The Highland Drove Inn

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#1 of 1 Restaurant in Great SalkeldBar, British, $$ - $$$

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.

The Highland Drove Inn

Review

At a glance

Open until 11:00 PM

See all hours

Website

+44 1768 870304Improve this listing

About

Travellers' Choice

2024

Great food, real ales, a notable wine list, roaring fires in winter and a friendly team whose intention it is for you to walk out feeling wonderful – The Highland Drove is a country inn and pub where locals and visitors alike have found a home from home in the Eden Valley, a little piece of paradise. It’s the sort of place on a first visit you walk in as a customer and leave as a friend.

Features

CUISINES

Bar, British, Pub

Meal types

Lunch, Dinner

Special Diets

Vegetarian friendly, Vegan options, Gluten free options

FEATURES

Free Wifi

Full Bar

Highchairs Available

Mastercard

Outdoor Seating

Parking Available

Reservations

Seating

Serves Alcohol

Street Parking

Table Service

Visa

Wheelchair Accessible

Wine and Beer

Location

Church Lane, Great Salkeld, Penrith England

Parking Available, Street Parking

Does this restaurant offer table service?

Yes

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Hours

Suggest an edit

Open until 11:00 PM

Sunday

12:00 pm - 9:00 pm

Monday

5:00 pm - 11:00 pm

Tuesday

5:00 pm - 11:00 pm

Wednesday

5:00 pm - 11:00 pm

Thursday

5:00 pm - 11:00 pm

Friday

5:00 pm - 11:00 pm

Saturday

1:00 pm - 11:00 pm

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4.6

248 reviews

Excellent

190

Good

Average

Poor

Terrible

Louise M

1 contribution

Lovely pub

Nov 2024 • couples

My husband and I visited this lovely pub on a Monday night. They serve a 2 course set menu for £25 including a drink which we’d seen about on the website before booking and were very interested to try. I had the beetroot skewers and haddock and my husband had sausages followed by sticky toffee pudding and we both really enjoyed everything. The portion sizes were really good for such a good value menu and we both liked the fact that the menu focused on sustainability and trying to reduce waste. Really cosy pub with a welcoming atmosphere and we’ll definitely be back to try their main menu.

Written 24 November 2024

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.

paul k

14 contributions

Hidden gem in the Eden valley

Oct 2023 • couples

When I booked I was informed that there was a party on, and a restricted menu available, the dishes on which I found unusual. We decided to go, all the same, and the ‘Meatballs with toasted bread’ and ‘Sugar and spice marinated pork collar’ were excellent. I did not know what to expect, but I will the next time. The cost from the fixed menu of £18 for two courses was very reasonable, and the drinks and service made the night special. Will definitely go again. Highly recommended.

Written 29 October 2023

Tom Lefevre

Thank you for taking the time to review us. Glad you liked the food and we don’t put you off! We have expanded the days we offer the 2&3 course menu to Monday and Tuesday now so you know where to come for a belly full on a winter night!

Written 6 November 2023

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

Jolly_Limey

5 contributions

Lovely Stay and Vegan friendly

July 2023 • family

My wife and I stayed one night in this charming country inn located in the scenic village of Great Salkeld. Tom and Claire were an absolute delight and so accommodating, ensuring we had an enjoyable and comfortable stay. We are both vegan so Tom kindly made sure that there were tasty and creative vegan/vegetarian options on the dinner menu for us (although it was a bit sad to see there was also veal on the menu). After a good night's sleep we were provided with a superlative cooked vegan breakfast masterfully crafted by Tom which set us up for a day on the road. We would highly recommend Highland Grove - it is good value for money, with delightful hosts and if you tell Claire you're vegan, Tom will undoubtedly work his magic in the kitchen for you!

Written 3 August 2023

HunterUk

2 contributions

Lovely place, very disappointing service.

Jan 2025 • couples

I should say straight from the top that it takes a lot for me to leave a negative review. We came here on New Year's Day for lunch. We were told before visiting that there would be a limited "brunch" menu on, which was no problem. However, we were quickly made to feel that it was very much a case of "get what you're given". Firstly, the Guinness was unavailable - fair enough, these things happen. Then my partner, a vegetarian, asked some entirely reasonable questions about what was in the vegetarian sausage - the lady just said she didn't know and reluctantly offered to ask the kitchen staff. I personally don't like egg, and every menu option contained this - I simply asked if my order could not have the egg included. I was informed that today there would be "no substitutions" - I didn't want a substitution, just no egg! In the end I had to scrape my egg off my plate - in fairness the food was very nice but it was bizarre not to be able to order the food as I'd like, even with a "reduced staff" for NYD. Following our meal we went into the bar for a drink. It was during this time that I settled the bill - however, upon leaving to go to the car, we were chased by a member of staff saying we hadn't paid! When it was agreed that we had paid, a mumbled half-apology was all we got. All in all, a wholly unwelcoming experience. We got the feeling that everyone kind of knew each other - and there's nothing wrong with that, but extending the hospitality to strangers shouldn't be too much to ask, we feel. Just a series of unsatisfying customer experiences and a disappointing way to start the year.

Written 1 January 2025

Tom Lefevre

Little confused about this as your wife on the above review said the food was ok…..you said the food was very nice?! There is a national shortage of Guinness where you are limited to buying one keg per order. This is out of our hands. We had 90 guests in today and a lot of them we didn’t know. Everyone gets the same service and welcome no matter who they are. Sorry you feel it wasn’t welcoming enough. Disappointed that you have both decided to vent your frustration that we didn’t know about until you came back in after the mix up with the bill.

Written 1 January 2025

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

Hantsman99

Hampshire117 contributions

Restaurant menu, not a pub menu. Dull ales on handpump. Robotic bar staff.

Apr 2024 • solo

A rather 'robotic' dining experience here. Sat down, ordered, eat & left within an hour. female bar person had no personality whatsoever, given I was a stranger & had not visited the pub before. Menu is high-end and over priced for a pub. It's yet another pub that is pretending it's a restaurant. The overly huge chunky chips with the fried fish I had were vile; puffy, vastly inflated chunks of tasteless potato. The fish was very good though. The cutlery on the table I sat at was not clean or polished, both sets infact. Both ales on handpump were below 4% gravity, extremely dull and both with a dry taste finish, exceedingly dull. I won't be returning. There are better places to dine within a 10 mile radius than this place. Room for improvement in bar staff (not interested in the customer whatsoever) , ale choice/selection and high-end food menu to be more genial like a pub menu should be with general favourites. It isn't a restaurant.

Written 28 April 2024

Tom Lefevre

Hantsman99 we are disappointed to read this review as you didn't inform the dull barmaid of these issues when you dined. We know exactly who you were as you dined alone. If you would have been a little more forthcoming and chatty the barmaid might have connected with you as we"the owners" are from Portsmouth. The menu does indeed have some non pub items on for people that don't just want pub grub. The menu also does have fish and chips, burger, Cumberland sausage, lasagna, gammon and fish pie! Maybe you wanted to see scampi on the menu?? The beers are from a local company called Fell and go down a storm normally and we like to go lower on the abv as our customers like "session" ales. Even a couple at the bar mentioned how it was like getting blood out of a stone when the bar woman was talking to you.

Written 28 April 2024

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

Sarah P

1 contribution

Just awful

Jan 2025 • family

My partner and I decided to have lunch here on New Years Day. We were seated very quickly which was good, but ordering drinks then food felt very rushed and not relaxed at all. The menu was an all day brunch menu, I’m vegetarian, so wanted to ask about the vegan sausage option, the member of staff taking our order was the owner, I wanted to know if the vegan option was soya. I had to ask a few times before she reluctantly offered to ask kitchen. My partner wanted to gyros without fried egg, we were abruptly told that this is not possible because they are so busy and can’t accommodate “substitutions” I’m baffled by this because in any restaurant I’ve ever been to it’s never a problem to ask for an ingredient to be left out?! Especially when they make a point of wanting to know about egg allergies. Food was ok…. Prosecco was flat. After our meal we moved to the bar for another drink, and paid our bill. Finished our drinks and left, we were just getting in our car when a member of staff came out of the pub shouting we’ve not paid. We then had to go back in and repeatedly tell staff we have paid. The staff member that took our payment appeared and confirmed this. What a disappointing visit we’ve had. Rude, rushed and not very accommodating regarding the menu.

Written 1 January 2025

Tom Lefevre

You have made me break my New Year’s resolution to not reply to reviews on 1st of January……shame on you! Please note that out of the 90 people served today you are the only ones who complained. When doing 5 tables at once we can’t offer a change this and add that menu as service for other guests suffers. If your husband had an egg allergy we would have catered for him. You had the veggie option without egg so…….not sure what is up with that. We either do make changes or we don’t. We answered your questions about the sausages and said they were made with pea protein. Nothing was said about the drink being flat. You were made aware via OpenTable that this table would be turned as it was our brunch menu. We did apologise about the mix up with the bill. The table had been turned and the member of staff that got you hadn’t been made aware. Again sorry about that. 2 REVIEWS IS A LITTLE BIT TOO MUCH! A 1 star and a 2 star!

Written 1 January 2025

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

Jackie Hughes

Glasgow5 contributions

Disappointed

May 2024 • couples

Having eaten in here 2 nights in a row back in September, the food was absolutely delicious so we looked forward to returning on our current visit to the area. As previously experienced, the bar staff were very welcoming and friendly. We booked a table for 10/5/24. My husband & I ordered steak pie which was £16.50 each. Initially we both had to send it back because the pie was cold in the middle (a basic error which should never happen). When the plates returned the pie was warm but the chips & peas were now cool, making the large chips very stodgy & unpleasant. I proceeded to attempt to eat what I could but the meat was so chewy & fatty making it inedible for me. I left a large amount & When asked by the waitress if everything was ok, I told her about my issues & she said sorry about that & proceeded to bring us the full amount on the bill which we duly paid. We were really disappointed because our previous visit had been so good.

Written 11 May 2024

Tom Lefevre

This is the perfect example of have a good (2) meals and don't review but have an experience that wasn't like the first 2 amazing times and it's straight to write a review.....even create a new account on google to review the poor experience but not the good. Businesses big or small can't survive on just poor reviews......everyone should be reviewing the GOOD and the BAD but not just the one. We are really sorry that you didn't have a great time like the previous times. Think that when the pie went back in the oven after you cutting it open the meat had gone dry and we should have second guessed that and we hold our hands up to that! What I would say is 2 stars is a little harsh seen a though the service was good and your husband ate all of his. In a review you gave of a hotel you gave them 5 stars even though you had to find them for towels and loo roll(in my opinion that a bigger mistake than a cold pie as they are 2 of the main things you in a hotel room

Written 16 May 2024

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

Keith G

Watford8 contributions

Poor Customer Service

July 2023 • couples

We read the reviews on this pub and thought it would be a good choice. My husband and I could not decide on our mains and the waitress rated the fish and chips ‘as it was huge!!’ When it arrived we both had a child’s portion size piece of fish and when we queried this with the waitress, she also commented that she thought they were rather small too. We said we weren’t prepared to pay £17.00 for such small portions and she went away and came back and said the chef would put some more on for us, so quickly rectified and it arrived in a timely manner. What we were upset about was the management did not acknowledge the issue, apologise or say they hope it did not spoil our meal. My husband also thought the chips were rather burnt too so surprised one of the previous reviews said they were the best chips they had ever had, really???

Written 14 July 2023

Tom Lefevre

Thank you for taking the time to review The Highland Drove. We are disappointed that you didn’t enjoy your meal. The fish is all fresh and does come at a premium cost to us at the moment. Each fish nearly being steak price into us as wholesale. You both did get a “tail” end of fish that is thinner I admit but still the same weight as the “head” ends that others were having. The potatoes we use for our triple cooked chips are red skinned potatoes so to some they can look burnt but this is just the fried skin colour. We want the skins to be crispy and the middles to be fluffy. If you would have brought this to our attention we would of changed the chips out to fries. The manager did come and speak to you afterwards asking was everything ok with the meal and if you would like FREE PUDDINGS(as a offering from us) she just got a snarky comment back about how you were full….now you got more fish. We believe we went out of our way to rectify your issues and feel some of the comments made in this review are a little unfair.

Written 14 July 2023

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

kelles123

Liverpool43 contributions

Poor value for money

Nov 2024 • couples

My husband and I had a lovely meal here in the summer so were looking forward to returning. We traveled from Pooley Bridge on a Tuesday evening and I’m sorry to say,we were so disappointed. Firstly, the dining room was cold. There wasn’t a single radiator switched on and although there is a wood burning stove in a chimney in the centre of the room we were seated at the side of the brick so couldn’t feel the warmth at all. Unfortunately I sat with my coat on most of the night. Now to the food. The menu is 2 courses from a reduced choice menu for £25 including a drink. The a la carte menu is not available,which we did not realise. We did struggle to make our choices but in the end, my husband chose the sausages and I chose the mushroom ragu. The food itself was tasty however I didn’t feel it was value for money-2 sausages,a few roast potatoes and some carrots? The desserts were lovely although small portions - again I didn’t feel we had value for money. We have eaten in lots of restaurants all over the world including Michelin star places so it isn’t that we minded paying. We just left feeling cold,hungry and just disappointed with the whole experience I’m sorry to say.

Written 13 November 2024

S N

7 contributions

Fantastic Meal and Great Atmosphere

Jan 2023 • family

We went for a family meal, the food was to die for. Especially the scotch egg starter and ham hock. The kids meals are good sized portions and value for money, my kids loved the fact they got the choice of different puds and not the usual ice-cream you often just get on a kids menu. Pork belly, pie and burger all very tasty and well cooked, we went a few weeks earlier and had the roast which was also delicious. We had starters and mains and wish we hadn’t had breakfast that morning we were soooo full. The bar staff were attentive, cosy atmosphere with open fires, big pool table, plenty of beer and gin selections. Would highly recommend a visit for food or drinks, this pub has just been taken over so id ignore any previous scathing reviews we are local and this is a fantastic little pub which we all wish well for the future!

Written 15 January 2023

Tom L

Thank you so much for taking the time to write a review for us! Pool, beer and gin is a perfect match!

Written 23 February 2023

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

sarah P

4 contributions

Brilliant

Sept 2024 • family

We visited the Highland Drove whilst staying in an Airbnb in the village. We went on a Monday evening and the menu was 2 courses and a drink for £25 ppl. The food was amazing, fabulous quality and very tasty. The portions weren't huge but it is definitely restaurant food rather than pub food. The menu changes daily(I think). I would highly recommend.

Written 24 September 2024

howard m

11 contributions

Uncooked food, appalling customer service

Dec 2022 • none

We booked a table here after the re opening as we live local and wanted to support our local pubs, so were seated and drinks brought. We made our choices and waited for the food to arrive, this is were the issues started. I ordered the smoked ham hock on a potato rosti with poached egg to start followed by fish and triple cooked chips with minted peas and homemade tartare sauce. So the starter arrived poached egg with no yolk, just some brown coloured liquid in place of the yolk, rosti was cold as well so got the attention of the staff and asked for it to be replaced. However instead of giving me a fresh dish they just replaced the egg. The next issue the second poached egg wasn't cooked the white was raw so this also went back, very poor a chef that cannot cook a poached egg! Then when the mains appeared I thought fish and chips cannot go wrong with that, but they did: the fish wasn't cooked through batter was raw minted peas were not minted peas but bullets from a microwave. When I raised the issues with the staff they told me that the fish was cooked but believe me it wasn't. Yet again poor customer service, so while my partner had her meal I was left feeling hungry and pretty let down by the whole episode, there are many many much better eating establishments around the Eden valley that offer far superior food and service and if this place wants to survive it needs to up its game and realise that a few local's drinking beer will not cut it. Obviously we will not be returning and if things don't improve I doubt others will either.

Written 30 December 2022

Tom L

Thank you for your review. We take all reviews into account and take them on board. This review however we will take with a pinch of salt as a lot of the information in it is false. One fact is that the original egg had no yolk and that’s our mistake. The second egg was shallow poached for speed of getting it back to you. The rosti was never supposed to be piping hot and you didn’t return the second egg. The fish was cooked. If we had made the mistake we would of held our hands up and made a new one. Talking with a few locals it seems like you have a reputation for this sort of thing and bending the truth when it comes to business: Again thank you for the review and your custom. The words you will get a scathing review on trip advisor still ringing in our ears we wish you a happy new year.

Written 30 December 2022

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

Rich

16 contributions

A superb Sunday lunch!

Nov 2023 • couples

We last visited this pub/restaurant several years ago but today we decided we would have a trip out from our home in Ambleside for a Sunday lunch. We booked a table and that was done easily on the phone. On arrival, we were greeted warmly and shown to our table. We ordered two starters ( curried black lentil soup and triple cooked chicken wings) both were served quickly and were delicious. We both opted for the braised short rib of beef plus vegetables. The plates were spectacular when they arrived with a generous portion of beef, large Yorkshire pudding and a great selection of vegetables cooked so that they were still fresh! All in all, a wonderful meal in very pleasant and welcoming surroundings. We will certainly return in the future because the food was well worth the trip.

Written 5 November 2023

Tom Lefevre

Thank you for taking the time to review us. We are glad that the beautiful journey from Ambleside wasn’t ruined! Hope to see you again in the future.

Written 6 November 2023

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

j0hnsellers

Lincoln74 contributions

Golden wedding doo

Oct 2023 • family

The visit was for a family dinner group and stay over for our golden wedding celebration. Everyone had a great time . The food was spot on and timely well presented and the service was great carried out out by friendly, patient and attentive staff who were real diamonds . We were not rushed at all and stayed on in the restaurant until late . The majority of the group stayed at the inn and reported that the rooms were spotlessly clean, and comfortable with all the usual bits and bobs provided ( no hairdryers apparently which could be an overnight but was not a problem). Breakfast was also reported as being great. Thanks to the hosts Claire ,Tom , and all the staff for proving such a great evening, we’ll be back .

Written 16 October 2023

KittyR

1 contribution

Fantastic pub

Oct 2023 • family

We had our Sunday lunch here which was delicious and considering the family have multiple food allergies the owners couldn’t have done more to help. Lunch was beautiful and equally our Monday night supper of pizzas on Monday was just wonderful. The Greek Goddess tops as my favourite ever pizzza of all time. Thank you for a lovely pub experience.

Written 23 October 2023

Tom Lefevre

Thank you for taking the time to review us. Means a lot to hear that the hard work that the chefs do in regards to allergies is appreciated. Hope to see you back soon!

Written 6 November 2023

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