Harvester Sovereign Harbour Eastbourne — Restaurant in Eastbourne

As quoted by my partner "Weatherspoons+ (disappointment)" - overpriced, understaffed and overall disappointing".

Went in after a good shopping trip in the Crumbles for a nice dinner before heading home, both of us haven't been in for a few years, but both remembered the place as cheap and cheerful, with a good selection.

The experience we had couldn't be further from the truth. First of all - no carvery on Sunday, which we both assumed would be a staple in a place like that. Nevermind, it happens, decided to go for a nice burger and a simple fish chips. The decor was very generic with no real soul or personality, and a lot of kids running around (which is expected on a Sunday before half term).

We got seated in about 5 minutes in the bar area. Ordered on the app, noticed they have raised their prices quite a bit, but understandable in this economy. Waited for about 15 minutes for our drinks (a beer and a glass of wine), at which point I went to the bar to ask. Poor girl at the bar seemed rushed off her feet, on her own taking orders at the bar as well as on the app. Took another 5 minutes of standing at the bar to actually get to ask about where our drinks are, at which point I got told they're coming as soon as possible. Seeing that the bartender had way too much on her plate already I said no problem and sat back down. A few minutes after our drinks arrived. Grabbed cutlery, but no salt or pepper or sauces available, food arrived about 20 minutes later (waiting almost 50 mins at this point), but no salad bowls for the unlimited salad.

At this point my partner went up (I said it was his turn) and tried to ask the manager at the front about bowls and condiments and got in his words "completely blanked". After which I went up and managed to get his attention (I must have looked annoyed enough), and said we didn't get our bowls and there were no condiments available. The manager then brought these over to our table within a few minutes.

The food was probably the most disappointing part (especially after the wait). My haddock was bland and tasted like it has been taken from the back of the freezer and warmed up in the oven. My partner ordered the Barbarcoa burger, which he described as "a thin beef burger with a bit of bbq sauce on it" and a small portion of chips (for £17 without a drink). Chips were OK but nothing special. The salad bar was the worst - some cut up salad vegetables and two bland pastas with barely any sauce. Overall we both struggled to finish our meals, leaving a bit behind (and if you know me I'm the kind of person to not only finish my plate but lick it clean).

Both me and my partner have worked in hospitality previously (he still does) and are quite understanding, especially on a busy Sunday, and I would like to say I cannot fault the staff as they were running around trying their best but there was clearly not enough of them (we saw one manager, one bar staff and maybe two servers at the most).

Definitely won't be returning as we paid £50 for drinks that were late, slow and not good service and food we could...

Booked yesterday last minute for an 8pm booking for myself and son. Arrived at 7:55pm and were quickly seated. Order taken promptly and advised to help ourselves to the 'unlimited' salad.

Unlimited to me, means as much as you please, whilst food is being served. Whilst food is being served this should also be maintained, topped up and kept looking presentatable. Unlimited to this Harvester however means we will commence clearing it all away at 8:15pm, have many options unavailable or have bowls with the bare minimum inside on display. I initially thought the 'salad chef' was topping up so after I had a small bowl of salad to start, I returned to the salad bar to find it was empty. The chef saw this and as I returned to my seat the 'salad chef' was told to "go and ask the guy there if he would like more salad because whatever he might want, we will have plenty of in the fridge" did the 'salad chef' do this? Of course not, he continued to clean up. To me that's just rude. I wouldn't have expected the entire bar to be brought back out was after a small bowl of pasta at the most. Went to top up the 'unlimited' refill drink for my son for the first time to find that it had now been turned off. Server said that he didn't know who had done that and went to get the parts that were being cleaned so that we could use it. Went over 10 minutes later, for my own first refill to find that it had been turned off yet again and dismantled for cleaning. Gave up at this point!

Remarked to the server regarding the salad bar and that I found it to be disappointing that it was cleared before we were finished he told me that they are not to clear it away until half past 8, and said he couldn't understand why it had been done so early. When I said that the 'salad chef' had specifically been told to come and check what salad I wanted and chose not to he just said he would feed it back. At this point if someone was to mention this to you, something in your head would click and make you ask if I would like something brought from the salad bar, not in this instance. Quickly took my money and disappeared off into the kitchen. Whether this was to feedback we will never know, he didn't return.

Left feeling like I had been a little ripped off especially with an £8.60 charge for unlimited refills on a machine that is turned off and then broken down for cleaning whilst you are still open and serving.

I don't feel like I will be returning so please do not add further insult by posting a generic apology like you have to so many other reviews on here. Generic responses do not address the...

Harvester Soveriegn Harbour has been great up until recently. Unfortunately, we have experienced, over the past two weeks, two very disappointing meals.

1st meal. Salad bowls came out with brown/yellow dirty crust marks on them - these were unmissable and quite frankly, huge bits of old food. It was downright disgusting, and clearly not checked. We then had our main meal, served with a "grunt" from the staff, and clearly no intention of taking away our dirty bowls, despite approaching the bar twice regarding this issue. Our main meals were dry, clearly overcooked, and appeared to have been placed in a area for some time prior to arriving at our table. We were asked to approach the bar to order dessert - which we did. It arrived, dessert was fine. However, we built a tower or plates, bowls, glasses, the list goes on. Considering this was a thank you meal for my parents, we left feeling like we had spent hard earned money on being treated sub- standard. The Harvester was fairly quiet, on a weekday evening. I dread to think what it would be like on a busy day. Just for reflection, we have previously been there on busy days, where we have had perfect service, and the food quality was great!

2nd meal. We decided this must be an isolated event. Nope. We arrived and ordered. Salad bowls had so much red/yellow/brown crust, we had to put them on another table - it made me feel sick. 4 ounce steak arrived - it was bearly a 1 ounce steak, and clearly overcooked - burnt to a sinder - i laughed at the size of it, honestly thinking it was a joke (?). The mixed grill steak again burnt to a sinder. I left nearly the whole meal - £27 quid. Shocking. The chilli con Carne looked like it had just been layered on the bowl - I would not order that, if it was me eating it. The bowl it arrived in had old food crust around the outside - which made me think what is under the actual food on the inside of the bowl! At this point, we left. This was a birthday meal - we don't have alot of money, and this time felt like we just chucked £70 down the toilet, a complete waste.

Cannot believe how downhill this place has got in the space of a few weeks. We won't be going back. For such a great location, these events have not done any favours for you.

Do not normally put reviews online, however, this was not an isolated event, it's happened twice in the matter of days, and our concerns have been clearly ignored when directly...