The Angel, Highgate

Worst dining, (in actual fact - no dining) experience in Highgate and probably London. Attempted sunday lunch there this weekend, having invited friends from Richmond to showcase the lure of Highgate and its charming pubs.. Totally embarassed and horrified by the lack of service, lack of food and lack of charm. The pub was very busy, very under staffed and struggling to cope with the volume of orders. After an hour of waiting we finally did order and pay at the bar... then we sat and sat and sat for another hour, thinking we were being patient and helpful by not complaining sooner. But as time was getting ridicuous, I went to inquire at the bar. The look of horror on the 3 members of staff's faces said it all, as they stood whispering to each other, not giving us eye contact. To sum up our order had never gone through the till due to some computer error, hence no food. Instead of the manager coming over to face the music and offer us a solution, a younger staff member came over and succeeded in making the situation worse. After an initial apology and offer for refund or to re-take the order, he actually suggested that 'we weren't being very helpful!' and was slightly agressive in his manner. The manager finally came over to refund food but his opening gambit of a chirpy 'how we doing guys? similarly went down pretty badly. So, no food for anyone as by that point, it was too late for our friends who needed to be back in Richmond. Everyone makes mistakes but please train your staff in what makes a good apology and I think perhaps the Angel needs to re-think an arrogant attitude to sloppy service. Only plus, it's cosy for a quick pint, other than that: Avoid, Avoid, Avoid!

11 Jan 2010 10:22