Basil — Restaurant in Sevenoaks

Rip off. They charge £7 for coleslaw as part of a plate "deal" with a panini. The panini by itself is £7, but with colselaw it comes to £14. What did we get for this deal? A pile of coleslaw and a single leaf of lettuce.

I was already very embarrased when I came to pay because I accidentally scanned the tip chip and pin, and it was clear I did this by accident. The owner just said, well thanks anyway!

So when the total appeared I just paid, but I left feeling like I had made a mistake. After the meal I did explain to the owner that their pricing was misleading. One of the problems was that at 2.30pm they were already out of most of the salads, so only had colselaw left. Given the circumstances, I think a bit of flexibility could have been helpful here. A little discount could have been applied since they only had one salad left, especially since I clearly didn't mean to pay for the tip.

I know costs are difficult for businesses at the moment, but keeping good levels of stock througought the day will help keep the business profitable, you will have more to sell. Also if you want to charge £7 for a side salad, it also needs to be substantial, and something I would have been happy to pay for.

It's a shame because I love supporting local businesses but the experiance at this cafe left me feeling embarrased and it was extremely poor value. I think the tip chip and pin is also poorly placed and I probably wasn't the first person to accidentally tip.

Best of luck though, and I hope you can sort the pricing out so customers don't leave with an...

To the owner: If i were you i would completely re-staff, they will run your business into the ground otherwise. I am not the first person to say this, i have visited twice before months ago with both lovely experiences, yesterday was a complete disaster, two members of staff (the two females maybe late teens/early 20’s) have an awful attitude towards your customers, and their service.

Table service seems to of gone out the window, now apparently your coffee is self service, the young girl shouted “two cappuccinos” and expected us to collect the drinks.

My halloumi and roasted veg panini was a living joke, the veg was non existent (literally) and when i explained i wasn't happy to the older female member of staff she was lovely and said she would have it remade. The girl however who was the same member of staff to shout to collect the cappuccinos dropped the plate in front of me after it was “re-made” no apology at all, then spent 10 minutes staring at me from behind the counter. The two elderly ladies next to us even commented and were shocked, as well as a gentleman who muttered “wow what a lovely young lady amazing service” sarcastically!

The panini wasn't even toasted, it was a raw panini sliced in half, slice of halloumi, couple of bits of pepper, a slice of onion and cheap sweet chilli jam. Oh and wheres the salad you used to get? This is NOT how it used to be when it first opened. The deli food itself is delicious, the coffee is also delicious. But anything else is a disaster, and i can safely say we will not...

A disappointment is how I’d describe our first (and probably last) visit to this Sevenoaks ‘café’.

Here’s what I liked:

• Somewhat friendly welcome.

• Promising looking menu

What I didn’t like:

• The pancakes which seem to be a prominent offering aren’t made fresh but rather in a ‘production facility’ according to the server.

• The bacon sandwich was a let down. The bacon dry, the bread roll heavy and dry and overall not very pleasant and served with an unnecessary leaf garnish. (Caveat: I don’t eat swine but my guest does and said it was awful).

• The toasted teacake was passable but only just and certainly not worth the cost.

• Not particularly comfortable seating

• Very expensive and really not good value at all.

It never ceases to amaze me with these independent places. They must think people are stupid to put up with what they turn out.

Independent businesses don’t have the luxury of the deep pockets the chains have so need to put a bit more effort in or their days are numbered. Never more so than now so be careful Basil and up your game!

Do I recommend going? NO Will I go again? NO Was it good value?...