The Greyhound

Well worth a visit.
I had never been to the Greyhound before yesterday, it gave the impression of being under new management. It seems they are working on being more food lead. The menu was not extensive however it was all fairly sophisticated stuff which would have to be freshly prepared. We had the baked camembert to start with and it was superb. Main courses were generous and very capably prepared. The service was spot on and the beers were excellent.
For a Monday lunchtime they were busy with diners and they deserve to be as they have clearly put in a great deal of effort.

Quaint country pub this ain’t…well, not exactly.
Don’t be put off by my opening sentence. I really liked this place.
(My friend and I started walking The Ridgeway yesterday from Ivinghoe Beacon. We’re plainly not that fit and we only got as far as Wigginton, but we started fairly late and by the time the sun-​light had gone, this is where we ended a day’s walking.)
The Greyhound was a welcome sight. At least at this hour, it wasn’t the most beautiful of country pubs but it’s not ugly either. I am comparing it to the beauties in Aldbury, a village nearby that we walked through, where there is another ‘Greyhound’, interestingly. There must be a good reason for this.
We didn’t stop here for long, as we came for a swift half, waiting for a taxi back to our start, however, our experience was lovely.
I asked about the muddy boots being a problem and it clearly wasn’t. The loos were clean and sweetly dotted with hairspray and lotions and potions.
The bar woman was really sweet and friendly, the owner was also very friendly. They had 4 real ales on tap and I had a very pleasant ‘Ridgeway’. Well, it’s got to be done! :D
Children and dogs are welcome here. There was rugby on the box and several friendly groups of people, talking in an animated way, which was a very pleasant feeling.
The bar-​woman gave us a number for a taxi firm (John’s from Tring — really good) and we were whisked away before you could say, «Want another?».
Does this pub merit **? Well, I’ll let you be the judge of that. ** places might excite the reader to going out of the way to go here, perhaps. I’m not sure I’d go out of the way to go here, really… I reserve that for really special, beautiful pubs. But this place has really made the most of itself. And for its attitude alone, I am very happy to give the ** rating.

Expecting only a typical country pub, the Greyhound turned out to be nicer than I’d hoped. It’s obviously been renovated recently and has some nice, modern, cozy chairs and tables. Two rooms have tables for dining and drinking (quite busy on the autumn weekend I was there). There’s a pool/​games room at one end, and a paved patio of tables for a drink outside on a sunny day.
I had a super Sunday roast lunch there after doing a quite nice walk (
) that started and stopped near the pub (about 2 hours and 15 minutes; it was nice because it was quite varied — fields, Tring Park, bridleways, ridges with views, woods, and a really peaceful stroll along the Grand Union Canal.)
They have a couple of rooms for accomodation, though I didn’t stay there.