Caters grill Chateaubritand Eastwood Essex

I have been to this restaurant three times now – once with friends, once with my Mum and once with Michael. All three visits were relaxing and the food very good. The lunchtime offers are fabulous value, and the staff so friendly, they always serve with a smile and never rush you out, whether you still have a drink or food or not.

The restaurant and bar areas are nicely spread out into different sections, each being cosy and comfortable with many booths available which is great for a group get together. The spacious garden offers areas for outside dining, or just having a drink.

I have had seabass and a rump steak, plus the prawn dipping starters, but last time I tried the chateaubriand. It was cooked nicely (I always have medium rare) and fall apart, served with a delicious onion loaf, chips and side dishes.

I will go back to this restaurant without hesitation,

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Date of visit – April 2011

How many dined? 2

Average price per person for 3 course meal (excluding drinks) – Moderate (£20 – £30)

Service charge included? no

Food – 7

Service – 9

Ambience – 8

Value for money – 7

Phone:

01702 522 357

Website:

http://www.millerandcarter.co.uk/millerandcarterleighonsea

Steak House – Bar – Grill

629 Rayleigh Road, Eastwood, Leigh-on-Sea, SS9 5HR

chicken liver pate at the Anchor Hullbridge

I have reviewed this restaurant before, based on four visits in 2010 – you can view the old review here: http://notjustanessexgirl.com/2011/the-anchor-restaurant-and-pub-hullbridge-essex-review  We went back in April 2011 to try out the new menu, which is less casual than the previous menu and focuses on quality ingredients and delicious combinations. Unfortuantely, the service has not improved.  We had the Lobster, crayfish, avocado & tomato cocktail with lobster mayonnaise and buttered chicken liver pate, toast & chutney, to start. The pate was as good as ever – smooth and not too rich, but the cocktail was served in a glass which made it difficult to mix the leaves and seafood and there was no plate underneath to capture the overflow. For our mains we ordered the pan fried corn fed chicken with fondant potato, stuffing and buttered vegetables, which, unfortunately came out whilst we still had our starter plates on our table, so the waiter walked off across the large busy restaurant with our main meals. When someone came to clear our starters, I said that I didn’t want food that is going back and forth across the restaurant and it was too quick after our starters, and we don’t like to be rushed. All that happened was that the same food, obviously, came out to us again and it wasn’t very hot when we finally got to eat it.

Unfortunately, whilst the staff were friendly, smiling and keen, the service is the issue of this restaurant for me, and it really does spoil the great food served here. It is a very large restaurant, has a large bar and large garden area, so the amount of cooking the kitchen does when it is busy is incredible, but the service staff cant seem to keep up. It is a shame.

Date of visit – April 2011

(Just been back again in May and it is just the same – they should stick to their old menu as the food is just not up to the prices now and service erratic.  Their bar food is great, but I had turbot and it was tasteless, and we also tried the scallop and paella and I couldnt eat it – ) Such a shame as it is a good venue that has gone downhill…) Personally, I wouldnt take another chance with this restaurant, not when Harrisons and the Roslin serve such great food with excellent service.  We ordered a bottle of Cliff Edge Sauvingnon Blanc and only had some so we took it home only to find that it wasnt a decent SB from New Zealand but a cheap Chilean ‘Villarica’ which I have never heard of.  Of course,we should have noticed, but because they dont present the wine and serve it properly we didnt notice.

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 How many dined? 2

Average price per person for 3 course meal (excluding drinks) – variable (£20-£40)

Service charge included? no

Food – 7

Service – 5

Ambience – 8

Value for money – 6

Email:

info@theanchorhullbridge.co.uk

Phone:

01702 230 777

Website:

http://www.theanchorhullbridge.co.uk

The Anchor Pub and Restaurant, Hullbridge, Essex SS5 6ND

The quart pot fish and chips wickford

‘The Quart pot’ is a comfortable and modern pub/restaurant located on the Runwell road. With various seating, from booth style to bar stools, there is somewhere for everyone. The staff are friendly and serve your food to the table, however, you do have to order and pay at the bar. This is one of many of the Ember Inns group, and they have a good selection of beers and wines on offer.

I have been with friends, and my Mum, and we have all enjoyed our food, apart from the last time, last week where it seemed that the main chef was absent, since the food was well below par (cold dark chips and soggy fish and congealed gravy on my friends pie). However, this was a one off, and usually the food is really nice. I tend to go for the fish platter, which at £8.95 is such good value (salmon, seabass and a prawn skewer with crushed new potatoes and salad) and delicious. I also tasted a little of my Mum’s steak and Timothy Taylor ale pie and that was lovely.

Date of visit – various during 2010 and 2011

How many dined? 2

Average price per person for 3 course meal (excluding drinks) – inexpensive (under £20) unless you have the cheapest things on the menu.

Service charge included? no

Food – 6

Service – 6

Ambience – 7

Value for money – 6

Address: Runwell Road

Runwell, Nr Wickford, Essex SS11 7PN

Telephone: 01268 578 091

scampi and chips at the anchor hullbridge essex

(This review is now old – See my updated review of April/May 2011 by CLICKING HERE - opens in a new window) We have eaten at the Anchor in Hullbridge, Essex, four times now and have had some really very satisfying food at reasonable prices. This restaurant has not been open very long, so all the furnishings and décor is new and clean. A modern style of restaurant, it doesn’t suffer with bright lights and uncomfortable chairs. Quite the opposite, the seating (either soft armchair style or soft bench seats) are very comfortable indeed, which encourages one to stay and enjoy a relaxing time and the lighting and ambience are subdued. There’s plenty of space between the tables offering privacy to dine and talk easily.

The menu offers some British favourites, such as steak and chips, lamb hotpot with red cabbage, fish and chips, burgers, pies and home made soups, but there’s also a specials board, offering a selection of pastas, fish and starter dishes, which change…

…regularly. Although this may sound a little bland, the food is well cooked, and has their own finishing touches, making this one of the better restaurants in the south east Essex region. It was about time we had a new restaurant in this area, and the fabulous riverside situations of this restaurant is now well utilised with their large outside area, which leads down to the water, where swans, boats and ducks can be seen.

The only thing that is sometimes variable is the service. The staff are generally very friendly and helpful and add to the relaxed experience, however, we did visit on New Years eve afternoon and were met with a very disinterested staff due to the preparations for New Years eve dinner party that evening. I would just say that perhaps if they have a big event to deal with, then perhaps it would be best to close early, as much of our order was forgotten about and I had to chase up three items which spoilt our new years lunch treat, unfortunately.

I am sure this was a one off though, and would recommend any of my friends, family or acquaintances to visit.

Date of visit: various in 2010 to New Years Eve 2010/2011

My marks out of 10: (10 being the highest)

Food – 8

Service – 7

Atmosphere – 8

Value for money – 8

Website: www.theanchorhullbridge.co.uk

The Anchor Pub and Restaurant,

Hullbridge,

Essex,

SS5 6ND

Telephone: 01702 230 777

Email: info@theanchorhullbridge.co.uk

We dined there for Sunday lunch on our first day there, and dinner on the second, and apart from my prawn spaghetti starter, it was all very good. (the dish was too salty and I was a little disappointed that the waitress didn’t ask me why I had left it uneaten)  Actually, the breakfast was not as fabulous as I had expected either.

(photos to follow soon…)  It is owned by Jamie Oliver’s Mum and Dad, and apparently much of their vegetable ingredients come from his organic garden, so that is a nice touch and I have to say all vegetables we were served were fresh, delicious and held their flavour like only organic veg can.

The rooms are comfortable, with tea and coffee facilities and a telephone, but they only thing was that, when I required something from reception, they never answered, so I had to go out in the cold, along the road to the pub (the rooms are in a separate building) to speak with them. I was met with a ‘Well we are busy in the restaurant as you can see and I have to look after our diners first!’ when I told them I had been trying to call, which I found a little rude, since we were staying and eating with them and were customers too!

It still wouldn’t put me off though, and, as we had to leave at 5am to catch a flight on our last morning, we asked for a sandwich as we wouldn’t be having breakfast and they did make us a ham sandwich, which was handy, as there was nowhere else to get breakfast on the way. The weekend over, on Mondy the staff were friendly and attentive, and it was a much better service and atmosphere than the weekend, when it seemed chaotic and the staff were not as good as the food and restaurant deserve.  I think we had about 3 waiting staff on Sunday lunch and I think they would benefit by allocating tables to waiters/waitresses.  I used to work in the hotel/dining arena and that would be my tip.  Overall, our stay and dining experiences were pleasant.

It is in easy reach of Stanstead airport and I would recommend it as a great alternative to an airport hotel. It is rather expensive for the quality of room, but no more than you would pay at an airport hotel. We spent one day in Cambridge, and it was not too far to the park and ride, making it very easy to get into the town centre. It would be worth staying there for the food alone, but there’s lots to do in the local area, since it is close to Saffron Walden, many sights in North Essex, and the M11.

Date of visit: December 2010

My marks out of 10: (10 being the highest)

Food – 8

Service – 6

Atmosphere – 8

Value for money – 8

The Cricketers, Clavering, Nr Saffron Walden, Essex CB11 4QT

Telephone: 01799 550442

Fax: 01799 550882

Email: info@thecricketers.co.uk

Website: http://www.thecricketers.co.uk

Peldon Rose Essex seafood risotto

This cosy pub/restaurant was a warm, friendly place to go in late September, and the service was very efficient, but the food variable. The menu consists of British favourites, plus some other more exotic choices, for those who like a change – great if you go here regularly.

We started with a fabulous seafood risotto, made simply with olive oil and herbs, and we were very impressed at the way the chef gave this dish flavour, yet allowed the full taste of each seafood item in the dish come through.

Michael’s steak was one of the best we have tasted – real good quality with bags of flavour, and cooked perfectly to our ‘medium/rare’ taste. That was the best of it though, as the corn was bland, chips were cold and cooked in fat that seemed as though it hadn’t been changed for a long time – a very pungent oil that really was awful – and he didn’t eat them at all.

My chicken in a creamy mushroom sauce was nice, without blowing me away, although the chicken had a fantastic flavour by itself and

had been cooked very well indeed – soft and moist.

The desserts were a disappointment. A bland trifle and a chocolate cake type dish with meringue over the top, which needed some sort of sauce or something to finish it off.

The wine list is varied and good value, but we didn’t feel that we had value for money with the food.  Judging by the long length of time this place has been going and my partner’s recommendations from his past visits, so I would not put anyone off going here – it may well have been just a bad day and a one off.

Date of visit: September 2010

My marks out of 10: (10 being the highest)

Food – 5

Service – 7

Atmosphere – 7

Value for money – 6

The Peldon Rose – www.thepeldonrose.co.uk

Peldon, Colchester

Essex

CO5 7QJ

Reservations 01206 735 248

General Manager dean.cole@thepeldonrose.co.uk

General Enquiries enquiries@thepeldonrose.co.uk

Lion and Lamb pub restaurant Little Canfield Essex

One would like to hope that the meal and service we had at this pub/restaurant, was a one off disaster, but I don’t think we will be back to find out I am afraid.

Having been recommended this restaurant for quality food and a relaxed atmosphere, we stopped after a day of sightseeing, and hoped for exactly that, but it wasn’t to be.

Firstly, we ordered starters of prawn cocktail and cream of vegetable soup. Michael got his prawns and I was left sitting there with nothing. Our waitress who took our order glanced at our table, and so I hoped she was off to get my soup, but she wasn’t. We had to ask in the end, and it arrived shortly afterwards. They forgot the bread, so I asked for that, and was offered a roll, which I had to put directly on the table cloth as I had no plate, so I asked for a plate and some butter, which came quickly but the butter was rock hard it was so chilled. The prawns seemed like the sort that would have come from a frozen packet and my soup was average.

Lion and Lamb Dunmow Essex soup 2010

Lion and Lamb roast beef August 2010 Little Canfield Essex

We were then told that there was no pork left, which we had both ordered. At this point, we had no choice but to order the beef. It was very poor for the price, and the potatoes were hardly roasted at all and it was smothered in gravy, virtually like a soup. When I tried a little of my beef on its own, I realised why – it was cold! I didn’t eat mine. I was so fed up by this point. When we asked for the bill, they took my hardly touched plate of food, and didn’t even bother to ask me if I didn’t like it, or if there was a problem. We paid in full, but will not return.

However, it does look like a busy pub/restaurant for food, so hopefully this is not the service or food that everyone receives.

Stortford Rd

Little Canfield, DUNMOW, ESSEX CM61SR

01279 870 257

I am not overly keen on queuing for food, but when it is busy, the food is at its best. I tend to check for condiments and sauces before I queue and ask for more if they are running out, so that I have a fresh supply by the time I get to the end of the queue with my food, otherwise it can be quite frustrating, but it is the same with all carvery restaurants. I find the Toby to have the best selection of vegetables, a better quality of meat and the best deals. They also tend to have hotter, fresher food than others.

I went to the Toby Carvery at Southend on Sea (the Bell) which was ok, but I prefer the ambience and food of the Toby at the Wickford restaurant (The Thomas Kemble, Runwell Village). The staff there are really good too – friendly and helpful.

The best part of the carvery is the price. In the day (before 7pm) it is just £5.25. However, when it goes up to £7.50 in the evenings, I would say it was average, as for a couple of pounds more, one can get a very good meal served to them by a waitress in another restaurant. It depends what you want, but the drinks are good value, so this is great for the budget.

I have been during 2009/2010 and 2011 and it remains the same!

The restaurant area is rambling, cosy and comfortable and the staff are friendly and efficient. We were in a rush to eat, and they accommodated us well.