The Bull & Butcher, Buckingham

A good-sized pub on the main road in the heart of this small village, it’s seems to be a popular spot with the locals and it was good to see the bar surprisingly busy on a recent early mid-week evening. The pub is essentially divided in to three – the main bar runs along the front of the building, and is a cosy space with a low beamed ceiling, bay windows, some exposed stone walling and a large brick fire-place at one end and a floor that was partly carpeted and partly wood strip. There were lots of tankards hung up above the bar, a notice board on the wall and a TV up in one corner, but this was tuned to a radio station and had no discernable volume that I noticed. Behind this room to the left is a small snug with a red tiled floor, and a couple of leather black sofa’s pushed together into a L-shape. To the right, beyond a free-standing brick chimney breast with a wood burning stove in each side is a restaurant area. This has a similarly cosy ambience with plenty more beams on the ceiling and a pillar or two to support them. The outside wall was all exposed brickwork, and elsewhere there was a mixture of rough cream plaster and maroon paintwork. At the back of the pub is a very large garden with a goal net at one end, although surprisingly it only contained half a dozen tables. There was a decent looking menu, with an emphasis on steaks and fish dishes. On top of this there were a selection of “pub grub” dishes such as Burger & Chips, Gammon & Chips, Lasagne, etc., that were all priced at £7.95 or two for £12 if you ordered before 7:00pm. In addition to this there were a few specials chalked up on a board offering another four or five options. For me, the food was a little disappointing – there was nothing at all wrong with my Cajun Salmon with new potatoes and salad but it did nothing to justify it’s £11.95 price tag. Had it been the same cost as the other pub grub dishes, I would have been much happier. Beer on tap were all from the Fuller’s stable with their London Pride, Chiswick Bitter and Gayle’s Seafarers. The solitary cider was Strongbow, unfortunately. This is a tricky one to mark; the landlord was friendly and helpful, but I’m inclined to deduct a point for the poor value food and the disappointing cider selection. But that would probably leave it with a six which seems unfairly low for what is essentially a decent pub, so I’ll settle for a seven.