Stepping Stones — Restaurant in Derbyshire Dales

I booked a table for 9 people on a Saturday afternoon. We aren't from Ashbourne and we hadn't tried anything round there before and was looking forward to trying it out as the menu and pictures online looked great. However, we were very quickly thrown back and made aware of their incredible downfall from the staff. The first few staff were welcoming, accomadating and approachable but as soon as Tina came to take our food order the vibe changed drastically. She appeared pretty angry and inpatient with an overall bad attitude from the get go and when we were trying to order she demanded us to 'shush' multiple times, and continually talked to us in a way that made us feel scared, uncomfortable and small. We were a big group so sometimes there were times when more than one person was speaking - it happens. We are a friendly bunch and would expect experienced staff to be able to manage and approach a big group with understanding and friendliness.

We then ended up waiting a very long time for our food, which both cheeseburgers ordered were very bland, overcooked and dry - they couldn't be eaten. We mentioned this to another member of staff who was apologetic and said he would speak to the manager and chef who should be able to remove it from the bill, add 1 different meal and give another free. The rest of the food was standard, nothing special and in fact many of us didn't manage to finish as we waited so long for the food our appetite was ruined. We decided we wanted a takeaway box anyway but Tina said they don't provide this so they would have to wrap the food in cling film. She then gave us some food wrapped in foil. When we came to pay, the gentleman who we spoke to about the burger was dealing with us and we wanted to double check on our bill. Tina stormed over and approached him, said rudely "what are you doing that for??". The way she spoke to him was appaling. We had to then intervene and explain ourselves and she decided we weren't getting anything for free. She took over the gentleman in an abrupt and unfair way and continued to give off bad attitude not only towards us but also that specific member of staff. We were too depleted and drained from our experience that we didn't want to try to get a reimbursement, so we ended up paying for something we were told we didn't have to. I did however mention to her at the end of our visit that the way she spoke to us was very disrespectful and condescending, she was defensive straight away saying she was joking when she told us to shush, however NO ONE laughed and she had a straight face when she said this. She wanted us to "shut up", and we did, with shock. The way Tina acted impacted not only our views on the stepping stones pub (which we would never return and in fact warn people about), but also on Ashbourne as a whole. If anything it appeared as though we were racially targeted and openly...

Came here with my partner for a Sunday Roast. We had booked for 2pm however turned up early and noting that it didn’t look to busy we wanted to see if we could sit down a little earlier. We should have walked out of the door as soon as we were greeted by the unwelcoming gentleman that met us at the door. He barely grumbled a hello before asking if we had any allergies whilst not even looking in our direction. He sat us down with no further comments and left. We had our drinks served to us by a very flustered girl and then proceeded to wait 30 minutes to even order a starter, to which we only got their attention when asking if we were ok to order! The young lad who served us did apologise and said he was playing catch up. This wasn’t an issue but the pub was no where near full. The wait for our main meal wasn’t too long however the food was not pleasant. We ordered a Beef Roast and a Trio of Roasts with a side of Stuffing Balls and Pigs in Blankets. Along with 2 drinks each (which were needed to wash down the dry meat and powdery stuffing). The pigs in blankets weren’t cooked with the sausages still pink in the centre and the stuffing balls didn’t seem as though they had been cooked, it was just a mouthful of powder. The meat was incredibly dry and clearly overcooked and the parsnips were burnt to a crisp. I’m not one to moan normally but from the moment we walked in to the moment we left was unfortunately an unpleasant experience. I can’t say after today that we would return which is a shame as they have a lovely beer garden. Not one staff member asked how to food was so I couldn’t make anyone aware of this and after the service we had received we didn’t want to stick around after we finished to explain this. We spent over £60 in total and we wouldn’t say the service or food was worth...

Absolutely fantastic service and attention - all credit to Laura who ensured everything we needed was provided and allowed us plenty of time to catch-up before ordering. Laura communicated with myself throughout the booking to ensure all needs were met. This was a surprise meal booked for 14 family members for my Mum's 80th birthday - she thought there was going to be 7 of us and needed time to catch-up with everyone before ordering. The ordering of both drinks and meals was very efficient and the 'perfect' timing of bringing the meals - childrens first followed by adults ... within minutes we were all eating and the excellent service was commented on by all! We were given a corner of the pub so it felt like a private function! We had delivered a cake and decorations the day before and the decorations were appropriately placed and the cake was brought out after the meals eaten/tables had been cleared - and Laura very kindly took photographs of our family group (so no-one missed out!) A big thanks to Laura - and those that supported her. The only disappointment was that I was unable to have my first choice (from the NGCI menu), Sea Bass, so had to take further time to chose again. Luckily all other 'first choice' meals were available for my family members. We have often eaten at The Stepping Stones - just two or four of us (as you have a 'Non-Gluten' menu which meets my dietary needs) - but this was by far the best experience we have had here! We will be definitely be visiting again when we come back to Ashbourne - which we do quite regularly throughout the year as bring our...