Meals were very poor
Discussion
Family of six of us went to a country restaurant close to where we live, never been before but write ups and web site promised something reasonably good.
Nothing grand or expensive but still expected good food at around £30 head all in for three courses and a drink.
Both risottos were barely warm.
Hand cut chips, small ones were fine but larger uncooked in the middle.
Charred steal burgers were dry and tasteless with the only dressing being some onion like effort
The freshly cooked on the day in house buns were dry and I think stale.
We complained about several problems and the waiter said ' I will let the Chef know'!!
The desert menus were given to us, filthy dirty bits of ragged card with previous diners spillages on them. We complained about that 'oh right, sorry about that'.
We sat there waiting to be asked if we would like coffee or tea, we just wanted to leave at that point, but we were never asked.
We complained at the bar when we asked for the bill, the manager gave a discount of one risotto off the price. Insult really, having completely ruined our lunchtime trip out.
And yet it appears to be doing quite well with plenty of diners, nice log fire and outwardly clean and smart.
Certainly the worst meal out I have endured, we won't bother ourselves now, but what could we have done under the circumstances remaining in the Law of course.
Nothing grand or expensive but still expected good food at around £30 head all in for three courses and a drink.
Both risottos were barely warm.
Hand cut chips, small ones were fine but larger uncooked in the middle.
Charred steal burgers were dry and tasteless with the only dressing being some onion like effort
The freshly cooked on the day in house buns were dry and I think stale.
We complained about several problems and the waiter said ' I will let the Chef know'!!
The desert menus were given to us, filthy dirty bits of ragged card with previous diners spillages on them. We complained about that 'oh right, sorry about that'.
We sat there waiting to be asked if we would like coffee or tea, we just wanted to leave at that point, but we were never asked.
We complained at the bar when we asked for the bill, the manager gave a discount of one risotto off the price. Insult really, having completely ruined our lunchtime trip out.
And yet it appears to be doing quite well with plenty of diners, nice log fire and outwardly clean and smart.
Certainly the worst meal out I have endured, we won't bother ourselves now, but what could we have done under the circumstances remaining in the Law of course.
To be fair to them, thirty quid for three courses and a drink is pub prices, and you got bad pub food. Legally, you could have offered to pay what you thought it was worth, but you didn't, you paid what they thought they could get away with. TripAdvisor review and be scrupulously honest is a reasonable revenge.
Looks like you just went to a crap restaurant that manages to stay in business.
There's one near me out in the sticks of Norfolk. Lovely looking place, clean & well decorated, decent looking menu but just not very good.
We've tried going there on and off over the last 30 years thinking they must be having an off night or something but no, it's just not very good at food.
Yet, it's busy. Weekends the car park is packed. It gets good local reviews. People tell me they've had a lovely meal there.
They haven't. They've had a badly cooked, very average meal.
There are very good local butchers. I can buy steaks in my village every bit as good as you can get at the Hawksmoor or Goodmans. This place just serves nasty supermarket tat but charges way above that.
You shouldn't be able to bugger up chips, mushrooms, onion rings, peas or anything but they do and people still go.
I think it's because the regular clientele either haven't been anywhere decent, can't cook themselves or live on crisps or something.
There's one near me out in the sticks of Norfolk. Lovely looking place, clean & well decorated, decent looking menu but just not very good.
We've tried going there on and off over the last 30 years thinking they must be having an off night or something but no, it's just not very good at food.
Yet, it's busy. Weekends the car park is packed. It gets good local reviews. People tell me they've had a lovely meal there.
They haven't. They've had a badly cooked, very average meal.
There are very good local butchers. I can buy steaks in my village every bit as good as you can get at the Hawksmoor or Goodmans. This place just serves nasty supermarket tat but charges way above that.
You shouldn't be able to bugger up chips, mushrooms, onion rings, peas or anything but they do and people still go.
I think it's because the regular clientele either haven't been anywhere decent, can't cook themselves or live on crisps or something.
randlemarcus said:
To be fair to them, thirty quid for three courses and a drink is pub prices, and you got bad pub food. Legally, you could have offered to pay what you thought it was worth, but you didn't, you paid what they thought they could get away with. TripAdvisor review and be scrupulously honest is a reasonable revenge.
Agreed, £30 head is not anything other than pub food, I did elude to this and didn't expect anything other than reasonable food. Sadly not to be. However, yes I have been on Trip Advisor and posted my comments, honest and straight forward. Won't be going back for a second try!HD Adam said:
Looks like you just went to a crap restaurant that manages to stay in business.
There's one near me out in the sticks of Norfolk. Lovely looking place, clean & well decorated, decent looking menu but just not very good.
We've tried going there on and off over the last 30 years thinking they must be having an off night or something but no, it's just not very good at food.
Yet, it's busy. Weekends the car park is packed. It gets good local reviews. People tell me they've had a lovely meal there.
They haven't. They've had a badly cooked, very average meal.
There are very good local butchers. I can buy steaks in my village every bit as good as you can get at the Hawksmoor or Goodmans. This place just serves nasty supermarket tat but charges way above that.
You shouldn't be able to bugger up chips, mushrooms, onion rings, peas or anything but they do and people still go.
I think it's because the regular clientele either haven't been anywhere decent, can't cook themselves or live on crisps or something.
Sounds a mirror image to our experience! How the hell people stay in business with offerings such as our experiences is beyond me!!There's one near me out in the sticks of Norfolk. Lovely looking place, clean & well decorated, decent looking menu but just not very good.
We've tried going there on and off over the last 30 years thinking they must be having an off night or something but no, it's just not very good at food.
Yet, it's busy. Weekends the car park is packed. It gets good local reviews. People tell me they've had a lovely meal there.
They haven't. They've had a badly cooked, very average meal.
There are very good local butchers. I can buy steaks in my village every bit as good as you can get at the Hawksmoor or Goodmans. This place just serves nasty supermarket tat but charges way above that.
You shouldn't be able to bugger up chips, mushrooms, onion rings, peas or anything but they do and people still go.
I think it's because the regular clientele either haven't been anywhere decent, can't cook themselves or live on crisps or something.
crankedup said:
Family of six of us went to a country restaurant close to where we live, never been before but write ups and web site promised something reasonably good.
Nothing grand or expensive but still expected good food at around £30 head all in for three courses and a drink.
Both risottos were barely warm.
Hand cut chips, small ones were fine but larger uncooked in the middle.
Charred steal burgers were dry and tasteless with the only dressing being some onion like effort
The freshly cooked on the day in house buns were dry and I think stale.
We complained about several problems and the waiter said ' I will let the Chef know'!!
The desert menus were given to us, filthy dirty bits of ragged card with previous diners spillages on them. We complained about that 'oh right, sorry about that'.
We sat there waiting to be asked if we would like coffee or tea, we just wanted to leave at that point, but we were never asked.
We complained at the bar when we asked for the bill, the manager gave a discount of one risotto off the price. Insult really, having completely ruined our lunchtime trip out.
And yet it appears to be doing quite well with plenty of diners, nice log fire and outwardly clean and smart.
Certainly the worst meal out I have endured, we won't bother ourselves now, but what could we have done under the circumstances remaining in the Law of course.
Alright Crankers.Nothing grand or expensive but still expected good food at around £30 head all in for three courses and a drink.
Both risottos were barely warm.
Hand cut chips, small ones were fine but larger uncooked in the middle.
Charred steal burgers were dry and tasteless with the only dressing being some onion like effort
The freshly cooked on the day in house buns were dry and I think stale.
We complained about several problems and the waiter said ' I will let the Chef know'!!
The desert menus were given to us, filthy dirty bits of ragged card with previous diners spillages on them. We complained about that 'oh right, sorry about that'.
We sat there waiting to be asked if we would like coffee or tea, we just wanted to leave at that point, but we were never asked.
We complained at the bar when we asked for the bill, the manager gave a discount of one risotto off the price. Insult really, having completely ruined our lunchtime trip out.
And yet it appears to be doing quite well with plenty of diners, nice log fire and outwardly clean and smart.
Certainly the worst meal out I have endured, we won't bother ourselves now, but what could we have done under the circumstances remaining in the Law of course.
£30 a head just gets you pub food mate.
In answer to the question, you could have left your details and paid what you thought the meal was worth, and then waited to see what would happen!
Soov535 said:
Alright Crankers.
£30 a head just gets you pub food mate.
I think you dine in finer establishments Soovy! £30 a head just gets you pub food mate.
Outside of the M25, and especially if you go to unfashionable county like Norfolk or Shropshire, £30 a head gets you three courses at the best restaurant in the area!
Around where I've migrated to, the distance to the nearest decent place puts pressure on the supply/demand relationship, and some very average places still seem to survive where they wouldn't in London as there'll be plenty more choices walking distance away. For example, the wife and I will drive 20 miles to get to a decent place.
That said, round here, if you pay £7 for a starter, £16 for a main, £6 for a desert for example, you'll get much more than average pub grub. The best places at those prices rival city restaurants.
Just as an example, for £30 a couple of weeks ago in Shrewsbury I enjoyed a four course set menu of pan-asian food, in a very swanky place, starting with sushi and ending with a desert plate of four deserts and it was fantastic.
Edited by JustinP1 on Wednesday 21st October 14:36
It's surprising just what folk think is good food, I share the OP's view there are places that seem to be very successful and yet to my experience are plain rubbish. Do people equate quantity to quality, do they like fried everything as a treat and think that's what a good meal is or do they simply have little taste?
No idea, conversely I've been to places with so/so reputations on TA and found them to be superb. I would disagree with the general consensus that £30 for three courses and a drink would definitely land you in iffy territory. As an example I recently ate here http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g63... and had a bill for less than £30 for three courses and a glass of wine.
If you choose smaller independent restaurants you tend to get better experiences; anything with a carvery, huge car park, full of high chairs and order at the bar type establishments tend to be my barometers of s
te.
No idea, conversely I've been to places with so/so reputations on TA and found them to be superb. I would disagree with the general consensus that £30 for three courses and a drink would definitely land you in iffy territory. As an example I recently ate here http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g63... and had a bill for less than £30 for three courses and a glass of wine.
If you choose smaller independent restaurants you tend to get better experiences; anything with a carvery, huge car park, full of high chairs and order at the bar type establishments tend to be my barometers of s
te.Soov535 said:
crankedup said:
Family of six of us went to a country restaurant close to where we live, never been before but write ups and web site promised something reasonably good.
Nothing grand or expensive but still expected good food at around £30 head all in for three courses and a drink.
Both risottos were barely warm.
Hand cut chips, small ones were fine but larger uncooked in the middle.
Charred steal burgers were dry and tasteless with the only dressing being some onion like effort
The freshly cooked on the day in house buns were dry and I think stale.
We complained about several problems and the waiter said ' I will let the Chef know'!!
The desert menus were given to us, filthy dirty bits of ragged card with previous diners spillages on them. We complained about that 'oh right, sorry about that'.
We sat there waiting to be asked if we would like coffee or tea, we just wanted to leave at that point, but we were never asked.
We complained at the bar when we asked for the bill, the manager gave a discount of one risotto off the price. Insult really, having completely ruined our lunchtime trip out.
And yet it appears to be doing quite well with plenty of diners, nice log fire and outwardly clean and smart.
Certainly the worst meal out I have endured, we won't bother ourselves now, but what could we have done under the circumstances remaining in the Law of course.
Alright Crankers.Nothing grand or expensive but still expected good food at around £30 head all in for three courses and a drink.
Both risottos were barely warm.
Hand cut chips, small ones were fine but larger uncooked in the middle.
Charred steal burgers were dry and tasteless with the only dressing being some onion like effort
The freshly cooked on the day in house buns were dry and I think stale.
We complained about several problems and the waiter said ' I will let the Chef know'!!
The desert menus were given to us, filthy dirty bits of ragged card with previous diners spillages on them. We complained about that 'oh right, sorry about that'.
We sat there waiting to be asked if we would like coffee or tea, we just wanted to leave at that point, but we were never asked.
We complained at the bar when we asked for the bill, the manager gave a discount of one risotto off the price. Insult really, having completely ruined our lunchtime trip out.
And yet it appears to be doing quite well with plenty of diners, nice log fire and outwardly clean and smart.
Certainly the worst meal out I have endured, we won't bother ourselves now, but what could we have done under the circumstances remaining in the Law of course.
£30 a head just gets you pub food mate.
In answer to the question, you could have left your details and paid what you thought the meal was worth, and then waited to see what would happen!
Yup, a previous poster had also told me about this. Is it normal for 'pub food' to be so rank though, guess not we were likely unlucky or the Chef may have been on leave, who knows. Gosh! last time I venture into such an establishment
JustinP1 said:
I think you dine in finer establishments Soovy!
Outside of the M25, and especially if you go to unfashionable county like Norfolk or Shropshire, £30 a head gets you three courses at the best restaurant in the area!
Around where I've migrated to, the distance to the nearest decent place puts pressure on the supply/demand relationship, and some very average places still seem to survive where they wouldn't in London as there'll be plenty more choices walking distance away. For example, the wife and I will drive 20 miles to get to a decent place.
That said, round here, if you pay £7 for a starter, £16 for a main, £6 for a desert for example, you'll get much more than average pub grub. The best places at those prices rival city restaurants.
Just as an example, for £30 a couple of weeks ago in Shrewsbury I enjoyed a four course set menu of pan-asian food, in a very swanky place, starting with sushi and ending with a desert plate of four deserts and it was fantastic.
Damn, sounds good in Cheshire. Outside of the M25, and especially if you go to unfashionable county like Norfolk or Shropshire, £30 a head gets you three courses at the best restaurant in the area!
Around where I've migrated to, the distance to the nearest decent place puts pressure on the supply/demand relationship, and some very average places still seem to survive where they wouldn't in London as there'll be plenty more choices walking distance away. For example, the wife and I will drive 20 miles to get to a decent place.
That said, round here, if you pay £7 for a starter, £16 for a main, £6 for a desert for example, you'll get much more than average pub grub. The best places at those prices rival city restaurants.
Just as an example, for £30 a couple of weeks ago in Shrewsbury I enjoyed a four course set menu of pan-asian food, in a very swanky place, starting with sushi and ending with a desert plate of four deserts and it was fantastic.
Edited by JustinP1 on Wednesday 21st October 14:36
Our Town is Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, good choice of restaurants from plenty of pubs through to good Indian fare. Never had a poor meal in any of them until this occasion. This pub/restaurant is some 5 miles out of Town, you would think they could cook a steak burger and serve hot risotto!
I'm told Cheshire serves up fine homes as well as good food.
crankedup said:
Damn, sounds good in Cheshire.
Our Town is Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, good choice of restaurants from plenty of pubs through to good Indian fare. Never had a poor meal in any of them until this occasion. This pub/restaurant is some 5 miles out of Town, you would think they could cook a steak burger and serve hot risotto!
I'm told Cheshire serves up fine homes as well as good food.
Where was it? Another BSEer here.Our Town is Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, good choice of restaurants from plenty of pubs through to good Indian fare. Never had a poor meal in any of them until this occasion. This pub/restaurant is some 5 miles out of Town, you would think they could cook a steak burger and serve hot risotto!
I'm told Cheshire serves up fine homes as well as good food.
the adoganc?
If so, I agree as I have had lunch there it wasn't very good, it didnt even compare to that american diner thing in thetford which is mediocre but is at least cheap and cheerful.
The bushel is a favourite in Bury, as is some of the chain restaurants in town - theres a very good indian in town as well.
If so, I agree as I have had lunch there it wasn't very good, it didnt even compare to that american diner thing in thetford which is mediocre but is at least cheap and cheerful.
The bushel is a favourite in Bury, as is some of the chain restaurants in town - theres a very good indian in town as well.
Edited by hman on Thursday 22 October 00:38
crankedup said:
Family of six of us went to a country restaurant close to where we live, never been before but write ups and web site promised something reasonably good.
Nothing grand or expensive but still expected good food at around £30 head all in for three courses and a drink.
Both risottos were barely warm.
Hand cut chips, small ones were fine but larger uncooked in the middle.
Charred steal burgers were dry and tasteless with the only dressing being some onion like effort
The freshly cooked on the day in house buns were dry and I think stale.
We complained about several problems and the waiter said ' I will let the Chef know'!!
The desert menus were given to us, filthy dirty bits of ragged card with previous diners spillages on them. We complained about that 'oh right, sorry about that'.
We sat there waiting to be asked if we would like coffee or tea, we just wanted to leave at that point, but we were never asked.
We complained at the bar when we asked for the bill, the manager gave a discount of one risotto off the price. Insult really, having completely ruined our lunchtime trip out.
And yet it appears to be doing quite well with plenty of diners, nice log fire and outwardly clean and smart.
Certainly the worst meal out I have endured, we won't bother ourselves now, but what could we have done under the circumstances remaining in the Law of course.
You wrote "but what could we have done under the circumstances remaining in the Law".Nothing grand or expensive but still expected good food at around £30 head all in for three courses and a drink.
Both risottos were barely warm.
Hand cut chips, small ones were fine but larger uncooked in the middle.
Charred steal burgers were dry and tasteless with the only dressing being some onion like effort
The freshly cooked on the day in house buns were dry and I think stale.
We complained about several problems and the waiter said ' I will let the Chef know'!!
The desert menus were given to us, filthy dirty bits of ragged card with previous diners spillages on them. We complained about that 'oh right, sorry about that'.
We sat there waiting to be asked if we would like coffee or tea, we just wanted to leave at that point, but we were never asked.
We complained at the bar when we asked for the bill, the manager gave a discount of one risotto off the price. Insult really, having completely ruined our lunchtime trip out.
And yet it appears to be doing quite well with plenty of diners, nice log fire and outwardly clean and smart.
Certainly the worst meal out I have endured, we won't bother ourselves now, but what could we have done under the circumstances remaining in the Law of course.
What you could have done would have been to have paid what you thought was a fair amount. A half? A quarter? £7 a head?
Made sure you gave them your contact details and then walked out. Non payment of a restaurant bill is a civil matter, not criminal. Then sit back and wait to see what happens - my bet? Nothing!
I've had this a lot recently, especially with pub chains such as Chef & Brewer.
I put this down to recently moving back from Austria where we were "spoilt" with incredible food.
Im not expecting much from a pub meal, but when I compare the quality of a £14-18 main to a equivalent meal abroad I do weep inside.
Ive never really eaten "fine dining" in the UK, but now I feel like I need to stretch the wallet to keep my pallet energized!
I put this down to recently moving back from Austria where we were "spoilt" with incredible food.
Im not expecting much from a pub meal, but when I compare the quality of a £14-18 main to a equivalent meal abroad I do weep inside.
Ive never really eaten "fine dining" in the UK, but now I feel like I need to stretch the wallet to keep my pallet energized!
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