The Elephant at the Market

Someone from this business manages this listing.

#44 of 121 Restaurants in Newbury££ - £££, Bar, Pizza, Vegetarian friendly

+44 1635 231053+ Add website

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Hours

Sun

12:00 - 22:30

Mon

10:00 - 23:00

Tue

10:00 - 23:00

Wed

10:00 - 23:00

Thu

10:00 - 23:00

Fri

10:00 - 0:00

Sat

10:00 - 0:00

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What is Travellers’ Choice?

Tripadvisor gives a Travellers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travellers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.

Ratings and reviews

4.0

473 reviews

#44 of 121 Restaurants in Newbury

RATINGS

Food

Service

Value

Atmosphere

Details

Someone from this business manages this listing.

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CUISINES

Bar, Pizza, British, Pub

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options

Meals

Lunch, Dinner, Brunch

features

Location and contact

8 Market Place, Newbury RG14 5 England

+44 1635 231053

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Can a vegan person get a good meal at this restaurant?

Yes

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About

Newbury's newest kid on the block. We've found ourselves a beautiful home here on the Market Place. Here at The Elephant At The Market we love our food. So we keep things simple by doing our best to pick quality ingredients, cooked perfectly to give you lots of flavour; perfect for our steaks!

CUISINES

Bar, Pizza, British, Pub

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options

Meals

Lunch, Dinner, Brunch

FEATURES

Reservations, Outdoor Seating, Seating, Highchairs Available, Wheelchair Accessible, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Free Wifi, Accepts Credit Cards, Table Service

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4.0

473 reviews

Excellent

220

Very good

106

Average

Poor

Terrible

JAN B

Newbury49 contributions

Dreary

Oct 2020 • none

We visited on Wednesday evening having pre booked. We were booked in at the front desk and taken to our table which was right through the bar and to what was like a back room, where it was quite dreary, no colour, atmosphere and we sat there on our own. When the waitress came to take our order she said there is no fish, no pizzas as the oven is broken. We placed our order a burger and a salad with chicken, this took 40 minutes to arrive, the burger was just a burger and quite tasteless and a bucket of fries no garnish it looked quite sad. My husband had a beer and I ordered a non alcoholic beer, the bottle was brought with a pint glass!! I drink that because I was driving please make it a little more appetizing. I don't think we shall be returning as it was expensive for what we received and where we sat.

Written 2 October 2020

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

elephantatthemarket

Hi Jan B, Thank you for taking the time to review us! We apologise that your visit didn't exceed all expectations. In regards to the wait time we have spoken to our kitchen team on that shift and have discussed resolutions for that not to happen again. We hope you visit again soon so we can change your opinion so you keep on returning! We value all our customers. Kind regards The Elephant Team

Written 9 October 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

bertieb324

Newbury2 contributions

Great food and atmosphere

We came in early evening last Thursday for 2 for 1 pizza’s and they were fantastic, really enjoyed the brownie for dessert. We regularly come in for drinks as well and always find the service to be friendly and efficient even when it’s busy. Highly recommend for food and drinks!

Written 5 March 2020

Mr Cecil

7 contributions

An Amazing Bubble of Warmth and Welcome

Jul 2020 • friends

Having not stayed in Newbury before it was an informed decision based on reviews/price that made me choose The Elephant at the Market. This turned out to be an exceptional move. The stay was also based on distance to the centre pubs/etc. Which was cracking in theory and an afternoon by the canal (literally 5 mins walk) was great. However, as the food was amazing here along with the drinks selections tied with phenomenal staff attitude that couldn't be more accommodating, why take a risk? So making a decision whether to go out into the unknown ended up being a no brainer. Two meals in two nights both ranking up there with my best hotel meals of recent years. The stables accommodation was a quirky unexpected plus and absolutely welcomed with secure parking on site. Very clean and warm/cosy. Perfectly located in relation to the pub/restaurant. So in summary pack your bags and go and stay at the Elephant at the Market. As a consumer/customer you always get at least one aspect of a hotel visit to pick at. Not here. An amazing warm fuzzy feeling customer experience from checking in to checking out. Many thanks!

Written 27 July 2020

elephantatthemarket

Hello 928alc, Thank you for this glowing review! We're so happy to hear that you enjoyed your stay with us and hope to see you again in the near future! Many thanks, The Elephant at the Market

Written 29 July 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Cassandra W

London7 contributions

So slow

Jan 2020 • family

The food is ‘ok’ but nothing to rave about. Both my daughter (aged 8) and I ordered a burger. Both the child’s burger and the adults burger were identical (with the exception that the adult burger contained a slice of bacon and lettuce). The manager argued that we had been given 2 x adult burgers but nevertheless £13.95 was very expensive for the portion size. My daughter managed to finish hers so that tells you what you need to know when an 8 year old finishes an adults burger with ease! The food also takes ages to arrive. There were only 2 tables eating but yet desserts took 20 mins to arrive. Despite this the brownie was stone cold! I would also say that generally the interior was tired and in need of a bit of TLC. All in all, not a great experience and not really surprising that the place was empty.

Written 19 January 2020

elephantatthemarket

Hi Cassandra W, Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review. I am disappointed to read that you didn't enjoy your recent visit to us. We strive to exceed our guests expectations and on this occasion we have clearly failed to do this. I have fed back your comments regarding the portion size of the burger you received to our kitchen team and they will be closely monitoring this to ensure our handmade burgers are weighed to our menu specification of 7oz. I am sorry that there was a bit of a wait for your desserts, this is certainly not usually the case on such a quiet evening. I do hope that you will return in the future to allow us to redeem ourselves. Kind Regards The Elephant at the Market Team

Written 21 January 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Jenna N

Newbury20 contributions

Awesome

Oct 2020 • couples

Went to The Newbury last week and had THE worst roast, booked the Lock Stock today for 3pm and when we arrived they’d sold out of roasts... so wondered around to the Elephant and thought we’d see how we got on. No chicken left and had sold out of a few accompaniments but loved the roasts we received. The food was great, the atmosphere was relaxed and the staff were super, friendly and really helpful. We really appreciate good service as it’s hard to come by, especially as so many places are running at reduced capacity right now. Would definitely go again :)

Written 18 October 2020

elephantatthemarket

Hi Jenna, Thanks for this lovely review! We're so glad you enjoyed your Sunday roast with us! Kind regards, The Elephant at the Market

Written 20 October 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

18869Sue

Cardiff16 contributions

Awful place

Aug 2021 • couples

My husband booked this place as part of my birthday getaway. On arrival, reception was unmanned & eventually a member of staff came to check us in, no information was given on arrival, my husband had booked a table for that night but he had to clarify the booking, as the member of staff was unaware, also he never notified us that the full menu was unavailable, that only pizzas were available, we only found out as we went to look at the menu & it was covered up, with a note saying only pizzas available tonight. We cancelled our reservation & went to eat elsewhere. Upon arrival to our room, we found the shower & bath were dirty, hair in the bath, shower glass door was dirty & watermarked. The surround of the bed was dusty. The only flip side was the bed was huge & extremely comfortable. The following day we went down for breakfast which was preordered, I had the buttermilk pancakes which were totally inedible as they were burnt & I had to send them back, my husband’s breakfast, eggs benedict, the muffin was burnt but he ate a little if it. No apology was made by the members of staff on duty. As we were walking back to the room, the two members of staff on duty (male & female) were behind the bar & I was shocked to see them snuggling up to each other & the man touching her behind, they were laughing & totally unaware that we were there. We put a sign on our room asking for it to be serviced & left for the day. We returned late evening to find the bed unmade, towels on the floor, the bath & shower not cleaned, all that had been done is our rubbish emptied & milk replenished. The toilet would only intermittently flush & was not working most of the time. My husband went to reception & spoke to a senior member of staff, no one offered to service the room, they offered a small discount & apologised. The website is very misleading & service was poor.

Written 19 August 2021

elephantatthemarket

Hi Sue, Thank you for taking the time to leave us this review, we always welcome feedback on how we can improve. We can only apologise for the lack of communication at check-in, unfortunately due to staffing shortages during your stay we had to reduce our menu and also get staff from other sites in, who despite receiving training have little experience in check-ins. We are disappointed to hear that the cleanliness of your room wasn't up to standard and will address this with our housekeeping team to improve this and to make sure no room refreshes are missed. Having spoken to the staff I have been ensured that you were offered to change rooms but a discount was preferred. As for your breakfast, we are disheartened to hear that you did not enjoy it. Having taken this up with the staff on shift they have guaranteed me that they not only apologised, but also offered to replace the pancakes with a fresh batch or with something else, but neither offer was accepted so they were removed from the bill instead. They were also not made aware of your husband not enjoying his eggs benedict, otherwise the same would have been offered. We sincerely apologise that you did not enjoy your stay with us and felt that the service was poor. We will address this with the team to see how we can improve. Kind regards, The Elephant at the Market

Written 22 August 2021

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Markdonovan1@gmail.com

United Kingdom5 contributions

Shame

Jun 2021 • family

Shame about this place really. The food is very nice and the girls serving are wonderful. However, the bar staff and managers are truly awful people. I’ve been here a few times just for a drink and it’s really like they are doing you a favour and are not treated like a customer. Made to feel unwelcome and uncomfortable. When they actually decide that you are worthy of troubling them to sit down for a meal they are very rude. (Not the waiters or waitresses but the pub manager). I’m not really sure why they treated us so badly, it’s happened on two occasions. The only thing that we can think of is we were with two children? The children are very well behaved and not messy or loud but we got the feeling we were not welcome. Shame because this place could be so nice and the unwelcoming staff (manager) are a real downside to what should be a positive experience. We are friendly people and never get this vibe anywhere else. There is a very moody unusual dark vibe coming from the manager. He talks to customers in a patronising derogatory tone. The manager makes the place very unwelcoming. Sorry to post a negative review as really don’t want to but sad to see what could potentially be a wonderful place if it wasn’t for the awful and seemingly toxic manager.

Written 23 July 2021

elephantatthemarket

Hi Mark Donovan, Thank you for leaving us a Trip Advisor review, unfortunately I must strongly dispute the details contained within this review. During your visit to us in December of last year, whilst we were under tier 2 government restrictions there was in incident in which you refused to comply with the laws that were currently in place. During your dispute a member of the management team approached you and explained that the restrictions that were in place required you to order food in order to purchase alcohol, of which you were already aware having visited us the previous evening. You then became aggressive in your behavior, referring to the duty manager as "Hitler", making offensive gestures including Nazi salutes and swearing. This was most distressing to our team. Due to the nature of this incident the police were called, however you had left before they arrived and we chose not to pursue the matter further. You have recently tried to return to our venue to be told by the same duty that you are barred permanently due to this incident, of which I am sure you are aware as you asked the manager directly if this was because you had called him "Hitler". I hope this clarifies the reasoning behind the unwelcoming vibe you received on you last visit. Regards General Manager The Elephant at the Market

Written 24 July 2021

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

TillyC-S

Frimley421 contributions

One overnight stay.

Mar 2020 • couples

Gosh, never again...after a lovely warm, friendly welcome we 'checked in'. I will attach photos. Staff were indeed very friendly, kind and welcoming. We were allowed to leave our car in the car park Sunday morning and we appreciated the ear plugs...I actually used mine. I felt uncomfortable at the amounts of dust and grim in our room. Fruit salad and pasteries for breakfast looked and tasted fresh BUT the cheese looked exceptionally dry and unappetising.

Written 1 March 2020

elephantatthemarket

Hi TillyCS, Firstly can we thank you for taking the time to leave us a review. We are very sorry to hear that your stay was not a positive one. We take great pride in our rooms and it is very disappointing to hear that the cleanliness of the room was not up to the high standards as a company we expect. This issue will be raised with the Housekeeping team and a thorough retrain of our expectations will be done with the them. Please could you email any photos and any further comments you would like to raise about your visit to info@theelephantatthemarket.com as this will allow us to make sure that your experience is not repeated. With regards to the room itself if the issues were raised to a member of staff during your stay we would have been more than happy to move you to a more suitable room. Sincerest apologies, The Elephant at the Market

Written 3 March 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Mike M

15 contributions

Very very slow, Poor food, Expensive

Oct 2021 • none

We booked a a table for 6 at half 7. The only vegetarian meals on the menu were a salad (not a meal), a margarita pizza (just a pizza that hasn't been finished) and a curry, and they had no curry. So the vegetarian asked them to do the chicken pizza but replace the chicken with some extra veg. They did this and the extra veg was three tiny bits of tomato. Others ordered pizzas too. All pizzas were overcooked so it was really hard work cutting them. We ordered sides, and when ordering them we all individually said we want them as starters, before our mains which we ordered at the same time. At 9pm, 90 minutes after we sat down, our starters and mains arrived at the same time. The waiter didn't really have a clue what was going on. He did apologise about the wait once, but didn't do anything about the bill (we didn't ask - couldn't be bothered, given how difficult every other task seemed) £133 for a table of 6. 8 drinks, 5 sides that took 90 mins and came at the wrong time, and 6 main meals which took 90 minutes and weren't very nice at all.

Written 21 October 2021

elephantatthemarket

Hi there, We appreciate any and all feedback, so thank you for bringing this to our attention. We do apologise for the mishaps during the evening that you visited, that's not what how we want to be serving our guests at all. I also apologise for the bill not being seen too by a member of the management team; we are more than happy to add discount for any meals that have taken longer than expected to come out of the kitchen, and that should have been done here. We have recently launched a brand new menu, that offers more vegetarian options - such as a spicy winter soup and beetroot and hummus puff pasty in our starter menu, as well as a chestnut and mushroom pizza, cheese souffle, chickpea curry and butternut squash salad on our main menu. We do hope that you give us another try, and see what we now have to offer. All the best, The Elephant at the Market Team

Written 15 November 2021

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Holly R

Newbury21 contributions

Great cocktails, awful food

Jul 2021 • friends

The food was very unpleasant. We ordered a pie and fish and chips. The pie states on the menu roasted potatoes, in which it came out with one boiled potato cut into 5, 3 carrots and a few uncooked beans. Despite the shocking portion size and potato the food was just not enjoyable. The kitchen brought out some more which again no roasted potatoes in site. The fish and chips were not very hot when they came out. The batter has a very wet texture and odd taste to it while the “triple cooked trips” were skin on chips soaked in oil for so long they’d gone dark brown and hard in the middle. During our time here we could hear loud music coming from the kitchen with lots of loud singing over it which was really quite unprofessional. The bar staff and waitresses were lovely, really kind and helpful, we felt awful sending our food back but it really was inedible. Lots of back and forth with “let me talk to the manager” in which the manager never came over to speak to us directly. Would come back for cocktails in the future but unfortunately will not be eating there again.

Written 29 July 2021

elephantatthemarket

Hi Holly R, Thank you for taking the time to leave us some feedback on TripAdvisor. We have addressed your comments to our kitchen team regarding your food and our Head Chef sends his apologies that the portion size you were served was not correct. We have also taken the decision to remove the skin from our triple cooked chips as several guests have found the skin on ones less appealing. We did in fact have 2 duty supervisors on shift at the time of your visit and it was one of these ladies who served you and removed the meals from the bill which is why another manager was not sought to come to your table. Our kitchen team have been told not to play any music from the pizza section which may be audible in the restaurant and I apologise that this impacted your visit. We look forward to seeing you another time for cocktails! Kind Regards The Elephant at the Market

Written 4 August 2021

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

EggsTravel

3 contributions

Excellent food whilst staying here

Mar 2022 • couples

Me and a partner stayed here recently and booked ourselves into the the restaurant and had a amazing experience. Food was tasty, hot and great value accompanied by some excellent service from some hard working staff that made our experience very pleasant. Already thinking of booking again.

Written 9 March 2022

elephantatthemarket

Eggstravel, we are so pleased you enjoyed your visit to The Elephant at the Market! We are very happy we could provide you with an amazing experience, and look forward to seeing you again soon.

Written 16 March 2022

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Springgal2000

Newbury1 contribution

Awful! Don’t recommend

Mar 2022 • none

Steak was ordered “well done” but came out “medium rare”, it got sent back and still came out “medium” so was still wrong. Ordered a lemonade, gin and ginger ale and 2 pepsi’s however the waiter bought us 3 pepsi’s, a gin and ginger ale and no lemonade. We also ordered a side of coleslaw but that didn’t get bought out until we chased it up and the chicken was dry on the roast.

Written 28 March 2022

elephantatthemarket

Hi Springgal2000, We are sorry to hear your experience wasn't up to our usual high standards, we were very short staffed and very busy as soon as we opened which caused a little bit of confusion with your meals, we truly apologise and hope you'll come back and give us another chance! We are however pleased to hear you had the steak taken off your bill as way of apology. Thank you

Written 22 April 2022

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Andrea A

Weston super Mare4 contributions

Excellent attention to detail in every way!

Oct 2020 • family

We couldn’t find fault during our visit to this warm and wonderful place, essentially considering the trying conditions the staff have to work in. No detail was found wanting whilst we were hosted, served and waved goodbye! From start to finish it was truly an amazing dining experience. Greeting, drinks, meals and service were perfect and the staff were most accommodating in every way one would expect. We would always recommend The Elephant at the Market as a go to location be it for cocktails or fresh pizza made in their oven.

Written 20 October 2020

elephantatthemarket

Hi andreaaR6231XV, Thank you for the glowing 5 star review. its always great to hear that during these uncertain times our team is doing their very best to make your visit an enjoyable one. We look forward to serving you pizzas and cocktails again soon. The Elephant at the Market

Written 22 October 2020

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Natedog1717

Newbury32 contributions

Ripped Off

Aug 2022 • family

Ordered the Chateaubriand for two people at £60 and got an eight ounce steak cut into six slices instead. Manager wasn’t having it despite how obvious it was that it didn’t weigh 16 ounces as it should. Used to use the Elephant very frequently for both food and drink but they have lost my custom for food now. Only wish I had taken a photo!

Written 12 August 2022

Cornelius B

Hi Natedog, We're disappointed to hear that your last visit didn't live up to our high standards. However, I can assure you that you were served our 16oz Chateaubriand, which is sliced prior to serving as it is a sharing plate. Please note that the weight of steaks on menus is typically that of the steak prior to cooking, as meat loses around 25% of its weight once cooked. Thank you for your review. Kind regards,

Written 7 September 2022

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Jonathan P

United Kingdom5 contributions

Appalling food

Sept 2021 • solo

Shockingly bad ..... Unfortunately the incredible Catherine wheel was closed on a Monday so walked over the road ...... And went for the pie , the first indication should have been the lack of enthusiasm from the staff .... I went for the chicken pie which was tiny and can say there was only one piece of chicken in and the rest was a few shreds of chicken some peas and a wishy washy sauce , half a carrot and some over coated green beans and some recooked potatoes , maybe left over from yesterday roast

Written 20 September 2021

elephantatthemarket

Hi there, Thank you for taking the time to review, and apologies for the late reply; we always try to take any sort of criticism on board, so we appreciate your feedback. I firstly want to apologise for any lack of enthusiasm when you arrived, that is not what the staff on shift intended at all that evening. However, after speaking with the staff on shift, they did let us know that they weren't made aware of any issues with your food, and that everything was completely finished once you left. Someone would have been more than happy to compensate in some way, had they been made aware of it. We do our best to deliver the best food and service, so overall we do apologise for missing the mark that evening. We hope you give us another try one day! All the best, The Elephant at the Market Team

Written 15 November 2021

This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

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