The Ship is a rather unassuming place from the outside and is something of a rarity in Bedford town…read morecentre, in that it's actually very nice. Log fires and real ale are the order of the day, along with a good selection of whiskeys. It's a great place to have a quiet drink during the week (unless you happened upon our charity pub quiz the other night), but really comes alive at the weekend, especially during the summer. I've been on several occasions when it's impossible to move due to the crowds. This gem of a pub hides one more little secret though. That secret is the Coach House at the back. A tiny room housed in an off-shoot of the main building holds around ten tables with maximum seating for around twenty people a night. Very nicely decorated and lit, it's a lovely place for both a romantic dinner or a party for ten. But what makes this place different is that you cook your own food. And what a superbly delicious idea that is! Although the starters looked good from the menu, both @Mooley and I decided that we wanted to head straight to the main course to sample the steaks we had heard so much about. Whilst waiting for them to be prepared we indulged in a glass of rather nice Rioja each, though neglected to make a note of what it was we were drinking. Dinner didn't take too long to get to us, and what a sight it was! The picture really doesn't do justice to the sheer scale of the food we were given. As we have similar tastes, both @Mooley and I ordered the 8oz Aberdeen Angus fillet steak, chips and vegetables, with a side of onion rings. But this was no pub grub. This was food the likes of which I've not seen in Bedford before. The homemade chips were of an enormous size, but didn't suffer at all for it. In fact the outside was just the right amount of crispy and the inside was fluffy and white. The seasonal vegetables were numerous and flavoursome, and the onion rings were spot on. What can I say about the meat though? It was as thick as footballer's wife and sizzling as it was brought out on top of a volcanic rock, which seemed to have been heated up to the temperature of the sun. The top and bottom were nicely browning, whilst the middle was red, soft and absolutely stunning throughout. Despite consistent cooking during the time it was on my plate, the rock simply served to lightly blacken the outside and give a wonderful texture of crispy and soft. The inside of each slice of meat I cut was then placed for no more than a second on the rock before being doused in stilton sauce and popped in my mouth, where it instantly melted on the tongue. Without a doubt it was one of the nicest steaks I've ever eaten and my hat goes off to both the restaurant and the supplier. Despite being stuffed from the enormous main course, I couldn't leave the restaurant without sampling a desert. @Mooley didn't want one and simply ordered a rather good black coffee whilst I tucked in to my lemon meringue tart. After finishing our coffees and filling up our wine glasses we headed into the main bar to listen to the rock jam session happening inside. A very nice way to round off the evening. As you can probably tell from what I've already said, I absolutely adored the Coach House. The decor, the atmosphere, the reasonable price and the wine, but mostly the absolutely stunning food. More people need to know this place exists and everyone within a ten mile radius needs to pop in and give it a try. I can guarantee you aren't going to be disappointed.

After walking around Bedford for an hour trying to find somewhere for a drink when we stumbled upon…read moreThe Ship.once in the door we traveled back in time. The low ceilings , the smell of the 400 year old open wood burning fire. I fell in love with it. Te drinks were well priced . Great whisky selection and comfortable ambiance. We had a totally relaxing afternoon and a good few rounds were consumed. Would go back again. Love old pubs

I went back to poppins for the first time since I left Bedford a few years ago and I was pleasently…read moresuprised that the original owners still own Poppins. Not much has changed, other than fresh new paintwork, menus and even a flat screen TV on the wall. I bought my old favourite, Maxigrill, and it was still as tasty and cooked well, as it used to be. This is a cafe I would recommend to anyone who wants to eat a decent meal at decent prices. If you would rather go to a cafe where you can see your meal being prepared and cooked, they do have an open-planned kitchen. I hope everyone else has a great experiance here too!

just fab for breakfast, great service and a must after a night on the tiles, a true fry upread more

I found it very welcoming. Staff friend and helpful. Very kind to dogs they let in. It was like…read morehome away from home. Ann O Gorman Annogorman56@gmail.com

Booked a table for 5 on curry night, staff and service very good, curry was like a soup, the…read morechicken curry, still looking for chicken, very poor, I suppose you get what you pay for, won't be going again for a few months

As mentioned below it's quite a way away from the other pubs and clubs so it is one of the less…read morebusy bars at the weekends. In my opinion though that's no bad thing as you can actually go there with some friends and talk to one another (I knowcrazy past-time isn't it). Never had any of their cocktails so can't judge but the beer tastes good and the prices are reasonable. :-)

Bar Citrus is the only pub/bar on Harpur Street in Bedford…read more It has more of a coffee shop style to it than a pub though as during the day its filled with council workers sipping lattes. It serves food though i have never eaten here so i cannot comment on the quality but a few friends eat here so it must be ok. In the evening it is still very quiet, people tend to go here for cocktails as they do a wide range but its not really party central and attracts an older crowd. Its a bit too quiet for me, if i am going to a pub i want to feel like i can laugh and not get told off!

Nice clean refurbished pub, friendly staff and the standard pub chain menu was nicely cooked.read more

Another fairly large pub a little outside of the town centre, the F&H excels at sporting events on…read moretheir several screens.

A favourite spot for me and my family, Danish Camp is an excellent alternative location in Bedford…read more It has quite a unique and interesting setting, being a wooden cabin out by the River Great Ouse. It features an indoor dining area, a partially covered balcony area and a sloped lawn featuring picnic benches, a bar and a bouncy castle for the kids. The one issue with this setup is that the indoor area is quite small, featuring around 8-10 tables. This means during cold or wet weather your seating options are severely limited meaning this place is generally a no-go in the winter/autumn months unless you can guarantee a dry and warm seat. However every time I have visited Danish Camp the food has been excellent. Their signature item is the 'Wedge' which is a sandwich featuring two big wedge shaped slices of bread. These come with a variety of fillings and include breakfast variations too. The bacon, sausage and egg wedge makes for a quality breakfast. Unfortunately they appear to have discontinued my favourite lunch item the Prawn wedge but other excellent items such as the Southern Fried Chicken wrap more than make up for this. Orders have to be placed at the counter/bar indoors and as a result queues can build up during moderately busy hours. Service is decent albeit occasionally slow when people build up. Overall, despite some small issues, Danish Camp is an excellent location to eat with the family if you pick your time right.

Danish Camp is a restaurant on the river, it is also on the cycle Route 51 in between Sandy and…read moreBedford. Cycle hire is available. They also have a bouncy castle in the summer, an ice cream hut and a cage full of chipmunks whcih the children love to watch. The food is very nice and the ambiance wonderful BUT the service is extremely slow so don't come here for a quick bite to eat.