The Bell - Amber Valley

Visited with friends and second time of eating here within the month….was not impressed and wonder if there is a different chef during the day…? Menu options are not always available…lamb kebab meat chewy , chips dry, tzatziki very thick, hunters chicken with seasonal veg were served with stir fry veg….which was not specified…The lady who served us was apologetic and comments passed to kitchen but no discount offered. What a shame as the food here used to be very good unless they were more focused on the steak evening later that day…..? Having said that the pub itself, real ale and the beer garden are very nice…

We had 2for 15 menu , so I suppose you get what you pay for .. we booked a table , guy with shorts and T-shirt finally came to bar he was eating his lunch I think ? said ! Just sit anywhere , no menu offered , we had to seek out ours , had to ask for more drinks whilst waiting for our food , Caesar .. freshly cooked chicken , bowl like you’d have for breakfast, salad greens not crisp . Mini fish , batter spongy , … triple cooked chips ?? Dry old tasing but I know they were cooked fresh .. no sauces offered , tartare with fish or ketchup and Mayo with extra chips . beautiful interior , but detail …table next to us not wiped after customers had left , almost 30 mins .. also condiments we did have came from dirty table .

Just been into the pub. Stood at the bar for 10 minutes and no one even at the bar serving. Another couple sat next to us also waiting for a drink and been waiting since before we walked in. Went to the Sitwell where we could at least get a drink!

We visited The Bell for lunch on 10th August, having not been for a while. The young chap that served us was polite and friendly and helped us with gluten free options as my wife is Coeliac. We had a couple of drinks and sat in the garden. The meals duly arrived after around 30 to 40 mins and were clearly freshly cooked. The quality of food was superb and actually far better than we had expected from a pub lunch and we were both very pleasantly surprised. Most pubs get nowhere near this standard and we will undoubtedly be visiting more often. When I paid, the barman apologised for the wait to get the food. No apology necessary. To get quality like that takes time and effort and the results were well worth it. 10/10.

Very friendly staff and fantastic meals at very reasonable prices. Would highly recommend we will definitely be back when out walking on the area.