Nel's At The Pavilion — Restaurant in Stratford-on-Avon

I recently visited The Pavilion in Lighthorne with my family, and unfortunately, our experience was far from what we had hoped for. We arrived at 10 am and placed our order right away, excited to enjoy a lovely brunch together. However, after 40 minutes of waiting, we noticed other customers coming and going, which raised our concerns.

When I enquired about the status of our food, a member of the team looked visibly surprised and informed me that our order had been forgotten. While I appreciated the apology, the situation only worsened from there. After another ten minutes of waiting, our food was finally brought out, and the staff offered us extra drinks. I requested an apple juice for my son, who had been waiting quite a while.

As we were preparing to leave in a bit of a rush, I asked if I needed to pay for the additional juice. The staff member hesitated and said she would check with the manager. When the manager arrived, her response was shocking. She stated that we would have to pay for the drink because we should have informed them earlier about our forgotten order. That we could see they were quiet and we should have alerted them sooner. This lack of accountability was astonishing; it felt as though we were being blamed for her oversight.

When I suggested that a complimentary drink would have been an appropriate gesture given the circumstances, the manager's response was dismissive and rude. She told us to just "just forget it and go away." I have never encountered such poor customer service in any establishment before.

The entire experience left a sour taste in our mouths, and I cannot recommend The Pavilion to others. The manager's demeanor and the lack of basic courtesy towards customers were truly disappointing. It is evident that there is a significant need for retraining in customer service for the manager here. Save your time and money and consider...

I am deeply disappointed by the experiences I’ve had at this café, primarily due to the conduct of the manager. Despite its potential, the establishment is severely undermined by her unprofessional behavior, which is perplexing given the generally positive reviews this place has received—many of which seem questionable and possibly written by the manager herself.

As a regular customer, I have encountered multiple issues that have left a lasting negative impression. On several occasions, my orders were incorrect, and rather than rectifying the situation graciously, the manager confronted me at my table in a confrontational manner. This type of behavior is not only unprofessional but entirely inappropriate for a hospitality setting.

Furthermore, there have been instances where I was overcharged, likely due to her forgetfulness regarding the number of items ordered. When I attempted to clarify, she responded with annoyance rather than a willingness to resolve the issue. It is concerning that she is the only person allowed to operate the till, which suggests a lack of trust in her staff—who, in my opinion, would likely manage customer interactions more effectively.

It’s truly unfortunate that what could be a charming and successful café is marred by such poor management. I sincerely hope the owners address this issue, as the current situation is driving away loyal customers who would otherwise continue to support this...

Myself and my partner live about two minutes from this cafe and we have both eaten here a handful of times and I will be honest the food and table service was good however there's been two occasions we have been declined a service, the first time was a deluxe breakfast at 3.02 because apparently they stopped serving at 3.00 thar was slightly annoying considering all you can oder after that is paninis.... So the second time was yesterday they said the first time they stopped breakfasts at 3pm so we got there at 2.30 to then get told they have stopped selling hot food and that they are only selling sandwiches baring in mind they shut at 4.30 so that was the final nail in the coffin for me we past the cafe in Wellesbourne and said we would go to Lighthorne instead as its local and wanted to support it we couldn't even go back to the one in wellesbourne as it shut at 3pm so we won't be...