The Black Griffin Inn — Restaurant in Wales

Hugely Disappointing Sunday Roast Experience.

We had high hopes for The Black Griffin in Lisvane, especially after hearing good things. To be fair, the starters gave us a glimmer of hope, the two Salt and Chilli Chicken dishes and the Shawarma Chicken Tacos were genuinely tasty. Unfortunately, everything went rapidly downhill from there.

Despite clearly stating that the starters were just that, starters, the kitchen took it upon themselves to also send out our daughter’s fish and chips and the sides for our Sunday roasts (pigs in blankets and roast potatoes) at the same time. The waiter blamed the chef’s instructions. Regardless, by the time our mains eventually arrived, those sides were stone cold. We politely asked for fresh ones and some mint sauce, only to receive the same cold items 20 minutes later, now lukewarm at best and clearly the same plate we’d sent back (one of the pigs in blankets even arrived without bacon the second time around too).

As for the Sunday roast itself, it was, without question, one of the worst we’ve ever had. The beef was barely recognisable, tough, tasteless and oddly reminiscent of cheap tinned burgers. The cauliflower cheese had been cooked to the point of no return, a soupy mess. The vegetables were straight out of a discount frozen pack: peas, carrots, and broccoli, all still hard and utterly bland. The Yorkshire pudding tasted like it had been pulled from the depths of a freezer and flash-blasted in a microwave. An insult to the very idea of a roast dinner.

The bar area is admittedly nice, with a decent selection of drinks on tap. There’s a pleasant beer garden and a small car park too. But sadly, these redeeming features don’t make up for the food or the service. The staff were disengaged, borderline rude, and gave off a distinct “couldn’t care less” vibe throughout our visit.

We won’t be returning. A pub that charges premium prices for what feels like reheated supermarket meals and cold service isn’t worth a second chance. Hugely...

The Black Griffon delivered exactly what we were looking for – a typical pub Sunday roast at a fair price.

The welcome and the service was excellent. As soon as the greeter saw my elderly and somewhat disabled companion, she asked if the stairs would be an issue and changed us to a downstairs table. All the servers were polite, friendly, helpful and smiled a lot. It makes a difference.

We both had the “duo” of roast turkey and beef, which took a reasonable 15 minutes or so to arrive. I was pleased to see that each meal had correctly omitted the item each person didn’t want – it’s amazing how often venues make a note but still serve something which you have said you can’t eat.

The vegetables were very good, particularly the roasties. The cauli cheese could have been flashed under the grill, and a little cheesier, and the ‘beef served pink’ was actually well-cooked and not pink, but the portions were generous and everything was tasty.

It’s great that you can order just the one course, some pubs insist on paying for two Sunday lunch courses when, for us oldies, a Sunday roast is all we can manage at one sitting!

The stainless steel gravy pots dribble and are unattractive – a gravy pot or jug would be better (as pictured on the menu).

Atmosphere is typical ‘old pub’.

I had a Guinness Zero (there was a good range of alcoholic and non-alco drinks) and the bill came to just over £30 – good value, and I expect...

Having just returned from another enjoyable lunch at The Black Griffin served by lovely Rosie and Chantelle,I thought it was time to post a review. I happened to see a review,from a level 4 local guide,giving this establishment a 1 star rating.I could not believe my eyes when I saw the comments and was somewhat amused on looking up the poster’s profile that said’This person hasn’t written any reviews yet,or has chosen not to show them on their profile’!! With 4.3 stars from 635 reviews of The Black Griffin ,I feel there must be a mistake here, The seniors meal of two courses for £6.99 or three courses for £7.99 is fantastic value and is available any day of the week. I can only reiterate that to my mind,The Black Griffin is a lovely family and dog friendly place serving a varied menu of good food in delightful surroundings .The facility of car parking is an added bonus. Manager and deputy,Emma and Rosie,are very competent and lovely people to know -having been coming here twice a week for a few years - I have got to know them well.Their choice of supporting staff is excellent and all contribute to this friendly place and they are great asset,in my opinion to...