+44 1273 857389+ Add websiteImprove this listing
Hours
Sun
12:00 - 21:00
Mon
12:00 - 22:00
Thu
12:00 - 22:00
Fri
12:00 - 22:00
Sat
12:00 - 22:00
Details
Someone from this business manages this listing.
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PRICE RANGE
£9.00 – £20.00
CUISINES
Bar, British, Pub
Special Diets
Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options
meals, features
Location and contact
Does this restaurant allow dogs or considered pet friendly?
Details
About
Kitchen open 12-2:30 & 6-8 Monday, Tuesday,Wednesday Thursday Friday 12-8:30 Saturday 12-5:30 Sunday
PRICE RANGE
£9.00 – £20.00
CUISINES
Bar, British, Pub
Special Diets
Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options
Meals
Lunch, Dinner, Drinks
FEATURES
Reservations, Outdoor Seating, Buffet, Seating, Parking Available, Free off-street parking, Highchairs Available, Wheelchair Accessible, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Wine and Beer, Accepts American Express, Accepts Mastercard, Accepts Visa, Free Wifi, Accepts Credit Cards, Table Service, Playgrounds, Dog Friendly, Non-smoking restaurants
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3.5
612 reviews
Excellent
238
Very good
137
Average
94
Poor
74
Terrible
69
Sunny075
Shoreham-by-Sea56 contributions
Aug 2020 • family
We visited on a day which offered the eat out to help out. We ate in the garden which is nice. The children’s pirate ship is lovely for the children.
There is a very limited garden menu, which is understandable but it is expensive and the quality of food is average.
We had quite a wait for food but were not told there would be a wait when we ordered.
I question whether the staff are keeping themselves safe enough as they lean in more than I think they need to. They also do not insist on people wash hands on arrival despite having amazing facilities to do so.
The tables are slow at being cleaned and a lot of the chairs were quite dirty.
The pot that the sauce packets came in hadn’t been cleaned and had sauce all up the side to evidence that.
But the staff are friendly and I am sure the pub is adjusting to the different times but we may wait to visit again.
Written 17 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.
jansW2909WV
Dear Sunny075,
Thank you for taking the time to post a review.
Your feedback is invaluable, your comments have been
passed on to the kitchen and front of house teams for
them to use to improve future service.
We do hope to welcome you back again soon.
Written 20 August 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
TravelJunkieMonkey
83 contributions
Sept 2020 • none
Lovely country pub with several different areas to sit outside, staff lovely, drinks choice really good. Such a shame to let it down with mediocre food. Overpriced for what you get - 6oz ribeye £20. No problem at all if the steak was of a good quality, we felt we’d gone to Wetherspoons. Thin, tasteless steak, chips cooked in oil that should’ve been changed at least a week ago. Tomato unripe, totally weird herb taste, about 15 peas, the only thing that was nice was the peppercorn sauce!
Real, real shame, the should get great ingredients, a decent chef, charge more and make it a real destination food location. Will be back but only for a drink and a packet of crisps.
Written 16 September 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.
Graeme047
London76 contributions
Sept 2020 • none
We live in Brighton and decided to pop in on our walk around Devils Dyke. The setting in quite nice but due to it being busy we were only offered the Garden Bar menu but weren’t told this until later. As we watched all these other dishes being delivered we wondered why we’d only been offered the limited menu but apparently it’s because the kitchen was busy. The meal was okay but it’s only an average burger for an above average price.
Written 12 September 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.
j12
Brighton283 contributions
Jan 2020 • friends
Came here with some friends for a Sunday roast and were quite disappointed.
It was so busy you could barely move your chair without bumping other people.
They’d ran out of some side dishes and the main courses of Sunday roasts were pretty low quality it has to be said.
It might be better mid week, but this place relies on weekend customers it seems.
Also, parking and access in and out can be a nightmare.
Written 20 January 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.
Rox123
6 contributions
Oct 2020 • couples
We visited this little gem Saturday and had a lovely time. The food was fab and a great price compared to other restaurants in the area (we are here a lot visiting family) We both had the sausage and onion ciabatta which made a lovely change from door stop breaded sandwiches you usually get at lunchtime. They were delicious and the perfect portion size. My decision was helped by Soul (the manager I think) as I have an egg allergy and he was absolutely brilliant helping me with the allergy information on the menu, he had us feeling relaxed and even had us laughing. All the staff were brilliant and upbeat and I have to mention that they were fab with the whole Covid-19 safety and that made our visit that bit more relaxed knowing that they were doing everything they can to be safe. Thank you to all at The Royal Oak we have already booked our table for 2 weeks time.
Written 22 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.
jansW2909WV
Good Afternoon
thank you for taking the time to review the Royal Oak, I am so pleased you have a great visit, I have passed your kind words on to Soul who is the new Manager here at the Royal Oak. I hope your 2nd visit was as enjoyable as your 1st. During this 2nd lockdown we are working on our new winter menu so please keep a look out on our website and facebook page.
Written 10 November 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Bottlebender
Helmsley7 contributions
Mar 2020 • none
Would you 'Adam and Eve' it. Went there on the 1st March 2020. I'll say one thing, the waiter who got us a table was efficient. I had a burger, others in our group had Sunday Roast. For afters, some had Sticky Toffee pudding, I wanted the crumble. However, turns out, they'd run out of crumble so I opted for the Sticky Toffee pudding. This goes on. They'd now run out of ice cream so we settled for custard (cold). The pudding arrived. The waitress informed me that they had run out of stick toffee so one of us would suffer. It was me and I wad presented with some dry cake with cold custard!!! When we paid the bill, they still wanted £8 for my incomplete pudding. As a Yorkshireman, I felt insulted, let down and utterly flabbergasted that we were charged the full asking price for a sub standard Pud. Do the right thing Royal Oak, give my £8 to charity.
Written 6 March 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.
jansW2909WV
Dear Bottlebender,
Thank you for taking the time to write a review,
feedback is essential for us.
It sounds like we missed the mark with your pudding,
and would like to assure you this is not the norm.
Please do feel free to get in touch with Claire, General Manager
at mail@royaloakpoynings.pub and let us give you a reason to return.
Very best wishes from all the team.
Written 23 July 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
RikW64
Brighton14 contributions
Aug 2020 • couples
Lovely pub, though we stayed outside for both recent visits. The garden is great and well organised, with an overflow area although that can only be used for drinks, no food service. Staff were good if a bit overwhelmed on what was a busy, although not overly so, week day. There were still lots of tables to be found so capacity had not been reached. Despite that we were told the kitchen had closed (at 2pm) to catch up. No orders were taken during that time, meaning that when it reopened a huge queue formed, sending social distancing out the window. Staff remained friendly and food wait (once we were finally able to order) was not too long. it would have been nicer to have been able to place our food order with our drinks, even on the understanding that there would be a long wait. Having to queue twice was not great.
However this is where it got disappointing on both visits - for a pub marketing itself on its reputation for excellent food, I have to say the food was worse than average. Visit one we stuck to the limited main menu offering ‘pub classics’ since the day’s specials had run out. (Sadly we weren’t told that when we were given the menus). The burger was probably one of the worst I had had for some time. Whilst the meat patty itself was nice, the plates with bun, salad leaves and coleslaw had clearly been sitting around for some time and were very dried out. The chips were underwhelming. On this recent visit some of the specials had again run out at 2 pm, so we were back to the main menu and tried the fish and chips. Sadly the fish batter was soggy anaemic and undercooked as were the chips. Definitely no wow factor to the plate or portion. In this day and age where pretty much every pub can knock out a decent burger or fish and chips I was disappointed to find the royal oak with its great reputation serving food of this quality. Maybe focus goes on the specials, however we have been unable to sample these. Hopefully as they get used to the new operating processes and capacity their management of specials availability will improve.
Finally, I understand that masked serving staff is not a legal obligation, but with most other venues doing it, it would add a level of confidence if the Royal Oak were to mask up too.
I know pubs have a lot to deal with in these difficult times so will continue to support, but the food needs improvement!
Written 6 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.
jansW2909WV
Dear RikW64,
Thank you for taking the time to post such a detailed review.
The government's Eat Out to Help Out Scheme, whilst generous,
did catch us out on the first week. We have now made many
adjustments to our menu and staffing levels to offer a better service.
Your feedback is really important to us, your comments have
been passed on to the kitchen management.
We hope to welcome you back again soon.
Written 20 August 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Robin C
Brighton and Hove57 contributions
May 2021 • none
Went for Sunday lunch, two of the four items of Sunday roast were unavailable, the prices were somewhat more expensive than the online menu that we had looked at, only by a few pounds but that's not he way forward.
Childs pudding was expensive, same price as an adult.
Cutlery was delivered loose not wrapped.
Written 24 May 2021
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.
Lisa T
2 contributions
Sept 2021 • family
Staff trying hard but service a bit hit and miss and a very disappointing lunch; overcooked beef, dry chicken, lacklustre gravy, tough (not crispy!) roast potatoes, sticky toffee pudding was more of a light sponge than a rich pud... Was expecting something good for the money but left feeling stung by the cost for very mediocre food. Shame.
Written 5 September 2021
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.
bambifalls
Hove227 contributions
Aug 2020 • none
We came here early August for Eat Out To Help Out with high expectations. Everyone was sat outside as it was a lovely day, and there was great Covid-19 awareness. We can't fault this, or the service, but unfortunately the food was a bit of a let down, especially at the price. The Royal Oak has a reputation for serving slightly fancier grub than your average pub grub, and with a price that goes with it. Unfortunately, the food on this day just didn't cut the mustard. My wife had a lamb dish whilst I had a burger. The lamb was quite chewy, and the whole dish was only lukewarm. My burger too was only warm. As we had waited quite a while (we have no problem with this as we were advised of the wait time before sitting down) we didn't mention it too the staff. Evan with the EOTHO offer, I'd say the food was pricey for what we had, and the lack of quality. A shame as we had been quite eager to try this place out. What I would say is that it was a lovely setting, and the staff were great.
Written 30 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.
nachopeders
Shoreham-by-Sea8 contributions
Oct 2020 • family
We visited on a Saturday afternoon for my Dads birthday, having not visited for a few years.
The service we received from the younger members of staff was brilliant, but very poor from a chap I think was the manager. The menu has a good range of choices but everything is hugely overpriced. £9 for a sandwich! Want chips with that? Another £4. The food and service in no way justified the cost.
There’s a reason I haven’t been here for a long time and think it’s going to be a long time until my next visit too.
Written 19 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.
Amanda Duke
7 contributions
Oct 2021 • none
Booked in for a 6pm Saturday meal. I was looking for somewhere special and thought I had done my research.
Was seated by the tiolet door which was frequently used for the duration of the visit. The door was squeaky, needed oiling and so it was flung open and squeaked for the duration of the visit.
The specials board matched the typed menu? so were there actually daily specials?
At 6pm, early evening booking the most interesting specials were already unavialable.
Attentive and good service thankyou, thats what the stars are for as there are no stars for food.
Orange juice and soda taseted like orange squash and soda due to watered down 'spray gun orange juice. Friendly helpful waitresses replaced the orange juice.
Lemon Sole with mashed potatoe - tasteless, dull, boring, left half of it.
Sirloin Steak and chips was cooked well but tasteless again, no seasoning.
Poached pear with chocolate sauce, sauce was horrid.
Poached pear with caramel sauce, sauce was horrid. Both dessert were left uneaten.
Will not ever eat there again. So sad about this.
Written 24 October 2021
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.
Warner2014
Reading7 contributions
Sept 2020 • none
I am on a diet, trying to lose weight. I go to the Royal Oak fairly regularly and have their poached salmon dish, which is ideal for me. I went in the other day, though, and the salmon was off the menu. I mentioned what a shame this was to the waitress, Issy, and, without prompting, she went into the kitchen and came back in a flash to say "As you're a local, the chef will do it for you especially!" Not only this but, when I ordered some bread, Max, the manager, came out with special vegan "butter" to say this would be better for me on my diet than the regular butter they normally serve. To top it all of, David, the chef, then came out in person, brought the tub of vegan spread to show me so I could read the label and then sat down with us for a second or two to say that, if I ever needed any other dietary requirements, just give him a shout to let him know. From all three of the staff, this was exceptional service beyond expectation. Jan runs a great establishment and the food is marvellous too. The list of specials, in fact, is way beyond the norm.
Written 7 September 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.
NewBrighton
2 contributions
Sept 2022 • none
We booked a family lunch (first get together after 2 long years) at this pub in September. I called a few days before to clarify a few issues with the booking and sounded irritated on the phone. I did not raise my voice or swear. The manager's response: "If you do not apologise I will cancel the whole booking". We had people travelling from far for this so I apologised. I was shocked and humiliated.
When we arrived they couldn't find the booking in anyway but perhaps unsurprisingly they were not too busy so found a table for 13 people easily.
The kids who work there made a mess of our orders, we waited about 40min for main courses and about the same for the desert. Food was average at best and overpriced. My prawn avocado salad tasted like it came from Tesco shelf with a few avocado slices on the top (£15.50).
Needless to say I would not recommend this establishment.
Written 4 October 2022
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.
DavidG897
London2964 contributions
Jul 2021 • none
The car parking areas were fairly full indicating popularity even at a quite late time for lunch on a midweek afternoon. And so it was, many being in the well set up outside dining area which was comfortable.
The food was good too as was service
Written 6 July 2021
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.
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