The Bell Hanger - JD Wetherspoon — Restaurant in Wales

We have visited and eaten many times on a fairly regular basis without any issues. However on Friday (13th) September our experience was an utter reversal of the above. We had no choice but to sit at a table on which were the leftovers and dirty crockery from previous customers. We were advised by people on the adjacent table that it been there some considerable time. I requested a table clean when ordering food and drinks for my wife and I and was told that a member of staff would be along to clear the detritus and clean the table surface to enable us to eat in an acceptable hygenic manner.

45 minutes later, no food delivered, no clearing of offending trash. On looking around to the eating area overall, it seemed that this situation was common.

Indeed several comments were overheard relating to exceptionally extended waiting times for ordered food.

When our meal finally arrived it was lukewarm but by this time we accepted it to avoid another possible very lengthy wait.

We pointed the situation of lengthy wait and filthy crockery to the waitress who shrugged the matter off with a "don`t know what to say".....really?

We finished our meal and upon leaving, there it was...….still laying there from when we arrived....you guessed it the same leftovers and accompanying mess. I would hesitate to allow pigs to dine there.

Have to say, however, that staff were doing their best under what appeared to be immense pressure , to cope with a dreadful situation the like of which we have not experience before at the Bell Hanger. We have had a similar appalling time at another Wetherspoons but not at The Bellhanger.

It seems though that the place is now going downhill from a service and cleanliness/hygiene aspect and our recent experience has certainly cast considerable doubt on our return.

Former...

We ordered some desserts and cocktails, the bar was about half full when we arrived and ordered via the QR code on the table.

25 min wait for drinks, spoke to staff member who told us 'it was an absolute disaster on the bar and the wait for drinks is around 35 mins' This was the first we knew about the wait, no one said on the door, no one came up to us and there was no pre warning on the app either.

We ended up sending back the same item three times as it was supposed to be served warm however it was straight from the fridge each time.

Waiting until 40 mins for drinks to then speak to the manager, waited another 10 mins and no one came so we had to go up to the bar and speak to the duty manager who told us.

Drinks are being completed table by table as the orders come in. This was a complete lie as there were multiple tables that arrived after us, ordered drinks, drank them and then left and we were still waiting for our drinks.

So disappointed at being lied to we asked for a refund which which we were told we would get a email confirming the refund.

24 hours later, still no refund or email conformation.

We had to then go back to the bar/restaurant the next day and spoke to the manager Katrina who gave us a paper recipt of the transaction. I am still to recieve a refund for this disaster of a visit even though i was assured i would have a refund after 2-3 days... still without my refund after...

The Test and Trace QR did not work on arrival so had to fill in a paper copy. There were a couple of options to order once we were at our table, pub app, waitress app or online - we went with the app which was easy to use. Had to confirm that we had gone through test and trace. We chose panini meal deal that came with a drink, side portion of fries and a glass of wine. We had chosen to share as it was only lunchtime so not overly hungry. Did not have to wait long but bar staff could not locate my wine so they came to check with me and I had to explain. The panini was nice and hot - it was a bbq chicken bacon and cheese one. Bacon was undercooked for our liking. If rind is being left on it needs to be crispy. The fries were greasy (yuck) but crisp. Waitress checked if we needed any condiments and got them for us. She came back and checked all ok with our meal. We stayed a while after with our drinks and pleased that waitress came back and removed plate. Everything was clean and tidy, plenty of hand sanitizer...