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Special Diets
Vegetarian Friendly, Gluten Free Options
Meals
Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Brunch, After-hours
CUISINES
Bar, British, Pub
FEATURES
Reservations, Outdoor Seating, Seating, Parking Available, Highchairs Available, Wheelchair Accessible, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Free Wifi, Accepts Credit Cards, Table Service
Reviews (242)
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242 results
Traveller rating
148
50
11
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14
Traveller type
Time of year
LanguageEnglish
Traveller rating
148
50
11
19
14
Show reviews that mention
All reviews mash fish and chips pie samphire burger sunday roast beef the pub enjoyable lunch specials board booked a table cooked to perfection snipe maltings adnams aldeburgh ellie
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Reviewed yesterday via mobile

One of the best lunches we’ve had anywhere in a long, long time! We both had pork belly which was incredibly delicious along with all the perfect trimmings inc root vegetable purée and red cabbage ….yum! My husband followed up with the sticky toffee pudding...which again was in a different league to the usual, the caramelised banana addition he said were amazing! The staff too were lovely, very professional and helpful. Hopefully we’ll be back very soon! XMore

Date of visit: November 2023
Helpful?
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.
Reviewed 3 weeks ago via mobile

Servings very ample, Staff very friendly Food & coffee could be better, after reading recent reviews it sounds like a completely different place as we were very disappointed

Date of visit: June 2023
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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.
Reviewed 24 October 2023 via mobile

A delightful lunch whilst waiting for our car to be Mot’d at a nearby garage. We had fish and chips, which was delicious, light and plentiful. All washed down with a pint. A pub we have missed, having lived in Aldeburgh for a while. The...staff were very welcoming and friendly….We most definitely will return.More

Date of visit: October 2023
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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.
Reviewed 9 October 2023

Best Steak & Ale pie ever had by my local friend. I had delicious pan cooked Cod. Just lovely. Pleasant service, prompt, very enjoyable meal.

Date of visit: October 2023
Helpful?
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.
Reviewed 29 September 2023 via mobile

Booked last minute at this nice pub in Snape, very friendly staff welcomed us.It was evidently pie night , a pity for us as the special board had some very tempting dishes on it. However I chose one of the pies chicken, ham and leek...served with chips and fresh cabbage, broccoli and mangetout plus gravy. Husband had smoked haddock bacon and onion mash with spinach. We really enjoyed both dishes and will have to go again to try the specials! My only gripe is the amount of dogs, wish we could go back to days when they were not allowed in establishments that serve food.More

Date of visit: September 2023
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Reviewed 3 September 2023

I had the best stay! the bed was so comfortable I slept like a log. You get a real Suffolk experience at the golden key. The room was very spacious, clean and really well decorated. The bathroom was especially lovely. I had a full English...which was absolutely delicious! I loved my stay and would definitely stay again. All the staff were very chatty and really welcoming. I noticed this with other guests too not just myself.More

Date of visit: September 2023
Helpful?4  
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.
Reviewed 31 August 2023

Our room (Room 2) was spacious and clean. The en suite bathroom was also very spacious and clean. The pub has character and over all our room was as expected. However, there were a few hospitality issues which marred our stay and could easily be...fixed. When we checked in we asked what time the bar would be closing, as we were going to an evening performance at Snape Maltings and would be returning later and looking forward to drinks to round the evening off. We were told the bar would be open until late, so thought this would be fine. However, when we returned to the pub at approx. 9.35pm the bar had obviously just shut with a group of staff sitting around a table getting ready to leave. We asked what time the bar was supposed to shut, as it seemed quite early, and was told they shut the bar when the last customer has left. We were not offered a drink to take to our room. As we were staying in a pub with rooms we expected this service to be available for usual licensing hours. The entrance to our room was around the back of the pub and up a small flight of stairs, next the the kitchen entrance. Unfortunately the entrance lobby was cluttered with a large bag of dirty laundry for two days and a pile of clean laundry taking space on an arm chair. The single table in the lobby seemed to be being used as a staff work table and the window sill as a shelf for cleaning products. The whole lobby area gave the impression of being a trade entrance, not a welcoming space for guests to feel at ease passing through. It would be simple to tidy up this area and make it more welcoming for guests. While using the back entrance we unfortunately heard loud foul mouthed conversions from some the staff and were almost locked out when the lunch shift left for a 2 hour unmanned period at the pub. The selection of tired tea bags, packet coffee and UHT milk made for a forlorn beverage offering. However, we did ask for a jug of fresh milk and were provided with it. It would be good to offer this option for guests, as well as making the tea and coffee options more premium. For breakfast we both ordered the smashed avocado and poached egg on toast. The bread was dry/stale, toasted like a crouton with no butter or oil, the avocado was plain and the poached egg was not runny. The dish was edible so we didn’t mention it as we don’t like to see food waste in the event of being offered a replacement. There was jam and honey but no toast was offered to any table. As there are only 3 rooms to cater for it should be manageable to provide a good quality breakfast, not one that lacked finesse and was disappointing. The staff vacate the premises over night and for two hours in the afternoon, so there is no one present. There is an emergency number to call should an incident occur. We did have a comfortable, quiet sleep, so that was good. We put all these points to the member of staff when we checked out and she politely listened. She confirmed that the bar does actually close when the last customer has left, but we were customers staying in a pub with rooms and it is reasonable to expect the bar to be open until ay least 10.30 or 11 as an interpretation of ‘late’ on the signage. She said she would be feeding back all our issues to the staff team. We hope these are taken on board, as the issues are simple to remedy.More

Date of visit: August 2023
Helpful?3  
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.
Reviewed 21 August 2023

We had a great meal and the service was excellent. Staff friendly, booked the day before and we had a very enjoyable evening. Varied menu, good fish choices, reasonable prices and good ambience.

Date of visit: August 2023
Helpful?2  
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.
Reviewed 13 August 2023

Plenty of fish on the menu and specials board. Having ordered haddock and quiche behind 2 groups of 6, unfortunately it was an hour before we saw our food, for which the friendly staff were very apologetic. I probably should have asked for some additional...vegetables to accompany my fish. Both meals were hot and flavoursome. Good beer too.More

Date of visit: August 2023
Helpful?1  
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.
Reviewed 4 August 2023 via mobile

Whilst staying in Snape for the week we have eaten twice at The Golden Key. Great pub with a local feel, whilst obviously being popular judging by the number of people who’d travelled from further afield to eat there . A great range of beers...including Adnams and an excellent menu with specials, which changes throughout the week. Would thoroughly recommend eating at the Golden Key . Would also recommend it’s sister pub The Plough and Sail (500 metres down the road at Snape Maltings)…More

Date of visit: August 2023
Helpful?3  
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.
Reviewed 27 July 2023

Good for a few nights. Only a few bedrooms so book ASAP. They have another restaurant about 12 minute walk. Food good at both venues.

Date of visit: August 2022
Helpful?1  
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.
Reviewed 26 July 2023

Lovely pub for informal dining pre concert at Snape Maltings. Arrived around 6.30 when it was already busy with other concert goers. A helpful member of bar staff enquired if I was going to the concert and advised me to pick one of the cold...options as they already had a lot of orders, and my 1st choice would take some time to prepare. Food (very good, plentiful and and tasty crab salad) came quickly. Adnams light ale to accompany was also a treat. Dining areas in and outdoors, and outdoors was lovely on a sunny summer evening. Was a solo diner, but felt no pressure or second class treatment because of this. Very popular pub, so prob a good idea to book unless you're planning to dine very early. One to remember for another time, as I love coming to Snape.More

Date of visit: July 2023
Helpful?2  
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.
Reviewed 18 July 2023

18/7/23-Spur of the moment decision to stop for lunch . Sat outside and enjoyed a fabulous meal. Quality was amazing and service excellent .Staff friendly and even gave our dog a treat. A lovely local pub. Would thoroughly recommend

Date of visit: July 2023
Helpful?1  
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.
Reviewed 16 July 2023

Called in after a long walk for a bite of supper. Service was great and the food was delicious. Our visit was only slightly spoiled by flies in the restaurant - but appreciate it’s difficult to keep them out.

Date of visit: July 2023
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Reviewed 13 July 2023

My wife and I were staying locally and decided to have dinner at this lovely traditional village pub. The welcome, food and beer was excellent so much so we ate here on four consecutive nights. The menu is extremely varied with daily specials that cater...for all tastes. Special mention to Ellie and her colleagues who made our visits memorable. A big thank you and we hope to see you all again soon.More

Date of visit: July 2023
Helpful?2  
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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Questions & Answers
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Linda2605
13 October 2015|
AnswerShow all 3 answers
Response from LinnyLou9 | Reviewed this property |
Yes most definitely.
1
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JohnPOD
16 September 2015|
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Response from Thomas R | Reviewed this property |
they generally do a Christmas menu - as other answer said - call them....
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EssexHeather
5 September 2015|
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Response from 885nicolab | Reviewed this property |
No they didn't when we were there. However I can recommend the pie if they are still serving it.
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THE GOLDEN KEY, Snape - Updated 2023 Restaurant Reviews, Menu & Prices - Tripadvisor

Frequently Asked Questions about The Golden Key

Yes, The Golden Key is taking precautions against COVID-19. A full list is available within the "safety precautions" section of this page.

The Golden Key is rated accordingly in the following categories by Tripadvisor travellers:
  • Food: 4.5
  • Service: 4.5
  • Value: 4.5