Winstanley House — Hotel in Great Britain

Great to see another one of Leicester's historic sites brought back to life, Naresh and his team have certainly done a great job of bringing this magnificent Hall back to life.

We didn't stay in any of the rooms but booked a table for Sunday lunch. The reception area gives you a hint at what is to come - stylish and contemporary interior design blended into the traditional rooms of this former country house.

However, as with many other establishments, it's the attention to detail that can often make or break the occasion and unfortunately, Winstanley House was no exception. Upon arrival, we were greeted warmly and shown to our table and asked if we would like any water for the table and then left to allow us time to look at the menu. ( it really irritates me when serving staff ask if you'd like to order drinks or food the moment you sit down!) So, this is how things panned out: Two glasses of wine (that we hadn't ordered) arrived. "Sorry, not ours" and sent them back. Starters ( that we hadn't ordered) arrived. "Sorry, not ours" and sent them back. It seems that a couple that were seated at our table had changed tables but this had not been updated to the staff.

Our own starters - excellent, the mushrooms on toast were really tasty as was the smoked salmon. Mains: steak was perfect! So tender it pretty much melts in the mouth. Unfortunately, the accompanying veg was not to the same standard. The roast parsnips were quite small and thus the ends curled up which meant there was very little of them you could actually eat, which left me with the impression that they were there more for decorative effect rather than to add anything to the meal. Brussel sprouts were over-cooked. I was surprised that there was not any roast chicken or turkey on the menu as these are very popular mains for a Sunday lunch. The dessert menu - which arrived grease-stained and really should not have been presented- was limited as it only had three options (four if you count the cheese board): Dark chocolate brownie, Apple crumble to share and Eton mess. Nothing exactly memorable or ground-breaking here.

The bill was brought to us on a heavily stained plate that still had someone's completed review card on it. These issues were addressed by a reduction in our bill which was a very kind and generous gesture. Overall, the staff were attentive and helpful and I feel sure that with some tweaking here and there, an improvement will...

A group of 10 of us came to Winstanley House for afternoon tea. As we arrived early, we tried some of the lovely mocktails in the bar area which were so tasty! Possibly due to the range of drinks we ordered (some hot, some mocktails) and there being a wedding on, the bar service was a tad slow, but it didn't negatively impact our experience. The staff were friendly and accommodating in showing us where to go and taking our orders. We didn't feel pressured to leave in a hurry, and we're grateful for the hospitality of the staff.

The ample selection of teas available was great. Both the vegan and non-vegan scones and sandwiches were nice and filling, and we all enjoyed the quirky crockery and teaware. We noticed a recipe book was available for sale - it would be a great idea to sell a vegan recipe book in future as the texture of the vegan cakes was very good!

The chairs in the restaurant were comfortable, although for our large group it was a bit awkward to get seated or if you needed to get up and pop to the loo, as they were quite wide chairs with very little space between them. The toilet facilities downstairs were clean and well stocked, although it wasn't the easiest to tell whether the stalls were occupied/available just by looking, perhaps due to the lighting in there.

As a first time visitor, I found the signage around the entrance and car park could be improved. It was a little confusing where to go or which was the right way to get in/out of the car park. It would help from an accessibility perspective to have more frequent signage, or larger and...

We came here for my sons birthday and to say we were all disappointed is an under statement. First you have to wait at least 15 minutes to get a drink as not enough staff working, to then be told half of the menu isnt available, including 3 of the steaks on the menu. Once we had placed our order after waiting around 30 minutes plus to do so, we were then told that there was not four fillet steaks available only 3 so one of our party had to choose something else. The childrens mac and cheese which is priced at £9 came out on a red hot skillet and looked awful. I specifically asked for my steak to be cooked well done no blood at all and it came out with blood still coming out, they did offer to take it back but I refused because why should I have to have sent it back when I had specifically asked for it well done, I had fries, salad and some of the side of mac and cheese for my dinner which was tasteless. Our whole party was disappointed and said that the steak and some of the sides were tasteless. For the prices they charge this food was horrendous, I would have got a better service and steak at a sizzling pub. If we had booked for earlier on in the evening I think we would have all walked out to go to a different restaurant but because it was 7.30pm in the evening and even later when we got drinks and then to order food we had no choice but to stay. I definitely won't...