Horn & Trumpet — Restaurant in Stoke-on-Trent

After coming here for dinner a few weeks ago ( which was really nice) we decided to come here for tea tonight. Safe to say we won’t come back unfortunately! When we arrived there was no one at the welcome desk to show us to a seat (not a huge deal really but still) so we found a table ourselves, literally all of the tables were messy and filled with empty glasses, dirty dishes etc. When it came to ordering food they were pretty much out of near enough everything which was disappointing considering it was only 6:30pm. When the food arrived an hour later after ordering it was just about warm. My partner ordered a steak but the lighter option which as stated on the menu said it came with quinoa, brown rice, side salad and dressing and soya beans. The plate that came out was actually embarrassing, it was literally a piece of steak with peas and half a tomato (????) we asked the waiter to take it back and he said it didn’t come with any of the stuff on the menu and that the menu was wrong?? it then got returned with a bunch of pilau rice dumped on the side of it with 3/4 of a cucumber and a slither of red onion. In the end we called the manager over as telling the waiting staff was quite frankly a waste of time. My partner ended up getting a full refund for his food & was told to keep the food. Saying that this steak was £16 odd it was so bad, we had a voucher for 40% off but you’d still expect a certain standard when you’re coming out to eat and spend money. Also if you’ve put an offer out for discounted meals maybe stock up a bit more on food, surely it makes sense that you might be busier than usual? I understand it’s not the FOH staffs fault but it seems like the chef needs to actually read the menu his or herself and brush up on what comes with what. There was another table next to us and they also had several complaints! After the meal I took my son out to the outdoor play area, there was a parasol which was absolutely totalled, large pieces of wood sticking out, wood chips everywhere where it’s been smashed up, menus scattered all over the place and dirty towels strewn about. It was just a mess basically. On a kids playground aswell it’s just an accident waiting to happen. Such a shame as it’s so local to us aswell, hopefully the issues get sorted out before they loose too...

Made a reservation for a table for 4, for today. Seemed to be only 1 member of bar staff, so after waiting 5mins to be seated, 2 of us with mobility issues had to go sit down, and we discovered our reserved table ourselves. Ordered at bar, rather than via QR code. Waited 45mins for food to arrive, despite pub being maybe 1/3 full at most. Steak and ale pie contained 0 meat by 1/2 way through eating. Complained to bar staff and respk se was just "what would you like me to do about it?" No attitude, but also no apology or suggestions for a solution. Found just 1 solitary, small chunk of meat after scooping out all the insides. Jacket potato with cheese and beans was extremely dry and had been "nuked" for too long in the microwave (was expecting a microwaved potato rather than oven cooked, but wasn't expecting it to have been reheated / toppings to have been microwaved so that it just looked an unappealing mix that was crispy at the edges) Hunters chicken was very dry (but apparently we were lucky that it wasnt worse, as another customer complained about hers being burned + the bacon literally being blackened) and onion rings were forgotten until staff were informed, and then 2 overly-cooked onions rings were brought to us. Gammon was nice. We were going to have dessert, to try to save a very disappointing meal that was intended as a celebration, but when we went to the bar to order, there were no staff there available and we were further deterred by several other customers all waiting to complain about bad quality meals they'd been served, plus the fact that the customers seated at the table next to us had been waiting for their desserts since before our mains were brought out. Whilst we had been waiting for our mains, we saw an online post (Facebook? Or pub's own website? I'm not sure as it wasn't me who found it) from yesterday, saying there were problems with the grill/s, but whether the problems had already been solved or not, we weren't informed of any delays when...

Immediately upon walking through the door, our customer service experience was impeccable. Andrew met us with kindness and understanding, and read my special note on having social anxiety and needing somewhere nice and quiet. He seated us, and offered us a relocation a short while later that was more accustomed to my needs; he set us down near a window with plenty of space from the rest of the restaurant, which was perfect. He also gave a clear explanation of how we can order, and that we can use the app if we’re uncomfortable ordering at the bar. This was absolutely perfect, and he came back to check on us around 2 or 3 more times, polite and courteous as always. We ordered our food and took a moment to appreciate the scenery; a clean, comfortable setting where the tables were beautifully decorated and the art on the walls had not a single speck of dust on them. It’s very obvious the owner takes pride in his restaurant, which can also be seen reflected in the food. The food took 30 minutes to arrive, which just reiterates the freshness and care for quality that we expected the moment we walked through the door. The fish and chips was incredible. Truly the best fish and chips either of us has had in a very long time; the fish perfectly crispy, the batter even and tasteful, and the fish perfectly flaky. The chips were amazing too, however the double portion looked almost identical to my singular portion, as we planned to split the double portion between us and have a few more chips each. We didn’t end up doing so because there wasn’t a great difference in the portion sizes there. Overall, the quality of service and the quality of the food had us buzzing about our meal hours after, and left us full all the way up to the next morning. I’ve already recommended this place to my family and friends, and am going to make a habit of coming back. Thanks Andrew and the rest of the team - Andrew...