Anderida Restaurant — Restaurant in Wealden

Arrival: We were met by the kind and professional Maître D’, Louise, who adjusted our booking time so we could have a drink in the bar.

Bar: Drinks cost £20 on average. At this price, you would expect something as simple as a coaster for your drink, or a dish to place Olive pits, or even a tissue! - unfortunately these were lacking.

We had to physically get the bar snacks ourselves - simple olive and nuts.

Restaurant: After ordering a bottle of wine and our food; it was disappointing to receive starters before drinks. We had to remind staff to bring the wine over. This arrived halfway through finishing our starters.

The tomato soup was average, nothing special. The butternut squash compromised of 4 2x2x2cm cubes with minimal sauce.

The saving grace of the start of this meal was the fresh and delicious bread. We had several rounds of this with butter. Our waiter, Joshua, was attentive, charming and honestly made up for all that was lacking thus far.

Between starters and mains, wine was unfortunately not refilled in a timely manner.

For mains - if you are vegetarian, do not expect any food with heart/soul in it. The pasta was dry, lacked salt and required a lot of additional dressing. This was the only option - not worth the price in the slightest.

The chicken with chorizo was moist, crispy on the outside and was surrounded by a umami rich jus. This was fantastic.

Dessert: Coffee was translucent brown water, it was of incredibly poor quality and lacked taste. You would assume an establishment of this calibre would have a decent coffee machine - but it unfortunately lacks this also.

Cheese board was delicious and had good variety, we cleaned this off.

Toilets: Ladies toilet - soap dispenser broken. This small detail reveals wider issues Ashdown may be experiencing.

Overall: Louise and Joshua were the saving grace of our meal. If it wasn’t for them, we would have asked for discounted / reduced bill due to all mentioned above.

There seems to be a disconnect between staff teams; waiters, kitchen and bar staff do not seem completely cohesive.

It is such a shame that the above issues are present in a restaurant overlooking one of the most beautiful, well maintained and tranquil gardens I have seen. The trees are ancient and the fountains mesmerising. I believe this restaurant has so much unmet potential, it is truly...

We had a voucher for a sparkling tea. Reassured by their website that pronounced their covid measurs were above government guidelines I allayed my 93 year olds Mums fear about going. We were able to sit outside which was of much covid reassurance to Mum...And all was well in this wonderful place which Mum pronounced to be 'the real macoy'...they even catered very impressively for my vegan diet...all was well until we paid in the reception lounge. Mum had thought we would not need to hand over our gift card as they had already got our details when we booked on the phone, but not so...she wore her mask, I was lulled into a false sense of security and destracted that Mums very poor hearing meant she had not heard and was about to walk out the door in her unstable on her feet way, as I handed the voucher over minus my mask to the unmasked young man. Mum observed no one in the lounge was wearing a mask, and the young man got very close to me.

I do think this is indefensible. Today the government has changed their rules so today they would all have to be wearing their masks, but surely it's good sense. On reflection I noted our two waitresses were walking pretty close to' each other too. Most of the clientele seemed to be over 60...surely they have a duty of care. When i check trip advisor for much humbler eating places, alot have staff wearing masks before the government told them they must...WHY NOT HERE!?

I did phone them today..I was told staff do get a temperature screen every day ...but that is only an indication. I was impressed they had hands free alcohol gel dispensers, they took our details, wiped our tables and others every hour and after someone has dined. Its a wonderful place which has let...

Exquisite. Just loved it We had cocktails in the bar, followed by an outstanding vegan three-course meal. The cherry and amaretto sorbet dessert was one of the best we’ve ever tasted!

Humble thanks to Kevin for the warm welcome; Jay for making fab cocktails; restaurant manager Marcio for being a gracious host; and pianist Ian for playing Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata and Vivaldi’s Spring so beautifully.

Unrivalled style and taste... We loved everything – the grand drive up, the lush forest setting, the stained-glass windows, the bespoke cocktails, the plant-based menu. Excellent service from waiters Johnny, Keith, Kazimir, Romeo and Richard too. We’re already looking forward to...