The Albany, Thames Ditton

This pub is great for sitting by the river with a beer on a summers evening as the location is wonderful. However as a restaurant I think it is a little confused, on first impressions based on the interior design and the French Maitre d� that greets you, your expectations are set, unfortunately from there on you are left disappointed with a confused menu of Pizza and Fish and Chips, the food itself is okay but its clear there is a profit margin thing going on here when you realise your scallops are sliced in half and made to look like whole ones! But the big let down is the staff, that is predominately students who have no interest in service and what they are serving i.e. the girl that served us didn�t know the difference between a dessert wine and the port she was serving (but expected a big tip). Which incidentally the wine and port list does not belie the initial impressions and the Belgian beers are served in the wrong glasses. My advice is to use the pub for what it is good at and eat at a more honest pub like the Swan or trek over to Hampton Court as you maybe disappointed like I was.

18 Jun 2007 11:23