good reviews we thought this will be a nice treat for all of us. We booked a table and preordered food in advance. Upon arrival our table was not ready and we had to wait half an hour for it to be available. Whilst we waited, we were offered a free drink, which was appreciated. Once the table was finally free, we were sat down and waitress brought our nibbles after about 10-15 min from sitting us down, which we basically inhaled as were very hungry at that point. Once we finished, we were waiting another 15-20 min we were served our starters. After we finished eating starters and plates were cleared, we waited another 30 min for mains. After the plates were cleared after mains, again we waited another half hour for desserts, which at that point we did not enjoy anymore. I appreciate, that this is one of the busiest days in pub's calendar, but if we were asked to preorder our meals to avoid delays, not sure why then a lunch which should have taken an 1.5 hr max turned to 3 hour event. The wait inbetween meals was exhausting and no updates were given as to why food was delayed, other than sorry. Additionally, food was not the best, pork was uncooked in places, mushroom wellington was bland and dry. We paid full price for this and service charge. I would not recommend this place, food is not worth the money. And a day which should have been a nice familly gathering was spoilt and made us feeling very dissapointed.
Food was really good, especially the Bang-bang cauliflower. Friendly staff and good service. Will come
Having arrived at 5.30 pm two of our party of 7 ordered monkfish which was off the menu. We ordered our starters, and only as they arrived they informed us that they had no scallops?. Sadly being same person who wanted the monkfish, this was very poor. Portions very small. Nobody came and asked if we’d like more drinks. Ladies toilets one was blocked and flush broken, second toilet very difficult to get inside, and low on toilet paper. We will not return. We used to really love this restaurant, had it been busy we could understand, but very quiet at the time of our sitting. As a Mother’s Day celebration it was really poor.
Disappointed that I didn’t even get the common courtesy of a response to my two emails to book for the locals evening! Checked my junk emails too.
Had a lovely Sunday roast here today, with family. Despite being really busy, the staff were very efficient and helpful. The sirloin of beef was cooked to perfection, medium rare, my husband had the roast lamb, which was equally well cooked, he also said he had some sort of shredded lamb served with it, which was extremely tasty, any chance of the recipe please?? ? the veggies were also well cooked, just right, I normally find they're normally practically raw in most restaurants but these were lovely and not crunchy....A nice selection of desserts with some different things for a change...beware these are large!!!!.A lovely meal with family, and very well cooked, despite the pub being full.Doggy friendly (you wouldn't know our dog was there, he just lays under the table)Good size car park.Highly recommended!!!!
Restaurantji Recommends
Being refurbished when we visited so will return to try the menu, heard good reports.
Very disappointing. We chose The Exchequer on a cold damp night because of its real fire and cosiness - no fire on, no radiators on either and a freezing draught coming up from the cellar. We just wanted two burgers, which we’d had before but did not want the house sauce or pickles and ordinary ketchup and mayonnaise. One burger arrived with pickles hidden under the lettuce, the other slathered in the house sauce which contains pickles. The waitress did bring a fresh bun and fresh salad to replace the one covered in house sauce, and just said sorry but she had noted it down on our order. The chips were not particularly hot and the burgers cooled quickly with the chilly temperature inside the restaurant. We asked for the bill and were shocked to see a service charge added too. The Exchequer is not what it was, and seems well over priced for what you actually get on your plate - we realised when we got home there were no crispy onions either which were on the description in the menu. Not somewhere to return to.
Firstly the positive – the staff were friendly and accommodating.But sadly, now the negatives – although this pubs' website states "Our spacious patio area is ideal for soaking up some summer sun after a local dog walk", it did not mention that dogs are allowed in the restaurant area. I am allergic to dog hair and both my partner and I think it's unhygienic to have dogs around dining tables. There were so many of them on the day we visited it felt like we were having lunch in Crufts !!! Also, the food is VERY expensive for what is basically pub grub (over £120 for three meals with no starters, 2 cokes and two glasses of wine !). Our roasts were ok (although both the lamb and beef were not very tender) and we've had far better food that is less expensive elsewhere. We won't be returning.
Great pub.
We celebrated my daughter’s ’Baby shower’ here today with afternoon tea for 4 adults and the 3 children ate from the children’s menu. The whole experience was fantastic, The afternoon tea was really delicious: plenty of very tasty finger sandwiches; freshly baked scones, jam and clotted cream and beautifully crafted miniature cakes. The tea and coffee supplies were indeed ‘bottomless’ and the children’s meals were generous, well priced and enjoyed. The staff were attentive and very helpful We have eaten many afternoon teas, as a family , and I must say that this one certainly rates amongst the best. The food was excellent and extremely good value. Thank you - we will definitely be back.