Welcome Inn — Restaurant in Eastleigh

Two years ago, I gave a 5 star review for the Welcome. It is my local, within easy walking distance of where I live, and I regarded myself fortunate to have such a lovely pub close by.

Since the recent refurb, I can only give the one star due to the extremely poor experiences I have had on 2 separate occasions. My first visit, no real ale was available, and neither was the food I ordered. To be fair, this was a few days after the Welcome had reopened after its refurb, and was busy. I wasn’t pleased, but more than happy to give it another try, because I like the place.

The 2nd visit was this week, Thursday 22nd November. We were a group of 4, all family. It started well, all the ales were available, with a good choice. We got to the pub approx 6pm, it was reasonably busy, but most of the tables were empty. We ordered food, there was nobody else eating at the time or ordering during this period. I ordered Steak and ale pie which comes with gravy as per the picture on the menu. My wife ordered Hunters Chicken, my daughter in law, Grilled Halloumi in sweet chilli sauce, mayo etc as per the menu, and my son, a burger.

My daughter in law with no explanation, received a spicy bean burger in a bun with a piece of lettuce. The burger was over cooked and very dry. My son’s burger was ok. 5 minutes later the meals my wife and I had ordered were brought to the table. Don’t forget that the pub was not busy, in fact there were less people in there at this stage, and nobody was ordering food. My daughter in law brought the error with her order to their attention, for which she received an apology, with the offer to change it. She decided to keep what she had, although not particularly happy.

My wife’ meal was ok, but poorly presented on the plate. My meal, the Steak and ale pie with gravy, came with no gravy. I complained and was told they had run out of gravy, so I refused the meal. I was offered another choice, so I chose ham egg and chips. Ten minutes later I’m told that the meal would be at least 25 minutes. Still we are the only people in their eating, or not as the case may be. The ham is served cold, so I am assuming that I would be waiting for the ham to defrost. I admitted defeat here and took a refund, and we left.

Such a great shame. Such a lovely pub, taken a nosedive due to the people running it. I really, really hope it improves, but for now, we shall not be going near the place....

Just an update. We have returned several times since i posted this review. Each time the welcome we receive is heartfelt. Everyone is so helpful. Not just the staff but the customers too. Making room for me to get through with the wheelchair. The food has also been good. The vegan choice could be better as is limited considering how much there is now. It is also frozen so will not go off. Also please note not all vegans like mushrooms and cauliflower. My wife hates them but so many menues have them as main meals.

Had an evening meal I am disabled and in a wheelchair This was no problem at all. Ramp to get in and plenty of room inside. My wife is vegan and had a vegan curry She said it was very nice. I had the beef lasagna. This was also very good. They were out of stock of a couple of choices but I wasn't bothered as there was still plenty of choice. The staff were great. We were made very welcome. Service was also great. We will be going...

Based on our visit today I honesty ky can't recommend this place for any kind of food. We waiter an hour for main meals with no apology in sight and when it did arrive most of it was cold and inedible. The 3 young children we had with us flat out refused to eat it even the chips. After speaking with one of the staff and explaining this we asked for the table to be cleared and deserts for the kids to come ASAP as they hadn't eated and were now restless. Another 40mins pasted and deserts arrive as a mushy pile of slop which was beyond recognition. The only nice thing I can say about our visit was that the play area and garden did reasobly well at keeping the children busy whilst...