Hop Poles — Restaurant in London

Update: 01/07/2025

Dear manager,

Thank you for your response. It is, however, disappointing that it has taken escalation to Head Office for this matter to receive any real attention.

This issue has been ongoing since the departure of the previous manager, and quite frankly, the lack of oversight since then is glaring. I’ve attached an image showing the effect of a mere droplet of hand gel and a single sanitizer wipe on the tables—completely stripping the grease. When I raised this with the young Asian lady behind the bar—who is occasionally helpful but often disengaged—her response was: “It’s just taken the finish off (Vaneer) the table.” This is not only unacceptable, it’s unprofessional. Regardless of who I am or who I may be connected with, no customer should be addressed in that manner.

Hospitality demands a baseline of courtesy and professionalism for every guest, without exception.

I’ve been a paying customer at your establishment, and while I’ve occasionally received a discount, I’ve also overheard staff remarking, “If they don’t ask, I won’t give,” which is frankly appalling. It speaks volumes about the inconsistent standards and lack of training in your team.

Cleanliness should never be a point of negotiation. And yet, while there’s plenty of socialising behind the bar and in the adjacent kitchen area, basic hygiene and presentation are being neglected. Your staff need to be reminded that they are there to deliver a service—not to coast through shifts under the illusion that minimal effort is acceptable.

Customers should never feel like asking for basic service is a favour, nor should they be met with passive-aggressive remarks or indifference.

Hospitality is demanding work. It is not a social club, a retreat from boredom, or a place to kill time. If staff are not up to the standard, then perhaps they should reconsider whether this industry is for them.

Frankly, I am very disappointed in your management. You have held this position long enough that these issues should not exist, let alone persist. The fact that they’ve escalated to this degree now speaks to a failure in leadership and oversight. I see you every weekend with a dog.

I trust you will take this seriously, and I look forward to seeing immediate, visible improvements, and an apology.

Original:

The staff have great difficulty with cleaning their tables, after service. Mice have been also seen (26/06/25) scurrying around the dining room area, close to the fire place and men’s restrooms. Whilst the seating areas are in desperate need of a refurbishment, it’s the cleanliness which I hate to say is in excusable. There are sufficient staff...

SHOCKING!!! AVOID!!! I am saying this from the perspective of someone working in hospitality for over 6 years!!

Every single time I return to this pub it’s getting worse and worse. It wasn't my choice to go this time as our friends chose it.

Once I was seating in the garden and I tried to use the toilet upstairs, dumb enough I didn’t check if there was toilet paper before hand, none in either one of the toilets. I went outside and asked the girl at the bar for some to which she replied Sorry we have none up here and carried on refilling the bar. At that point I was amazed she wouldn’t even offer to go get some toilet paper, she made me go all the way down grab some myself from the toilets on the ground level.

On a second time, it was a Monday i was supposed to meet some friends but I got there early. Only one person at the bar , he was doing he’s stock take, he acknowledged me but decided to ignore me not a hi not anything, after about 5 minutes when I realised there’s no one else coming I asked the guy if he minds serving me, I mean the look he gave me… unbelievable.

Last night was something else, Went to see some friends of ours and chose Hop Poles for the location. Every time we were ordering our drinks were under poured. Why would I pay for an under poured pint? does it come with a discount or something? When tried to order our last round we were told we are not being served anymore to which my partner replied jokingly with are you F*ing kidding me! The bar manager or supervisor Denice (worst spoken manager I have ever encountered) threatened us with calling the police, made us feel really bad for nothing it was their fault for underpowring “I know who we are as customers as I said we work in the industry, to spend the money all night in a venue and be treated like that at the end. You should feel ashamed of yourself! I hope this reaches someone in a higher place like their area manager because the rest of the reviews are just as bad as many or even worse. Some of the people working there don’t deserve their positions. Awful management equals...

We stopped by here before heading to Riverside Studios and ordered the Pepperoni Detroit pizza and the Beef Mac and Cheese. The pizza was actually pretty good— slightly lacking in Pepperoni but the addition of a few jalapenos was a nice touch. Unfortunately, the rest of the meal was a letdown.

The Mac and Cheese was bland and uninspired, with barely any beef and an odd hint of sweetness that didn’t work at all. It lacked seasoning and depth, making it forgettable at best.

Things went further downhill with the Cookie Dough dessert. It looked like it had melted in the sun and then been reheated in a microwave—stale in texture and lacking any real flavour. The chocolate sauce was overly bitter, and the ice cream was clearly refrozen, with an icy, grainy texture instead of anything creamy or smooth.

Service didn’t help the experience either— we were not shown to our reserved table, just told “it’s upstairs and set up”, there wasn’t a single smile in sight, and interaction was minimal and unwelcoming.

In the end, the only thing we managed to finish was the pizza we shared. Everything else was either disappointing or completely inedible. Not sure how this place has positive food reviews—based on our experience, it’s hard to give more than 1 star for...