The Worlds End, Almer — Restaurant in England

I'm disappointed by The World's End if I'm honest. It's a local pub to my home town so one would hope you could rely on them for a nice evening out when you CBA to cook. I booked for 2 people on a Friday night at 8pm, and moved it online to 8.30pm as we were running late on a hike. They called me later in the day saying this had been allowed in error and that 8pm is in fact their final serving time (they were apologetic). We then had to cut the walk short and hurry home, change etc and arrived at 8.05. They were visibly annoyed we'd arrived late and had to ask the kitchen's permission to seat us still, which they begrudgingly agreed to but we would need to order right away otherwise "the kitchen will be angry". The waitress came over essentially as we sat down to take our order before we'd even read a word of the menu, and one of the random choices we made was no longer available so we had to choose again. We didn't dare order starters. The drinks were served without issue and we tried to relax. Unfortunately I couldn't as there was a loud jingling sound of a chain coming in from outside (anyone who works in healthcare or a prison will know what I'm talking about, it's an unmistakable high-pitched, grating sound). I assume they were securing outdoor furniture before service was even over, but it was very distracting and unpleasant for at least 35 mins. The food arrived after quite a significant time (which begs the question as to why we were forced to order so quickly if the kitchen was busy processing everyone else's orders first). The food was fine, but lacking any sort of care in presentation, and I felt a bit short-changed with the chip portion size. We weren't offered any desserts. I felt the whole meal was very overpriced for what it was (I think ~£18 for the burger seen below), and we were made to feel like a nuisance rather than a valued paying customer. It was barely 9pm by the time we'd finished. I do appreciate that, post-COVID, rural pubs are forced to have tighter food serving hours, but it wasn't as if we'd rocked up at 9.30pm without a booking. Moreover, I think it was the treatment we received from the waiting staff that got under my skin and made it difficult to part with my money at the end. If I had a backbone I'd have said something. I've been for drinks before in the bar area and that has been a pleasant experience, so I really was surprised that the restaurant was so poor. (Sorry for the...

Beautiful olde worlde pub. Service was good,polite and friendly. Food that i had in my opinion was a bit beige..probably chose badly but as a vegetarian I find most places serve us predictable food* risotto- burger- baked potato zzzz* Tried the* lite bite* hummus & feta with focaccia.served with fries and coleslaw. (£13 i think) It came promptly but was in a burger..style bun..not a slice of focaccia as I'd thought..(not sure it was focaccia..??) Hummus was ok..not too garlicky. Feta was barely there..but there was a small sprinkle.. Pickled cucumber Fries..no coleslaw. I queried this, was advised they'd maybe run out, the lass checked for me and returned with coleslaw which was lovely. The meal for me was very carb heavy but I should have realised that.

My hubby's food was * nice enough* He had the ruby burger..(18£) he said was lovely.

I think If my hummus had arrived in a small bowl, with some focaccia sliced and warm on the side with a salad with feta and the pickled cucumber on it.. I'd have found it a much more enjoyable.. optional chips?? The bun for me wasn't what I expected and I may be wrong, was it meant to be a bun..apologies if I'm wrong. There are so many awesome things that vegetarians can eat and we always get the same- similar offerings... How about babaganoush as an option instead of hummous??? What about a warming bowl of tomato chickpea soup..slightly curried??? A mushroom ragu..ottolenghi has an incredible recipe..depth of flavour is immense..

As Christmas approaches . wellingtons Pithiviers Risottos All become the norm... Maybe I'm I a minority but I'd much rather have a hearty veg curry,tagine,stew than all that pastry and rice..

I'd go back if I happened to be passing as was a lovely pub..but I think I'd ask about the food before I ordered next time.. No veggie specials were available that day.. maybe 1 choice might have been nice? Dog...

This place has improved dramatically. We last visited about 4 years ago and since then the outside has been landscaped beautifully. The food was absolutely perfect, the service was fabulous, plenty of choice on the menu and the children's menu. The play area has moved leaving the area where it used to be as a seating area which though it is a large area, feels private wherever you sit due to the landscaping. It's stunning. We will definitely be going back soon!

Edit: We went back today (a Sunday) and had the roast beef. To be honest the food wasn't great unfortunately, the potatoes were quite hard and the Yorkshires over done. Also, we had a long wait for our food (not great when you have two little people sat there getting bored), after we had finished eating our main, tables were being cleared around us but staff weren't paying any attention to us. We could see they were busy so didn't want to bother them and figured they would get to us eventually, but after an hour of sitting there with a table of dirty plates we decided to just go up and ask for the bill and leave. We had hoped to have desserts there but couldn't wait any longer. All in all I wasn't particularly happy with our visit though we are likely to go back again in the hopes that the next visit is more like the first.

Edit (again): We visited again on a week day in the summer holidays and had another fantastic experience. The food was spot on, the staff were great (it wasn't busy at all and we mostly had the place to ourselves. It's one of our favourite places to eat locally. But somewhere we wouldn't go for a Sunday lunch because of the previous experience. It's also worth noting that if you have a coeliac member of your group, there are plenty of gluten free options which makes it all the more enjoyable when that is one of your...