The Dragon Inn Crickhowell

Covid has been tough for almost everyone and not least the hospitality industry. I certainly don’t want to criticise as places are just getting back to their feet after a very tough few months. However having eating out a few times since the major lockdown I felt that in this place something wasn’t right. The food was great and with covid safety measure in place felt safe. But the menu is dramatically reduced. We weren’t informed of this on entering so by the time we’d got to our table felt committed to staying. You order on an app that opens from a QR code on your table. There is a 30p charge added to cover the cost of the app too. Our mains came out fast so fast it was before our drinks. The problems came when ordering pudding which because of the app you have to do as a separate order and payment. This took 35 minutes to arrive. Being at the back of the garden there were no staff to ask what was the cause of the delay and you are expressly asked to not walk around the pub looking for anyone as the staff will come to you. But being that clearly by this time around 19:45 there was just one waitress left working so it appeared this would have been impossible. Dessert came and it was nice but the coffee and hot chocolate were not hot and had clearly been hanging around for a while. Finally you had to walk out via the car park. So there is no interaction with the staff at all. No chance to say thank you or anything like that. The way the system worked for us seemed to make it like the table service you get in a McDonald’s. I understand covid has changed things massively but other places just seem have managed to keep closer to their original level of service and menu choices. I’m sure once a more normal situation comes this place will be back to what everyone else has said it is.

Booked a table with dogs. Very good compliance with Covid rules. Details taken for track and trace. Sanitizers and waiting staff wear masks. Meal was very tasty. We ordered a Camembert main as a starter and shared it. Then we both had roast beef. Lovely home cooked Yorkshire pudding and roast potatoes. Veg fresh and not overcooked! Still had bite to it. Enjoyed our food. Staff very friendly and professional. Recommended for food.

We have stayed at the Dragon a couple of times and enjoyed it. On 23rd Aug we were staying somewhere different in Crickhowell but popped into their unusually empty beer garden for a drink. On the tables were the app details as many places are involved in now. Just as I was about to download the app I noticed it said there would be a 30p surcharge for every order to cover admin fees. I have not seen this anywhere else, we left in disgust to another venue feeling they were taking advantage of the situation. It wasnt the 30p per se but the principle of it. We won't be going back.

Attended the pub with 3 others on a Sunday lunchtime. Good choice on the menu including 3 different roasts (beef, lamb, chicken). The lasagne and the fiery dragon burger were very very good, but the highlight of the visit was the tremendous service provided by the young staff. They were all attentive to every detail and were most courteous and helpful. A great credit to The Dragon, well done!

Food was excellent, good choices and well presented. Plentiful breakfast. The staff were friendly and welcoming and they were very helpful in changing to a more accessible room for me. The car park was very challenging, but we knew that anyway. Would recommend a stay.