The Swan - Basingstoke and Deane

A charming pub restaurant located near Basingstoke, offering delicious food and having friendly, cheerful staff. We made a reservation through the Greene King app and although we arrived late, we were still able to be seated in the lively bar area.

We stopped by for a quick lunch between hospital appointments. We asked Debbie, the bar manager, if we could be served quickly. Our drinks came out within a few minutes, followed shortly by our scampi, chips and peas and steak ciabatta.

One of the most important things for us, as dog lovers, is that this restaurant is incredibly dog-friendly. They even provide a dog station with biscuits, water, and a basket for our furry friends. We enjoyed a delicious lunch from the English menu - I had the ham and hock pie, while my wife had the smothered chicken. Both dishes were perfectly cooked and served by the incredibly friendly staff. We will definitely be returning in the future.

Really disappointing Christmas Dinner, food was sub par and when we needed to address an allergy (pork) that we 'd specifically checked the day before that our meals wouldn 't contain pork they came with the stuffing wrapped in pork. When addressed with the staff member he said he 'd just have it removed, we repeated again to say it would need to be remade because it 's a pork allergy and the other food had been contaminated. He returned again assuring us the chef had said there wasn 't pork in the meal the stuffing was again, wrapped in bacon so the fact this wasn 't evident to a pork contamination is beyond us. They left again and returned with a fresh meal that had been replated but it genuinely felt like an argument to address an allergy. Furthermore, we were repeatedly asked are you sure when addressing the meals and it felt like we 'd been discussed amongst the staff. Having worked in the industry previously I 'm aware this happens amongst staff for difficult customers. The vegetables in the meal were also sub par, tasted like the veg was frozen veg. The crumble was also cold, which seemed like it had been made and then left out. It didn 't seem to be freshly made. Really disappointing considering the meal was £250 for four people. Definitely feels like we overpaid and won 't be doing Christmas Dinner here again. Would appreciate being able to talk to management.

Had a great night, service was good and the food was delicious. We were well looked after by Ollie M. Highly recommend.