105 replies to this topic

[gekko]

Went again last night for the VN social. The atmosphere was good and the service fine but both bitters (Youngs and Bombardier) were off and so they only had Spindrift, which is supposed to be a real ale but was an odd combination of bitter and lager - fizzy and bland and £3.50 a pint. They really need to sort the bitter situation out.

[Elmo]

Must admit that I'm not a fan of Spindrift. The sooner they get Harvey's in, the better!

[Ziwa]

Agreed on the ale front. I ended up with a weird feeling after drinking the Spindrift - it hit me hard and strangely. Might have just been due to my immoderation and lack of proper dinner though!
The other thing that was really irksome was the music, which kept getting blasted loudly and unevenly at the end of the evening due to some kind of engineering problem in the sound system. The management was very apologetic about it, so this might pass like the other teething pains.
Otherwise, I really liked the internal redec.

[Boblatina]

Lovely Dai and I went on Sunday. Surprisingly, it was not busy at all for a Sunday lunchtime - about a third full at most - which is unusual for a pub selling decent food on a Sunday.

We ordered the food and the problems started. As an unreconstructed carnivore I ordered a rare steak and Dai - my vegetarian conscience ordered veggie sausages and mash.

They would not cook a steak rare – I am used to quality burger joints not doing anything less cooked than a medium-rare because of salmonella/e-coli scares with undercooked semi-prepared meat but a fillet steak??? Fortunately it was Dai doing the ordering or there would have been a flounce at that stage.

Then they broke the news that there were no veggie sausages. In fact there were no veggie main courses at all (this in a somewhat empty pub on what should have been their busiest day) The only option for a veggie was a cheese ploughmans – hardly a sustaining Sunday lunch and, to be honest, not cheap either. (As Dai said, £7 for the pleasure of making your own sandwich)

The meals eventually arrived (20-30 minute initial wait) My “cherry, vine tomatoes” had mutated into a supermarket beef tom but heigh-ho. The steak was nice but definitely overcooked for someone like me who subscribes to the “wipe it’s bum and frighten it with an open flame” school of steak cookery after all.

The potato wedges were yummy though. Which was good thing as they managed to bring Dai a HAM ploughmans. After complaining about this (and being looked at as if he was the most awkward customer ever) and waiting for another 20 minutes they bought him the cheese he had ordered.

The cheese was excellent, the pickle was good and the bread ……… was stale. Although we were expecting dense, peasant, bread this was definitely old and very hard and definitely defeated my husband who is not renowned for his delicate tastebuds. (Dai ended up buying crisps from Sainsburys straight afterwards)

The young woman who served us was very pleasant but didn't seem able to cope - and as I keep saying, it was not busy at all.

So a 5 out of 10 for me and a definite 2 out of 10 from my other half. Which is a shame because it looks great.

Music is too loud for the acoustics of the place. Books on the shelves are good though.

Love

Boblatina

[rennie]

I have yet to go but I passed it on Sunday afternoon whilst driving and it looked very busy outisde.

[gekko]

Everywhere is busy outside though since July 1st so I don't think that's got anything to do with whether its any good. It sounds like the food really sucks so I definitely won't be eating there any time soon.

[elleme]

I'm all for giving places a chance but it sounds like they still haven't got their act together over the food. They've obviously made mistakes with orders several times now and nothing has changed.

[andreas]

I hope it's just teething problems. I remember The Mansion being a bit hit and miss on the food in its early days (although not to this extent!); now it runs almost like clockwork. At least the staff at the Westow House sound pleasant, I shall wait a while and then give it a try.

[Elmo]

The elmos visited earlier today. The Mrs asked for a white coffee... and they said that they only do black coffee We left the premises and went elsewhere for our afternoon refresher.

These guys need to buy some milk and get a grip!

[helenloc]

Went here on Tuesday night - we are regulars at The White Hart but fancied a change and am really glad we did.

They now have a fresh pie menu and I ordered a Minty Lamb Pie which was just what the Dr ordered for a cold Autumn evening. Lovely mash, and gravy. Service was very friendly. Manager came over to ask how the food was and we had a chat about where he sources the pies and that he has a different selection each week.

I would certainly recommend that previous visitors who were disappointed with the food give it another go even if only to try the pies....

[leep]

Looks nice in there. Think it will be great in the summer.

Has anyone tried the pies in there I see advertised outside?

And where can I find info on what bands are playing and when? I want to get some mates together in the new year for some live music, beer and pie!?

[Boblatina]

Dai and I gave it another try at the weekend. They have rationalised the menu and it seems to working much better. On Sunday, they have a roast (beef on Sunday just gone), a meat pie with mash and a veggie pie with mash. During the week I think there is a wider range of pies.

I had the steak and kidney and Dai had the mushroom and asparagus. They came quickly and were just what was needed on a cold Sunday. Dai was very impressed with his pie - he said it was very tasty - far better than most veggie meals served in pubs.

Much better than our last visit. (Don't know how the pies will work in the Summer though)

love

TillyBob

[Helen]

We were in there on Sunday as well - had the chicken & tarragon (free range) and Mr Porkie pie. Both were delicious with plenty of mash & gravy. Will be returning to sample the rest of the pies soon!

[clairy]

Went on Saturday afternoon a couple of weeks ago and have to say I was really disappointed. Got to the bar and ordered a lager, the barman told me half the beers were off so I had what was left. My friend I was with ordered a coffee. The guy behind the bar rolled his eyes, so I asked if anything was wrong with the coffee machine. "No, it just takes ages", he replied. The bar and pub were totally empty and he was doing nothing! I really felt like going elsewhere, I have little patience for totally unreasonably bad service.

[rennie]

I went on Sunday afternoon and it was rather full. They'd run out of cider on tap so we left soon after. It looks nice inside. I'd like to come back and try the food one time.