Cheers Restaurant — Restaurant in Norwich

Moved to Norfolk 4 years ago and eat out in Norwich regularly. So lucky to have such a diverse choice of restaurants. Saw this one pop up recently and. They open early (4pm) so as we were in the area decided to give it a try. Empty on arrival at 4.30, we were shown to our table by a very jolly waitress. Nice trendy grey black interior with industrial extractor on ceiling (to pipe out fumes from steak stones). The food is Portuguese steak house, they offer an a la carte or a choice of 2 set menus. With the set menus you get more starters with the more expensive option (£2 more). Chorizo bread rolls, mussels (shell off), prawns (shell on). Hot stone brought to table with a selection of sirloin and rump steak. Sirloins are cut into portions while the rump has been sliced thin. Rice, black bean stew and fries as sides and a choice of three steak sauces (we opted for peppercorn). Along with a carafe of sangria. All very tasty (as long as you know how to cook a steak). Also this set meal is all you can eat and drink and kids eat free or reduced cost if over 10 (I think). In all really good value and very tasty. Same week, we booked tickets for the theatre. The theatre restaurant was fully booked and as I had put my back out I was looking for somewhere that opened early and where I could park close by. Decided to book Cheers again. This time we went for the al la carte. Same choice of starters, main was either their sirloin as with the set meal but whole and cooked for you or T bone or Tomahawk (for 1 or 2). Never really seen the point of tomahawk so went for the t bone. Asked for it medium rare. I am a bit of a steak nerd so at £24 for a t bone I was not expecting too much. Therefore, surprised to be served a huge t bone that took up the whole plate that was an inch thick. Perfectly cooked on bbq to medium rare. They do not make a deal of where their meat is sourced from and when I asked the waiter he was not sure and seemed a bit bemused why I was asking (most of the staff are very new), I would guess it is not anything super special but extremely well cooked and very tasty. Probably, the best value steak I have ever eaten, including many I have bought and cooked at home. Washed down with ½ carafe of house red (£8.50 if memory serves) that was just the job for the steak, yes even at that price. Coffee to finish and again a very nice espresso. I am wary of recommending to highly as I do not want it to get too busy or for them to inch up their prices but as it is a small chain with other branches in Bury St Edmunds and Thetford that have been around for years I guess they have decided that offering a small menu at extremely good value cooked very well and served by enthusiastic staff is their niche. Shame others do not take the same stance. Well...

We visited this restaurant on a weekday evening and were surprised to find it completely empty. Still, we decided to give it the benefit of the doubt, hoping it was just a quiet night.

Things started to go downhill quickly. We were disappointed to find there was no kids’ menu available, which forced us into ordering from the set menu just so our child could eat for free and not be left out. Unfortunately, the set menu was just as underwhelming.

The starters were extremely basic and frankly, quite stingy — five olives shared between three people, some part-baked bread rolls, and a few reheated slices of chorizo. Not exactly what you’d expect from a place trying to offer a good dining experience.

The main course involved cooking your own steak, which initially sounded fun and interactive. Sadly, the steak was cheap, tough, and had a terrible aftertaste. It was almost inedible. The sides were no better — while the rice was just about acceptable, the chips were clearly reheated kebab-shop style fries, which did nothing to elevate the meal.

This was supposed to be a birthday treat, but it ended up being a real letdown. The entire experience felt like poor value for money. Out of politeness, we paid the full bill without complaining, but we left feeling extremely disappointed.

As we were leaving, we saw other customers standing outside debating whether or not to go back in — one of them even mentioned they weren’t sure it was worth the money. That pretty much confirmed it for us — we weren’t the only ones feeling let down.

Would not recommend, and won’t be returning. Very...

Unfortunately this was possibly the worst dinning experience I have ever had for the money, the sign begging for positive reviews for food discounts had been hastily scrubbed off the blackboard, not quite well enough not to be visible.

For the first part of the meal we were served tesco value part baked rolls, 4 olives between 3 people and some extremely greasy microwaved chorizo. Supposedly all you can eat....

For mains we had meal selection 1. Which included Tesco value coleslaw, Kebab shop style fries, (which were not cooked competently) indian style quick cook rice, pre sliced tesco value steaks, stewing steak slices and extremely cheap lamb steaks.

The server seemed inconvenienced by us being there despite us being the only people in the restaurant (should of taken this as a sign). Failed to offer us any of the supposedly included beverages in the meal selection, then seemed affronted that we did not deem the service or quality of food worthy of a tip.

The one and only reason we did not complain at the time was that we were with our 4 year old daughter and did not feel that an awkward discussion about the service or food was appropriate.

Please do not be fooled by all the positive reviews and their own website singing about trust pilot, it is possibly the only time I have ever felt scammed by a restaurant.

Pros: the cooking stones were hot, the toilets were clean and new.

Cons: everything else from the moment you walk in till you leave.

Do...