The Boardwalk — Restaurant in England

GLUTEN FREE DINERS NO LONGER WELCOME!!! My husband and I have enjoyed this restaurant for many years. We celebrated out 40th and 50th birthdays here, as well as out Silver Wedding anniversary, and enjoyed sharing it with many friends and family. Imagine then our shock on discovering that the Pier's new owners have specifically decreed that gluten free diners will no longer be catered for. There was no sign on the door either, just a rude little paragraph in tiny print at the bottom of the menu. In addition, the menu has gone from being beautifully prepared locally sourced food to chips with everything. Especially infuriating when you can get fish and chips in another part of the Pier anyway. The staff were very apologetic and clearly embarrassed. We learned that trade has definitely fallen as a result. Maybe they will make money like this in high season, but Southwold is NOT Great Yarmouth, and the regular customers who sustain the business the rest of the year will not come back. More than this, it is a long time since we came across such prejudice. I thought those days were gone as a result of recent legislation. Why should we be excluded because of a disease we have no choice over? They would not dream of excluding a wheelchair user or someone with a guide dog. Further, I'm sad to say that the toilets are in a dreadful state despite the recent refurbishment, dirty and smelly and in a state of disrepair. If you are gluten free or gluten intolerant, or even if you are not, take your money elsewhere. There are plenty of places to eat in Southwold who would love to have you, not least Jakery Bakery, who produce superb light lunches, bread and cakes on site that are gluten free. I am shocked, heartbroken and furious, and I will definitely be discussing this with the Coeliac Society. Our special place is no longer safe for us. The one star above is for the kind staff who did everything they...

An absolute shambles from start to finish. The poor boy serving us clearly had not been trained adequately. He had limited knowledge of any of the menu’s. The evening started with my husband having a drink spilled over his leg. We laughed it off as an accidents happen but it just got worse. Several items on the menu were unavailable. I ordered a chick pea burger but was brought a Halloumi burger. I twice had to explain that I couldn’t eat that as I’m lactose intolerant, hence why I specifically ordered from the Dairy Free menu. It was only then that we were informed that the chick pea burger shouldn’t even be on the menu!? Surely this should have been picked up when the order was passed to the chef. I was asked to re-order and assured it would come out quickly….it did not. In the meantime our table weren’t offered any condiments. The rest of the table finished their meals and when another chap came to clear the table and ask how the meal was we had to remind him that I still had not received my meal. He came out and said it was being plated. We asked for dessert menu’s for the rest of the group so that they could be ordering while I ate my meal as I didn’t want to eat alone. My meal finally came. Although I ordered the same as my nephew had eaten earlier, mine looked very different. The few scraps of chips looked like they were leftovers from someone else’s plate, the batter was overcooked and I did not receive the tartar sauce it was supposed to come with. No one came back to take the dessert orders. We decided to give up and asked for the bill. The manager knocked the price of my meal off the bill, this was only reason I didn’t send it back as it was definitely not what others were being served. However they still tried to charge us for the chick pea burger! The restaurant itself was grubby and in need of a refresh. The ladies toilets had 2 without toilet roll and an...

I have been coming to southwold and the boardwalk restaurant for my entire life with all of my family every summer without fail. As ever I was looking forward to my family’s annual trip. To say that I’m disappointed, underwhelmed and most of all saddened to say that it was the worst restaurant experience I have had, probably ever. The menu has shrunk significantly from previous years with limited choice, a lack of starters and mains and no nibbles or grazing food The drinks order was taken swiftly and delivered in a timely fashion but incorrectly Starters were served promptly, three out of eight main courses were served before we had finished our starters From the point of the first main to the last main being served 27 minutes had passed. To note two of the dishes were served either with the incorrect components or missing parts of the meal. By this point it felt as if it was turning into an episode of Ramseys kitchen nightmares, we were not the only table suffering. To the credit of the kitchen the food was fairly tast! After we had all eventually finished our main course we waited for another 15 minutes for the table to be cleared and asked if we would like dessert. We declined at this point for fear of further errors and delays. I should note at this point the restaurant was never more than half full and appeared to be well staffed. Being presented with the bill at the end even without asking for it was the fastest part of the service. Whilst my family and I will continue to come to southwold for many more years sadly we will not be returning to the...