The Wrong Fox

Our hostess had strongly recommended that we have an evening meal at a nearby pub called 'The Fox'. I assumed she meant in nearby Chipping Norton, only a 5-minute drive away. So I was chuffed to secure a dinner reservation there at 7:30pm. After a tiring day in Oxford we were both looking forward to a good meal. 

By the time we head out for dinner, the rain is coming down quite steadily. Fortunately it's only a short drive to The Fox and we manage to find parking close by. We arrive 15 minutes before our booking for which we're admonished by the waitress ... so we wait at the bar to be called once our table is ready... and wait and wait. Realising she's never going to return we try our luck again at 7:35pm and we're shown to a table. It takes a while before our order is taken but then the real marathon wait begins. The restaurant is hardly busy. For a Saturday night there are only a few tables occupied but the waitresses rush around looking harried and snap at us when we dare to ask how long our food might be. We wait and wait and finally after ONE HOUR our food is brought to the table. We eat in stony silence as we are beyond hungry by this point. The food is terrible and we can't get out of there fast enough after reluctantly handing over payment that is decidedly undeserved.

We return to our lodgings utterly confused at why our host would have recommended something so awful when she's been spot-on so far with everything else. 

And then the penny drops.

It was the wrong Fox. Who knew that there are plenty of Fox Inns around the Cotswolds. We resolve to try the correct pub tomorrow and hopefully redeem The Fox name.