The Boathouse at Boulters Lock — Restaurant in England

Almost a perfect evening with a few minor niggles that knock the final star off the review.

The location is fantastic, the views are amazing, and there is lovely walk just behind the restaurant around Ray Mill island. The island closes at sunset, we just had enough time after our meal to walk to the weir and back - a perfect end to the evening.

As for the niggles, it may have been just bad luck, or possibly symptomatic of a busy summer evening:

The restaurant was apparently running a lottery system for serving staff as we had at least five different people serving us during our meal. It was nice to get to know the entire serving staff of the restaurant (did your irony detector ping?) but some of the evening's events might have been mitigated if they'd gone with the more traditional "My name's Sheila and I'll be your waitress tonight".

We were shown to a lovely table right by the window. As we sat down the waitress (#1) noticed the table hadn't been cleared and relaid from the previous guests. Maitre d' (#2) suggested we wait at the bar while she cleared the table. We did this. When she returned she took us to a different table, in the middle of the restaurant with less of a view. It transpired that while we were at the bar some diners had sneakily left their table and taken 'our' table. It was disappointing. The waitress (#1, I think) apologized, but it started the evening off on the wrong foot.

We ordered main course and starters. As the waiter (#3) left the table we called him back and asked for some bread; to arrive while we were waiting for the starters. He said OK. The bread didn't turn up. Instead my wife received two identical starters. It was interesting to watch the waitress (#4) attempt to give three starters to two people. A few minutes later she arrived with the bread. She said "Sorry its late, have it on the house". How very kind, we thought. Despite being late, the bread was nice. When the bill arrived (delivered by waitress #5) the bread was on the bill. We were far too middle class and British too complain, and it was nice, but it definitely wasn't complementary.

I'm overly PC these days, everyone says so. You can imagine how much it grated on me, then, when the maitre d' constantly ended every sentence with "Guys". Needlessly as well. Had she stopped each sentence one word short the world would have continued turning. "Here's your table" is far superior to "Here's your table guys" in my doggedly old-school view. Perhaps if we were an all male rugby club it might serve a purpose. But my wife is not a guy. We are not guys. We are a grumpy middle-aged couple.

But really, don't let these things put you off. They added colour to our evening and everything else...

Please avoid this place. The worst service you could possibly find? Right here.

Let me detail my disappointment with the service my party and I received at your establishment today. This was our third visit, and regrettably, each experience has been subpar, with our latest visit being particularly disappointing.

We had booked a reservation in advance and informed the staff that we would be bringing two dogs with us. Upon arrival, we requested to sit outside and were assured that this would not be an issue. However, the outdoor seating area was in an unacceptable state, with tables and chairs covered in bird droppings. No effort was made to clean the area before seating us.

Our drinks were served promptly, but the service deteriorated from there. We waited over 45 minutes for our food to arrive, which included:

Avocado and poached egg on toast A bacon and egg sandwich A Full English breakfast Beans, sausage, and egg

During this extensive wait, not a single staff member approached our table to check if we needed additional drinks or to update us on our order. When our food finally arrived, it was missing essential condiments such as salt, pepper, and sauces. By the time we managed to get the attention of the staff to bring these items, our food had become cold.

Moreover, the bacon in the bacon and egg sandwich was undercooked, appearing pink as if it had been boiled rather than fried. We had to send the sandwich back, adding to the delay and frustration.

After finishing our breakfast, no one came to clear our table or offer the bill. I had to go inside and speak to a manager. I was directed to a lady at the back of the bar and explained our experience. Her response was that the restaurant does not offer table service outside—a detail that was not communicated to us when we requested to sit outside, as we would have seated inside.

To add to our frustration, this lady took my phone number and email, promising to follow up after her shift ended at 3 PM. As of now, I have not received any communication from your team. Despite the numerous issues we encountered, no discount was offered on our £56 bill for 4 average breakfast dishes and coffee and our concerns were not addressed at the time they were raised.

The lack of communication, poor service, and general neglect we experienced is unacceptable.

As this was our third attempt to enjoy a quick breakfast at your restaurant, we have decided not to give it any further chances.

I urge the management to take these complaints seriously and make the necessary improvements to prevent other patrons from having similar experiences. I hope to hear back from you soon regarding...

Overal rating: Average. Service: Average Value for money: Low Venue potential and view: Excellent++

Note: This is based on two visits, and professional experience as prior operations director in Hospitality and Catering industry leading organisation.

The restaurant is styled towards middle to high end to capture boating passengers. Sadly I would have say although the location is scenic and peaceful the food item self was lacking and service was Ok.

The food was well cooked, basing on an average few a perfect sunny side egg, however the it’s the little touches which take something from Average to delectable which were missing for example sadly, A few items are listed below:

1. The ability to further customise the order which you can do with the egg, such as if you want your bacon crispy for example as sadly due to large rind of fat and low quality bacon I would have allowed the bacon to be more enjoyed if the rind was cooked.

2. within the full English you are given a muffin under your eggs however really this is quite dry as it has not been buttered and you only get small portion of beans, I would suggest improving this by adding butter or larger potion of beans.

3. The food item was lacking seasoning and you had to request salt and pepper which didn’t appear to a standard consideration to the staff, I would recommend setting the area with these standard items to save working pressures and to save customer asking.

4. To add additional value I would suggest adding or up selling at the till which would increase profitability and give more immersive experience for the customer.

5. Consider looking to parasols for the balcony as at time in the summer this will be required.

6. Staff engagement, to increase customer Service have a host stationed at the door on the ground which can seat people up stairs and down as presently coming in for breakfast you have to wonder until someone comes along.

7. Urgently replace the tables on the balcony as placing a glass on them and any drink is precarious due to the weave formate. (unstable tables)

The quality of the food for the price could be increased especially with the bacon being very fatty, which had a large rind of fat which wasn’t...