Toby Carvery - Friary

Very nice all round. Had the breakfast with a cup of Hot Chocolate. Followed by toast and jam. I love the fact that you can get Yorkshire Pudding and gravy with a fry up. No complaints. Value for money.

Writing this review as I didn’t hear from anyone as promised by the manager on duty, who took my phone number and my email address. And this review will be shared on my social media pages too. We booked a Christmas dinner for the 27th December as my children were flying over from Canada this year and they spent Xmas & Boxing Day with my daughter in laws parents and then came to us. There were 10 of us and we booked for 7pm, and upon arrival we ordered drinks and sat and chatted for a while. The waitress who was miserable from the get-go told us that over the Christmas period they stopped serving food at 8pm. No one told us this when we booked the table. We were rushed to get our food - which was literally remnants of meat - and as we loaded our plates we had to wait whilst one of the kitchen staff filled take away containers with the vegetables and sides for their takeaway deliveries. There was no meat gravy and we had to make do with the vegetarian gravy. They also use plastic serving spoons and tongs which over heat under the heating lamps making it impossible to use them. So it became a disappointing evening as we had to rush our meal and the waitress just kept hovering all the while we were eating. We paid the bill and as we were walking out I noticed the carvery now had fresh meats and veggies and people were still eating on the other side of the restaurant. I asked to speak to the manager and he came out and spoke with me. His attitude was no better than the waitress’s - and when I asked what time they stop serving food he said 9pm. I explained what had happened with us - and he just shook his head and said ‘no, that’s not true. I’ll speak to her’. No apology no nothing. Your team ruined what would have been a lovely evening for my family and made sure that this family doesn’t come to your restaurant again.

We had a mixed experience. After finishing our main course, we sat at the table for ages with the dirty plates still in front of us, despite the place not being that busy. I approached three different waitresses to ask for a pot of tea, but no one came. Then we asked for the bill, and again, we sat waiting with the dirty plates. In the end, we had to ask yet another waitress for the bill, and only on the third attempt were we successful. We paid, but the dirty plates remained on our tiny table. The carvery itself was good, although the vegetables looked a bit rough. However, everything was cooked well. The gentleman serving the carvery was very polite, and it was evident that he cared about the customers. However, the waitress service was lacking. It was clear that there wasn't enough care and goodwill to provide nice service to your clients.