Griffin — Restaurant in Reading

We visited this pub for our work Christmas meal recently and we were served by Esra. Well, it was not a very good experience at all, we were expecting a happy jolly host full of festive spirit. Sadly we got a Sergeant Major instead! She shouted at us all the time, mostly in my ear as I was her side of our table, she brought out our food without saying who it was for as there were some dietary changes so the wrong person ended up with the wrong meal so she had to then ask for another one to be cooked! She told us there was no Malibu behind the bar but that was not true as there was plain to see by the till, we even asked the barman if it had any malibu in and he gave us a funny look and said of course it does! When the deserts started to come out I was in the loo bit I came back to see mine with a blob of vanilla ice cream on top so I said I can't eat that! She then belittled me in front of everyone saying 'I asked if there were nay changes and you didn't say there was'! She was rude and nasty to me because she had got something wrong! She asked me if I wanted one without the ice cream and I said no I as probably wouldn't eat it, then went off. When she came back I told her that she was very rude to me and I showed her the menu on my phone which showed that the apple pie was vegan, so should never have had ice cream on it, she then said they didn't have any coconut ice cream so had been checking with everyone that ice cream was OK. I wonder how many other people were served it without knowing! She apologised to me saying she would remove it from our bill, then asked if I would like one without the ice cream and I said yes as I thought it was a good will gesture. When we eventually had to pay, which incidentally was ridiculous, she mad us each for a queue at the till so we could pay individually instead of us just paying at the table the amount we were due to pay. I noticed that my pudding was on the bill so I queried it, she said as I really ordered it she had put it back on. Needless to say we all paid without giving a tip. The food was OK, mediocre to be honest, the fish on the fish and chips which I had, was very small and not the best. It was pricey and we won't be going there again! All in all a very disappointing experience for a...

I recently traveled to England and made Reading my home base. During my stay, I was on the lookout for a great place to dine and stumbled upon The Griffin. Let me tell you, it was an incredible find!

From the moment we walked in, we were greeted with a warm and friendly atmosphere. The Griffin's ambiance is perfect for anyone looking to enjoy a relaxing meal, whether you're taking a break from walking the Thames Path National Trail or just exploring the local area.

We decided to try the Vegetable Grill and the Grilled Sea Bass, and both dishes were cooked to absolute perfection. The Vegetable Grill was a delightful medley of flavors and textures. The grilled sage butternut squash steak, flat field mushroom, roasted onion, spiced sweet potatoes, charred courgette, garden peas, and grilled tomato were all cooked to perfection and served with chips and a delectable balsamic gravy. One thing that stood out was the pure taste of the vegetables. Unlike some other places where you can taste the meat residue on grilled veggies, The Griffin ensured the vegetables had their own distinct and expected taste, which was a huge plus.

The Grilled Sea Bass was equally impressive. It was served with broccoli, garden peas, and roast new potatoes, all topped with a luscious garlic, caper, and butter sauce, accompanied by a charred lemon. The sea bass was cooked just right, with a balanced taste that highlighted the incredible quality of the ingredients.

The service at The Griffin was exceptional, contributing to the overall fantastic dining experience. The staff were attentive and made sure we had everything we needed.

In summary, if you're in Reading and looking for a place to dine, The Griffin should be at the top of your list. The balanced taste, incredible quality of ingredients, and excellent service make it a standout choice. This welcoming pub restaurant is a gem, and I can't recommend it...

As the sun was shining today, we thought we would go for lunch by the river at The Griffin in Caversham, but it was quite a letdown.

My partner ordered an Amstel, but the pint was poured into an old glass, leaving the beer flat. When he complained, the bartender poured what was left into a Peroni glass, which didn’t help—it was still flat. He then asked for a Fosters glass, went back to the garden, and saw the glass was filthy. Upon returning to the bar, the bartender didn’t apologise. She just grabbed another glass and gave him the same amount of beer.

The customer service here is abysmal—apologise, give a clean glass, and fill it up, especially when it’s your mistake! Even with a new glass, the beer stayed flat, so he left the pint, frustrated.

To make matters worse, his rump steak was gristly and cooked more to medium than the requested medium-rare. My salmon fishcake was equally disappointing—bland and tasteless. The service was shockingly bad, with the rude barwoman serving adding to our dissatisfaction.

Overall, the experience was far from pleasant. With poor food quality and terrible service, it’s safe to say we won’t be returning.

I don’t enjoy giving poor reviews; I always prefer to write positive feedback, but this experience was far from what...