The Halfway House, Box

The Halfway House, Minchinhampton, Gloucestershire - April 13th 2008

"reviews" eslewhere may have been true for the year 2006/7 - unfortunately the Halfway House is no longer worthy of being included in a review of any places to drink or dine in the Cotswolds.

This last Sunday, having booked a table for 16 (with provision for possibly more or less) the previous Monday and confirmed it as growing (as they had requested we do if the number went up) at around 10.45 on the morning before arrival, we had a party of 20 arrive, at 1.00 in a surprisingly empty car park for the big family reunion weekend parting lunch.

The controversial development includes a whole new level on the lower ground floor into a sleek modern suite with approximately 30 covers, whilst retaining the forty+ possible covers upstairs. We spoke to the barman who seemed happy to see us, but the manager appeared and was at a loss as to who we were and denied any such booking existing (my wife had had a long conversation about numbers and good seating arrangements.) I asked to see his book and noticed that, as he said, there were about 18 people booked in, and they were all present, downstairs, being served. There were places laid at the upstairs tables but no one booked in for them and no prospect of anyone being able to eat there...

His explanations of our lost booking and inability to serve us any food that lunch time whatsoever included:-
"The cleaner must have answered the phone", (strange, as he answered my wife, "Yes Madam, of course Madam"),
"...The cook only buys in enough food on the Saturday to meet the needs of the guests who are booked in", and,
"We always send out a written confirmation of every booking, so it couldn't have been us you rang". - needless to say we checked, it was the same number - I have eaten in well over 1000 restaurants in Britain alone, not one, from the Savoy to Gleneagles, has ever used such a system - it could never work, and I don't believe exists anywhere.

This was a pub restaurant that used to be busy, friendly and of high quality, serving bar snacks of roast potatoes and parsnips as free nibbles for bar goers, a thriving restaurant that used to need a fortnight in advance booking and, as reviews say, a growing reputation.
Yesterday we found an almost deserted bar, very few staff, a competence level I could train into a group of two year olds during a short day, and blatant untruths told to us, apparently their only potential customers.

Every other pub/restaurant in the area was fully booked - as they usually are for Sunday lunch in the Cotswolds. The total inability to serve anyone other than the pitiful number booked in - apparently they having managed the mythical written confirmation process - was the cause of massive stress as I had to arrange to feed twenty hungry guests at very short notice at my home. Fortunately, as I am a good and imaginative cook who can rustle up food for twenty from nowhere, they were, in the end well fed.

Our house and guests are thus alive and kicking...
The Halfway house is dead - it just doesn't seem to have realised it yet.

14 Apr 2008 21:20