Kedron Park Hotel — Restaurant in Brisbane City

Vibe We dined here on a Saturday night in March. The end of all lockdowns was clearly in evidence. Graziers Steakhouse was full, and humming with energy and activity. As it boasts a kids playroom, it's best suited to families with children who need somewhere for the kids to be able to amuse themselves. But for those wanting a more quiet and laid back evening, it isn’t ideal. Fortunately though, this is a large venue with multiple dining areas, so we were able to find a space that was more appropriate. The space that we found ourselves in, was in the middle of the venue between Graziers and a larger pub and gaming area. It had stylish, classical décor, featuring wood panelling, patterned carpets and soft lighting, which created the perfect homely and relaxed atmosphere. High tables and bar stools were comfortable and practical, the table able to fit all the dishes and the drinks. Acoustics were fine and we were easily able to converse.

Service As with all A.L.H. Group hotels, the wait staff were hard working, professional and friendly. It’s always a pleasure to dine at one of these hotels, with their consistently high standards, and the K.P. was no exception. We ordered using the app, which was pretty straightforward, but there is one problem with it, which management needs to address, and that is that all dishes i.e. entrees and mains come out at once which isn’t really the way we like it. Obviously, we prefer entrees first, then main meals. The app needs to incorporate a feature which allows one to decide the order of the food.

Food We choose the calamari, chicken schnitzel and a caesar salad off the seniors menu. It was standard A.L.H. fare, but as always (and we’ve had these dishes many times at different A.L.H. hotels) it was all fresh, tasty and cooked to perfection, with love, care and attention to detail. The calamari was soft and chewy and served with crispy chips and a generous serve of nutritious salad. My chicken schnitzel was a winner; a succulent and tender piece of chicken in a crunchy batter and served with the perfect accompaniments: gravy, chips and salad. My wife's caesar salad was drenched in a spicy mayonnaise sauce and came with lashings of anchovies, which was perfect to give it that extra zest and flavour. Presentation was neat on smart white crockery and we both enjoyed our meals.

Toilets Toilets are clean and well provisioned with separate male and female cubicles. They’re clearly signposted and conveniently located in the middle of the venue behind the bar counter.

Parking Another thing that I love about A.L.H. venues is the convenient parking. Most have their own car parks, with ample spaces. K.P. Hotel has a large one, right behind the hotel with easy access to the hotel along a well lit pathway.

Cost Thanks to the A.L.H. group for thinking about seniors battling hyperinflation and smashed standards of living thanks to govt policies that have reduced our currency to monopoly money. There are always beer specials, and prices on the seniors menu are extremely reasonable. We paid 6 pesos for a schooner of my fav Great Northern Super Crisp ale, 4 pesos for a cold drink for my wife, and the three main meals came to 46 pesos. Can’t complain about that: A decent night out, with two drinks, an entrée and two mains for 56 pesos.

Summary We had a pleasant evening at the K.P., and everything ran smoothly. This is what we have come to expect from the A.L.H. Group hotels and the K.P. Hotel didn’t let us down. Food was the usual high standard, service was friendly, polite and attentive and the vibe in the bar was laid back, relaxed and informal. Add to that clean and well provisioned toilets and ample free parking just behind the venue and you have all the ingredients for a perfect night out with family or friends.

Memo We’ve just joined Monty’s Rewards programs, for the A.L.H. hotels. You can earn rewards and receive discounts, so we’re looking forward to scoring some good deals and benefits with our...

Today, Christmas Day, We had the unfortunate experience of attending the So-called extravaganza of Christmas at the Kedron Park Hotel. After being shown to our table, in a somewhat dingy environment, we were left to gleen information on what was happening from a delightful couple at our adjacent table. The festivities were scheduled between the hours 11:30am until 2:30pm, However we were unable to gain access to the buffet until around 12:15pm. A rather long line ensured and after eventually reaching the said buffet we found a rather mediocre selection of hot offerings and on turning the corner to side two a selection of seafood, including Bugs, Prawns, Oysters (done I believe five different ways) scallops, all looking magnificent, until you noticed none of the above were on Ice. Simply sitting on trays, (granted in air conditioning around 24 degrees, quite warm) however well out side the required Health & Safety Standards for any food, much less Seafood. Astonishing, and yet later when deserts were presented, two large containers of buckets of ice cream sitting on enough ice to sink the Titanic. 'The Mind Boggles '. My Partner Simply Refused To Entertain The Idea Of Consuming Any Of The Somewhat Warm Seafood, (The Main Reason We Decided To Attend The Venue, Read The Menu, Sounded Fantastic, Not So) due to health considerations, so obviously had a very disappointing Christmas Lunch Experience. To add insult to injury, no staff members, were clearing the tables of used plates, seafood residue, shells, general food remains, etc., cutlery, used napkins, from patrons tables, until later in the day when the very hard working bar staff appears out of nowhere to take up the slack. On arriving there seemed to be ample staff, however they seemed to go missing, perhaps out to the backroom where they had there own personal party prepared by Chef, while being paid massive holiday wages. I must say this is only an assumption. Thank you Kedron Park Hotel for ruining Christmas Lunch and Ultimately Christmas for us both. It's as if you had never put on a function before, and your regular job was a forklift driver or something similar, nothing whatsoever to do with Hospitality. Shame, Shame,...

Christmas Day at Kedron Park Hotel.

Absolute Disgrace!!

FURTHER TO YOUR RESPONSE TO ME... Your deflection to my complaint was expected by your Management.

You stated you don't know where my complaint was coming from? It's coming from me a professional who held a career in Hospitality Management for 30 years.

Of course you would state you had no other complaints...I happen to engage with numerous other patrons during the day who were more than disappointed.

3.Re the seafood not being kept on ice & the seafood warm on touch you state that the Chef was monitoring this...well he obviously wasn't nor should he have had to if it were kept on ice.

Re the rest of my true to fact complaints for the Xmas lunch held at your establishment I would much prefer to give a positive review... however my negative review is warranted.

I would suggest to Head Office that they take a serious look at Management at Kedron Hotel also engage a professional Public Relations Manager to respond to complaints in a more appropriate manner.

Advertised start time 11.30 with buffet starting at 12.00 buffet was not accessible until 12.15. Consequently huge line up.

Hot food was not at all a Xmas style buffet as advertised it was very ordinary.

As per pictures above the seafood was on plates not on ice at all!! Extremely against Health Regulations. The Bugs & prawns were warm to touch therefore would not eat any of the seafood on offer.

As for the desert buffet instead of having both sides of buffet open there was only one with the other side empty therefore the line up was ridiculously long.

Don't know where or what the staff were doing? They certainly weren't attending to tables to clear plates /scraps etc.

When I bought to the attention of the Chef & his kitchen staff re no ice for seafood on the buffet I was totally ignored no explanation at all.

This was indeed the worst Christmas Buffet my partner & I have ever experienced totally ruined our Christmas Day.

Absolutely no clue on how to run a restaurant or buffet & obviously the lack of service shows total lack...