The Royal Oak - Marlow

I was excited to see a variety of vegan options on the menu at this restaurant, but our experience was disappointing due to the small portion sizes and inaccuracies in the dish descriptions. I ordered the Courgette, leek, wild garlic, and walnut crumble as a main, expecting a hearty dish. However, I was served three asparagus spears, a few pieces of leek, and a sprinkle of walnut on top, all for a hefty price of £12.75. My partner ordered the cassoulet, which was more filling but still needed a side dish to make it a satisfying meal. It seemed like the restaurant may have misunderstood what being vegan entails, assuming it means not eating much.

I want to express my gratitude to the Royal Oak for introducing a vegan menu. It is very impressive that they have taken the time and effort to accommodate vegans as well as people with allergies and intolerances. For my starter, I had an Asian-style noodle salad which was delicious, filled with fresh vegetables, herbs, and perfectly seasoned. For my main dish, I ordered a cassoulet. As someone who has lived in France and made cassoulet many times, I was excited to see it on the vegan menu. Unfortunately, what I received was a bean stew topped with a few fried potatoes. While I would have been content with it being described as a bean stew, I was disappointed to receive it when expecting a cassoulet. Lastly, I ordered an apple and walnut crumble for dessert. What arrived was stewed dried fruit topped with an abundance of walnuts. If it had been accurately described, I would not have ordered it as it was truly awful. There is nothing wrong with serving bean stew or stewed fruit with walnuts, but it is misleading to label them as "cassoulet" and "crumble."

I was given a separate vegan menu when I asked for options. The food was delicious and the staff were friendly. They even allow dogs, which was a nice touch.

Comfortable vegan options and a dedicated vegan menu. There's even vegan apple pie not listed on the menu!

I am always happy to see a series of vegan options, but our experience here has been reduced by the small portion sizes and inaccuracy of the descriptions. I ordered courgette, lauch, wild garlic and walnut crumb as main, which blows up as 3 asparagus, a few pieces of lauch with some nuts. cost £12.75! my partner had the cassoulet, which was a bit more substantial, but still needed one side. I think they might have interpreted vegan, as meaning not eating much