The Head of the River, Oxford - (Near Oxfordshire, South East)

1 /5 Pratul r: Reserved a table a few days in advance because this place gets busy when the sun is out. I specifically mentioned wanting a decent seat, assuming that making a reservation would actually mean something. Unfortunately, it didn’t. When we arrived, the attitude from the waitress was shockingly rude from the start. There was no greeting, no effort to help, and every interaction felt like we were inconveniencing her simply by being there. It honestly felt like she didn’t want to deal with customers at all. The QR code system to order drinks didn’t work, which meant everyone had to queue at the bar instead. The line was ridiculous, stretching almost to the door, with only two bartenders trying to keep up. Meanwhile the manager stood nearby watching the chaos without stepping in to help. The whole place felt badly organised and poorly managed. Staff seemed overwhelmed and clearly not supported properly. When basic systems fail and the service is openly rude, it says a lot about the standards being allowed by management. It’s a shame because the location is great, but service like this completely ruins the experience. Until management gets a grip on how the place is run and how customers are treated, I would genuinely recommend avoiding it. There are plenty of other pubs nearby that actually appreciate their customers.

4 /5 Michael Davison: Stayed one night for business, arriving late on an evening where there was a private event taking place in the bar. Polite and efficient check in process, I was given a room on the top floor, clean, well equipped and good size, but the walls are not particularly well sound insulated and therefore the room was not quiet until everyone had gone to bed. Location is great, however no parking means a little bit of extra logistics for one night stay. Breakfast was very pleasant, if that is a taste of what ghe kitchen can produce I would recommend eating there.

5 /5 Aditya Misra: Very nice location next to the river, large outdoor seating area. Outdoor area is great for when the weather is milder. Prices for pints are standard, but cocktails slightly expensive. Very busy in the summers so expect a reasonable wait at the counter to get served. I went to the pub, mind. I didnt stay at the hotel.

5 /5 Wies Panis: We had such a lovely stay here. We were so warmly welcomed by the receptionist that we immediately felt at home. All of the staff were so kind honestly. The room was spacious and comfortable. Breakfast was delicious. I would definitely recommend staying here (or just having dinner, also great!). Cant wait to come back some day!

3 /5 Anna: Stayed overnight - room was lovely (although has single pane windows so lots of noise from outside). Decor and bed, shower etc all lovely. Breakfast was delicious! Staff were not helpful or kind or attentive. We were given our room key by someone who spoke very quickly about the various timings of breakfast etc. After checking in and then mooching round Oxford city centre for a few hours, we arrived back at 1810 and asked for a dinner table, only to be told that food stopped at 6. The apology for the poor communication about this was fleeting and not sincere. Neither that staff member nor the one seated behind her eating her own meal were particularly useful in terms of apologies or alternative suggestions for us, and being new years day, other local places were shut anyway. We ended up walking to Voco Spires hotel about 15 mins away and had a lovely meal there, where the staff were really kind and accommodating, despite us not being their guests. When we came back to this place for a drink later in the evening, we were told our drinks didnt qualify for the residents discount of 15% for guests, as we werent buying them with a meal! During breakfast the staff could not have made more noise crashing cutlery away into trays right next to us, dragging chairs around and spraying cleaning spray on every table in our vicinity. Location is lovely but the nearest paid-for parking is inside the congestion charge zone so the £38 for 24-hr parking and £10 for 2 days of congestion charge meant that our overnight stay here wasnt the bargain we thought wed found.