Blue Smoke at Low Wood Bay — Restaurant in Great Britain

We visited Blue Smoke on the Bay on a Wednesday evening. It was not overly busy, but staff were busy attending to those already seated. We waited a couple of minutes for someone to confirm our reservation and were then seated. Here my first issue arose - the gentleman showing us to our seats was very abrupt and almost made is feel like we were an inconvenience to him. Not a great start, but a minor issue all the same. When we were seated, my partner immediately commented on her bench seat being fat too low. We decided to swap, so she could sit in the chair, and straight away I saw what she meant. Despite being incredibly comfy, the bench cushion sank to such a point that I (a 6"3 bloke) felt I was looking up at her, and the table was pretty much at chest height. It was comfortable to sit in, but not comfortable to eat at. The couple next to us commented on having the same problem and agreed it was not well thought through. The layout of the restaurant was pleasant, and we were able to see into the open kitchen where the three chefs operated and used the woodfire to cook the food. We were abruptly given menus by the bloke that seated us, before he whisked off to do something else. We then weren't seen again for another 10 minutes, which was ironic considering we wanted to order the Artisan breads from the "Whilst you decide" section of the menu. In the end, we ordered the bread at the same time we ordered everything else. Again, not great. Then the food started to come out, and things got better (to an extent). Starters: I ordered the Crispy Duck Pancake and my partner ordered the Watermelon, Cucumber and Feta salad. Both were well flavoured and portioned, with the duck being extra crispy on a bed of spring onions, hoisin sauce and one pancake. The salad was... Well, a salad. Main: 20oz Chateaubriand share platter, with sides of Onion Rings and Blue Smoke Seasoned Chips. Sauces: Blue Stilton sauce and Roast Garlic & Herby butter. The first thing I'll say for the chefs is this - that meat was cooked to perfection. It's hard to find an establishment nowadays that can actually cook meat rare and not have it go too far either way (usually closer to medium rare than rare). But this was spot on. However, if that cut was 20oz at any point in it's life, pre or post cook, then I'll be damned. For a 20oz chateaubriand, you should be getting more than 5 slices of meat. That really got my back up considering it was £85. The slices were not thick either. The sides were lovely, with the beer battered onion rings cooked really well, and the chips were well portioned. We then had the Brownie and Cheesecake for dessert. The options weren't great and were no more than you would expect from a standard British pub. It would have been nice to see a cheese board on there, given the prevalent nature of cheese in the local area. The desserts were nothing special - the brownie was packed full of taste, but the cheesecake was standard. When we finally asked for the bill, we were dismayed to see a £17.60 service charge added on - which given the poor service, we would have not chosen to pay - however being typical brits, we felt it would be rude to ask for it to be removed. So in total, our bill came to £195.30. Honestly, I can't say I would go back again. The food was nice, but that was about it. The service was poor, which for the prices you would think would not be the case. And until they learn what 20oz actually looks like, it's...

Yesterday evening, I called the hotel to book a table for Sunday lunch. The lady who took my call, who presented herself as Fran, asked me to hold while she passed me over to the restaurant, which was fine. After a five minute wait, the line went dead. I called again, considering that there must have been a glitch ... and again ... and again. On one ocassion the same receptionist answered and said once more that she would pass me over to the restaurant. The line went dead. The remainder of the 22 times I called, my call were unanswered.

This morning, I called again. This time a lady named Sam took my call. She asked what it was regarding and I mentioned I would like to speak with the owner or manager regarding what I considered the unacceptable service of the receptionist who had responded my two previous calls in such a disrespectful manner. Sam said at first that she would pass me over to the reception manager, but did not. After a lot of faffing and trying to deal with my complaint herself and refusing to pass me over to any member of the management team, she abruptly hung up. I was neither rude nor abusive, merely wanting to register the unsatisfactory attitude of a person who should be a fine ambassador for the hotel.

The menu looks delicious and I am sure we would have loved our meal. But a large part of the joy of eating out is the experience ... the customer service. At Blue Smoke on the Bay, unfortunately, it is sadly lacking. Both Fran and Sam were in my opinion not only unprofessional, they were surly and insolent, too, and are ill-suited to being in a customer based role. Please don't forget, ladies, that your wages come from customers. You would do well to consider the aphorism "the customer is always right", instead of applying your personal opinion which seems to be "I don't get paid much and I hate my job, so I will be rude to customers. After all, I will get paid the same at the end of the day."

I will not dine here and will strongly recommend my friends from encouraging impertinent staff by eating here.

To the management: A fine dining reputation can be ruined by poor staff. The two I have encountered on reception have lost, rather than captured my...

Disappointed. I saw Blue smoke and was looking forward to the meal all week. When it came to walking into the restaurant we were met with the bored, unwelcoming face of the manager (I assume) he took our name, barely mumbled a word and pointed to our table, waiting silently as we sat down. We ordered our food and despite feeling like we were unwelcome by the staff and pushed into a corner ( because we had a toddler &high chair maybe?) made the most of it and looked forward to what had been promoted on the website and by word of mouth as a great meal. What arrived was plain, lacking flavour and saturated in whatever marinade was described on the menu, meant to hide the poor quality produce I’m presuming. My partner ordered the prawn tacos, which were tasteless and lacking in anything that would set it apart from a grocery sandwhich section meal deal. I ordered the bricklayer steak which was gross; my first was an inedible: leathery, well done (ordered medium rare) large piece of rubber that I kindly asked be sent back. What returned was no bigger than a slice of bacon and was literally raw throughout. I took 2 bites (equating to half of the ‘steak’) and decided no more. When the waiter came to take the plates I described the problem and that I was done, we wanted to leave. HE was exceptionally apologetic and the nicest person we spoke to (he is the reason there is a single star for service, that’s all for him, it would be 0 otherwise) he addressed the issue by removing the £30 steak from the bill. I thanked him and we left, noting that at no point did the manager have the professionalism or courtesy to address the matter. I was so disappointed by this restaurant, it’s in a beautiful setting and it’s a really nice building but is let down by restaurant staff who aren’t personable and low quality, poorly cooked food that just isn’t worth the price. Hopefully we just got a bad day, but unless I can be convinced otherwise I won’t...