The Walter Arms is a local pub and restaurant just close to where I live. You can find it on Bearwood Road, between Barkham and Sindlesham on the outskirts of Wokingham. It has recently undergone a substantial refurbishment so when I visited recently I was interested to see if and how it had ... Read review
Advantages: great place to eat Disadvantages: slow service
The Walter Arms is a local pub and restaurant just close to where I live. You can find it on Bearwood Road, between Barkham and Sindlesham on the outskirts of Wokingham. It has recently undergone a substantial refurbishment so when I visited recently I was interested to see if and how it had changed. It is now described as a pub and restaurant with a hint of the mediterranean!
The pub used to have quite a cluttered old fashioned feel ... ...February night was very welcoming. The last time I visited was on a Friday night a couple of weeks ago with a group of girlfriends for a meal and a natter. As we were there a bit early we stood in the bar area and had a drink first but we could have gone straight to our table had we wanted. For a Friday night it was busy but not packed but I would advise booking in advance if you want to eat. YOu can either do this by phoning up or via the website. more
The Walter Arms is a local pub and restaurant just close to where I live. You can find it on Bearwood Road, between Barkham and Sindlesham on the outskirts of Wokingham. It has recently undergone a substantial refurbishment so when I visited recently I was interested to see if and how it had changed. It is now described as a pub and restaurant with a hint of the mediterranean!
The pub used to have quite a cluttered old fashioned feel to it but that has all changed now. When you first go in you notice a light, airy modern feel although they have still retained a real fire which on a cold February night was very welcoming. The last time I visited was on a Friday night a couple of weeks ago with a group of girlfriends for a meal and a natter. As we were there a bit early we stood in the bar area and had a drink first but we could have gone straight to our table had we wanted. For a Friday night it was busy but not packed but I would advise booking in advance if you want to eat. YOu can either do this by phoning up or via the website.
One thing that is noticeable is that it's now much more a restaurant than a pub. There were some drinkers congregated around the bar but it was mainly filled with people who were eating. The other thing that I noticed is the fact that it did not really seem to be a young person's pub - probably because it is outside the centre of Wokingham and most people would have to drive there. If you do drive there, parking is not a problem as there is a small car park at the front and a much larger one at the back.
There are various different eating areas either in the main part of the pub or in a separate building which is where we ended up. The tables are well spaced out and you don't feel packed in or able to ear wig on other people's conversations.
The menu is quite extensive and I had already had a look before I went out because you can view it on line. This is very handy because it means that you can see whether it is serving the sorts of things you like before you book. This is very useful for me because I have to confess that I am a bit of a fussy eater! You can also email any questions you might have to the chefs which would be great if you were an allergy sufferer and wanted to know what certain dishes contained.
The menu choices are divided into the following sections:
Starters Smorgasboard Stove and grill Stone baked pizzas Pasta Salads Sides
All the dishes have a description with them so there are no surprises when your meal arrives.
The price of starters range from £4 (soup of the day) to £8.95 (seared scallops). We did not actually have a starter but opted for a Rocket Pizette from the smorgasboard (garlic, rocket and parmesan) which at £6.50 was ideal for four of us to share.
There was a lot to choose from for a main course under all of those different sections. I had a delicious roasted aubergine for £10 which included atatouille, cous cous and a sweet pepper coulis. One of my friends had a spaghetti carbonara (£9 for a main although £7 for a smaller starter) and another friend had Char-grilled Chicken Caesar (£7.50 or £9.50 depending on the size). There is also a daily specials menu with lots of other appetising options. To get a better idea of all the menu choices you can visit:
http://www.thewalterarms.com/food.html
The only criticism I would have had with our meal is that the service was a bit on the slow side. The staff, although very friendly, did seem a little inexperienced. This did not really matter to us as we were out for a leisurely evening but would be a consideration if you had somewhere to go on to afterwards.
We could have chosen a dessert from the dessert menu had we wished but all of our main meals were enough so we did not feel the need. We did finish off with either coffee or tea and they did offer a good few options to cater for every taste.
Overall I would say that the Walter Arms is a good place to go for a meal out especially if you like to take things at your leisure. They provide a pleasant atmosphere, good food and at reasonable prices too. Splitting the bill and leaving a tip cost each of us less than £20 including our drinks so it really was not an expensive night out at all!
