Toby Carvery Huddersfield — Restaurant in Calderdale

We had booked a table to eat at 1900, which was difficult for the 10-14 of us we had wanting to eat. We turned up for it to be empty, so I'm not sure why it was so difficult to get a table. It was not a major issue to start with, but this made the ongoing issue of service feel a lot worse as there was no reason for it. When I arrived, I was waiting at the bar for a good 5/10 minutes to order a drink again. The place was empty, and staff were not attentive at all. This moves us onto getting seated. Which was in the back room of the carvery, which was with everyone else that was in the restaurant, which was located maybe 20 people. I must say the carvery itself was bang on, the lamb was so good as was the pork and Turkey. Plenty of veg, etc. And loads of gravy, really was spot on and at under £15 felt like good value. We move onto the latter end of the meal, and we'd all finished. Again, we waited 20/30 mins for the table to be cleared, then eventually asked if we wanted pudding. Which we did, along with a drinks order, but had to stop the staff from leaving the table before we got the order in. We then waited easily another 20 minutes for the deserts to turn up. To start one of the deserts which we had 4 of was missing the strawberries which was mentioned to the staff member and the Apple amd damson was 100% apple crumble not apple and damson. A bit disappointing as not what was ordered. We then got our drinks when we had finished out deserts which was a bit late for us to really want them. And then we had a delivery of strawberries. After everything. It's reallyy disappointing to have this service, especially with the place being near empty. Within 5 minutes getting the last bits we were told the place had closed but we could finish our drinks that we'd just received at the bar. Without prior warning. Just finished the night with a cherry if you like. Just real lack of good customer interaction and service. Again I'd like to say the servers of the carvery and the quality of the food were good but the service overall was really not up to scratch. We did get a £10 off the bill, but I had to push for something and no apology. This £10 didn't even cover the unfinished drinks we were given just...

Do not get the takeaway. I went in on Sunday to pick up 4 roast dinners that I had booked to collect at 5pm. The first person I saw at the reception desk was really helpful and sent me to the right place to collect it. This is where the good service ends. There was no one at the collection point for at least 5 minutes as the restaurant was packed. Staff were busy. When a very abrupt woman eventually came she just said " it's not ready" and walked off. A few minutes later she came out with an order for the just eats driver but said " the rest isn't ready" and again walked off. So that meal then sat in his bag going cold, waiting for the other order to be ready so he could leave. This was about 5.07 pm, he was still waiting when I left at 5.15. Those would have been some very cold meals he was delivering to someone. Eventually after everyone, who came to collect their takeaway had been abruptly spoken too, as if they were in the wrong, mine came. It was 5.15 so I was now in a rush to get this the 15 minute drive home, to eat it and go out. Stupidly I didn't check the order. When I got home there were only 3 roast dinners of the 4 I had ordered in the bag. I rang the restaurant straight away but got the answer phone. I left a message but needless to say they are yet to ring me back. So now I am £16.99 out of pocket. No way of getting that back. Was the takeaway I got worth it... No. It was ok. Not £16.99 worth. I wouldn't bother again. Lots of mash too- to bulk up the box I am guessing - but even 3 portions split between 4 people was more than we could eat. The rest was ok but really nothing special. The whole experience of going for the takeaway, from the member of staff's attitude to, the missing meal, to not being able to sort out the issue afterwards, has put me off going ever again, even for a sit down meal. I just wouldn't spend the money. You get better value elsewhere at...

Went for a meal with family, this is the first time we have been to Toby in a good few years. First noticeable issue was how hot the inside of the restaurant was; almost unbearable. Next, there was a queue at the bar, which is expected at this time of year. But given the amount of staff standing around or prioritising other menial tasks over serving customers, the wait time was much longer than it could have been. Lack of guidance / management maybe? However, the staff were very pleasant!

Next up comes the pricing, as with everything, the cost has risen. However, the quality has fallen, in my opinion. £15 for a regular carvery, which would be an acceptable price, if the amount of meat you received was representative of the price. Alongside, the seemingly low quality / low effort cooking that has been applied to the various meats. The sides were a standard selection as to be expected. They were also being topped up eagerly, as it was a very busy Sunday evening. Although, the roast potatoes were overdone, dry throughout. I do like my roasties well done, but these had little no moisture left within. Thankfully, moisture wasn’t an issue as the gravy was incredibly thin, although the veggie gravy was much thicker, and tasted nearly identical to the regular.

As to be expected on a busy Sunday, cleanliness was only a slight issue, the only major incidents were a plantpot and an empty 5L jug of refillable handsoap in two of the gents sinks. I’m hoping this was an act by one of the many uncivilised beings dining this evening. It really could be Ainley Tops biggest mystery.

A large redeeming factor for the evening was the pleasant demeanour and helpfulness of the staff all round. Working in hospitality in the holiday period is always tough, so I’m glad the staff could still keep working with a smile on...