The Royal Oak

Someone from this business manages this listing.

#14 of 76 Restaurants in Ripon££ - £££, Bar, British, Vegetarian friendly

+44 1765 602284+ Add website

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Hours

Sun

8:00 - 23:00

Mon

8:00 - 23:00

Tue

8:00 - 23:00

Wed

8:00 - 23:00

Thu

8:00 - 23:00

Fri

8:00 - 0:00

Sat

8:00 - 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

4.5

1,025 reviews

#14 of 76 Restaurants in Ripon

Travellers' Choice 2024

RATINGS

Food

Service

Value

Atmosphere

Details

Someone from this business manages this listing.

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PRICE RANGE

£4.00 – £18.00

CUISINES

Bar, British, Pub

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options

meals, features

Location and contact

36 Kirkgate, Ripon HG4 1PB England

+44 1765 602284

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Is this restaurant good for brunch?

Yes

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About

All of our food is freshly prepared in house by our talented brigade of chefs. We are lucky to be located in an area rich with excellent local produce. This is reflected in our menu’s that change seasonally enabling us to use ingredients when they are at there best. We offer a wide selection of meat and vegetarian meals, with a mouth watering desserts menu alongside a carefully chosen wine list to compliment your meals.

PRICE RANGE

£4.00 – £18.00

CUISINES

Bar, British, Pub

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options

Meals

Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Brunch, After-hours

FEATURES

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

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4.5

1,025 reviews

Excellent

640

Very good

248

Average

Poor

Terrible

Val

Ripon65 contributions

Good pub grub

Aug 2020 • none

We were in Ripon for the weekend, and found out that our hotel had stopped offering evening meals and so we came across The Royal Oak who could accommodate us. I had the Breaded Chicken which came with Caesar Salad and hand cut chips. My friend had the gammon chop with cheese topping, and hand cut chips. This is your typical pub grub, and it was very nice. I had a glass of Sauvignon Blanc, and my friend had lime and soda. The young waiter asked my friend if there was enough lime. He rarely gets asked this, so a special mention to the waiter for showing this consideration. For dessert, I had lemon posset with raspberry sorbet, and my friend had sticky toffee pudding with salted caramel ice cream. Both very good. The waiting staff were attentive and friendly, and we noticed that the pub were doing their utmost to maintain social distance and employing the ‘track and trace’ initiative, as on entering the pub I had to give my name and mobile number both of which were written down.

Written 16 August 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.

Sarah b

Lytham St Anne's2363 contributions

Mid week break

Aug 2021 • couples

We selected this place from booking.com and were given a reasonable rate for b&b during the post pandemic rush for accommodation so we were really pleased to get away for a few nights break. 18th century coaching inn so lots of character. Room was lovely, well appointed. Large sleigh bed was comfortable, ( did mean a bit if a squeeze to get round, but not too inconvenient). Window opened for lots of air during the hot weather which is a must for me. View from the window was of Ripon cathedral which was stunning. Did mean the Westminster chimes on the quarter hour were a prominent feature of our stay! However, this wasn't too much of a disturbance, we kind of got used to the sound which was very comforting knowing we were close to the sanctuary of the cathedral, and anyway, it's easy to close the window if it becomes annoying. Tea and coffee in the room good supply of Yorkshire tea bags. Plenty of hot water for showering. The menu in the restaurant was very good and the place was popular with non residents. Not a problem to get a table ( recommended to book), and we enjoyed our dinner here on both nights of our stay. They had a good selection of real ales and we tried several. Over the 2 nights we tried the Barnsley lamb chop, a dirty burger and chips, rib eye steak, and chicken Caesar salad. All the dishes were delicious, well prepared and presented. Friendly efficient staff. Breakfasts were very good, loose leaf tea in a diffuser which was great and a good selection of breakfast choices in addition to the full Yorkshire breakfast. Welcome was great, we asked about parking and were directed to the pubs own secure car parking at the rear ( combination lock on gate), for total £5 for the 2 nights which was very reasonable.

Written 18 August 2021

RoyalOakRipon

Thank you for the review! It's always great to hear feedback from our guests, and it's great to hear you enjoyed your stay. We hope you choose to stay with us again soon!

Written 24 August 2021

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

Mrs D

Pickering74 contributions

Super food and great service but atmosphere needs attention

Feb 2020 • none

Four of us called for lunch on a cold February day. We were not impressed at all by the surroundings as, at half past twelve, the pub was quite cold and a little dark. Our very basic round table in the corner was set for five, despite the fact that we had booked beforehand for four. As this was our first visit we were very apprehensive about the meal to come. The menu was not particularly varied but we made our choices and waited. When the food came we could not have been more surprised and delighted. The celeriac soup with coriander and a blue cheese crouton was superb, as were the perfectly cooked and flavoured scotch eggs. The sea bass, chosen by all of us, and served with new potatoes, buttered spinach and capers was again perfect in every way. The almond tart was declared the best my husband had ever tasted and the coffee was lovely. We will definitely be back.

Written 7 February 2020

janethalton

Edinburgh13 contributions

5 Star Pub Lunch

Aug 2020 • none

I had lunch at the Royal Oak with 7 other members of my family - adults and teenagers - and their menu catered for a wide range of tastes, including vegetarians. Staff were very helpful when booking in advance, accommodating our large party (with dog!) across 2 nearby tables (due to social distancing rules). We all had main courses and puddings - and everyone raved about their food. Posh hand cut chips (with parmesan and truffle) were so delicious that we had to order an extra side dish of these! We all left feeling full and satisfied, and due to the Eat Out to Help Out scheme this month, the final bill was extremely reasonable. If we ever pass through Ripon again in the future, we'll definitely be booking another meal at the Royal Oak.

Written 5 August 2020

RoyalOakRipon

Hi. Thank you for the review. It's great to hear everyone enjoyed there visit! We hope to see you again soon!

Written 8 August 2020

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

Chefrocket 🚀

Ripon7 contributions

Poor food

Jun 2021 • family

I went to the oak yesterday with my sister and her boyfriend, we ordered 3 English breakfast and had to wait 35 minutes for them to come out and just disappoint, I had 2 tiny pieces of bacon, 2 overcooked warmed up sausages, a horrid poached egg, a half cooked hash brown, a half cooked full tomato and about 16 beans! The black pudding was ok! I ordered extra bacon and never received it. The toast was cooked on one side and the other side not touched at all and another piece looked like it had seen the toaster for about 3 seconds and jumped onto the toast rack. We were the only 3 people in the place and had to wait that long for what I can only describe as rubbish. I am a chef and have cooked countless breakfasts for a long time and on hearing this was a great place for breakfast I wanted to try it. I don’t like to leave bad reviews and it’s a shame I have to but just disappointed with it. I didn’t except to get the meal free and would of been more then happy to pay for it so thank you for that

Written 9 June 2021

RoyalOakRipon

Hi. Thank you for the review. It saddens me that the level of service was not up to our usual standard upon your visit. I can assure you that this is a one off for us. We take pride in our high level of service and quality of food, and I can only apologise that we didn't get it right for you. The kitchen team have been informed and I can guarantee this will not happen again. We appreciate all feedback, good and bad as it helps us grow and improve. We hope you will return in the near future, and see the high standard that we portray.

Written 13 June 2021

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

Hayley

31 contributions

Don’t bother. The food was

Dec 2020 • family

Don’t bother. The food was very poor. None of our plates we had were worth £19. Food precooked and reheated. Came out just warm. When my mother in law commented to the waitress, she is a skilled cook with years of experience, she was quite rude. We won’t be returning.

Written 20 December 2020

marg790

33 contributions

mixed lunch

May 2021 • none

Visited for lunch, not many diners/drinkers. drinks good, meal fine but very poor service. 3 staff chatting to each other, it took 8/10 mins before even visiting to ask if we wanted drinks, followed by 25 wait for food.

Written 27 May 2021

1QualityTraveller

227 contributions

Eaten here many times and

Aug 2020 • none

Eaten here many times and been a supporter but felt this time the food was poorly presented, lacked imagination and was bland. Very disappointed. Also bar service was very slow which was incredible as there was no one else at the bar. Felt like the staff were on a go slow! Didn’t see a lot of cleaning going on of tables, menus etc which is worrying in a Covid time.

Written 3 August 2020

RoyalOakRipon

Thank you for taking time to leave us a review. I'm sorry you felt your recent experience wasn't up to our usual standard. Did you mention any of these comments to the staff while you were in? As we could have easily addressed the issues with food if you had... I'd like to address some of your comments if I may.. The reason nobody was stood at the bar is because they simply are not allowed to, which is why nobody was there! I'm sure you are aware about the global pandemic we are all currently going through, and how we have had to put a lot of new rules into place. Just because there is nobody stood at the bar, doesn't mean there is nothing going on! We offer full table service, when we are busy service can slow a little which I apologise for, but it's great that we are busy and people continue to come support us. When we are busy customers are informed and usually don't mind waiting a little longer. Also the reason we do not clean the menus is because they are disposable..... they get used once then have to be thrown away. Also ALL our tables are cleaned correctly after every use. Kat

Written 8 August 2020

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

Sowtz

Wentworth10 contributions

Twice in 3 days

Oct 2020 • none

We have just had a 3 night stay in Ripon. I'd been to the Royal Oak before with work colleagues on a walking trip, but my wife and I read the reviews and we decided to reserve a table for our Sunday evening meal. I'm so glad we did. The food was really tasty, well cooked, and well presented. I had Sticky Beef and my wife had Herb Crusted Salmon. The staff were so friendly, attentive and welcoming. It made for a really good evening, so much so that we booked again for our third evening too. (Incidentally, everything seemed well organised for the Covid requirements; there was hand gel as we entered, as well as a small bottle on the table if needed. The tables were well spaced and the staff all wore masks. We felt very safe.)

Written 15 October 2020

Kenneth C

Consett216 contributions

Nice bar

Aug 2020 • couples

We could only get in for drinks as not many bars open on a Sunday in ripon. They didn’t have the drink I wanted but we managed. The staff were pleasant we tried to book a meal for the Monday but fully booked so no chance to see what food was like

Written 28 August 2020

nigel s s

Egham72 contributions

Splendid Sunday dinner

Sept 2021 • none

We stayed a couple of nights at the Royal Oak, making it our base for visiting Ripon Cathedral and going round Fountains Abbey. The Cathedral is only a few yards away, at the end of Kirkgate (Ripon's answer to the Shambles at York), and there's a good view of it from the top of the fire escape staircase at the rear of the hotel. The Royal Oak is also very conveniently located for you to dash out after dinner to watch the wakeman blowing the horn in the Market Place nearby at 9pm, Ripon's great attraction. We greatly enjoyed our two nights at the hotel, and we found the staff all very helpful and friendly. My one word of criticism is that our room was very hot at nights, and the winter duvet was quite inappropriate for a still warm September. Unfortunately, as we were on the on the second floor, the window couldn't be opened, and there was no air conditioning system in the room. The highlight of our visit - to end on a more positive note - was Sunday evening's dinner, which was absolutely superb. The pork belly was magnificent. There are not many places in Ripon where you can get dinner on a Sunday evening. But no matter: the Royal Oak's dining room is unbeatable.

Written 14 September 2021

Dougie W

13 contributions

Check the prices on the website menu, some are wrong

Mar 2023 • couples

We had a meal early this week, I ordered Croque Madame, website said I could have a glass off house red for £1.50, when I came to pay our bill I was charged full price for the wine, I believe it was £3.50. I challenged the young girl at the bar when paying and she said there has been a problem with the website and they were looking into it….NOT MY PROBLEM GUYS. She wouldn’t back down and had to pay the full price, so this is my fault is it that your website shows wrong pricing, I felt as if I was in the wrong, not good Royal Oak. I did email The Royal Oak and attached a screenshot of the menu but surprise surprise nobody has answered and offered to look into the matter. Come on Royal Oak, get your house in order, either remove the website menu or get it sorted asap, your standards are slipping. Lord Douglas Weake.

Written 1 April 2023

savvystacey

Harrogate9 contributions

Lovely place , disappointing

Aug 2021 • family

Lovely little pub, not very pushchair/wheelchair friendly. Lovely staff, fries taste amazing, however the ‘bread’ starter is in fact some really hard dry toast, spoiled my lunch as was looking forward to some nice fresh soft bread. Also paid £5 for the stale dry bread, total rip-off. The bread and the many stairs is why the low review :(

Written 18 August 2021

RoyalOakRipon

Hi, thank you for the review. Sorry to hear your recent experience was not the best. If you had mentioned there was issues with the bread, we would have happily replaced. But if we do not know there are issues, we can not rectify. This is something we could have easily sorted for you, and its frustrating that the only way we have known there was an issue is from this review. We also understand that there are a few steps into the building, making it hard for pushchairs and wheelchairs but we do have a ramp to help. Due to the age of the building, and things being listed this is something we can't change.

Written 24 August 2021

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

stevenyork

135 contributions

Disappointing Food

Aug 2021 • none

We have called here many times for drinks on our trips to Ripon. On this occasion we opted for a lunch time snack of a Coronation Chicken Sandwich and French Fries. The portions were very small for the price paid and we left very disappointed. The service was good and the place always clean but give the food a miss.

Written 24 August 2021

The Howden's

70 contributions

Poor attitude from young staff

Dec 2021 • family

We have been visiting here for 10 years with a round trip of 85 miles and have always had brilliant food and service. After years of boasting how good this place is we arranged a table for 4 to celebrate Christmas with our son and fiance who live in Manchester. The starter was lovely and we had ordered posh chips with truffle oil with parmesan to accompany our main meals, unfortunately when the main meals arrived it looked like McDonald's had delivered their fries we mentioned this to one of the staff and we were brought a bowl of parmesan to rectify the problem and for a restaraunt with a great reputation we believe it was poor. One of the younger staff asked us if we had enjoyed our meal which I replied the food was amazing but the chips were rubbish and could have got the same from a fast food restaraunt she wasn't interested in the slightest, when I paid the bill I asked if she had passed on our comments to the chef and she could have cared less. It's a real shame that the excellent standards have slipped and it will be a while before we consider returning as it put a damper on the whole experience.

Written 19 December 2021