BEAR Stone — Restaurant in Stafford

I organised a large group booking of 14 people in advance to have the pizza fondue on a Saturday night. Upon arriving, the tables set up were not able to seat all of us - 2 seats were missing, and we were told to rearrange the tables ourselves to try and fit everyone on.

We had pre-booked 3 pizza fondue pots, as I was told over email that this was the max they had, but on arrival I was told there were now only 2 (I could see another table using the 3rd, despite us reserving them) - we did have enough of the fondue between us, however this meant that most people had to stretch over multiple people to try and reach them, and was pretty annoying for everyone.

The fondue itself was underwhelming - pizza fondue was described as 'mozzarella & emmental cheese with pizza sauce', however the bulk of the pot seemed to be mashed potato?

Our other meals were described as 'ok, but I wouldn't be rushing back any time soon'; the variety of vegetarian options was a plus though.

Service was non existent, and when I asked about the issues we we had with seating & pots, the response from the male staff member was blunt and pretty rude. There were only 3 other tables max all night, and several staff working, but none of the staff were serving or keeping an eye on the tables, as our fondue flames went out and we had to ask to have them relit twice.

This review gains its second star because we happened to arrive before 7pm for cocktail happy hour, which was the only good part about the visit! However it was a bit inconvenient constantly going over to the bar to order drinks.

Overall, this was a disappointment after being excited to try the fondue pots for a couple of years now, and we will not be back. The mostly-empty restaurant on a December weekend...

As a coffee lover, enthusiast and somebody that's invested a lot of time and money into home brewing, being Stone based for a match thought I need to try this place.

Dropped the lad off at football and needed get back for the match so opted for a take out option. Must say, the place is nice and the food looked good, but this review is about the coffee.

Ordered a "large black / americano".

Didn't have to wait, couple of minutes most, so can't complain as was serving seated customers.

I was given a tiny 8oz cup - I asked if it was a large and was asked if I'd ordered a flat white. When I said no, the lady looked confused and replied "ooh, they're all standard sized anyway" - cut a long story short, I'd paid £2.90 for a tiny black coffee.

That said, if it was a good coffee, I wouldn't be overly upset...

The coffee was watery, flavourless and definitely under extracted, its obvious the person making the coffee has been on a basic barista course with no real skill and the consistency there is not the same as you'd expect with chains where the process is mostly automated to ensure consistency.

I've got years of coffee brewing experience and it's a real passion of mine and I'd always favour the underdogs, the local coffee shops over any chain, but from today's experience, next time I'll go to McDonald's or Costa next door for a better coffee.

See the picture of the tiny coffee... If at the point of ordering I was told they don't do large, we only do 8oz cups, I'd have opted for a flat white or something more exciting than a black coffee, so feel let down from a Customer Service point of view as well being given a poor,...

See update at end of review

We came to Bear this evening with family who were visiting and unfortunately had a very disappointing experience. We arrived slightly late due to traffic, but instead of being welcomed we were told rather abruptly that we had ‘five minutes to order, literally right now’ as the kitchen was closing. It was the tone of voice used in addition to what was said; I was genuinely shocked at how hostile they seemed.

The atmosphere was also a little off for an evening meal - bright lighting and no music. In addition, the menu had been reduced to a ‘stripped down’ version without any notice beforehand. The online menu looked great, but half of those dishes weren’t available, which was disappointing. Considering there were only two other tables there, it was hard to understand why this was the case.

Sadly, the combination of the limited menu, unwelcoming service, and uncomfortable atmosphere meant we decided to leave rather than stay and eat. It’s a shame because we have visited in the day time before and it was lovely. On the basis of this experience, I would not recommend Bear for an evening meal.

UPDATE (17th August 2025): Bear has responded promptly and kindly to my feedback, apologised, and explained that the team will be retrained. They also offered me a voucher so I can give Bear another chance. I really appreciate how seriously they took the review, which gives me confidence that improvements will be made. I’ve upgraded my...