Wolverton House — Restaurant in Milton Keynes

Bit of a shame I can’t leave half stars on Google, because this place isn’t quite a four, but definitely better than a three. One or two things I didn’t enjoy, but also plenty of positives.

Food – 4/5

Food was mostly decent. Meat portions were generous, cooked well, and not dry, which you sometimes get at carveries. I also liked the selection of veg good variety, all fairly fresh and warm.

Now, roast potatoes… yeah, they let the side down. Bit of a small part of the meal, sure, but it’s a carvery everything should be spot on. These were dry and clearly left under the hot plate too long. Not a major disaster, but enough to knock off half a mark. You want your roasties crispy outside and fluffy inside, and these just didn’t hit the mark.

Service – 3/5

Service was alright. The bar staff were great—friendly, polite, asked about allergies, made you feel welcome. Can’t fault them at all. They did the basics well and were the highlight service-wise.

But as for the carvery chef or server, that was a different story. There was a situation where I used the “wrong” utensil for the stuffing (again who uses tongs for stuffing?). It wasn’t clearly marked, nothing indicated what to use, and rather than just saying politely, “excuse me” or “just a heads up,” he raised his voice at me in front of others. No “excuse me,” no “please” just straight into it. Felt unnecessarily rude and honestly quite embarrassing.

Yes, it was a mistake on my part, but it wasn’t obvious what utensil was for what, and there was no need to react like that. A bit of patience and politeness would’ve gone a long way.

Overall: • Bar staff: 4/5 • Chef/server: 2/5 = A middle-of-the-road 3 for service overall.

Atmosphere – 3/5

Place was calm and relaxed, nothing unpleasant about it. But also nothing that really stands out. Typical pub setting, standard decor, nothing fancy or elegant which is fine, just don’t expect anything more than a basic pub feel. Functional, not memorable.

Value for Money – 4/5

When it comes to pricing, I’d say it’s fair. You’re getting a decent meal for a good price around £50 for four meals and drinks. That’s good value in today’s world.

And another plus: no service charge or added fees, which I appreciate. Then again, how could you justify a service charge when most of it is self-serve anyway? You’re doing a fair bit yourself, so adding a fee on top would’ve been cheeky. Props for keeping it simple and fair there.

Final Scores: • Food: 4/5 • Service: 3/5 • Atmosphere: 3/5 • Value for Money: 4/5

Total: 14/20 Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Conclusion:

In large part, I agree with most of the reviews already on Google. The place currently sits at an average rating of 3.9, and honestly, that feels pretty spot on. It reflects exactly what I’m talking about this place is a bit hit and miss depending on what you get. There’s definitely potential, and it’s not a bad choice for the price, but it’s not without its faults either. A few small improvements and it could easily tip into solid...

Usually wolverton house is a pleasant place to eat, the play area is great for kids and the food is cheap and cheerful. However, this time was not so good. Firstly, it was packed so my husband found a table in the back that was available. This table was in an area next to another area that was full, was not closed off and had a few spare tables. I ordered our food on the app and then a server came in and said "guys this area is closed off". The table next to us said oh it wasn't blocked off, the door ways were open. To which the server replied this isn't a door way, it's a walkway. I told her that I had just ordered to this table, to which she shrugged and said well it's closed off. Then another server said "just leave it, if they want to sit in the dark, then let them." 5 minutes after, the lights came on and they walked in putting reserved signs on all the empty tables and told us we would have to leave in half an hour due to a private function being booked. Then another server brought in a family and told them to just move the reserved signs. This family had not booked the area. An hour went by and still no private function turned up, then the server said to the other "oh its a good idea putting reserved signs on all the tables". So the area was not reserved at all, they just didn't want us sitting in it but all the other tables were taken. We moved outside so our daughter could play and I ordered us another drink amd a dessert. After 10 mins the drink came out and they apologised for the wait as they didn't know where the table number was. 40 mins went by, still no dessert. I went in to ask and they proceeded to tell me that it had come out with the drink. I said that it hadn't an we had been sitting at the table for 40 mins, noone had brought it out and 2 of the servers knew where the table was now as they had asked when they brought the drink out. She just shrugged and said well we tried to bring it half an hour ago. Anyway finally we got our dessert and some money back for it too.

I just think 3 out of 4 staff that we encountered were rude, lied to us and had no sense of customer service at all. 1 of them, the male server, was lovely and always is when we go, but the others seem to get rather stressed over nothing (I'm a childrens A&E nurse, I know about what's stressful and what isn't) and could have easily been sorted with a few kind words. I also don't appreciate being lied to, just to prove a point, when the area clearly wasn't blocked off as multiple people had sat at the tables. Also 1.5 hours later, still no private function...

Came with my family for dinner on a Tuesday. Although we arrived at 6 when we ordered my wife ordered a carvery and was told if she wanted gammon she had better get it straight away or they will have run out, but the burgers and pizzas the rest if us had ordered would be another 20-25 minutes. As she wanted to eat at the same time as the rest of us she changed her order for a burger and we paid and went to sit in the garden. 35 minutes later and the kids are complaining of being hungry so we go and find out what is happening, 3 burgers and a pizza shouldn't take that long especially when it is quiet! The member of staff my wife spoke to about the wait didn't seem at all concerned, just complained about how many tickets they were waiting on the kitchen producing. No apology. The food finally arrived after 45 minutes. Only one was right, the kids margarita pizza. All 3 burgers should have come with bacon as a standard ingredient, none of them had any. We asked where it was and got a cursory apology and an offer to remake them or they could give us the bacon to add ourselves, after waiting 45 minutes for the first lot we didn't fancy another wait and asked for some to add. We were handed a pile of pale, cold, precooked streaky bacon which did not look in the least bit appetising.

You have to collect your own food when you sit outside, and then go hunting for any cutlery/napkins/condiments you may need because there are none available in any sensible location like near where you collect your food and no staff around to ask. The area where in the past we have been able to do this was covered in dirty plates the entire time we were there. It seemed to be a temporary dumping ground for the bus boys (see picture). This sense of untidiness spreads throughout the whole restaurant. The carvery buffet area was untidy, I watched chefs refilling the gravy spilling it on the counter and walking away. The gravy pots themselves looked like they had been in use all day with a ring of gravy skin thick around the insides of them. The spill was still there when we left 40 minutes later. The hot buffet area looked slightly better cared for but again I saw chefs refilling with fresh food on top of the remnants of cold food that were already there. I would thoroughly discourage anyone from eating here. The service is poor, the food is not the best standard and there is a general air that the staff...