The Engine Room — Restaurant in Great Britain

This restaurant is part of Holiday Inn, but they do their best to disguise the fact. The space is new, modern and industrial looking.

On this occasion, there was a big group of rowdy young sportsmen dining, but the actual dining room was still half empty. The servers were quick to apologise for waiting times in advance. It took half an hour to get a food order in... and one hour in total to get a starter. If this is how slow the service is when the dining hall is half empty, I can't imagine what would happen when it's full. Maybe there are not enough kitchen/serving staff. Servers were friendly but looked overwhelmed and fed up when walking to the kitchen.

The saving grace was the food, whose quality was worth the wait -- fresh, in-house, authentic, stunningly plated, generously proportioned and meticulously flavoured. Close to Darleys quality, so very well priced and probably the best food in Derby city centre. Clever wine list of cheap but tasty wines that punch above their weight, such as the Romanian Pinot Noir.

Best tasting Sticky Toffee Pudding I've ever had and miles above that of Premier Inn.

I mentioned my wife's birthday on the booking but there was no mention by staff and no surprise. That's inexcusable and really misses a trick!

I wanted to offer £4 out of £12 as a tip, given the long waits etc. Was told that the tip is all or nothing. I've never heard of such a thing anywhere in my life. So you refused some of the money.

I've recommended the place to all my friends based on food merits, but you have the potential to turn off visitors if you don't refine the experience further. It's a great start but could be much closer to perfection with a bit of thought.

Plus for bike racks being...

Visited today for lunch after walking to the river and saw this new restaurant was now open. Lovely open space with super decor. Was greeted quickly by friendly staff and ordered from the lunch menu. Good choice if you just want a panini or sandwich or something more substantial. Food came quickly and was excellent. Sofia who looked after us was very friendly, telling us about the new menu and bar. Good to see this area is opening up and hope more people will visit to support. In the summer there will be an outside eating area which will be...

Calm and elegant atmosphere.

Smart and polite staff, greeted and taken to table by supervisor, Sam giving a warm and welcoming atmosphere. Sam was a brilliant host making my table feel important.

Food is good but some plates could do with a little more larger...