Old Dairy — Restaurant in London

As a local who has supported the Old Dairy for years today's food was the pits! I tried to ring ahead to book a table, so did my boyfriend, but the phone wasn't picked up and just kept ringing out. This has happened in the past, it's so hard to book I get the impression the phone is left off the hook or something? So we chanced it and walked in to get a table. When we arrived we were asked if we had booked but we explained that we tried several times over the past hour but no one was answering the phone. She didn't seem that bothered or surprised but said she will try and sort out a table for us but it was done with a sigh, like how annoying we actually have customers! After a short wait we luckily were quickly seated and to our surprise there were several empty tables around the back. We eventually caught the staff's attention and ordered Sunday lunch and were really looking forward to it.

It was quite a busy Sunday afternoon in the pub and the service was pretty lacklustre. Everyone seemed stressed or unhappy. The only person who made the effort was the friendly long haired guy at the bar trying to keep on top of drink orders whilst also dashing to/from dining room to help out. It was organised chaos so maybe this was due to no management working or just bad management/no one really cared?

Then to the food...and I've eaten here a lot over the years and honestly it's been very hit and miss for a while but it's so conveniently located for us that we've come back occasionally. It's all dependant what day you go and what you select to eat to the degree I wish I knew who was the better chef or person leading the kitchen. Today's food was so poor, it really was the pits that I just had to write a review. Especially given that it's not cheap to eat here. I'm happy to pay for quality produce and food cooked by a great kitchen but this is definitely no longer the case when you eat at the Old Dairy.

I had the Roast Beef which costs £17.50 and for that you get old, rock hard potatoes, watery gravy, hardly any vegetables and a very, very small amount of beef. All pretty tasteless and warm as though it had been chucked on a plate and heated up.

No one came to check if we were ok, if we were enjoying/not enjoying our food and at the end of the lunch my boyfriend flagged down a member of staff to get the bill. With that we then had to head to the bar and wait to pay and wait for someone to help us... I wished we had complained then and there (need to stop being so British) but we paid our bill and left feeling annoyed about the whole experience.

It's such a shame that the food is so dire. The building is cool and its a great space and it used to be such an impressive local but it seems evident that very few people who work their care about their work and the standard of this pub and dining room. So today was the last time I'll support the Old Dairy. Definitely given it several chances so it's time to find somewhere new even if it's...

Sure, It has a nice sterile slate grey (yawn) refreshed interior with some new-looking furniture.

The layout is spacious and interesting. Just a shame there's no yard. A couple of nice plants near windows, though including a healthy banana.

This is a Greene King chain pub so food expectations shouldn't be too high.

And avoiding the numerous Greene King ales leaves little/no craft ale choice but a Northern Monk offering on keg was delicious.

The pub is tidy but has no SOUL whatsoever.. iykwim.

I've scored it up to 4 stars to compensate for my hatred of Greene King as a brewer and employer; they have the worst record for staff welfare in the hospitality sector. And instead of brewing decent pale ales, they instead concentrate on improving the badge and marketing of lame ales.

The Stapleton Arms across the road is sickety-sick in comparison.. I got a pint of real cask session pale for what the half cost me in Dairy. Stapleton also has architectural interest in their glazed-roof back hall. Plus: Pinball machine. Eclectic bgm. No kids in the evening (joy) Has more soul than my left sock. It's just REAL.

Anyway.. enjoy your cold lager in The Dairy. Just don't expect a Ploughman's Lunch (the barperson didn't know what one was).

Recommended for business meetings, first dates, meeting family or friends wot don't...

Great gin selection but an average food offering. The menu is hit and miss, vegan fish and chips (tofu with nori) is amazing but the Sunday roasts are average. Nice enough and a generous portion, but expensive for the quality and the sides are bland. There are definitely better roasts this side of Stroud Green. Waiting staff are lovely and very knowledgable in recommending drinks to compliment food, but some management are passive aggressive and dismissive when you raise issues with them. I’ve had this experience several times - they need to be friendlier! Last time I went the place was 50% empty, yet my party was ignored for a good 15 mins when we walked in, not a great first impression (2 members of bar staff made regular eye contact but chose to turn away). Just a simple “will be with you in a min” would have been nice. Ive been multiple times hoping for a better experience as it’s so local to me, but I just think overall the place is far too big to offer a personal or cosy experience like you’d expect from a nice pub. Very busy when there’s sport playing as well. On another point the toilets could do...