The Golden Lion Hotel — Restaurant in Huntingdonshire

Absolutely appalling - they ruined my birthday party!

I've been to the Golden Lion many times before and the experience has typically been positive in the past. Until now...

My husband booked a table for 10 people for my birthday three weeks before the date. They took his details over the phone and assured him that everything was arranged for us. So far so good, we thought.

A couple of days before the party, my husband dropped off some table decorations at the restaurant. The staff took them and again, said that everything was fine with our booking and they would place the decoration at the table for our party.

Unfortunately, on the day of the party, we turned up with a group of friends, some of whom travelled for 3 hours to get there, only to be told that they had no record of our booking! We were all shocked. How incompetent does a restaurant have to be to lose a group booking, despite having repeated contact with the customer before the event?

However, what was even more shocking, was the complete lack of professionalism on the part of the Golden Lion employees. There was no attempt to make the situation right, no suggestions, and not even an apology! The response I received from the very young man who told me he was the Manager was, and I quote: "Mistakes happen". This clearly shows the attitude the Golden Lion management team has towards customers who trusted them and booked a table at the restaurant for a special event! They completely let us down on every level.

The young lady who greeted us at the door kept wanting to check if the booking had been made for a different date by mistake - as if that was helpful to us in any way. Neither of them made any attempt to resolve the situation, or even handle it in a professional way. Any suggestions from us (e.g. do you have any other tables you could push together for us?; do you have a function room that we can use instead? or even: is there anywhere else you suggest we can go at lunch time on a Sunday that would have availability for a group of 10??) - were answered with an uninterested 'No'.

Needless to say, I will not be setting my foot at Golden Lion again after this experience. For a restaurant to lose our booking, especially considering that we had repeated contact with them up to a couple of days before the party, is completely unacceptable. We were all extremely disappointed. Having such unprofessional and disengaged staff with no customer service skills and no motivation to own and resolve issues directly caused by them or their colleagues, makes me seriously question the future of this...

We had a two night break here on a Travelzoo deal and it was excellent value for money. Staff were incredibly helpful, starting with an easy check-in and the immediate offer of carrying our cases to our room, something that is becoming increasingly rare! Thank you Golden Lion for showing what true customer service is! My friend and I stayed in room 17, which had been set up as a twin for us and, whilst the room wouldn't win any design awards, it was clean and a reasonable size with comfortable beds and a good en suite that had plenty of hot water for showering. ||Breakfast was very good, as was dinner on the night of our arrival (delicious lamb’s liver for me and Coachmans chicken for my friend). From the moment we arrived, until the minute we checked out, service was superb and staff were so willing to help with various queries, including advice about public transport which we found to be excellent. For anybody wanting to visit Cambridge, there is an amazing and easy public transport system, with a bus stop just three or four minutes walk away. The guided bus route that operates between St Ives and Cambridge is fantastic and, at a cost of £2 each way (free for seniors with a pass), it’s the easiest way to get into the centre of the city. If you’re just sightseeing, there’s absolutely no need to take a car into Cambridge.||Although The Golden Lion is part of the The Coaching Inn Group, I thought the property lacked the character that I associate with the hotels in the group and I wasn’t taken with the ubiquitous pictures of lions all over the walls (obviously this is personal taste!). However, decor aside, this inn stands out for its helpful staff and superb service, very good food, convenient location and, for us on a Travelzoo deal, excellent value for money. We had a great stay and it’s definitely...

The Golden Lion in St Ives is part of the Coaching Inn Group, which is probably our favourite hotel chain and we stay regularly in several of their hotels. The Golden Lion has no parking, but the Cattle Market long term car park is a convenient 5 minute stroll away. ||Check in was welcoming and efficient and our Superior Double room (number 12) is spacious, smart and comfortable. The only potential issue was that we were in the middle of a heatwave and, because the hotel is an ancient building, it can’t install air conditioning. They thoughtfully provided fans however and with the windows open as well we were fine.||Breakfast is served in a very attractive room and there is a good choice. Unfortunately, on the first morning, there was no fruit salad, yogurt or smoked salmon as they had run out and were awaiting a delivery. Personally, I would have sent a member of staff to the nearest supermarket with a twenty pound note out of petty cash - it’s not rocket science.||Our cooked breakfasts on the first morning were acceptable but my Full English didn’t have that “sizzling - fresh out of the pan” quality and was rather lukewarm; and although we both asked for soft yolks, my fried eggs were semi-hard, as were my wife’s poached eggs. Disappointing really.||On the second morning, breakfast was back to the standard we expect of the Coaching Inn group, with fruit salad aplenty, and fresher tasting hot food with perfectly runny eggs. And I am glad to be able to finish on a positive note as this is a very good hotel with lovely staff. We have enjoyed our visit and will certainly come back.||My 4 star rating simply reflects the poor breakfast on the...