The Royal Oak Inn

Having just bought a house in Rhandirmwyn, and being unable to get into it (thanks previous owners) we had to stay at the Royal Oak. We had a very warm welcome from 'unser hosten' Debs and Steve. Room clean, tidy, warm and with a very comfortable bed. Dinner and breakfast were excellent. Debs and Steve have done a fine job complying with the arcane COVID-19 restrictions imposed by the Welsh Government, and are being rewarded for their efforts by the ban on alcohol sales from Friday 4 December. We hope this and every other hospitality business in Wales survives this latest attack from Government. These people deserve our support!

Stayed during the refurbishment of the pub so hard to leave a review really as I don't think our stay would reflect the place when fully open, rooms beautifully decorated and lovely and clean, breakfast was nice but a bit on the small side, didn't have much contact with owners with drinks only available for an hour 6pm till 7pm in dining/breakfast room but friendly couple. I felt £15.95 for a bottle of prosecco in the room was expensive.

Warm welcome,good food, a memorable few days staying at The Royal Oak. Some great walks from the door,especially the one out the back of the Royal Oak up to the Trig point where you will have 360 degree views. Went to the dam and walked down to Dinas Island around the RSPB reserve, walking back to the dam car park we watched filming of Ant and Dec`s Get me out of here,then a drive around the reservoir to one of the viewpoints on the other side with more great views. Some of the Forestry Commision car parks and forest trails closed because of tree felling. Because of Covid lockdown my wife and I felt safe here as Debbie and Steve were very keen on keeping everyone safe.

The Royal Oak is in the village of Rhindirmwyn, tucked away in the picturesque Upper Towy Valley. Landlord very friendly and welcoming, local people likewise. We had Plaice and Chips, and Oak Burger with Chips etc (presume no trees harmed in the production of this culinary delight). Very good food, freshly cooked, piping hot and not overpriced. The Bar and Restaurant areas very clean so assume remainder is also clean. This delightful pub sold the area to us, and helped us decide to buy a house locally, we look forward to many good times!

We booked a table for 4 on Tuesday for Wednesday. We drove 20 minutes to get there. We followed social distancing and waited to be seated. When the harassed looking person asked us what we wanted to drink, I explain we'd booked. He looked at the list. "You'll have to find your own table, I'm busy, I've not had time to set it up!" We should have realised then that this might not go well. We found a table and sat and waited, and waited. 15 minutes later I got myself menus. 5 minutes after that I went to get drinks. I waited at the bar patiently. When he did turn up he was quite curt when I asked about fruit cider. I saw there was some fruit cider on draft so order 3 pints. He took 3 glasses into the back and came back a few minutes later with 3 completely still drinks. They looked warm. I asked for a pint of iced water. "We're out of ice..." Got the drinks back to the table and tasted them. They were awful. Now, I've drunk all sorts of fruit cider and this was the worst. Flat, bland, weak, the other two were not impressed either. At this point it was 30 minutes. I think the last straw was when we heard the conversation about frozen chicken strips with a table at the other end of the room. We decided this was not the place for us. We took our drinks to the bar to complain. He got the lady from the kitchen to. "They don't want to pay for their drink" he snarled. There was no apology, just a case of tough s**t. I wasn't prepared to argue. I paid the £15 they demanded and left. Leaving the untouched pints...... hungry and annoyed.