The Cricketers Clavering

We have now stayed here several times on our way to or from Stansted Airport. It is a charming place and nowhere nearby even comes close. The welcome is friendly and informative. The bedrooms are well appointed, furnished well and the soft furnishings and bed linen are superb. A great nights sleep! The restaurant serves an ample selection of excellent quality food and the service is attentive. The bar is always busy with locals and the outside areas are well lit, tidy and clean. A fantastic atmosphere! Breakfast is great. Plenty of choice and well cooked. The staff really make The Cricketers and the fact that it's full of locals bears this out. 100% recommended! We will return (again!)

We had a lovely stay at The Cricketers. All staff were friendly and helpful. Our room was great, with quality tea, coffee and toiletries. With lovely views over open fields. Meal in the pub was great all staff helpful, friendly and service was unrushed. The breakfast was amazing! We took advantage of the walk from the pub.

We are members of the Chestnut loyalty scheme, having stayed and eaten at the majority of their hotels in recent years and we’ve always had a good experience. We last visited the Cricketers when it was owned by Jamie Oliver’s family and were hoping that food standards would have been maintained now Chestnut had taken over. Sadly that was not the case when 5 of us visited for lunch today. The starters were fine but the main courses were really not good. The chips were so hard that some were virtually inedible, the fish was similarly massacred, the green veg was soft and yellow, and the chicken and leek pie had a beef gravy inside which just seemed wrong. Service was also ridiculously slow, despite the restaurant being very quiet. We showed our uneaten food to the waitress when she collected the plates. She understood the issue, apologised and took £20 off our bill without being asked, so all credit to her. But the meals should never have left the kitchen in the first place. Given our experience we chose not to have a dessert. It’s a shame because the pub / hotel is so nice, but we’d definitely think twice before visiting again.