BITE user comments - Tetenterre
Comments by Tetenterre
The Bat and Ball Inn, Breamore
I have been back a few times since my previous review (14 Feb 2012); the food has been consistently very good (if slightly idiosyncratic) and the service excellent. This has been sufficient to convince me that the "issues" I had a few months ago were a "blip".
21 Jun 2012 00:01
The Bat and Ball Inn, Breamore
Been hearing good things, so we booked a table and tried it out for lunch. The welcome was warm; the pub was moderately full. While waiting to be seated, I noticed that they have a reasonable selection of malts, including one of my favourites: Laphroaig Quarter-Cask. However, it being lunch-time I settled for a pint of Forty-Niner (well kept) and my companion had a spritzer. We felt that the pub could have benefited from some heating; it was chilly around the kidneys, and we noticed people at other tables putting their coats back on.
I ordered salmon& dill fish-cakes (�9.95) and my companion had chicken fajitas �8.95). They took over half an hour to arrive -- for stuff that has (presumably) already been prepped and which only takes a max of 15 minutes to cook, this is too long. If the pub had been particularly busy, I could have understood this, but the problem seemed to be one of under-staffing -- we saw only 3 members of staff, who were consistently busy. Maybe this is just the reality of the pub-grub trade nowadays. The food was pleasant enough, but nothing to write home about -- just honest pub fare, that was reasonably priced, served by pleasant, friendly people. The taste of dill was just about noticeable in the fish cakes, and at least the chilli dipping sauce had more than a nodding acquaintance with capsicum -- just a pity there wasn't more of it. Sauces, guacamole, etc, are served in very small ramekins, making the portions a bit stingy.
Would I go back? Well, if I was in a situation where I had to eat there, I wouldn't object, but I'd not make a special trip there either.
14 Feb 2012 14:45
Used to be a friendly pub, but has gone downhill. We used to go regularly, but eventually lost count of the times an essential ingredient for some menu item was missing or we had food that had to be returned due to e.g. gritty lettuce (waitress insisted it couldn't be), a supposedly blue steak that was medium, or some other issue. Lots of different staff; some are friendly (and one at least had the decency to be horribly embarrassed about the exorbitant price they charge for soda water), but one or two are downright rude: we had one barman who refused to take a food order at the till we usually ordered it at; a few weeks later, having queued at the one he'd directed us to on the previous occasion, he directed us to the one he'd refuse to serve us at previously.
We've stopped going.
26 Oct 2011 13:30
Excellent pub!
The beer is varied and very well kept. The food is unpretentious, mostly locally sourced, appropriately priced and served in portions of a size that satisfies hunger without bloating the gut. The staff have always, in my experience, been friendly.
I like the fact that it does not take plastic, does not serve chips and expects children to be able to eat human food. For those who do not like these things: there are loads of nearby pubs where you can satisfy your needs, so please just leave those of us who do like it with the only one of its kind in the area.
30 Aug 2011 17:44
The Augustus John, Fordingbridge
Having heard that this pub was under new management, we returned. What an improvement! Friendly service, very nicely kept Fortyniner, and a seafood risotto that I'd return for, all at a reasonable price.
18 Apr 2010 15:46
This once-excellent pub has gone downhill where food is concerned. It was under the control of a relief manager. The beer (Morland) was good, but the barman seemed incapable of pulling a pint without a substantial head on it.
We had the meal-and-a-pint-for-a-tenner deal. I ordered my steak "blue", my wife ordered hers "medium-rare" -- they arrived identically cooked: rare. My wife sent hers back; it returned well done. While we were eating, someone from another table complained that their food had not all arrived. The manager and waitress were offhand with her and made sniping comments about "awkward customers". Then the bill: it was wrong and, unsurprisingly, the error (which the manager blamed on the till!) was not in our favour.
It would take only two things to pull this pub back up to what it used to be: a manager who has the customer's interests at heart and a chef who can cook.
23 May 2009 14:51
The Augustus John, Fordingbridge
It's amazing how a once-excellent source of food can go so far downhill. Tried lunch. My king-prawn stir-fry (�12.95) wasn't a stir-fry -- merely heated prawns in a sweet-chilli sauce, served with (properly-cooked) rice and a pretty bland salad. It was at least edible, which is more than can be said for my wife's Thai chicken curry (�9.95). This appeared to have been reheated at least once: the chicken, the mange-tout, the carrot and the mini-corn-cobs turned to mush with a little attention from a fork.
The Ringwood Best Bitter was good.
Absolutely will not return!
23 May 2009 14:37
The Kings Head, Canterbury
Needed a place to stay in Canterbury at short notice. Booked through laterooms.com -- very smooth and efficient.
Pros:
Exquisitely clean
A shower that works really well
Very comfortable, firm bed
Excellent (full English) breakfast
Very nice pint of Harveys in the bar
Unpretentious pub with friendly staff and clientelle
Cons:
The breakfast coffee was dire: weak instant coffee in a jug.
Room very warm but window opened onto A28: choice between being hot (even with the provided fan) or traffic noise.
That said, I would happily return if I again need accommodation in Canterbury.
22 Jul 2012 10:18