The Thomas Lord

We stayed here in February as a couple and met family for a meal. The Pub is a gorgeous, quaint and atmospheric Pub. It has a lovely fireplace which gives an ambient feel and of course set in a beautiful rural village. Staff were all very friendly and helpful, absolutely no complaints there at all. We were led to an out building/cabin. The cabin was situated in the back, surrounded by a beautiful garden, very private and secluded. We loved the cabin, it was spacious, clean and cosy with a seating area, coffee/tea and biscuits and a bathroom with a fairly powerful shower. Plus we had a nice garden view from the lounge area of the cabin which was very calming. The bed was fairly comfortable and the cabin also had an iron and ironing board. As said before, I can’t fault the staff as they were all really kind and helpful. However, the food was a little underwhelming, considering the price of items on the menu. I had duck which I found was tough and tasteless. My husband had steak and it was dry. The calamari starters were not crisp but soggy, almost like they’d been stewed in oil and not deep fried at the correct temperature. One of the desserts was cold in the middle but we were offered another dessert and this was taken off the price - thank you. I hope my personal opinion of the food isn’t taken offensively because it is only an opinion and food does vary depending on different chefs etc. Overall though, we had a lovely time and wouldn’t hesitate to stay here again but would think twice about eating here if nothing changed in relation to the food/chef. Great service and a beautiful place to stay. Thank you to all the staff.

We. had a 3-night break with our dog to escape the. city.... accommodation was one of several separate air-conditioned cabins well back in the garden away from any noise. Facilities were clean, comfortable bed/pillows with good quality linen. Breakfast and dinner were very good, and all the staff were very friendly and helpful. Definitely would recommend to friends & family.

Went to the Thomas Lord, West Meon for the first time today. We were told that there was no sandwich or sausage menu today only their brunch menu. I chose Eggs Royale £10:95 and a pint of Wallops Wood. The bill came to over £18. We were saying that the price of various pints was very expensive. The food was ok but on leaving I asked how much was the Wallops Wood pint. It was £5:25. So I asked why my bill was over £18. The barmaid said that it was because they add an automatic 12% charge for any food. I said perhaps in a restaurant but not in a pub! She said it was the pub chain’s policy! It wasn’t displayed! The pub garden was full so obviously the good folk of West Meon have more money than sense. Our walking group will not return!

Surprisingly disappointed with Sunday lunch and prices were over the top for this kind of eatery. A roast chicken dinner with pigs-in-blankets at £24.45 is extortionate to say the least. A pint of lager shandy at £6.20 even worse. Service was ok but sporadic - no better than that. Prices apart - the chicken dinner was average at best. The veg offering included one small parsnip, one carrot and tablespoon of what I believe to be cauliflower cheese. Redeeming factors - chicken breast and Yorkshire pudding good. My wifes Caesar salad was excellent. First and last visit Thomas Lord - you blew it.

Visited recently as a group of 4, which included my partner & some friends. Starter was excellent. However, felt limited choice of main’s available. Chose the burger, which was very good but at £18.50 also very expensive. Chose the tart for dessert, which frankly tasted like cardboard, with absolutely no flavour whatsoever, and something that came from the very worst of a supermarket budget range. The proverbial icing on the cake was a 12.5% service charge. Now, I can understand a service charge for groups of 6 or more but there were 4 of us. At no point on any menu or at booking, as far as I am aware, we’re we informed of a 12.5% service charge. The service was good but what do you do if the service was poor. Sorry, not recommended & won’t be returning.

As ever the food was fantastic. Roast beef, seafood platter, two mini sticky toffee puddings and coffees in the beautiful garden. However service was lackadaisical. Took a while to be acknowledged at the bar on arrival, had to ask for menus, attract attention to order, attract attention for cutlery and ask for the bill. The Ladies toilet had no soap in either dispenser and one sink was completely blocked. We did tell our waitress, but on a busy, sunny Bank Holiday Sunday you would expect the toilets to be regularly checked. 12.5% is automatically added to the bill for service and we felt that the staff are automatically receiving this so maybe not making that extra effort. When we had our food in front of us, with no cutlery, three members of staff were standing chatting together. Our 12.5% service charge was nearly £10 and we felt that the service we received was really not worth this. However, as previously stated, the food was lovely.

The most obvious warning sign was the lack of local offerings at the bar. And then a couple of slightly stand-offish staff who seemed untrained in customer service. The beer garden was nice enough, until the food came. Then it all went a bit off-piste. My roasted pork was covered in rubbery and highly chewy fat, the Yorkshire pudding was certainly a ready-cooked bought-in version - it was as dry as a sailor’s biscuit - and the gravy looked (and tasted) as if it was a cheap wholesaler’s rip-off of Bisto. And the school-dinner roasted potatoes…… This is a beautiful village in a beautiful part of the country, with a clientele which could certainly support a better standard of cookery. Instead I was treated to something which would have been more at home to an industrial estate in Barrow-in-Furness. In a minute, I’ll ask for the bill. I’ll probably feint. Whereas the owner will book a holiday in The Maldives off the back of the fact he/she is charging high fees with no regard to quality control. To be honest, I’d wait until there’s an ‘under new ownership sign’. And even then, make sure you genuflect before you enter. You never know, it might actually help.

We just stopped in on our way back home from a visit to family. Curious as we are also going to move near to here in the Meon Valley. We chose several small plates, Padron peppers, mackerel pate, olives, beetroot falafel, venison scotch egg. They were all amazing (we shared - reluctantly lol!) we then ordered more olives and the different pate dish. The house white wine was very reasonably priced and very nice. The waitress was great and attentive but not intrusive (Thursday 4th May, 7ish.Thanks! We needed that after the journey!) We will be back.

We hadn't been here for three years, when it was poor, so we thought we'd give the place the benefit of the doubt and return for another try. (there would probably be a new chef and manager by now) A wasted journey I'm afraid. Poor impressions on arrival as no member of staff in sight (could hear them in the kitchen) eventually a young woman wearing her coat came out and showed us to our table. My wife ordered a gin and tonic and specifically asked for the tonic on the side. You guessed it, it arrived in the glass (but they did change it) I had fish and chips which were reasonable, although the mushy peas were in a tiny dish, the same size as the tartare sauce (bizarre) My wife had eggs benedict, she ate the poached eggs and left the soft bap and disgusting attempt at benedict sauce. It's a shame as it's an attractive venue - have the owners given up on it?