Review The Forge Hammer And River Spice - Lydbrook

left canoes at the river and walked up in torrential 2023 summer rain. The pub was a great stop and the onside brewed beer was great. Really liked the outdoor sheltered tables so we could stay in our wet gear and get out of the rain whilst enjoying the beer.. Great place hope it continues so I can visit again on a better day

Nice pub, nice (on premises micro-brew, apparently) beer, nice curry. Stagg helpful with advice as to portioning. Barely any leftovers from a party of 11.

Ingenious sheltered picnic benches, perfectly placed to catch the early evening sunshine. Excellent beer and tasty Indian food to eat outside or take home.

Very good home brewed beer, always friendly when we've turned up. Plan to frequent more often, been told the Indian out back is also good, but not tried that yet.

We stopped here for something to eat and despite being a village local it was also a curry restaurant. I have to say that it was probably the best curry I have had for many a week. The food was hot, plentiful and extremely tasty. I would without doubt eat there again and suggest that anyone who visits the area eats there. The staff were friendly as were the locals.

Top beer, top curry. All the good reviews on here do it justice. More than 5 parking spots out front. Unregulated parking on street nearby. Welcoming staff. Great place after a day of walking or mountain biking!

Had a great pit stop whilst canoeing down the Wye. A pint from a proper old fashion boozer! Great to see there was even the obligatory Old Gent perched at the bar reading his paper! Staff were very friendly with great service. Great covered outside area with picnic tables and a burger van. Hot food was much appreciated to keep us going on the rest of our journey down the Wye

Stopped off here for a drink and a burger on the way through the Forest of dean. Great little pub.

Absolutely awesome. Micro brewed beer which was delicious and cheap. Bought a nine pint keg for £25, also the burger van in the car park was insanely good. The best haloumi fries ever, portions were big and staff were really friendly. Highly recommended!

Had a lovely meal there. Food was great, really delicately spiced and delicious, loads of vegan options. Their home brewed IPA was great as well. And the people were really nice as well. Highly reccomended!

Great little pub with a lovely atmosphere. Microbrewery, good beer!! Dog and child friendly. Lovely Indian food served in the restaurant, service was excellent. Venue was clean, large car parking. We really enjoyed our visits and will be back!!

We ordered a lovely takeaway from River Spice. Easy to order over the phone and then given a time to collect. The food was excellent and so tasty. We had the lamb Rogan Josh and Chicken tikka masala with side dishes of plain naan, pilau rice and onion bhaji, which included 3! The meat was very tender and plenty of it and not too spicy but full of flavour. Would recommend you give a try, you will not be disappointed.

Excellent quality in house produced craft beers, lovely atmosphere local pub.

Gorgeous food, wonderful host in Ali and the service is fantastic. Best meal I have had in ages. I am so sick of bland much of the same, Indian curries. This stands out head and shoulders above the rest and is a refreshing change with exciting choices and an amiable atmosphere. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this place and the atmosphere is lovely in the pub too with the landlord being very welcoming. I don't know what the other reviewers are on about but if you check out the dates on them it must have been about 4-5 years ago as this is NOT what it is like now. Go, you will not be disappointed and it will become a regular favourite as it is with us. We come down from Manchester to stay for weekends and always make a point of heading for the River Spice Restaurant.

This place is a little gem. Lovely front bar, with lovely locals. Good food & service. Challenge Andy to how many 2p coins he can catch off his elbow (current record is 12). In short my favourite bar in Lower Lydbrook!

Lovely curry lovely beer lovely barmaid. Landlord came over as grumpy at first but once we got chatting turned out to be a top bloke. Will be back the next time we are this way.

Love this place. It has to be the best curry house in the Forest of Dean. If you are in the area do make the effort, it really is worth it. The bar is friendly and the beer selection great. Probably shouldn't post this as we selfishly want to keep this gem secret!

This is a really nice pub promoting conversation more than the distraction of tv. Just over the river from the Youth Hostel and on a bus route, this is a welcome public house. Free WiFi allows me to enter this review in an otherwise no - signal area. Will recommend and come again.

It's got great beer, great locals, great food what more could you ask for, dog friendly and cheery.

Telephone ordered a takeaway from River Spice this evening and were even able to have it delivered to our door in a very prompt time. We chose a variety of dishes and it was all absolutely delicious. Cannot recommend highly enough.

Great place great staff. The locals are the friendliest people you could wish to meet, being a Londoner I was sceptical but hey, couldn't wish for a better welcome.

Yesterday in Kuala Lumpur I saw two geezers go into an Indian restaurant and asked for a takeaway to be delivered to the pub next door... If only they'd known about the Forge!