The Bank Tavern — Restaurant in Bristol

Edit: As readers will see, the response from the landlord is laced with sarcasm. The fact is he was unavailable by phone day or night after several attempts, and made no effort to contact me prior to cancelling my booking. He says the business was closed, but it was open when I called and spoke to bar staff and the landlord was able to cancel my 2023 booking. The very polite bar person I spoke to advised me to call back in the day time without specifying when but timing isn't the issue and neither the bar person or myself are accountable for the unavailability and lack of accountability by the management. The landlord has also managed to respond to this review in a matter of hours, as opposed to days for emails. He says normally he'd have tried to make amends, but the fact is he had that opportunity when I asked why my booking had been cancelled in my initial email, and he chose not to. The best this landlord has been able to offer is a personal attack.The landlord is the problem here, not the staff, and not me. Finally, "360 days to find a Toby Carvery". Not just sarcastic but stuck up and classist too. Sam. Treat people with respect and hopefully they will do the same for you. The respectful thing to do here was to contact your customers with bookings before cancelling them, not just send an automated email with no explanation after the fact.

Cancelled my reservation after 15 months of waiting, and the waiting list for a Sunday roast is now several years - so long that there are no available Sunday reservations. They didn't bother to contact me to explain or offer another day, I just got an automated email from their booking system.

Emails to the landlord take several days to get a response and he has also not been reachable by phone. The only response from the landlord has been to say that they've decided not to be open Sunday January 1st 2023, but if they're going to take reservations so far ahead they should honour them, and simply block out days on the system for future bookings that they won't be open for.

Their website says they are uniquely inhospitable. I agree with...

Well... I was lucky enough to sneak in here for a sunday roast, despite a waiting list of 2+ years! My friend was attending and had a cancellation! Thank goodness they did because my roast was banging! I tend to judge roast dinners out, on their roast potato's... they were crispy and succulent and not what you'd expect from a pub roast dinner. The beef was a teeeeeeny bit tough... well a slice of it was, the other slice was gorgeous and tender. However all of it was cooked to perfection and had a red tinge to it. Juicy and delicious. The celeriac puree had us all talking at the table. It added such great flavours to the whole meal. The cheesy leeks were gorgeous. The service was great, friendly staff, the owner was attentive. We had a few late stragglers and they were OK with that. I believe each booked table has around 1.5-2 hours so bear that in mind. Wine was great, lovely selection on the list. I can't comment on starters or dessert (gutted, I was peer pressured out!) But from what I saw this follows suit. Reasonably priced, around £18 something for a roast. I would love to come again but I doubt I'll be able for many years! Another bonus that we got to meet a well known TV chef amd I was interviewed for a well known prime daytime TV program! I did spot a couple of tables of one, which I may try and hit up...

Having stumbled across the Bank Tavern, I now eat here when I'm wanting amazing food, at fantastic prices with a warm friendly service The weekday lunch menu is quintessentially British, with everything from Deer pie, to bubble and squeak and not forgetting their burgers and sandwiches. The real treat for me though has the Sunday roast, each time I think it just can not get better than the last but by some wizardry it does! From incredible and innovative starters to their amazing take on the Sunday lunch and of course the deserts (photos below). The only issue for me now is that no other place can beat my Sunday roast expectations after eating at the Bank Tavern! The fine dining nights are also a must try! My first was on Burns night and It's fair to say I was completely blown away by the whole night and experience. From the food, to the delicious whisky pairings, to the incredible atmospheres and guest speakers, it was certainly a real great start to my 2018, and something that I will always remember come Burns night...