The Waterman — Restaurant in Cambridge

Hate to say it but the Waterman has really gone down hill under the new ownership. This is so disappointing as my family loved going there for the last few years when the beer, food and atmosphere was top notch. Our dinner last night was definitely deserving a one star. Two items on the menu were not available, we waited close to 40' to be served (and the place was near empty), and the quality of the food was so average it really was sad given how dependable it used to be. The staff though were very nice, if inexperienced. I will give the pub another try as it is local and maybe they just have teething problems. But given our experience it will be tough not to go to one of the other venues around Mitchams Corners (of which there are many by the way). Sorry to be so negative, but hopefully the management will react. They acquired a gem of a pub, please don't let its journey follow the same tired old up and down cycle seen so often with a change...

We visited the Waterman in the afternoon 5th of October 2024 for a quick drink. We ordered a pint of ale (nothing particularly special) and a glass of white wine (Pinot Grigio and again nothing very special as you can see ...). To our astonishment the bill came to £17-15!!!!! Naturally we questioned this, as we were sure there must have been an error, but were informed by the barman, who had been up until this point pleasant, it was correct and not to complain to him as “…he only works here…” which he said in a very hectoring manner. What he failed to understand is that if you are public facing you represent the establishment and are therefore the only available person to complain to. We cannot recommend this place as the prices are a rip off and the staff clearly inadequately trained. Needless to say never will we ever cross the threshold of this...

It’s a nice enough place but don’t get a tab there. We did so recently with a large group, everyone wrote down what they ordered as they ordered to remember to pay for it at the end - this was because there was a 20% discount arranged by one of the hosts. When the tab was ready at the end it was split into two and had LOTS of extra stuff on it after everyone had paid theirs (we’re talking 10+ drinks extra, mostly cocktails). There is not a single chance these drinks were correct, not only this but discount was barely applied to anything (which the bar staff admitted was their mistake when logging the orders) so most people ended up paying full price (and others paid even more to cover the remaining ‘phantom’ drinks). The staff were actually very nice so I feel bad leaving a poor review but I can’t imagine how it could be carried...