Lovely little pub, food was delicious, the fish and batter literally just melts in the mouth. Food was well seasoned and flavours were lovely. Only 4 stars as the staff need a little more training I feel, a little unsure and not confident our waitress was. But all that aside good environment and great food. The fire was on so set a lovely atmosphere from when you walked In.

We had a thoroughly enjoyable meal here. Lovely food and great staff. They were really busy bookings wise but the maître d' was so helpful and shuffled some tables about for us. We were extremely grateful for this so thank you. This pub has a really nice atmosphere and is great for families and couple alike. We've been before and we'll definitely be back again.

Truly one on the best meals I've had for a long time. Absolutely spot on in everyway. Service, presentation, and most importantly tasted amazing. What a gorgeous building, it's just so warm & welcoming. Stuart out waiter was so nice and helpful , and asked questions about our day , as we said our daughter had just graduated in Winchester Cathedral that afternoon. He is a special member of staff , and should be proud to have him as part of the team. I could not of picked a better or more perfect place to celebrate. Thank you so much to all the staff for making it all so special.

Food was cold, nice place, nice staff

We had a very disappointing experience at the Old Forge this afternoon. The service was extremely slow despite the restaurant being far from full; we were there for over two and half hours for two courses, resulting in very tired and bored children. It took several minutes to be seated with no apology about the delay. We were then waiting a long time to have our order taken and inbetween courses. I ordered the nut roast and the portion size was smaller than the children's meal (only two roast potatoes with the adult roast dinners). When we complained (which we had to do twice as no action was taken the first time), the extra portion of nut roast arrived 45 minutes later, well after we had finished our mains. They then tried to charge us for two nut roast dinners! Would definitely not recommend and will be going to other pubs in the area where we always have a good experience.

Found myself back in the pub for years second time. Spent the afternoon with friends I'd not seen for too long. The atmosphere, as before, was welcoming in this classic style pub. Staff are extremely accommodating, food is beyond compare. Pricing is just right too. Can't recommend this place enough. Makes a difference when you want things to be right, and they actually are. I forgot I had a milk intolerance (it's very new) ordered a milk heavy dessert. When I realised and informed a staff member, she was more than happy to change it for the most amazing Sticky Toffee pud with vegan ice cream... OMG!!!

Disappointing service experience from beginning to end. It was a warm Sunday afternoon and the young waiting staff were clearly busy but nonetheless we waited over 20 minutes for drinks, and a further 15 minutes for water after having to remind them. One of the drinks was also incorrect. Food options are extensive and good quality however multiple options were unavailable. Frustratingly, on 2 occasions the waitress returned and only told us this after we had ordered so members of our party were put on the spot to quickly order something else. It was a warm afternoon and the majority of cold dessert options and most attractive vegan dessert options (the main reason we chose this restaurant) were also unavailable. The vegan sorbet which was available arrived with an unexpected cookie on it. We asked the waitress whether this was vegan and she said it must be. After challenging this, the waitress eventually agreed to check with the kitchen to find out that indeed it wasn't vegan. This is particularly worrying. To round off the experience, we were overcharged on the bill and charged multiple times for dishes that we had only ordered once. The staff did rectify the mistake. Good food but very poor service.

Family celebration The food was very good. I can appreciate it was a busy evening but the service was not as good as expected. Two drinks that were ordered did not arrive. Gentle reminder given to the waitress. Ketchup, mayonnaise and vinegar also did not arrive after the original request. Another reminder was necessary. Three different desserts were not available , which was disappointing.

Lovely country pub, with relaxed dining - amazing quality food. Wide selection of starters that all looked good, and shared a superb chateaubriand... sadly leaving no room for dessert! Service from Lauren was spot on - friendly and efficient. We will definitely be back!

Very friendly and attentive staff. James and Stuart served us very well. Food was presented nicely and tasted great.

Lovely evening family meal enjoyed last Saturday. Alice did a fantastic job in making us feel comfortable and welcomed. The food was amazing... so good that even our fussy 6 year old has asked to go back again! 10/10

Stuart our server was excellent. Give him a raise! Coming from the midlands who do excellent pies. The steak and ale pie here was to die for! My partner had the burger who rated this 5*, the dripping was a great touch! And for the desserts…the chocolate bomb was to die for and was well worth the calories. Atmosphere was lovely and relaxed. Great place instead of a busy city centre. Highly recommend

Had a late lunch at The old Forge. Good Roast Beef and Park Belly. Would be happy with a smaller Yorkshire..Nina and the other staff were friendly and helpful.

Great place, nice staff, awesome dirty burger!!

Such a lovely meal we had ! Very nice setting and delicious food. Really nice staff served us. Thank you !

What a lovely place, staff were fantastic. Food was awesome, got my order wrong, corrected quickly and no fuss. Just honest good food from honest hard working people. A pleasure and nice to actually want to leave a tip rather than just feel obliged.

A lovely friendly welcome with unhurried service in a beautiful setting. Roast still on and perfect thank you so much all at The Old Forge ?

Great food, most lovely service! We were really well looked after.

Easy to book online, nice little table in a quiet area, had a busy but relaxed atmosphere. Service was efficient and food was delicious. Great value for money, will definitely be coming again.

Food were nice BUT THE BEERS IS ON THE DEAR SIDE

Great pub, friendly staff and great food.

I visited this lovely place this evening with a friend who is Vegetarian. There was so much choice, not just from the normal, there was a full Vegan menu too. The food was amazing. I would highly recommend this lovely pub. I am certain we will be back.

Sunday roast was delicious! Service was also lovely, our waitress Andreea was so friendly. She recommended the squid starter and what an amazing choice it was! Would definitely come here again.

My partner and I booked a table for lunch at 2.30pm. When we entered we were told that they are busy and that we could order drinks and wait outside in their waiting area whilst we waited for our table. We waited outside for 45 minutes before I decided to ask what was going on. We were perfectly happy to wait for a bit and understand they would be busy, however both us and another couple with a small child had been left waiting with no contact for way too long. The waiting staff seemed to have no idea why I was asking about anything to do with our table. The manager then came over and said that there would be a table ready for us, I don't think they were aware we weren't the only people waiting. I went back outside and we waited another 15 minutes, but again no one came out. So as we had finished our drinks we decided to just go in a pay for our drinks and leave like the other couple before us. The manager didn't bother to even look me in the eye or say sorry whilst the previous waiter processed our drinks and said sorry we are busy. All in all a terrible first and last experience here. Not one person seemed to really care, and we will have to try some of the other pubs in the area. Maybe we will actually get to try the food

Great food and amazing espresso martini!

Safe,socially distanced,great service,great food.Can't wait to go again.

Great service, friendly staff. Good covid measures in place. Lovely food!!!!

Give this pub a one star popped in for a pint on the way back from work que for 15minutes the chap see us waiting then when we get to the front told us they were full, very rude about it and not the way we would expected to be treated!!! One star for the guy greeting us a the door...very rude

Amazing dinner with friends. Food was delicious and nothing was to much trouble for the staff. We will be back when in the area again

Nice

Good food, good service, good range of items on the menu

Honestly the best meal I have ever eaten out in my life, the staff were lovely and friendly. My partner has a lot of intolerances, but they made his difficult meal perfectly. Would recommend to anyone, definitely worth the price. Will most definitely return, and I already cannot wait. Thankyou so much to the restaurant for having us.

Everything was perfect. The food was delicious, the service was great and would definitely recommend.

We recently ate out at The Old Forge in Otterbourne, we received a warm welcome from Giuseppe, Nina and the team. The food arrived promptly and was of very high quality we all enjoyed our meal! Safe social distancing can easily be observed, and good processes were in place such as a one way system and table service only. We would highly recommend!

Had a lovely Sunday lunch of Roast Beef. Beautiful fresh veg & plenty of it. Would definitely recommend a visit & we will be back. Great refurbishment too.

Refurb job has been nicely done, albeit it doesn’t look widely different. Staff are friendly and it has a nice feel (cosy modern English pub) but the food let it down for us unfortunately. Same menu as one of their sister pubs which isn’t that far away, could mix it up a little? Also, my mum and I ordered the same pasta dish and they couldn’t have looked more different to eachother... was very odd but maybe we just got unlucky.

Great food and friendly staff.

We had a lovely lunch there. The for was great and Andreea was a very helpful waitress.

The menu promised the sublime but delivered luke warm. Hair in the batter of the salt and pepper squid which was replaced readily enough but lacked flavour. They didn't do a mid meal check in either. Overly salty halloumi fries and cold broccoli. Could do better!

Good food, friendly attentive service and nice lounge for after dinner drinks.

Very nice . Welcoming and good service

Recently refurbished and this was our first visiy since then and even more cozy and welcoming than before. Food was spot on and great choice of drinks. Great for couples, small groups or larger family meals.

Never got to eat here as our 8:15pm table booking never materialised. Apparently the booking before us stayed at the table so we were left sat in the bar watching other guests be escorted to their tables. After 30 minutes past our booking time and had no response to the 3 members of staff we spoke to we left and went to the Beefeater up then road where we received excellent service from a very dedicated team of staff.

A non event. Waited 30 minutes after our booking time and still no table. Staff were very unhelpful. Would never go back 0 out of 10

Good when it came out warm.

Love this place.

Friends catch up, Restaurant Extremely busy at lunch time today, (Valentine's Day !!), though we waited nearly an hour for our meals, worth the wait. Give us girl's longer to chat !!! We will definitely be back.

Amazing experience, the food was perfect. A lovely December treat.

Lovely evening at the old forge catching up with a friend. Plenty of space between tables, staff were kind and attentive even at a distance. I will be happy to go back there again.

Worst dining out experience I have ever had!! Waited 35 minutes for a salad and half a carcass of chicken which was dry, and seemed like it came out of scraps!! Extremely over priced better service choice and taste at a burger van - Extemely disappointed menu 0/10 wish I just opted for a pudding and coffee.

It is ok, food good staff good. Rather a lot of show off types in the 25 to 45 age range, a bit my Audi is better than your Audi if you get what I mean.

Had a lovely evening meal here. Great atmosphere, great service & amazing food. Will definitely be back & thanks for a superb evening!

Able to turn up and have a meal. Very well presented and good food. Worth a visit

Lovely place with excellent staff and a mouth-watering menu. They also had a really clear and efficient system for social distancing, which they politely explained as they prepared to seat people.

Excellent meal, good service though a little bit slow on bringing our desserts. Claims to have a reduced menu at time of writing this review, but there were plenty of good choices. My fillet steak was excellent though a little overcooked. A reduced number of tables and nothing on the table at arrival made the room look stark, but it was essential to cope with the Covid-19 requirements. We still enjoyed our evening.

Steak was very good but disappointed that the 'reduced menu' as advertised online was not available in the restaurant, so extremely small choice for the vegetarians in our group. Also, sorry but had better customer service/attentiveness at the Green King pub last night (been on holiday for the past 2 weeks and lucky enough to have eaten out several times recently).

Lovely pub with good covid security & great service. Delicious Sunday roast & pudding. Will be back! 👍😊

Very good.

Good food and nice atmosphere

Very nice pub.

(Translated by Google) Nice pub. (Original) Nice pub.

Nice pub and good food

😠t

Good food

Great looking pub! Great food!

Really delicious food!

Great! Very cossy! Good food & service!

Really pretty place, really good service

Excellent

Welcoming staff, beautiful food, and very good service

Brilliant service, amazing food a really tasty roast dinner. Highly recommended.

Great food, great refurbishment, great staff

A welcoming pup. Food very good and a good cost.

Amazing food and very welcoming staff! We'll be back

Lovely food, safely served by friendly staff

A great dining experience. Very professional and safe approach to Covid safety. A superb menu and the food lived up to it billing. Decent sized portions at a reasonable price. Fillet steak and Rack of Lamb both cooked as per customer request and nicely medium rare. Staff were friendly and helpful with discreet cleaning procedures. Will definitely return.

Plenty of space. Planned social distancing, even if staff were moving people around.

Nice but not well organised

Amazing restaurant well spaced out amazing staff amazing service and great food

Lovely food, looking forward to going back.

We recently moved to the area and The Old Forge has quickly become our go to place for evening dinner or Sunday afternoon lunch. Food is always delicious, service is always great. Sunday roast are superb!

Love coming here. Food is spectacular, service is good, atmosphere is pleasant

Had a nice anniversary meal belly pork with black pudding very nice thx

Visited today for lunch for my mothers birthday.. first time weve been truly dissatisfied at The Old Forge ! No sign of any cleaning of tables before seating guests, chose to sit outside but possibly got the smokers table judging from the amount of cigarette stubs on the floor ! Menu limited and all though told could look up main menu on phone the option my son wanted was no longer served .our food was sub standard today .. i went for the Greek Meze flat bread hummus was barely visible the tomatoes not ripe hard and tastless, Advoca going grey though put that down to the very hot plate it came on ! As for the side salad nothing more than cucumber sticks and raw onion. Both my son and daughter had fillet steak sandwiches one asked for rare one medium rare .. chef obviously didn't get the brief over cooked on burnt ciabatta so dissapointing. Gammon steak dry chewy and very salty.. needless to say didn't bother with dessert.. would most definitely of complained but didnt want to upset my mum .. return trip unlikely

Nice meal in quiet garden area. Covid-19 secure.

Excellent quality food great service. Really friendly atmosphere. Highly recommended.

Service very poor..Would not recommend to anyone .

Very nice place that serves great food, staff is also very friendly, would recommend!

Fantastic food and some good service, large portions.

Starters far better than the mains today. Expensive Sunday lunch, which was disappointing.

Very good pricing overall great quality childrens food fresh and not the usual £3 cheaper than the adults equivalent. This has great decor service is well delivered. Only real gripe starters we had salt pepper squid had nothing with it just fried and some weak chipotle mayo which gave nothing to it. It needed something ground salt crushed pepper maybe a little spicy dressing and Sticky chicken was ok but thats all it was. Main dishes we had were excellent and we will return.

A lovely meal in very nice surroundings.

This restaurant offers a full range of meals, well stocked premium bar and boasts a warm traditional interior. I visited to sample the incredibly high quality Sunday roast; which consists of multiple meat options, vegetarian dishes, sides, desserts and drinks pairings. The staff are smartly dressed, polite, professional and enthusiastic. The building is tidy, nicely decorated and the toilets are well maintained. Easily accessible by road but also via a rear nature/rambling trail which is perfect for dog walkers.

Booked in for Sunday lunch, things started out great, service got a bit slow around dessert, drinks ordered hadn't turned up, no spoons for desserts etc, I guess maybe they got more stretched around 2pm. The roast was delicious. I wasn't a fan of the dessert particularly, but others enjoyed their desserts, though some weren't given a choice of custard/ ice cream with dessert and were a little disappointed with what they got, e.g. ice cream with sticky toffee pudding instead of custard. Overall it was a good experience, and maybe a little overstretched at Sunday lunch, so I would give them a try again

What a fantastic time we’ve had at The Old Forge Otterbourne! Incredible food, wonderful service. We cannot wait to come back. Highly recommend!

I wasn't impressed with the Old Forge. There were two vegan options on the menu and one was a burger and I wasn't in the mood for a burger. This is the Candied Root Vegetable Bake. It's not exactly what I was expecting. It was ok, but cos 13 quid and I was hungry an hour later! The beer selection was also awful: London Pride or Doom Bar! A poor throwback

We lost electricity during the recent storm so popped in for dinner, and the food is some of the best I've had out. The lamb was incredible, service was excellent and the atmosphere was welcoming and I only wish we had stayed longer.

Lovely atmosphere, great service, looking forward to going back. We went in for a quiet meal, on a Thursday lunchtime. Booked in advance, but phoned up to say running late. Our booking was adjusted and the table kept for us with no bother. Welcomed on arrival and given a choice of bar or restaurant, we chose the bar as was quieter. They took our drinks orders whilst we checked the menu. Special lunch menu had good variety, but we also had the choice of the main menu. Chose the tempura fish finger sandwich from the lunch menu. Beautifully served, lovely and light tempura batter. Attentive service made for a lovely lunch. Thanks

We booked a family special occasion on the Sunday. Booking online is easy. We ate in the restaurant area. Lovely decor and actually a good roast (trio) although I would have preferred roast pork rather than a bit of pork belly but the beef! Yummy and tender. Would always recommend this pub and it's always busy so I guess I'm not alone! Ps other parts of the pub are dog friendly.

Lunch with girlfriends. Super food, excellent attentive service from Ami. This is a firm favourite of ours and Ami, our waitress, made the experience even more delightful. We’ll definitely be back 😊

We visited on Saturday evening as a couple with our 4 year old daughter for a meal. Despite having a wedding reception, we were seated and served exceptionally quickly. Alice, our waitress, was excellent very attentive and friendly. The food was exceptional and they made a real fuss of our daughter. We’ll definitely be coming back!

Absolutely lovely service from Nina today. Incredibly friendly and polite. Food was delicious. We shared the pig starter and it was great. If we had to critique, we would say the only downside was there wasn’t enough meat in the sausage rolls. Mains were the chicken burger and the prawn pasta. Again, incredibly delicious, fresh and tasty. Will definitely be back again.

We had a really poor experience at the Old Forge yesterday. The service was absolutely dreadful, really inattentive staff who seemed to be more interested in their mobile phones. The food arrived cold with no cutlery or serviettes. We were asked if we wanted any condiments, we did, they never arrived. It reached the point were we just gave up with the staff, our expectations at that point were rock bottom. I would be slightly more forgiving if it was busy, it wasn't. There were enough staff to deal with the volume of clientele. The food was mediocre and for the price I expected much better. To say it was overpriced would be an understatement. If you read other reviews about The Old Forge you will see that poor service is an issue that crops up regularly which is a shame, it has the potential to be a really nice restaurant. Not one I shall be recommending to others. I actually went onto The Old Forge website to send them some private feedback referencing the above, however the feedback page doesn't work! Hopefully you have better luck than I did if you visit!

Fantastic service. Rosie was extremely helpful. fantastic food. Lovely location will come again

Becoming our new favourite restaurant. Food is amazing and service is brilliant. Friendly staff - our server Stuart was great! Very attentive! Can’t wait to come back!

Food was absolutely incredible and so tasty. We visited today for our 16 year wedding anniversary and have to say the food here was probably the best meal out we’ve ever had!! Thankyou

Popped in to The Old Forge for a late lunch on a Tuesday and we weren’t disappointed. The food was amazing, particularly the halloumi fries, sweet potato curry and the dirty burger. We were served by Nina and the team who were lovely and welcoming and we will definitely be back.

Food was very good. Nut roast had lots of flavour. Meats were good. Vegetables were slightly cold as was the gravy. Desserts delicious but pricey. Decor nice. Toilets needed a bit of a clean! Felt it was a bit strange, ruined the mood of our celebration slightly, that we were asked for ID as we were having a birthday meal and everyone was over 18 and one a pensioner!

Really tasty food, would definitely go back to try more!

Food was amazing. I had pork belly and scallops and my partner had sea bass, both delicious. Lovely atmosphere with open fire. Very friendly staff. Look forward to returning.