Butler Whites — Restaurant in England

As a vegan, this is not a place that I would recommend to eat. There was a big group of 15 of us, we had paid a deposit and pre ordered food, well in advance and as requested. Upon our arrival, we were told that the table had been cancelled due to no deposit being paid and our pre-orders not being received. This was then fixed when the person who had booked the table arrived and the “miscommunication” was fixed - the email thread being shown to the staff showing that all the procedure had been followed.

We sat down, ordered drinks, I had ordered a 0% alcohol beer (limited options) and was served an alcoholic beer instead. Starters arrived with no problem. The mains, as stated previously were pre-ordered, everyone’s mains came out fine. The two vegan mains that were pre-ordered we were then told weren’t vegan, despite prior communication. We were offered an aubergine dish that they weren’t sure was vegan; so we declined for obvious reasons and decided to go without food. The options in this restaurant were limited already in terms of vegan options and we had decided at that point to just eat at home. The waiting staff had then confirmed that the aubergine dish was vegan and we ‘might as well have it as it’s free’. This dish was shared between two of us.

Upon receiving the bill, the person who had booked the meal spoke to the management staff around the various other issues they had encountered throughout - sides being wrong, sauces and food were inedible and flavourless. Not to mention that the two cauliflower steaks that weren’t vegan were added onto the bill and also the aubergine dish that we were informed was free. When the person from our party spoke to the “manager” of this establishment, he was met with an unbelievably rude, arrogant and aggressive person who accepted no responsibility, no apology and not even an ounce of remorse. Safe to say, with a party of 15, this is a tale we will regale to a lot of family members, colleagues, peers and the...

Positives: The food definitely couldn't be faulted and was absolutely delicious. We both had the Porchetta and it was amazing, with a side of honey glazed carrots and red cabbage and kale. Every mouthful was amazing. However, service was very, very slow. We waited an absolute age to get our first drinks (over 20 minutes) they weren't hugely busy as we'd booked nice and early. When the food was brought out we'd finished our first drinks but weren't asked if we'd like another and had to flag down a passing waitress to ask for 2 cocktails. Again, we were waiting a very long time. When they did arrive we'd finished eating but nobody removed out dirty plates for ages either.

We'd finished our cocktails and would have had another one each plus a dessert but nobody came back to the table. When someone finally cleated the dirty plates we asked about a dessert menu. We were told one would be brought over. But it never was and we got fed up of waiting so asked for the bill. Waitress disappeared to get the card machine and never came back so we ended up paying at the bar.

This is a moan as such, it's constructive criticism as the quality of the service didn't match the exceptional food, and that's a shame!

Plus through not asking if we wanted a dessert and failing to bring a menu when asked that's a loss of the 2 desserts and 2 more cocktails we would have bought.

However I can't say enough how amazing the food was and would still visit again. But it would be nice if the staff could be a little more attentive , notice when drinks are empty or that people have dirty plates and make sure they ask of dessert...

I wouldn't have a problem recommending Butler Whites to anyone. We visited on a Thursday, which was surprisingly busy, but the staff were attentive.

In the most part they were able to help with questions about food but their beer knowledge wasn't incredible. For a business which has grown out from Henry Yeast & Sons I would have expected the staff to have a better idea about their beer (and a larger selection of local ales, etc.).

The restaurant area is large and we arrived at 7.00pm with only a few other people around. Coming when it is that empty feels a bit odd but we were amazed at how full it got later.

We had a shared mixed platter to start which came with lots of types of cheese, meats, condiments and more. Very nice. Then for main we had the mussels and the lamb chop. Both were very good although the lamb had been advertised (twice by our serving staff) as pink in the middle, but came well done. Still was very moist and delicious though. The fried gnocchi which accompanied the plate were a let down unfortunately. They were chewy, overcooked and didn't add to the meal.

The portions of food were so large we didn't have room for dessert. Next time!

Nice to have an open kitchen and staff who are more than happy to let you sit back and relax after your meal. We...