The Gathering Rooms — Restaurant in Northern Ireland

The food is very good from eating the traybakes for instance.

Very welcoming to customers, which is essential for businesses to have.

While the good customer service is present, the treatment of employees is turbulent at best. There are decent people working in it (like Amy is), don't get me wrong, but as I used to work, the leading person with the ginger hair whom I forgot the name to (though at the same time, I am not naming any names in this case) is someone I no longer am on good terms with in all honesty. While it is true catering is not a normal business field, I am doing my given tasks in a strategic and efficient manner, yet I am still getting pushed in terms of washing up.

The previous flaw is bad enough, but the leading staff's so called magnum opus when it comes to washing up dishes and all that, is throwing in every dirty utensil into the water basin, affecting my efficiency and working speed. When I attempted to argue against it for obvious reasons, they leading staff pushed me around. I am certain The Gathering rooms is not the only one, but for the general case, this is the frankly, the STUPIDEST strategy I have EVER heard of. If there are special types of sinks that has a separate basin solely for keeping dirty things moist and easier to remove, then the strategy may work at this point, but it doesn't, even though it may sound good on the surface. But when scratching beneath that surface, or in other words, being executed and tested, it does not work for the better.

Another reason on part of why I quit from the business permanently, is both the size of the building and kitchen. Location-wise, The Gathering Rooms in Armagh is within an area where the Victorian-age houses are, with a cathedral being placed on the opposite side of the location.

These places are not a good spot to build a business in, not just a café. In the process, the rooms are far too small and limited, and given it applies to the kitchen too, not only would there be limited resources and tools in there, it increases the likelihood of causing an accident. I get that building a café takes a lot of money and resources, but fitting it into buildings like what I had described, is not just a big waste, but it is also a terrible idea to do so in the first place given their size.

Shortage of staff is also part of why I left. The less the employees are, the more stressful it can be on both management and employees alike.

Overall, while The Gathering Rooms may have accomplished good things, and has some good qualities, but given the state of the business I have aforementioned in terms of the bad qualities, it began to take a toll on me.

To fix the business, it has to first A), move to a different, much larger building where the kitchen can have much more resources and size, B) abandon this perverse strategy of theirs and get a much better sink(s) with an additional basin specifically for moisturizing dirty tools and dishes, and C), reform the business to make it more welcoming for both staff and employees alike.

Subjective Rating: Love & Hate

Explanation - This is NOT a mediocre business. This job had so much going for it, it was heading towards "Good/Great" or even the "Fantastic" status, but then had serious, SERIOUS flaws, that just dragged it all back down. It is possible that this can upset someone like myself, more than any other, and might make you lose sleep...

We first visited the gathering rooms about two weeks ago with some friends from Co Laois We all had a meal which was beautiful and beautifully presented , the staff are so welcoming and helpful in every way , the service was quick and the cost was amazing , we went there yesterday and again today as the whole experience is just amazing , we absolutely love the place and no doubt we will return very soon . Definitely recommend to anyone who wants beautiful atmosphere and amazing food and fantastic value for money . Well done...

All the family enjoyed it. My husband had a bagel. One son had the kids breakfast and the other loved the pancake stack with bacon. As a vegetarian ordering pasta ordering pasta can be hit or miss but the halloumi pasta was amazing. Great flavour. Service was very friendly and while it took a little while, we weren't in a rush and it so worth...