Drum & Monkey

"I walked into the Drum & Monkey pub (Dorridge)with my family and friends to have a pleasant evening with drinks and dinner. Initially we were told that for food it was a 30 minute wait and that we we needed to wait in the bar area. This was no problem, so we ordered drinks & sat down. About 15 minutes later I went over to ask about a table for dinner and was told by the manager (Alex McFallon) that he had no big tables for us. (8 people) & that the only thing they could do is serve food in the bar area where we were sat to which I said no problem. So we got the menus and went to order. Someone in our party wanted to order 1 roast, so the waiter went to ask Alex; he said that we couldn’t order this. My daughter went over to politely ask him why this can’t be ordered to which he responded that he had tables booked in later & they’re his priority so he would reserve/save the roasts for them “just in case” they may want to order it. So no ideas of who is coming or what they are ordering but we couldn’t buy one roast, unbelievable! So I was as the bar; shook my head at and him and said that makes no sense!! He came over and started to explain to me how he wasn’t prepared to sell the roast to us and then told me that he was doing me a favour by even serving us food at all just because we were walk in customers. He then said “Actually I’m thinking that I shouldn’t let you purchase any food at all”. I was disgusted by his tone, attitude and by what he said so we decided to leave. I’m a local businessman; ( I own 12 companies) & would never treat my customers in this fashion. Clearly Greene King pubs don’t need the custom of their local residents or they’re completely unaware that they’ve employed such arrogant vile management in their pubs. Sad day, I’ve lived in Solihull for 40 years; have visited the Drum & Monkey many times over the years as it’s one of our local pubs and have never been treated so badly. I used to highly recommend this pub however, now I’ll be sharing this horrific experience. From the moment we walked in the vibe was off but we excused this behaviour until it became intolerable. I’ve never heard of a restaurant saving food for people who have made later reservations just as a precaution. It was an absolute joke"

"Stopped here for an evening meal midweek, couldn't have been more surprised by this little gem. Lots of space inside with a team that keeps the whole place tidy and fresh. I ordered the fish which was fresh, hand battered and possibly the largest cod I've ever been served and I couldn't be happier with the taste, hats off to chef Cromwell for that one. 10/10 will be coming back"

"Great little roadside pub with a story. The venue is located in an original old building, providing nice atmosphere when visited. There is an extensive food menu available, however, on my visit, I only had drinks. I really liked the music playing in the venue, there’s also telly available for sports fans. What I didn’t like was the availability of sitting spaces, the pub itself is medium size but only a few table on the front are available for drinks only, and all were taken when I arrived, hence, I had to stand and was told that I can’t use dining table even though they were all free on the other side of the venue. Nonetheless, it was a good experience and I will come back."

"We were there for a post funeral wake which is probably not the best circumstance to experience the pub. However, the staff were friendly and the room we had comfortable. The buffet in particular was fantastic. If we were closer I think we'd visit fairly frequently."

"The Drum & Monkey is a nice place to go to, large variety of draught beer, some IPA and bottled special beer. The menu is standardised; and while the pies looked very inviting and the fries were really tasty everything "steak like" was okayish but not convincing. Dessert was fine (good standard). Service was very friendly and helpful which is why I think four stars are fair. Maybe rather reduce the food on offer and keep standards high. Pleasant surprise - restrooms! Aged with style and close to perfect maintained."