Riverside at the Coventry Arms — Restaurant in England

2 stars for location. We have been here several times over the years and various changing of management, some good some not so. It was our Anniversary and we thought because of the weather and location it would be the perfect place. On arrival we waited to be seated, and waited eventually the barman came and apologised, he said they were fully booked and there were no tables, I said we had booked, he checked and then picked up menus and a bottle of water and asked us to follow, he took us to a table opposite the cooking station, apart from the table wad not set up, it was the hottest day ever, and even though it was 8pm it was still 24' ,I asked if there was anywhere cooler so we followed him into the dining area, it was half empty??? He took us to a table which was OK, the bottled water was warm, the water glasses were cloudy, we waited 35 mins and still no service, on my way to the loo I asked if I could order some drinks, again I was told that someone would be with us, they were short staffed and so a little behind. OK! I know staff shortages can effect the productivity of a company, but there were 2 waitresses and another woman plus the barman on customer service, a table of 6 and 4 then 4 x 2 that is only 18 customers (6 tables) it should have been a breeze, after 45 mins our order was taken, on a previous visit (18 month prior) we had a pate starter it was fresh, tasted homemade absolutely lush, Not now, a luke warm micro slice of processed gunge was delivered to the table, I had a chicken salad, it was huge! Tasteless, boring and luke warm. In my opinion it's the quality not the quantity, there was no quality at all, even the chicken was pre-cooked packet chicken from a supermarket, my husband had the gammon, the eggs were snotty even the whites, the chips were burned to a crisp and in edible, the waitress did a table check, I told her to tell the chef, he should be ashamed to put those chips on anyones plate, she giggled. The staff were very young, poorly trained but looked smart unlike the lady who was working the floor too. What a terrible shame, as the actual venue is lovely, the location is beautiful and it was all going so well, but now not so much. These companies need to invest more into getting the right staff and menus, they spend or should I say waste money on expensive refurbs to have the place fail due to...

Absolutely appalling experience. What should have been a lovely evening celebrating a birthday was completely ruined by this establishment. The food arrived over an hour late, was missing parts of dishes and what did arrive was pretty much inedible. When we raised the issue with management, there was no apology, no explanation, and no attempt to make things right - basic customer service was entirely absent.

The situation was made even worse when my mum, on the way to the bathroom, overheard the manager speaking about our table to another customer and essentially moaning that we were even there. That customer then responded with, “Why don’t you give them a slap?” ... What lovely regulars this place attracts.

Rather than addressing the fact she had been overheard, the manager simply avoided us for the rest of the evening and left a young staff member (who, to their credit, was polite and professional) to serve us for the remainder of the already spoilt evening.

Everyone makes mistakes, lost food tickets or delays happen and that can be forgiven. But from the moment we walked in, we were made to feel like an inconvenience. We’d chosen this pub for a special family meal to celebrate a 16th birthday and it completely ruined the night. At one point, the birthday boy was so upset by how rude the manager had been (when she was serving us), he actually got up and walked away from the table. No one should be made to feel like that, especially on what’s meant to be a special occasion.

If you're looking for a warm atmosphere and a place with respectful, competent management, I strongly recommend...

Went before the refurb and I can say the food was excellent and scrummie that time...we had taken our canoes from Eye Bridge and moored up at the back of the Pub which was unusual. This time we parked in the car park but not with our canoes!! Loved the refurbishment,still retains that old world sense with a bright and modern feel. Still cosy and attractive....🎉🎈🎉 Then went through the remodelled conservatory into a plain but well thought through landscaped garden that led to a much improved access to the river for visiting canoes!! Unbelievable results in the make over. Loved it ,must try in an evening soon. The food from the menu sounded lush and the proof had to be in the eating of it. Was not disappointed the starters were nicely presented served with a smile. The tastes were intense and filling. The mains were a delight to the eye and tasted great.. the only down side was the starters were prompt👌the mains took a while to come and at the time we were there it was not particularly busy and the food was warm not 🔥however the presentation and taste made up for the delay and temperature. Toilets (gents) were clean and refreshed but whatever room freshener you use was very over powering!!😱😂👍 Loved the atmosphere and what the new owners and team have created and trying to do. And for all there effort and what was offered it was not stupid money 🤑 Will return soon hopefully.... One last nice touch was the offer of a 15% voucher for our return. Thankyou...