Minehead Brewers Fayre — Restaurant in England

We were in Minehead for a family holiday over October half-term. We're always a little weary when going away for a holiday as our eldest is on the autistic spectrum and so often doesn't cope well with unfamiliar surroundings, especially in busy/crowded/noisy atmospheres. It was for this reason that we decided to dine outside of the normal 'meal-time' hours, in hopes that the restaurant would be a little quieter, and thankfully, we were right.

We were greeted by a staff member called Georgina as soon as we entered the building, and were met with a smile and warmth immediately. I held back a little with our son, whilst my wife explained to Georgina a little about his autism and the needs that come with it - again, we're always a little weary as you never know what sort of reception you're going to get when divulging such information. To say we were offered nothing but kindness and a friendly rapport would be an understatement; Georgina was brilliant from start to finish.

It wasn't just about the usual service you'd expect from anyone working in hospitality (which was exemplary from all staff members we came across!), but it was the little things that Georgina did to ensure that our son was as comfortable and happy as possible: sitting us on a big table so that he had plenty of room (despite the fact that we were only a family of 4), seating us in the quietist area of the restaurant so he wouldn't become too overwhelmed with lots of people and noise, making sure that his order of food (he has very basic and specific dietary requirements due to sensory issues) was exact and to his needs, and the most important thing - she took the time to speak to him and make him feel welcome. We know it may not seem like a huge deal, but it's quite surprising how many people avoid direct conversations with people with special needs - probably because they're fearful of saying the wrong thing etc., which is completely understandable. However, Georgina took the time to make our son feel included, to make him feel just like any other person she would come across in her day, and that meant the world to him and us. So much so, we booked in for another meal later in the week (at our son's request! Very rare occurrence!), and he was a little disappointed at first as Georgina wasn't working when we first arrived. However, she appeared when we were still eating our meal and, again, took the time to come and talk to us - our son was over-joyed that she'd remembered him!

To conclude, as I mentioned before - all of the staff we came across were lovely, friendly, and extremely accommodating. We just wanted to highlight that Georgina really did go that extra mile. Also, the restaurant itself was clean with a relaxed atmosphere, the food was great quality, and the prices were really reasonable. Safe to say, we will be back on our...

Booked a table for dinner after a long day travelling on holiday, booking confirmed. When we arrived, the lady member of staff was about to seat us but the manager came over instead, waving his hands at us to leave and waving us away. He said no to the table, despite us showing the booking reference confirmation. He was extremely rude and aggressive in his approach. He said he could not seat anybody as all the tables were full, despite the restaurant being practically empty, when I questioned this he stated that he had a queue of people waiting to be seated when there was no queue. He then stated he had fully booked tables so could not seat anyone, once again I showed him the booking to highlight we were one of the booking and not a walk-in and he refused to seat us. He then proceeded to turn his back to us and spoke at the other staff member rather than to us, saying that we could not be seated. The experience was so bad that I cancelled my booking for 2 days breakfast and sought a refund from the hotel. I was not willing to expose my family to this type of treatment again and quite frankly this Minehead venue was not what I was willing to deal with after pre-booking my breakfast for 2 days. As a result of the managers actions our arrival on holiday was tarnished and our evening ruined. I was left, due to this issue & time with having to go and purchase what ever meal deal sandwiches were available from Tesco, which after a long day travelling for holiday left me very cross and frustrated. The actions of the manager caused great distress to my partner and our children. I am sure there is the potential for this to be a very nice venue, but the actions of the manager unfortunately have made this a true shocking venue. Having spoken with the hotel, I was advised that this was not the first complaint of this nature about the venue and...

So, here is an honest review for a sub standard, disappointing, overpriced experience which is outside the control of the staff there. I know the parent company has said it's closing over one hundred of these restaurants and given the slide in standards of this place, I assume that this is either being squeezed for profit or eventually closing.

For food, I decided you know what, I don't want chips with my food, I'll get a lasagne, it was alright last time I was here. Oh boy how the acceptible standards have slipped. Lasagne generally constitutes layers of pasta, I think there was one layer with more melted cheese than was really edible placed slapped and briefly grilled to melt it housed in a dish which hasn't been cleaned properly as I'm about 95% sure that there was burnt on cottage pie on it. The audacity, nae the hubris which has taken place for the kitchen staff to create this plate of disappointment which somehow flavor has been extracted leaving nothing but disappointment, anger, and rage. Garfield would turn in his grave in the back of John's garden knowing that this has been brought into the world.

And then there is something on the menu which is beyond hubris, the levels have slipped even further reaching contemptuousness. The novel idea of Burger Fries is simple and a different option for a side. The photo in the menu looks edible, what arrived simply defies belief. Look for yourself, I'm running out of nouns to express my anguish and displeasure.

The breakfast here is edible, no issues with that but the dinners are...