please note - reviews on this site are purely the opinion of site visitors, so don't take them too seriously.
Bog standard Chef and Brewer which is an improvement because for years and years it was a god-awful C&B
The TEA was in reasonable nick, staff chatty, but no tabled to just sit and drink at so you have to push all the cutlery to one side.
Been in twice recently, first times since the refurb and it looks a lot better.
Still a C&B though and the building doesn't have much character, but it's a pub of sorts.
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We went here for dinner having had good experiences in the past but were disappointed. Our waiter was friendly but he seemed to be the only one waiting tables, and there was quite a delay between orders being taken, food arriving, drinks arriving etc. Bizarrely, the pub had no straws (I like a straw in a cold, sweet drink). The cappuccino machine was also broken. When our food arrived, it tasted ok but some of the dishes were missing ingredients which were in the description. We told our waiter but a manager didn't come until we had virtually finished, by which time it was too late and he didn't offer us anything - a gesture would have been nice. (Incidentally, the waiter said the dishes just come from head office, so there couldn't be anything missing!)
The toilets were ok but not the best - a hand dryer didn't work and there were problems flushing.
pinga - 11 Sep 2011 14:14 |
Went here last summer.. was quite nice but one other customer had some issues. They asked for tap water - barkeep said tap water was off due, yet they persisted. Unfortunately he didn't go find a tap, and they were pretty disappointed with the green water & stormed out.
My food and drink was fine however, so OK if you can survive the grumpy staff.
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I've not left a comment about a pub for years, but I felt compelled to having visited here. The pub looks lovely, and the staff are good. The manager however seemed to be very unwelcoming. He moaned about me using a card, despite spending a fortune on the overpriced food, and I overheard a customer complaint about portion sizes being dealt with brusquely and with little regard for what constitutes goodwill and good customer service. There are so many rules about what you can order at weekends - go for something enormous and expensive, whether you're hungry or not, seems to be the rule. Retrain the manager, and this pub could be a corker.
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have reported dani123 for removal as she/he are clearly staff, the last remark "and everyone seemed to be working really hard" really gives it away,
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yep percy you got it 123 = manager/bar staff or friend of no rating given
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Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm sorry dani123 what position do you hold in this pub, you didn`t say ??
anonymous - 21 Feb 2011 19:40 |
I have been coming to the jovial for a while now, and keeps on getting better and better, the staff are good, the new management is good, the recent refurbishment is absolutely outstanding. The food is good quality and there is a lovely vibe around the pub. Every time i've been in there its been really busy and everyone seems to be working hard :)
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We live in the village, and called in for an evening meal to see what it was like after the recent refurbishment. We needn't have bothered. Still the same! Only one real ale out of three on, no-one to serve at the bar, and not a smile from one member of staff. Awful! We left and went to the Bull's Head at Clandon.
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Nothing good to say about this place. We have been locals for 13 years and have seen many changes of staff. Very few of them were friendly or memorable, in fact I could never really understand why my husband liked it there! The food is really hit or miss. A basic steak & ale pie could be great one week & hopeless the next, when really, it's a very simple dish to get right. I agree with previous comments that you are not really welcome if you're not eating, which is presumably why they have forced the last remaining locals out by informing the police of drink driving....... give this one a miss!
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Just visited in the early afternoon. The pub had reopened after being closed for a week's makeover. We were greeted by an unsmiling and abrupt manger who asked in a loud voice if we were eating. We had planned on doing so but given his manner we decided not to. As there were only four customers in the pub I can't see the significance of whether we were eating or not.
The interior is a redecorated and smartened up version of the previous one. It seems unfortunate that Chef & Brewer did not use the time that the pub was closed for staff customer service training.
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as most of you probably know the managers are always overworked and under paid so the stress may show at times.... the chefs are really great atm, shame about some of the waitresses! this place can be a great pub but it depends on the day and time
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visited recently, late sunday afternoon, had a nice pint and cold glass of wine, served quickly with a smile - just ordered some snacks which were a good portion and hot, pleasantly suprised all round, warm atmosphere, friendly staff, would return
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Last Wednesday the tables in this"pub" were full of diners, and when we asked if were okay to have just a drink, we were told - probably by the same patronising server/manager-we could if we really wanted but we'd have to find somewhere to stand . Decided to try elsewhere. Two nights ago we gave it another try, and were asked three times if were going to be eating whilst we tried to relax with a drink. If this place is NOT a pub, it really ought to advertise as such. If I chose to eat out in this area, this place ,with it's surly and disinterested staff ,would be bottom of the list. And since when have pubs allowed under ten year olds to chase around the bar at 9 p.m?
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so whats your point............. :)
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Just had an awful experience in this pub.
Been going to this pub for years. After todays experience i will never be going back.
Went there with some friends at 12:30 on the 25/08/2008 and had a shared starter and 4 main dishes. The server was a little patronizing ( i believe he was the manager), but as i had had good experiences in the past we went along with it. The starter was good and taste (antipasti) which we shared. However one of our drinks had a hair in it, but that could of been from one of us at the table so we removed it and moved on.
Then we had the mains, a fish of the day which was fine, a bangers and mash which was very small and a burger which was as you would expect. The problem came with the mixed grill ordered. In this selection of foods a large black curly hair was found encrusted in one of the sausages and had been cooked into it. To be honest it looked like a pubic hair. There was no way this had come from one of us at the table.
Obviously we took this dish to the bar almost uneaten and it was sent back to the kitchen. Moments later the patronizing (believed to be manager) came out to ask what we wanted to do. No apology was given and we were treated like we had added the hair to the food. There was certainly an antagonistic attitude by him towards us. My friend had been put off his food as had all of us and wanted to ascertain where the hair had come from. He wanted to know if any of the staff had head hair that resembled this in the kitchen. A question was asked as to whether any of the staff were black not with any racial motivation but purely to explain whether the hair was a head hair in which case further food would be ordered or if it was as feared a pubic hair. Now maybe we did not explain our point well enough here, but the manager took offense. Moments later we were asked to leave however they wanted us to pay for our food even though we had not finished our main dishes. We stated that if we were allowed to stay we would pay for our food, but if they wanted us to leave we would not. They wanted us to leave immediately and an argument ensued.
We were insulted and treated with very little respect by the pub. They treated us as if it was our fault and the manager was very antagonistic. Rather than arguing further we decided to leave after the manager agreed that we were not going to pay for our meal which quite frankly at this point we felt was an insult. I had eaten less than 20% of my meal and they wanted me to pay for that.
So there you have it not the most savory of reviews. What could of been dealt with in a polite manner was turned into a major problem resulting in a bit of a scene. As a business owner myself if a member of my staff had treated a customer like that they would not be working for me very long.
To summarize the staff attitude was poor and in a difficult situation they treated the customer as being in the wrong. When a hair is found in food it is not a customer who is at fault especially when it's baked into the food and made the worse for being a pubic hair. Then being asked to leave and pay is just unacceptable.
Tomorrow i will be informing environmental health about the pub's food hygeine.
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Thanks for the explanation beersupper I was beginning to think you were a disgruntled ex-employee of Punch's <g> but now I can understand why your not a fan
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Hi hermiek just a note chap i think you will find that the rip off pub co. (Punch)own Spirit Group its their managed side of the company.You say i don`t like Punch Pub Co.you are right they are one of the main reasons so many pubs are closing down its the Very High Rents as well as the Rip OFF prices they charge a tied landlord for beers lose the beer tie and drinks could be 60p pint cheaper.
Rant well and truely over.
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This is a chef & brewer pub which is a spirit company not punch pub, - (don't think beersupper likes punch <g>) this pub does have ups & downs but it does do a nice sunday lunch
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it isn't as good as it used to be we went for a family meal but were kept waiting for a long time but the price was resonable wouldn't hurry back
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Another Punch Pub Co. disaster it did have a good relaxed atmosphere a while ago not now.It`s the same as The White Horse Shere the Pub Co`s are killing good pubs by greed.Get real you morons.
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We live in the village and have seen this pub go up and down over the years, a little like a roller coaster. Have to say that, both beer- and food-wise, it is not on one of its "up" turns at the moment. At times it is down to one real ale, and the menu is far more limited than it used to be. Service is not wonderful, either, especially if you've only called in for a beer. It is a chain pub, Chef and Brewer,and has pretensions of being a restaurant. A few years ago it was really setting standards: well-kept ales and imaginative cookimg, and we used to enjoy visiting, but now we tend to visit only if forced to, eg cooker breaks down or unexpected guests turn up needing a quick meal!
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The atmosphere is lovely and so are the managers. Food excellent especialy as it's a chain. Thanks for a lovely time!
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This used to be a nice family meal pub. They had plenty of large tables, nice candle lit atmosphere, did tend to get dark, but it was still a very nice pub. Except now, changes have been made. There used to be a two page menu for starters, mains, side dishes and a separate for desserts.
It now all fits onto one single sheet of A4, and the choice isnt up to much. Its an alright pub, but the staff can be forgetful, and a lack of choice makes it not overly recommended.
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Sorry guys what do you expect from a Punch Pub Co. owned pub.
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Hmm! about 18 months ago I would take anyone along to this, but its so gone down hill. The food used to be really special the staff were lovely. Now? ever changing staff, and frankly i have now stopped going. Its not worth the risk.
Sorry guys, get your act together again and hoards of us will be back.
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Good food but typical of a big chain, not much personality on offer.
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Service at the bar is slow at lunch times. Ales are reasonably well kept and the food.... I was served what much have been the largest jacket potato ever grown!!
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Greatly improved from 18 months or so ago, the JS is a Chef & Brewer house with a very good (and reasonable) menu and well-kept beers. Friendly (though constantly changing) staff. Hog's Back TEA and Hop Garden are often on. Large log fire in winter and sunshades and outdoor tables for the better weather Very popular for Sunday lunch.
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