Speckled Hen — Restaurant in St Albans

I recently visited Speckled Hen St Albans and had the absolute pleasure of being served by what we believe was Rosie (based on the name on our receipt), who truly made our experience memorable. Despite having a complicated drinks setup and some specific food requirements that could have easily flustered most staff, she handled everything with such professionalism and grace - she really was like a boss!

What impressed me most wasn't just her competence, but her genuine warmth and humour. Even while juggling our complex order, she managed to share a few laughs with us, creating that perfect balance of efficiency and personality that makes dining out such a joy. You could tell she genuinely cares about providing excellent service.

I have huge respect for people working in hospitality - it's such a tough industry that requires real skill and resilience. This staff member has that rare combination of competence, attitude, and natural charm that sets exceptional service apart from the rest.

She left such a positive impression that I can honestly say if she ever decided to make a move to Australia, I'd hire her in a heartbeat!

The Speckled Hen is lucky to have someone like her on their team. She's exactly the kind of person who makes you want to return to a venue. Outstanding service - well done!

Highly recommended - exceptional hospitality that...

Not sure if staff were new because didn’t seem to know what they were doing and zero personality between them all, not welcoming. Never checked with any of us how everything was, no customer service skills at all. Food was very poor. Out of 13 of us and 12 meals not one meal was pleasant to eat or presented well. Garlic bread burnt so crunchy to the extent you could break teeth, microwave meals overcooked, dry and burnt. Katsu curry served with dried clumpy rice through overheating or left under heat lamps/on hot plate. Lasagne was so burnt it had shrivelled up to a burnt crust. Halloumi fries were disgusting and tasted like stale popcorn. Beef burgers were shrivelled and curled up around the edges due to overcooking. Mac and cheese looked like was thrown on dish with it all dripped over side, awful presentation. Salad came with limp browning lettuce and very little else. Slow service and messed up simple drinks order. Tables not cleared, left it to heavily pregnant customer who they watched go back and forth at least 3 times clearing plates and glasses. We’ve visited several times in the past but can honestly say this was the worst visit in every aspect, needs vast improvements and definitely...

We booked breakfast with Santa. The staff were nice and polite but they overwhelmed as the restaurant was quite busy. Initially Santa came to hello and interact with us at our table and told us we can see him in q little while after our breakfast for photos. However when we had finished our breakfast and tried to go and take pictures with Santa we were told he had left. There was no warning or any explanation as him leaving. We were then offered to take pictures with one of the staff members which was ok for the time, Our daughter was quite disappointed and this indeed did put a damper on our experience. Had they given us a warning g or informed us at the start we at least may have had the option to take the pictures straight away then have breakfast after. But we were not given this choice we were just expected to accept he had left while the whole point of booking was to have see and take pictures with Santa. We are very disappointed with this experience. We will not be visiting...