Rithul Indian Restaurant at Elms Hotel — Restaurant in Bassetlaw

I’m writing to express my extreme disappointment with both the quality of food we received and, more disturbingly, the appalling customer service I experienced when I tried to raise my concerns.

My family and I are currently on holiday in the area and staying in a self-catering cottage. We were looking forward to trying out some local food, and after speaking to a polite gentleman from your restaurant, I placed an online order for takeaway with the intention of possibly ordering again during our week-long stay.

I was told the food would be ready in 40 minutes — my husband arrived on time, but the food was not ready and he was left waiting over 1 hour and 15 minutes. He had to chase multiple staff members before someone finally handed over the order.

Even more disappointing was the food itself: • The paneer makhani was off — sour to the point of being clearly spoiled. As someone familiar with Indian cuisine, I can say with confidence this was not a case of “flavour preference” or strong spices — it tasted spoiled. • The veggie platter was missing the paneer tikka listed on the menu. The onion bhajis and beetroot & black bean tikki were completely burnt and charred — visibly blackened. I have photos to support this. • The sambar was literally just a container of mixed vegetables with no dal, no broth, and no flavour — simply unacceptable by any standard. • The only edible item in the entire £43 order was the vegetable biryani.

We are travelling with our 3-year-old daughter and had relied on this meal for our evening dinner, opting not to cook in our self-catering accommodation. What we received was not only uneatable, but concerning from a health and hygiene perspective.

I called your restaurant to give feedback, and initially spoke again to the same polite gentleman who assured me he would look into it. That was appreciated. But what followed was beyond belief.

I received a call back from a woman whose attitude was rude, dismissive, and combative from the moment she spoke. There was no apology, no willingness to listen, no professionalism — only immediate defensiveness.

She began by justifying every item: • “That’s how the bhajis and tikkis are supposed to be.” • “The curry was cooked at this time, so it can’t be off.” • “The chef said everything was fine.”

When I explained that I was simply trying to provide feedback on a genuinely poor and possibly unsafe experience, she repeatedly told me: “Don’t talk to me in that tone.” “Don’t threaten me with a review.” “Don’t show me attitude.”

And lecturing me on my tone.

Let me be clear — as a paying customer, stating that I would be leaving an honest review based on my experience is not a threat, it is a right. The fact that she viewed it that way says everything about how your restaurant handles complaints.

To receive not even a single apology, no acknowledgement, and be spoken down to — as if I was being unreasonable for expecting edible food — is frankly disgraceful. If this woman is the owner or represents management, I have serious concerns about how this business is being run.

This experience ruined an evening during our family holiday and left us scrambling for food after spending £43 on a meal that was largely binned. I do not write reviews lightly — but this needed...

I’m gutted to have to give you guys 1 star only because I love your food, but your waiting time is beyond shocking!!! I know it’s Friday evening - but so do you!!! Put extra staff on for goodness sake! It’s been well over 2 hours since I ordered and was told the food would be ready in 40 minutes. My poor sons (one of them is only 5!!!) went to pick the food up after football training and are still sitting there now - they have been waiting an hour and 20 minutes now. I’m fuming! He needs to go to bed, never mind start eating now!! Honestly, I’m very angry and I will not be ordering or eating at your restaurant again. I’m actually hoping for/expecting some sort of reimbursement, because this is simply not acceptable....

Dreadfull. Our first and last family visit. There were three of us, two dishes were "ok". However, the Tandori Mixed Grill which was reassuringly expensive was awful. This happened to be my dish! The lamb chops (x2) were so tough and burnt they were inedible and as these were the highlight, this ruined the meal. Upon leaving we were asked if everything was alright and I gave honest feedback.....nothing...not even an attempt to understand or make it right! We left paying full price for an awful meal. We will not be returning. Avoid.

Edit to reply to the owners comment: this is not true, at no point was there an offer to replace the...