The Red Lion Shepperton — Restaurant in Borough of Spelthorne

The staff were polite and approachable however, I was surprised by a few things- size of the place, yet completely under-staffed, one chef on a sunny Saturday- was clearly over run and couldn't manage. We got raw chicken in our extremely expensive salad- which you had to pay another £4 to add the chicken- and they asked if you want small or large- I would assume any salad should be a decent and set size and for just lettuce and some cheese and crutons- was over £10 - so approx £14-16 for a salad, in a bowl that wobbled while you tried to eat it. We were so hungry as we waited half hour for it- we ate the salad and didn't eat any of the chicken. We were informed it was cooked a certain way to justify the fact it was raw pink and soft and then deducted the extra £4 from this (in my opinion we should have not paid for any of it) . Our drinks didn't come, 45mins later the lovely waitress said would you like another drinknto which we replied we haven't had the first ones we ordered....it was a hot day and the terrace is stunning so such a shame about the capacity and quality of service and product. We then ordered the famous beef roast at £24 each- this came with an overwhelming amount of vegetables, sickly heavy gravy and cheesy bubble and sqeek ( I think that's what is was), yet a few thin slithers of beef and three roast potatoes two small and one average...which were the best part of the plate causing underwhelment.... for that price I would expect a generous portion of the best element, not a pile of vegetables which squashed together. The waitress did get our drinks and was sincerely apologetic, we responded humoursly so as not to add more stress onto their clearly overworked team (I hope not underpaid at those prices). So in the end paid £90 for a Saturday lunch....which I suppose by the river most are happy to spend that little bit extra....even at a decent service I'd expect a salad to be pretty exceptional to be over £10 and a traditional roast for £15 at most. After all if services and food were at standard and prices decent we would have stayed longer, ordered more drinks and food.

Seemed like a place where posh people reserve to say they have the space without the rest to back it up to be honest. The biggest shame is that is is such a beautiful setting- shame the rest doesn't back it up- 1 star for the view, the other for the lovely staff....the rest of the rating...

Title: "Riverside Delight with a Cheesy Twist" - ★★★★☆ (4/5)

Our Sunday visit to The Red Lion was quite an adventure! This place has got an absolutely wonderful view of the River Thames. Sitting there, with the Thames stretching out before us, was a joy we could relish for hours on end.

Now, the staff were quite attentive for the most part. Sure, they did forget about our bill at the end of the meal, but we reminded them, and they were super grateful. It's one of those little human moments, isn't it? We all forget things from time to time.

As for the food - oh, the food was fantastic! We had two excellent beef roasts, a chicken burger that was just spot on, and Moroccan lamb that I can still taste if I close my eyes. It was a delightful spread that left us content and satiated.

However, there was a bit of a cheesy confusion. I ordered a 'burrata,' expecting a whole ball of creamy cheese. Instead, I got a plate with a slice of toast topped with tomatoes, prosciutto, and a thin layer of burrata. It was more of a bruschetta situation rather than a true burrata. I mentioned this to the staff, and they insisted that this was their interpretation of a burrata. They even said that burrata and bruschetta could be used interchangeably. Now, that was a bit perplexing, as burrata is a cheese and bruschetta is an appetizer - they're not exactly swap-able.

After we got home, I checked their website and the dish was listed as 'prosciutto.' Makes sense, but they could definitely update their menus to avoid such cheesy mix-ups in the future. I mean, £12.70 for a 'burrata' that was more like a bruschetta is a tad steep, don't you think?

All in all, we had a really good time at The Red Lion. The view, the food, and the mostly attentive service made it a lovely outing. We're taking away a star for the 'burrata-bruschetta' mix-up, but other than that, everything was perfect. We're definitely coming back, and hopefully, next time will be a flawless...

Visited on Sunday 25th October 1pm for Sunday Lunch. Ordered breads for starters, two roasts and Katsu Halloumi curry. After waiting 50 minutes for the starters to arrive the waitress appeared and said it had been missed off the order. She asked if we still wanted it as the mains were ready. We said that we would just have the mains if they are ready now. We waited another 15 minutes before the food arrived. 1 hour 5 minutes from ordering and the pub was not even that busy. A large group ordered their food AFTER ours and got served about 20 minutes before. No real sign of an apology. When the Katsu curry arrived it looked like a Microwave meal with barely any sauce and a small portion of overcooked rice. I had to ask for extra sauce just so it was edible. I cannot understand how they can charge £17.50 for that plate. Apparently the roasts were very nice but at £18-21 it is very expensive. We were seated next to the kitchen door which was constantly being slammed. Waited 15 minutes for the bill to arrive. £70 total for 3 people for 1 course with 2 x cokes and a larger which is far too expensive. I understand COVID has been a disaster for the hospitality industry but people are paying not just for the food but the whole experience and this was a terrible one. Feels as though they have sort of given up on social distancing measures as there was no mention of 'track & trace' (didn't scan anything) cash was taken by a customer next to us and paper menus were being used. Needs vast improvement in all areas and I would not recommend this over other local pubs which offer substantially higher quality of food and better customer service. Very...