Bond's Bistro in York

This restaurant is well patronised and the interior is nicely appointed. The service is good, even though there was a sense of arrogance from the suited waiters. The food is good but not great and the bill was excessive for what was served. I also disagree with the self imposed tip, which should be at the discretion of the customer and not the establishment. Other than that would we go back ? Probably.

This review is based on my recent experience on Sunday, October 13th at about 2:00pm. My husband and went to the Hairy Fig for a Sunday lunch. This was his first time there, mine was the second. I had already been there with a friend a few weeks ago and it was all great so I was quite keen for him to try it. At that time it wasn't that busy so we got seated straight away. A lady approached us and said that there were a few items off the menu (pies, sausage rolls etc) so we were OK with that. As I had already been there, I knew they had gluten-free options (the sandwiches are also available on GF bread) so I was going to order the bluecheese one. I was the one who ordered first and, to my surprise, the lady said that they didn't have GF bread and she said that she'd give us a few min to read the menu again. At that point, I sort of knew I didn't have many options. I thought about the quiche but I would need to ask if it had gluten. When she came back again, my husband asked what the options (for me) were. She said that they had GF crackers and that they could serve the cheese platter for me and/or soup with crackers. Unfortunately, we had to leave. I was expecting to have PROPER lunch like I did the first time I went there (a toasted sandwich with salad and crisps on the side). My whole issue with this experience was the lack of proactivity and the overall poor service. I did not understand why she would just leave us to to read the menu again when my options were so limited (she could have said it from the beginning). What was the point of waste time when my second choice (quiche) was not suitable either? Had I ordered it, would she have stepped back to let us read the menu again? It was quite a disappoinment. I know the food is really good but, once they run out of GF bread, there's a lack of choices for people who can't have gluten. Also, the service wasn't the best. It is not that they were really busy so they have no excuse. We ended up going to Mannion and Co. There, we were greeted by a very enthusiastic and knowledgeable man who got us sorted straight away. Such a shame we didn't experience something like this at the Hairy Fig. After this incident, we won't go back or recommend it to anyone else.

As this is an Argentinian steak restaurant, expect a bit of an expense. That said, 4 (steak) mains with two bottle of wine were £165. The food is simple, good, well cooked and well served. Would recommend.

Carsyn looked after us so well this afternoon, great attention to detail, helped with food and drink recommendations and kept our bottomless brunch drinks flowing for two hours! Great choice of cocktails, lots of variety.