The Wilbury — Restaurant in North Hertfordshire

Very disappointed today, used to love going to the Wilbury and then the Gardeners Arms, used to get a warm welcome a good carvery and great service. Today, walked in and waited at the sign, a very young waitress asked if we had booked, three of us, we said no we hadn't so the waitress who wasn't expecting that answer had to get another waitress to seat us, but only after checking the tablet for about three to four minutes, when it was very obvious where the empty tables were! We were seated and as there seemed to be queue for the bar I downloaded app to order drinks, not much, just a Diet Coke, glass of wine and a coffee, simple. after waiting for an eternity, put it this way the table next to us had gone to collect dinner and eaten it, I went up to the bar to ask where our drinks were! I was greeted by a 'boy' who looked hardly old enough to be in a pub let alone serve in one, who pulled a string of receipts off a printer stating it was nearly our turn, three drinks and a near 20 minute wait. Eventually the glass of wine and coke were brought over by the 'boy' but no coffee, when I asked where the coffee was I was greeted by a 'tut' and a 'huff', now I'm a patient person but this was getting a little annoying, the coffee was brought over black handled by the mug and a pot of sugars! oh dear, can we have some milk please, again a 'huff' and two minutes later a pot of milk. Well that was enough for me, we drank up and went elsewhere to eat, total lack of customer service, urgency, atmosphere in the place and no staff who looked over the age of 20! they seemed to wander around aimlessly, picking a glass up here and there, and serving the bar customers rather than those who had been seated. I can't tell you what the food was like as I would still be waiting for it to arrive 4 hours later, someone needs to get a grip and supervise the staff, but it seemed like no 'grown up' was present. great shame as this was a nice place to eat and drink with a good atmosphere, but now a 'chain' has it and it's been ruined. I will return again but perhaps...

As a family with 5 kids ranging from 4 - 20 it was impossible to find anywhere that caters to all of our needs before we found this place! It’s turned into a weekly go to for us and is the one night a week we all look forward to being able to share a lively meal altogether. Wendy and Dave now feel like family and always take the time to come and have a chat with us and the kiddies (who absolutely adore them) in between dashing around catering to everyone’s needs. They repeatedly give the kiddies little gifts and colourings etc to ensure they are happy and entertained throughout their visit - they just make us all feel so welcomed and cared for and could not do more to ensure we have everything we want and need x The atmosphere is friendly, comfortable and all of the staff work tirelessly to ensure everyone gets the absolute most out of their visit. The carvery is delicious - so many options and cooked to perfection, there is also a huge range on the menu capable of catering for even the most fussy of eaters (trust me if my Evie can leave happy with a full belly - anyone can - she’s horrendously picky when it comes to food). Beatrice is also amazing, just like Wendy and Dave she always stops to say hello and despite seeing her working her socks off every time we visit she has never ever had anything but a gorgeous friendly smile plastered across her face - she’s clearly just a beautiful person and it shows in all she does. Seriously the staff here are just amazing - they could not possibly do more for their customers and it stands them miles apart from all other eatery’s in the area. Thankyou to Wendy and Dave and all your staff members for another...

Today I went to the Wilbury for some lunch with a friend and wanted to order a large round of drinks for myself and a few of my work colleagues I bumped into. Lia and Scarlett’s regularly serve me large rounds of drinks with no issue. Today I was served by the manger and she had an issue with my large rounds of drinks and refused me service , I was also trying to order lunch for me and my friend. (I’m a male aged 40+ so was nothing to do with age , no id ect.) I told her I think she’s refusing me service due to my skin colour as she could not give me an explanation as to why she was refusing me service. She was very rude and unprofessional and I was not happy with the service I received or in this case did not receive. I have been going for the last 2-3 years and have never had a problem and I spend a large amount of money each time I visit I feel I have been singled out for my nationality (British Indian) in my life I have never been made to feel this way by any of the staff in the pub let alone any person in life. That was absolutely disgusting behaviour and if this is the type of management that is running the establishment it’s appalling. I would give minus starts for the service if I was able to where as the pervious service I have received for the other members of staff id give 5+ stars to! I really enjoyed eating at this establishment but this lady has made me feel so uncomfortable and abused I will be telling my friends to avoid this establishment and I will be contacting other authorities to inform them of the racist abuse I received...