Shenley Sandwich Bar & Bakery — Restaurant in Hertsmere

Greeting was a little slow for us and for others. We were not given a menu but they do have them on the walls, if you can be bothered to get up to read them and feel relaxed about hovering over people on the tables under the menus.

There is quite a wide choice of items on the wall menus and in the display fridges. If there was music we didn’t notice it, so it wasn’t too loud.

There are at least two high-chairs and a baby changing table in the one lavatory.

Our mixed tagine was tasty and the eggs nicely cooked. The atmosphere was relaxed and we weren’t rushed. Though there were plenty of empty tables. so perhaps it might be different if full.

We asked for green tea with our tagine as we don’t drink black tea. Tea or coffee comes with it. Lucky for us we like jasmine green tea. Had we not liked jasmine it would have been unfortunate, as we were not informed it was jasmine infused.

Another customer commented that her omelette had mushrooms missing. It was rectified politely with no problem.

The price on the menu outside for our tagine was £5.50. My mummy was charged £8.00. This was written on a Post-it note, not on bill. Perhaps it is usual to go the till to pay, rather than pay at the table, and so they don’t have a bill pad or device. They didn’t appear to mind us paying at the table, if so.

Mummy didn’t say anything as we didn’t know if the £5.50 was only for the breakfast period. We had ordered at around 11.50am and didn’t know what time breakfast ends and lunch starts (if indeed there is a difference). We didn’t see anything stated on the menu about variant prices at different times. Beside, we intended on reviewing, so didn’t want to get mummy worked up to the point where she might say that her teddy bear will feedback in a review! Mummy can get little raw at times!

Instead, she decided to phone next day and ask if there was a difference in price depending on time of day. She was told there wasn’t. She also asked the price of the Tagines. The tomato was £5.50, as was the spinach. She was told that the mixed (which had half spinach and half tomato but the same volume of content content), was £6.50 (different to the written form).

On the menu outside, the mixed was listed with the other two, separated by forward slashes. The list was clearly shown as £5.50 underneath.

Mummy would have been happy to pay £6.50 but are we wrong to expect it to clearly state the price in writing, rather than list it along with the other two at a cheaper price?

Even with VAT at 20% £6.50 is £7.80 (not £8), and 20p is not a tip. Tips should be discretionary anyway. Mummy would have given more than 20p as a tip but when she had the post-it note stuck down on the table, with £8.00 written on it, for what she assumed to be a £5.50 order, she decided not to leave a tip at all.

Had we been able to give half marks we have given 3.5. But seeing as we can only give whole number marks, we marked down to 3 rather than up to 4 for the reason of being charged more. Marking down to 2 might make reflect badly on the decent food.

We would have been happy to go here again had it not been for the price difference. But we likely won’t return.

Perhaps they need to decide if an extra money and not making the prices clear is more important than a better...

Have been twice and won’t be returning as don’t like the lady in charge. On both occasions we were brought the wrong food but it was put down on the table long enough to touch it and breath over it which made me think our food has been on the wrong table also. The lady in charge comes to the table to take the order without a notepad, and on both occasions came back to clarify what one person had ordered - as such she should get a note pad and note table numbers also. I ordered a panini and got a toasted baguette, as a diabetic I simply don’t want a baguette, it’s too much bread so half of it was wasted. It was also luke warm with unmelted cheese, so was sent back the first time.

When I asked for the bill it wasn’t brought to the table but we needed to go so I went up to the counter to pay. I watched her input the numbers into the calculator as the first time we’d been overcharged. She entered four prices in when we’d had 3 items between 2 of us. I queried it and was told there’s an extra charge for the cheese - which was not on the menu. After insisting it was on the menu - the item was a tuna cheese melt - I grabbed a menu to point out she was overcharging - I wouldn’t usually make such a fuss over 50p but after the bad table service I certainly wasn’t going to overpay for my cold incorrectly labelled food. She tried to say the cheese was extra, then there was a difference in price between eat in and dine out - which there was but she was trying to charge more than the eat in price. Eventually she corrected it. My friend was also overcharged but less inclined to make a fuss than me. Although the food wasn’t bad when compared to costa, starbucks etc it wasn’t anything to write home about, lacked seasoning, and I simply won’t be returning as ripping people off is not acceptable. If she wants to put the prices up do - but tell customers if something like a panini is out of stock and ask if a baguette is okay, and don’t...

Really impressed with Shenley Sandwich Bar & Bakery (est. 1999). Even though my order wasn’t on the menu, they happily put together a Mediterranean-style breakfast, which shows how flexible and accommodating they are.

The freshly baked bagel was one of the best I’ve ever had — soft, warm, and full of flavour. The poached eggs were perfectly cooked with runny yolks, the avocado was spot on, and the spinach was cooked with extra touches that made it delicious. Everything came together really well and tasted fresh.

Service was excellent. Mehmet made me feel welcome even on previous visits when I wasn’t ordering, and his lovely wife was incredibly flexible and helpful in putting the meal together. The café is clean, modern, and literally a stone’s throw from Elstree & Borehamwood Station — perfect for a stop before or...