The Nags Head invited us down to try their new menu [not all dishes discussed were included in the invite], which had an extensive array of options.
The restaurant venue and setting are stunning, nestled right next to the Thames. There is an outside seating area which is perfect for summer, but there is also the main restaurant inside. Sadly it was not a sunny day so we didn’t sit outside this time.
Alright, enough of that, let’s talk about food.
Nothing from the starters particularly jumped out at us so we decided to share the halloumi fries. No complaints about these and the Chipotle mayo was the perfect dip for them- a tasty sharer option.
Swiftly on to the mains…
Our choices were the grilled flatbread with chicken, the Wagyu burger with cheese, bacon & fries, and one of the items on their specials menu which was Marinated slow roast porchetta, dauphinoise potatoes, tender stem broccoli & red wine jus. Oh, and some truffle fries too because who can resist those?!
The Wagyu burger was the stand-out dish here!
A beautiful, juicy burger that wouldn’t have been the same without the addition of the cheese. My only gripe is that the burger patty could have been bigger.
The flatbread comes with beetroot hummus, cous cous, Greek yogurt, salad, and pomegranate seeds.
A very generous portion and the chicken itself was grilled well- just like the chicken in a Greek souvlaki. The flatbread acted as the base of everything and it was a little too thin and crispy, making it difficult to eat the dish. Cutting through it was a bit of a struggle! I think it just needed to be a bit thicker and fluffier but all the elements were very flavoursome.
I love Porchetta and with the potato and gravy, it was such a wholesome meal given the weather outside. The Porchetta piece itself was quite small and given it was quite a pricy dish, I expected a bigger portion. But, the dauphinoise potato stole the show, practically melting in my mouth.
Now the important stuff, dessert!
Sticky toffee pudding and chocolate mousse were the choices.
Chocolate mousse is probably one of my favourite desserts so I came in with high hopes and expectations!
The sticky toffee pudding was beautiful and well-spiced with strong notes of cinnamon and cardamom.
The mousse was slightly disappointing. The mousse itself was on a very dense bit of shortbread that was really hard to cut through, which meant I ate the mousse on top and then had the shortbread after whcih was quite stodgy. I opted for chocolate ice cream instead of the blue vanilla, as the blue vanilla just felt odd to me (lol).
Overall, I enjoyed the food, but a few bits mentioned let me down a bit (particularly the mousse because of how much I usually love it).
No complaints about the service, everyone was lovely and the food came out pretty swiftly. I’m definitely planning to go back over the summer to soak up some sunshine and good food!
7.5/10 rating from me!
The Nags Head
The Bridge, Abingdon OX14 3HX
Bitten were invited as guests, all views are our own
On a recent Sunday, my family of ten gathered for a late lunch at the Nags Head. .
We were thoroughly impressed by the quality of the food and the attentive service provided by the waiter and waitress.
The food was exceptional, with a rating of 10 out of 10. The service was also commendable, with a rating of 9.5 out of 10. However, we were initially disappointed by the lack of accommodation and guidance regarding wheelchair assistance upon entering the establishment.
Despite this minor setback, we remain highly satisfied with the overall experience. The chef’s culinary skills were exceptional, and the pub’s reputation for serving exceptional food has been reinforced.
The only significant disappointment was the inadequate provision of wheelchair assistance. We would have appreciated more support and awareness from the staff to ensure the comfort and convenience of wheelchair users.
We will continue to patronise this establishment and recommend it to our international friends, family, and business associates. We encourage the staff to enhance their accommodations and provide greater assistance to wheelchair users.
Immediate improvements in this area are essential to ensure the continued success of the establishment.