The Blackcock Inn At Falstone

Really accessible place for hiking into kielder forest - it's right on the edge. Only reason I didn't give it 5 stars was that, bizarrely, fuel for the log burner wasn't included. I'd check with the owners if this had been changed as we flagged this up as a potential problem, especially in Winter.

We were one of the first to stay under new owners so they were still in the process of getting organized.

Great little pub, recently under new management. The real ale is well looked after and the drinks are reasonably priced, along with a good menu, but definitely not a "gastro pub" thank heavens!!. Warm and friendly.

Under new ownership, we booked early in the year but got there to find out it had changed hands. The meals were average quality there was no real ale on, poor management, the bedroom was massive but was spoilt by a totally disaster of a bathroom shower and toilet shoved in a corner no room to manaouver in either shower or toilet. The bed mattress was new but not what you find in a good B+B it was so soft it was uncomfortable.The staff were pleasant but the landlord wasn't.
Definitely not worth staying there.

Great little pub under new ownership. Open in the afternoon with a good range of local ales. Friendly staff and an ambience sadly rarely found these days. Well worth a visit.

Stopped for lunch yesterday (17th August) and the hospitality and food was amazing. I so hope that the new owners will be successful.

Quirky country pub. Friendly service with a range of ales and ciders.

Very disappointing meal

We (me, wife, ten year old daughter and four year old daughter) have just returned from a week away in the Kielder area in our new caravan, the week has been great and the weather not bad at all. What really made the week complete was our final evening, we decided to go out for a meal to celebrate. We drove to the Blackcock Inn and were immediately made to feel welcome by the owner, I will say at this point that I am lucky enough to have eaten all over the world and at some very fine and expensive restaurants.
We were allowed time to look at the menu and were then taken through to a lovely dining room, there aren't many proper traditional pubs left but this is just fantastic.
Our food then arrived, the wife had baramundi (fish) I had steak and king prawns, kids had sausage and mash etc, the food was absolutely amazing, my steak was cooked to perfection and the wifes fish was fantastic.
Deserts were equally as good I had apple and blackberry flapjack with custard, divine is the word.
Afterwards we sat in the bar with the locals who made us feel really welcome, the dogs were allowed in as well and several grown men sat and entertained our daughters and seemed to enjoy blowing bubbles which the youngest had taken with her.
One of the best meals I have had combined with great service very reasonable prices and friendliness made for a brilliant end to the holiday.
Well done , a proper pub/ restaurant in one.

Paying £80 for a double room in a small village is on the high side for a b&b, so I expected quite a good standard of accommodation. However:

1. The shower was dribbling on the first night, and then alternating between an icy or scalding dribble on the second. When we called the owner up, of course it worked fine again. He was quite rude, and said if you put it on a certain setting it worked ok. I'd obviously turned it to every setting possible to avoid having a bad shower, but he simply ignored my comments and said there was nothing he could do. Absolutely not a single apology.

Another member of our party's shower also didn't work, and she got told 'well, can't you just have a bath?'. She said she needed to wash her hair, and he said 'can't you just use someone else's room?' Not exactly the point of paying for your own room in a b&b. Again, no apology. She had £5 taken off her £90 bill for the inconvenience.
2. The tv didn't work, again he said 'well, there's nothing I can do about that now'
3. The room wasn't made up or coffee/tea replenished after the first night. When queried, he said that once you have a room with them they are not legally allowed in unless you specify otherwise, and that this was in the handbook. That was complete rubbish, and it also wasn't in the handbook.
4. In the restaurant, we ordered a cheesecake special dessert. It was served still in its factory manufactured plastic pot, and still frozen in the middle. When we complained, they took £1 off...
5. Be warned; on the breakfast menu it gives you the options, and then a list of extras to tick if you want them. When you look in the handbook, it states that every extra will cost you 75p.
6. After all the complaints, the vistor book mysteriously disappeared.

I can understand that things go wrong, and you can't always fix them immediately. I also understand that times are hard and so giving monetary refunds isn't an option. But it was the sheer arrogance and unapologetic nature of how the complaints were dealt with that has made me write this review. There were positives of course; the bed was very comfy, and the guy who served breakfast was lovely. But I definitely wouldn't come back again.