Crooked Barn Restaurant in Waveney

Nine years on from a previous visit it was utterly disappointing. The menu was a laminated A4 which bore no resemblance to that advertised on their website. The food would not even come up to a decent pub lunch, they brag about 2 Rosettes but where do they get them? Certainly cannot be based on the dire attempt we experienced and despite the good service and surroundings we will not be back.

Booked for Sunday carvery at 5 pm, on arrival was directed by reception to the function room where carvery was being served pretty quiet as it finishes around 5.30 ish, all pleasant staff and setting, 4 choices of meat , too many veg options to list, my partner is a bit picky but for her not to criticise in some small way this meal must have been good ! Definitely coming back a couple of times a month 😊

It really depends on who is cooking, WE had an awful meal then a wonderful breakfast, different chefs. I did feel for the evening meal for what we got was slightly over priced

Menu limited at time of my stay but food very good and service speedy. Cooked breakfast good but would have liked fresh fruit rather than tinned.

We ate at Ivy Farm yesterday evening. Over the years the restaurant has changed, as it has changed management. Years ago it was a very formal fine dining restaurant . Which was lovely. Now it’s not so formal and the menu is more similar to a gastro pub. However it does not detract in any way from the quality of the food or the service. I had Scallops as a starter which were cooked perfectly and others were very appreciative of the breaded crab claws. The sticky beef was delicious. I can’t say it was haute cuisine but when we were getting 25% off the bill I can understand that not everything is going to be made from expensive ingredients. We really enjoyed our meal and thought it was excellent value for money. We will be going again soon

Fancy paying £14 for fish and chips that looked and tasted like it came from a seafront chippie? My friends dish looked like more plate than food. The barn location is lovely so they clearly think that this will draw the customers who will eat regardless. The service was more like a cheap cafe rather than a mid-range eatery. Ate out 4 times on our trip and glad to say that the others were really nice. If you choose to go here for the barn - Good Luck with the food!

The restaurant has a nice feel, food pretty good, the menu and the same both nights we ate there, 2nd night they did have a specials board, they need to check their bookings as I made a reservation on line, when we arrived at the restaurant they were not aware of the booking, we agreed to eat in the bar area but at the last minute a table was found for us, well done to the waitress who found us a table, I think a bit of variation of the menu would be an idea.

We booked a 3 night stay through Travelzoo, which was unbeatable value, and included daily breakfast and 1 evening meal. We had our meal last night, and I have to say it was excellent. Good quality food , and top service. And this was the first week back after the long COVID shut down and they were training new staff. Breakfast this morning was also good quality. Will be having another meal there during our stay.

A new experience for my good friend on her birthday. Excellent Covid-19 procedures in place with temperature taken. Perfect seating area, gorgeous food and good service. Definitely returning. Well done and thank you. KathyD, Gorleston-on-Sea

Ate here 3 nights and food was great, lovely choice of starters and main meals and delicious desserts

Very impressed with their C19 procedures. App to use at the reception, temperature taken, we were told OK to go to the restaurant. Greeted by Angela, who was very helpful & friendly. Sat by garden window. Excellent meal. Will definitely return.

The evening meals were excellent. We stayed for two nights, but I wish I was staying longer to try more items on the menu. The breakfasts were also of a very high standard.

Ate here on Friday and Saturday evevings, food pretty good but quite expensive but overrall a nice dining experience & nice staff.

Booked for lunch 4 days in advance on the basis of the photos and pre-lockdown reviews. Received an e-mail from the hotel the day before as a reminder. Upon arrival the hotel receptionist directed to wait in the bar ready to be seated in the restaurant. Waited about 10 minutes and the waitress apologised for the wait and took our temperature and contact details for future tracing. Ok fair enough. We were then asked if we would like to sit outside or inside the restaurant. It was only as we were to be shown to our table that the waitress advised that there was no gas so that could not cook any hot food and all they could offer were sandwiches. This "lunch" was intended as a birthday treat for my wife who exclaimed that she could make a sandwich at home and we left! By this time it was too late to find anything other than pub grub unless we waited until other restaurants began serving evening meals so my wife's birthday treat was a chicken wrap and chips in a pub on the other side of Oulton Broad.The restaurant had my contact details for 4 days, knew when to expect us for a meal, considering passing trade at this establishment is zero so to be there you have expectations, and yet they could not be troubled to give advance warning that they could not provide the service I had booked. If they had of let us know beforehand I may have booked a different date but you only get one chance to make a first impression and Ivy House blew it!

The 3-course dinner was included in our deal, but it would have been better to do without and drop the price: Service was terribly slow, the bar area was being served by restaurant staff, food was either not as ordered (duck had blackberries instead of blackcurrant sauce) or inedible (sticky toffee pudding). It spoilt what could have been a brilliant break away.

Had a special meal here recently, experience was distinctly under par. A shame as I really wanted to enjoy it, but the food was poorly cooked, one of our party found an object in their food, service was poor due to overworked staff (they were lovely and tried their best but too much), lack of atmosphere and generally I find myself unable to recommend. Sorry

We booked a table here on reccomendation from family members. I was initially happy and the staff appeared friendly. We first ordered a glass wine and a pint which was slow to come however we were not in any rush. We received our food in great timing and the food was very nice. I asked for a diet coke as i dont like sipping Alcohol when i am eating. I waited 30 mins and had to ask 3 times when it was arriving. I did ask to speak to a manager as i couldn't enjoy my meal as much as i wanted to without a drink. The manager would not come out to speak to me and the waitress was rude and pretty much said they were too busy. Its a shame as we were planning on having dessert and another drink but we decided to go elsewhere. I just think its ridiculous that food arrives quicker than the drinks. Its even more disappointing as this was the first meal we have been out for without my daughter since she was born last September.

C19 aside... food not hot, bland meat (roast beef and lamb) dry and tough, veg al dente=carrots not cooked, all round disappointing. Also no ambience, a big barn with bags of potential under exploited. Background music would have been nice. Also check the bill: glass of wine charged as a bottle.

Looking at the menu we were all looking forward to celebrating an anniversary meal here for the first time. Upon arrival there was plenty of hand sanitiser and we were temperature checked which was good. However it went downhill from here. Two of the party ordered the same starter which came out looking completely different. One was swimming in oil and inedible and the other had no sauce at all. After sending back the ravioli, a replacement came out which again looked completely different. However the flavour was good. The main courses we ordered were a further disappointment. The chicken and rib combo was incredibly dry, as were the chips and the burger. The chicken breast was tiny and there was no meat on the ribs. The burger and lump of ‘pulled pork’ were just blackened meat. We couldn’t distinguish between the two meats in the burger. As for the side salads, one completely consisted of badly chopped raw white onion. In addition to all of this, the glasses were dirty and the staff were running round manically which didn’t make it a pleasant dining experience. We didn’t get asked how the meal was, and had to ask for the plates to be removed and for the bill twice. This seemed to be universal across the restaurant by the looks on people’s faces and plates going back to the kitchen. Would not return. Luckily it was £10 pp for eat out help out but still seemed expensive for the meal provided.

After a poor meal here several years ago decided to try again as was a special occasion and reviews seemed positive.Sad to say very disappointing. Food is mediocre at best, staff tried but were I felt disorganised., had to keep asking : ie jug of water, condiments, dessert menus.Final straw, ordered sticky toffee pudding. After couple of mouthfuls, discovered a stringy long piece of something. I obviously complained to the waitress & after a while she came back and explained it was a piece of string! What struck me was that it was so casual, as if that type of thing was normal, no explanation, just simply it would be taken off the bill. That would be the least I expected. Felt very let down, with no explanation or real apology.. not good enough I am afraid. Would seriously re consider if thinking about booking.

Just had a phone call about covid19. I have lots of sympathy for its impact on restaurants, but this management decision leaves me flabbergasted. Back on 13 feb I could only book the 3 course meal if I paid in full, so I did.i also paid a deposit for afternoon tea next week, my birthday. Managers made the decision to close and left someone to phone round. I’m expected to leave my monies with them and have a meal their eventually. I’m not happy. My Mother’s Day and birthday will be long gone. I feel I have been taken advantage of and now have to argue in the morning. I have completed the ratings as I have lunched dined and snacked here in the past.

The best food I've had in hotel restaurant outside places like the Savoy or the Dorchester. Good quality ingredients prepared with care and flair.

Dinner here for my birthday on a damp Thursday in January was brightened by a fantastic meal as part of a bargain short break. Given the circumstances and the relatively low trip advisor score we were not expecting much. Instead we experienced four of the best dishes ever and certainly the best combined menu we had eaten in many years. My starter of seafood risotto included scallop prawn clams cockles and mussels all perfectly cooked and my fillet of beef with herb crust was delicious. My wife enjoyed her duck breast starter and raved over her rump of lamb. What really surprised was the quality and variety of the vegetables allowing the chef to really show his skill and attention to detail. Ignore the low rating and come!

Booked a table for for 14 for a family get together. The carvery is situated in a large function room at the rear with it's own bar.The place was very busy but the staff were very helpful and organised the tables so we could sit together. The meal was very good with a wide range of meat and vegtables, l had partridge and pheasant pie which was lovely the rest had normal carvery meats. Only downside was the vegtables could have been a bit hotter. But overall a very good experience.

Well organised for a large party of 22 ladies for a Christmas meal. Everyone was pleased with the food and service. Great atmosphere. They had a lovely decorated christmas tree in the restaurant which was a nice touch. Crackers for everyone. Cannot wait as going for Christmas day.

Excellent food you no fuss which was good value Sunday lunch was a real treat the roast beef was perfect

we ate here whilst staying at the hotel, wonderful evening meal and great breakfast couldn't fault it

Lovely huge barn and the food was of very high quality. As it is all cooked to order it can on occasions take a little longer to arrive but it will not disappoint.

lovely setting and food exceptional - not cheap but well worth it. lovely menu!! would be great setting for wedding reception

Excellent choice of food.Serve Dinner from 6.30 to 9 well worth a visit we enjoyed the fillet steak good wine choice

Booked for a 70th birthday lunch on the basis of its reviews. Eight of the ten of us were travelling long distances. Would it fit the bill? It did - and exceeded all our expectations. The Barn is lovely and the table setting was immaculate. The welcome was warm. The food was fresh, cooked perfectly and beautifully presented - and the Sunday lunch menu met everyone’s tastes. The staff were friendly and efficient. And the bill very reasonable.

Stayed as part of a Travel Zoo deal, with a £20.00 per person meal allowance for one night. Lovely restored barn (which was huge). Having white table cloths was lovely; such a rarity these days, even in good restaurants. The menu was imaginative, with a good choice (but not too many choices). Service was attentive (although some reviewers have said it was slow). On the second night we thought about sitting in the adjacent bar for a cheaper meal; but, we changed our minds and went in the restaurant once more.

We were staying at the Ivy Hotel on a Groupon deal which included £20 towards dinner per person. When I looked at the menu in my room I was concerned about the prices as alot of main courses were nearly £20. I also wondered from the description if they would be big on taste but small portions. I was wrong. When we saw the daily menu there were several specials. I chose the seafood risotto to start £7.95 and it was a decent portion with lots of seafood. My husband had sticky ribs £7.95. For mains I had halibut which came with asparagus, courgette and new potatoes. He had roast loin cod with fennel, asparagus and potatoe. They each were £19.99.I had difficulty finishing my food and my husband was full. We are normally accused of having large appetites. It is on the more expensive side and I don't normally pay those sorts of prices but it was quality local food and plenty of it. A treat on a weekend away or for a special occasion but otherwise too pricey for the average person I would think.

Found by my husband on his morning run as we were staying local.

Good quality food at reasonable prices. The Crooked barn is a atmospheric old barn conversion. Service is good and nothing is to much troble

Sunday lunch. Food was alright but over 2 hours from start to finish. Really slow service. Not acceptable. There doesn’t seem to be anyone managing these people. We were regulars but will go elsewhere until I see a few better reviews. Management/owner. Get someone in control here or lose precious business.

Visited here for dinner on a lovely summer evening although it was too windy to enjoy drinks outside. The food was good although the service was not so good. Instead of the main meal and vegetables arriving at the same time there was quite a long wait for vegetables, so much so that most people had finished their meal before the vegetables arrived. I think the waiters/waitresses were students who needed a few more lessons and how to serve and take away plates without leaning over diners.

Went on a Groupon lunch deal (£29 for 2), but we arrived with an extra – our daughter.

Very disappointed with the service.The waitress who served us didn’t seem to have a clue. First of all we waited ages before she asked us what we wanted to drink. Then waited a while for them to arrive. Then she took our order for the meal.we all chose a starter and we all had the fillet steak. My friend was supposed to have medium to well done but it was almost still alive, as too rare, mine was so chewed and was hard to swallow. They took them away and did fresh ones, which were a great improvement, but by this our partners had finished eating theirs, and we were starting to eat ours. After that we had to ask for our tea and coffee. When she brought them to the table quite clumsy she was. My tea still had the tea bag in the cup, and she knocked the cup of tea spilling it in the saucer, she served it to me that way, instead of getting another saucer. I then poured the tea from saucer, missing my cup and it went on the table cloth. We also had to ask her for our chocolates which actually come with it. Then when the bill came they over charged us, then they tried to amend it, but still overcharging, and then again. Very frustrating night. Not a place I would recommend. It has gone down hill and I don’t think they really care.

We visited Ivy House for an evening meal in April 2018 with high expectations following a great word-of-mouth review from a friend. I would also mention that we used a popular deal site (Groupon) who again put across the "wonderful" meal expected and the "amazing" atmosphere.

Had a choice of buffet fresh juice and breakfast cereals with fresh fruit,pastries . We chose a English cooked breakfast our friends had the kippers which looked exceedingly good , the bacon and sausages very tasty I would suspect all local produce,had an insight to this as deliveries vehicles from local butcher's and fisheries from lowestoft,brilliant

Beautiful room, spacious, well laid out, with beamed roof, meal was excellent, staff were pleasant, polite and helpful,

super evening meal served by wonderful staff all in all a great experience breakfast was also top quality

Excellent staff and excellent food. We used a Groupon voucher with no hassle. Please be advised to book through Groupon before your visit.

Sunday lunch set menu for Mother's day, food was very nice particularly the mushroom starter. The mains including roast beef, cod and chicken wrapped in parma ham a with a tarragon sauce went done very well, good portions. All in all a very nice meal in a lovely setting, pity the weather didn't oblige would have loved to have walked around afterwards.

Went for afternoon tea with friends. We were seated in a mezzanine part. This was because they had music on but had no views at all. The music was very loud not what you expect while enjoying afternoon tea it was a good job we weren’t in the same room as music. The service from the staff as excellent. Food was ok but not very exciting and the scones were very dry and not very fresh. Having been before and sitting in a lovely quiet area with views over the grounds we were disappointed with our return visit.

Came here with my husband for lunch. He had made a booking several weeks in advance. There was no need to book as there were only 3 couples, including us in the whole restaurant. The dining in the bar area was packed though. I had the vegetarian ravioli as a starter. That was OK. Pasta was rather hard and cold for my liking, but perhaps they don't serve hot starters. I ordered the vegetarian fricassee as my main dish, nothing else to request as it was the only vegey dish on the menu. However, when it arrived it consisted of onion and peppers all over the plate, with some black pasta at the bottom with cheese or cream sauce. I cannot eat onion or peppers, and so I started picking them off my plate. However, when I realised that the whole dish was onions and peppers I had to complain. I waited 10 minutes for the same dish to arrive but this time it actually consisted of vegetables, as stated in the menu. Carrots, courgettes, tomatoes, sweet potato and a few other vegetables, with garlic bread and some melted cheese in a type of crisp. Much better, but I don't understand why they brought me the dish first time around in such a poor state. I felt that they were trying to save money, and serve me with onion and peppers as a cheap alternative. Vegetables to me means a selection of vegetables, not onion and peppers only. Dessert was limited again, nothing chocolatey on the menu, not even chocolate ice cream...dreadful! I selected the cheesecake. The first few mouthfuls was pleasant, but then the biscuit just tasted of butter. My husband finished it off. He ate the venison, which he said was over cooked. There is no closed bottle s of still water. They bring you their own water in glass bottles...rather dubious to me. The meal for me was disappointing. The service was slow considering there were only 3 couples in the room. The staff are young and inexperienced. They didn't remember my drink I ordered. They did not replace the cutlery for the meat. When they brought water in a glass jug, the water stains on the jug were horrendous. The cutlery was not very clean and had not been shined. When I requested a spoon for my spaghetti it was handed to me by the head of the spoon not the handle. All these details make a difference from an enjoyable meal to an unpleasant meal. The location is lovely, the barn conversion has been done up tastefully, but all that aside the food quality, service and presentation was poor. Such a shame as it has 2AA Rosettes. I won't be returning.

Ate at the restaurant last night as a gift food was terrible pasta was like pastry and swimming in oil , quails egg was solid, risotto hard. Main course of fish was over cooked, meze was the aperitif with additional bites of chicken so smothered in some sort of sauce it was inedible and grey coloured calamari although we have had a good laugh at the chocolates with coffees that were the size of golf balls and also inedible. Waiting staff told us they would pass our comments on the the chef but I really don’t think he turned up last night! What a shame in a lovely venue but we won’t be back.

My Wife and I had a Groupon deal and opted to visit the Ivy House Country Hotel 'Crooked Barn' restaurant for a lunch.

Had been looking forward to our meal as it was to celebrating our 12th wedding anniversary. The setting of the exterior is beautiful , but the Crooked Barn Restaurant was not . I appreciate it was the 3rd of February but I expect the temperature where i'm going to be eating to be at least warm enough not to need a thick jumper or even keep my coat on ! The food was a cold starter which I wasn't aware of and the main course was barely warm . The saving grace was the Baklava which was lovely although I did have to repeat myself to the waitress when I asked for it to be served HOT and not warm !

Went here with my husband on Sunday night to celebrate his birthday, we were given menu's when we arrived which only had Sunday roasts, we asked if they had an a la carte menu, we were told yes so we looked at that ( we should have been told no because their a la carte chef had already gone home). My husband had the Ravioli for his starter which was cold and rubbery, I was very surprised he ate it without complaining ( I wouldn't have). For his main he ordered Hake wrapped in Panncetta it was absolutely dreadful, overcooked and dry and served with Broccolli and carrots from the roasts, there was no sauce or anything so it was all very dry and overcooked. He couldn't eat it and tried to get the attention of the waiting staff, by the time he did this, I had almost finished my meal. The waitress was really sorry and took it back to the kitchen, after a while she came back and said the supervisor said to take his meal off the bill and we could have a free sweet each. I ordered the Sticky Toffee Pudding which had obviously been blasted in the microwave, the top was piping hot and the underneath was stone cold. We have eaten here lots of times to celebrate birthdays and anniversaries but sorry to say we won't be returning. If we had been told there was no a la carte menu because the chef had gone home we would not have stayed, we would have gone elsewhere, so a very disappointing night and spoiled my husbands birthday

Average evening. Food ok but no menus on the table so we had no idea what we were about to be served which is not really acceptable. Christmas decorations appalling, they were cheap and nasty and random- they looked like something from the 60’s - no colour theme. I suggest managers go to the Wherry in OB or even Carlton Crown whose decorations were classy and superb. Band was good but was surprised there was no DJ or MC when band weren’t playing. Music when band weren’t playing was on CD loop which wasn’t very good for New Years event. No one at all in charge of seeing in New Year. Band stopped playing around 10 to 12 and guests were not sure whether to gather on floor or stay at tables, as no one knew what was happening. which wasn’t satisfactory. Needed a countdown to midnight gongs at least. Also we were told tables held ten people and we were a party of eight, but we had four extra people on our table which made it cramped and it was strange sharing a table with people you had never met before on such a significant occasion. Six out of ten overall marks for evening. Won’t be going next year. Also we had two bottles of Champagne at midnight and have never tasted anything like it, it was so sweet we thought it was Asti until we looked at the bottles.

For the second year running we visited the Ivy House Hotel for Christmas day dinner, however this year it was very disappointing in every way. On entering the hall it seemed shabby and had no atmosphere. There was a lopsided tree in the middle, but no music or any attempt to make it festive. The drinks came half way through the tasteless first course, the main course was only warm with very little gravy - 3 times we asked for extra gravy so that we could eat the meal. The deserts were OK but no mincepie or coffee to finish, and to top it all off, just as they did last year, they tried to charge us £55 for 2 bottles of cheap Sauvignon blanc (they charged us for the most expensive wine), I hope others were checking their drinks bill.

After my husband and I having previously enjoying a great meal and overall wonderful experience at the Ivy House, I was expecting good things for our Christmas day booking, sadly, this was not the case.

We ate in the Crooked barn, the food was totally amazing, mind blowing to say the least, we loved the lamb that much we sent compliments to the chief, to our delight Keith Parton came out of the kitchen when we had finished our meal and spoke to us. It was my birthday and the whole experience was superb, we will be making a special journey from the Midlands again next year just to eat at the ivy house, thank you to everyone for making our night special.

Went with friends on a Groupon deal & we certainly were not disappointed with our experience. The restaurant is a converted barn with exposed beams & very tastefully decorated. The 3 course meal we had was excellent & all of us went home very happy & full of praise for the staff & food. Strongly recommend a visit.

Visited last night and thought the meal was lovely, we have been several times when they have a deal on and what good value it is. Everything superbly presented and very tasty, staff were attentive so overall extremely satisfied.

Wow! From the warmth of the staff to the perfect surroundings and faultless meals the four of us had a lovely evening. I have to say we are pretty discerning , when it comes to food and service , having run my own catering business, and there was NO fault to find with any aspect of our visit. Be warned we will return !

Good food well presented, our evening meal was quality considering it was a Groupon voucher, well done Chef.

Couldn't fault anything of the meals and empty plates each night showed how excellent the food was, would certainly eat there again.

I wish we had come here sooner! it is approx a 70 mile round trip so although we knew of this restaurant, due to driving, we had never visited. However, we kept hearing high praise from family and friends so decided to try for our self's. All I can say was it was more that worth the long drive! From the moment we arrived to the moment we left, the service was impeccable. We booked on a Groupon Offer but we certainly couldn't have asked for any better service or choice. The selection from the special Groupon menu was excellent, the food was superbly presented, the quality , taste & textures was a delight for each course. The lamb melted in the mouth and they were very obliging when I needed to change certain aspects of the main meal to suit my preference, you cant ask for more. The decor is very stylist and lovely vaulted ceiling, a pleasure to eat in!Any down side, yes, the only problem we felt was the evening finished far too quickly!Actions speak louder than words & as we were all so impressed, within 12 hours of our first visit to the restaurant, we booked up to stay the night so we can all enjoy a glass or two of wine with the meal. I know that our stay will be just a enjoyable as the meal was. I had a few problems with booking via another website and I couldn't fault the helpfulness of Tracey when I called for advice - perfect. We are counting down the days to our return.

The meal had been pre-booked.The barn was a superb setting and the table nicely arranged.Staff were attentive. However the food was extremely disappointing. My starter: fishcake was beautifully presented but was mainly potato. My main : beef medallions : was cold. Sauce congealed. Potato pile ok: only vegetable was a 2inch piece of leek.Creme brule was poor: could easily have come from a packet.Overall not the fine dining we had anticipated.

Lovely restaurant, beautifully furnished. Good choice of delicious food, excellent service. Would certainly visit here again.

Location is great. Love the décor smart & clean. Staff friendly and attentive. I had high hopes for the food. Starter [bon bons] were lovely, had steak for main very mediocore [have had far better at a chain grill] knife although serrated was not a steak knife, new pots virtually raw they did offer to do more but would take 20mins! declined offer they bought some chips out which were just about done other veg very al dente. Petit fours and coffee good. Overall not worth the money disappointing.

We were staying for a 3 night break and had only planned to dine for one night. However, we were so pleased with the first experience we ate there every night. The room is lovely; the staff attentive but not officious or robotic when enquiring after your satisfaction; the music and ambiance just right for relaxed conversation. Food presentation was lovely and the taste matched it. I'd recommend the lentil curry, pea risotto, quinoa bonbons and the bruschetta in particular. Vegetables were cooked particularly well- al dente and fresh and with taste. It was so nice to be able to choose something that was vegetarian but not labelled as 'the vegetarian option'! It was just very good food without meat. I commented that the curry was spicier than I would have normally and without being asked the chef offered some delicious natural yoghourt as an accompaniment. The sorbets were lovely too! We will definitely return when in the area whether staying at Ivy House or not.

I reviewed this restaurant in my entry for the Ivy House Hotel. But in short, excellent food both a la carte and bar menus plus the Specials board.My Thai Red Curry was very flavoursome, generous portions too.Even simple bar food such as ham egg and chips were a delight, with triple cooked chips, Suffolk ham and free range eggs.Breakfasts here are top notch too.Service is excellent and the barn is a beautiful conversion set in lovely grounds.Eve's Bar is modern and bright with a good selection of ales and wines.Highly recommended. See my photos ("Edloon") under my other entry.

excellent food. a little different to the run of the mill.good portion sizes at a reasonable cost.great service

The food is very good but not the largest portions.Service is excellent but it`s the setting that makes this hotel / restaurant.

I came here today for a group afternoon tea! The presentation was awful sandwiches made hours before served were dry! Appeared to be thrown on the plate only selection on table was cheese and pickle and egg! Cakes were acceptable! But the scones, OMG they were like an effort of a 5yr old flat and underbaked! The cheese scones were the size of a 10p piece and like bullets!!! For £15 head was a disgrace.....

This is the restaurant of the Ivy House hotel, and the food, setting,friendly staff were a delight. We stayed 3 nights at the hotel and will defiantly be back, even though it is a 5 hour drive from Wales where we live,Excellent 3 day breaks, phone hotel for restaurant or hotel for their very good offers

The chef knows how to cook and the food is very good with great presentation and attentive service. Prices are on the high side though and we would only eat here if we had groupon or travelzoo vouchers (3 courses for £17 or so). The adjacent Eve's Bar has a very good and decently priced menu and you can also order restaurant dishes here too. The fish and chips (in Eve's Bar) were excellent.I'm always a bit concerned about places that seem to exist on voucher deals - perhaps a more reasonably priced 'bistro style' menu would fill the place without them having to resort to the voucher industry?

Evening dinner as part of package deal. Beautiful oak beams room and food was excellent. Fine dinning in a relaxed setting. Service was efficient.

My mum and I were eating in this beautiful venue as part of a Groupon. We were a little bit disappointed by the menu having gotten quite excited by the menu on their website, but they have a Sunday menu which is a bit more limited. The lady that served us (Sunday 25th June) was amazing - fantastic sense of humour, able to make recommendations, and generally a pleasure to be around. The duck spring rolls were good, the sea bass contained several bones and the skin wasn't Crispy, but the accompanying flavours of balsamic and pesto were just delicious, we also had the garlic bread which was AMAZING (I find lots of places skimp on the garlic butter, but if you don't like your ciabatta drowned in garlic butter - which I do - this is not for you!). The ice cream was a little hit and miss - I had 3 scoops - one was a bit too icy (like it had been slightly defrosted), and the persimmon they put on was blackened on one side. The hot chocolate was delicious. Improvements could be made to the food and the menu to add an extra trip advisor blob. The bar was also beautiful - I would recommend adding a cocktail menu for a few more brownie points. Once again, all staff were friendly, accommodating and helpful. We had £40 included with our voucher and spent an additional £40 - this included 2 starters, 2 mains, 2 puddings, a malibu and pineapple juice, 2 ciders, a hot chocolate and a bottle of rose (the bottle was (£20).

A lovely restaurant setting and food to match couldn't ask for anything else. Very obliging staff with prompt service, beautifully presented plate of food from a well varied menu. Well worth a visit.

Excellent food and service . We was wecolmed with a very warm and friendly young lady who looked after all our needs during our meal.

We dined here on a Thursday evening, it was it busy.Both had pheasant to start - nothing exciting but nothing to complain about.Chicken and lamb mains came with the same sauce and mostly the same veg. Whilst my lamb was absolutely fine I was very disappointed that the sauce/ veg was not tailored to the individual dish. None of the interest or excitement of a two rosette restaurant. I could of done this at home to be honest.Passion fruit creme brulee, not exactly a ground breaking dessert option but i am told it was also fine. I had the baklava with plain ice cream as they'd run out of the pistachio it should of been served with (bought on that basis presumably!!!!) which I had to ask for a knife to cut but did enjoy it all the same. We stayed overnight and breakfast was fine but limited choice. Overall, we came for the food and were disappointed.

Lovely meal, great atmosphere, very attentive staff, good value for money We had Travel Zoo vouchers

The review of Ivy House had already been submitted. This is for the wedding breakfast which was OK except it was swimming in grease but the eggs and bacon were fine. Despite it not being too busy it took patience to be served and the procedure somewhat protracted. It only needed some attention to detail for it to be much better.

Son and daughter in law organised a surprise 40th wedding anniversary lunch. I am told the staff were aware this was a surprise and had been asked to get everyone seated. Unfortunately on arrival we were happily told by a waitress that "they are all in the bar". Most unfortunate as we then realised it wasn't just the four of us. One other criticism is the slow service. A couple of our party were served with their main meal well after everyone else, son had to remind them to bring out the cake as they had obviously forgotten and we got fed up with waiting for teas and coffees so cancelled these and left. At this point there was only one other table occupied so not busy. It seems staff training is to blame as everything wrong was to do with service However the food was good, no problem there (perhaps veggies a tad under cooked - and we like crunchy veggies but the cauliflower was hard).

Food has always been very good and price is just about okay, some may say a little over priced. We prefer to eat in the bar and if sunny in the garden.Not used the new function hall yet but have heard it is nice so may look at it our next birthday party.

We stayed at Ivy House on a B and B basis so only ate breakfast in the Crooked Barn. Fabulous freshly cooked local fare. Would recommend. We did have a meal in the bar though. FISH and CHIPS they were delicious,again cooked to order and beautifully presented. Worth every penny. People near us had puds that looked superb but we had no room for them!

went for Sunday lunch at weekend, realized it was a bank holiday weekend, but such a disappointment, roast potatoes white and waxy, Yorkshire pud like leather, veg so under cooked almost raw, swede mash tasteless, have been many times before and excellent, such a shame to let standards drop so much, puddings and service good.

The location is pleasing and the ambiance in the converted barn is convivial with crisp table linen. Attended as part of a largish, but prebooked and preordered group. Service nonetheless was rather slow with food cooling off before whole group served and vegetables brought to table. Value excellent at £15.95 for 3 course Sunday lunch menu with generous portions. Quality however not as fine dining as remembered from two previous visits last year, perhaps the Head Chef either changed or had a day off. A little disappointed overall.

The staff were very friendly & welcoming.We had a bottle of Rioja which was great & good value.We shared two starters. The crab salad & the soup. Both were very good.Both mains were delicious & we were too full for pudding!

Afternoon tea is £15 pp at ivy house and one of my friends had been before so suggested going. Friend booked and we were not disappointed as on the mezzanine. Problems started when food arrived, there were four of us paying (£60 in total) and we received ONE small/med three tier plate of sandwiches/4 small scones and 2 larger ones cut in half, 4 pieces and an array of sweet cakes. A POT of tea and pot of coffee also arrived. Disappointing lack of food for £60 was felt by all when a further tier did not appear, so friend queried if all had arrived with staff. On checking we were informed that only a few sweet treats had been missed!! This was not value for money in any shape or form so on checking with the kitchen we were informed we could have extra sandwiches and sweet cakes. I would not recommend as we should not have had to query amount of food given. This cast a shadow over our friends celebrations.

We booked a TravelZoo offer of three course meal with petits fours & coffees to enjoy the Crooked Barn Restaurant, and were delighted. The food looks and tastes beautiful. There were plenty of enticing options on the menu and service was very friendly. We had an issue with a couple of the dishes being quite cold when they reached the table, but they were whisked away and heated without a fuss. My only criticism would be the heat of the main dishes.

This was fine dining, I really can't understand it's position of 62. There were 4 people in our party for lunch and we all had different food over 3 courses. However nothing was left on any of the plates and we were all in agreement that the food was exceptional.

We had the "Mothers day afternoon tea" this afternoon. The food was lovely but was just a little disappointed by the service and set up. We were in the main hall which was lovely and the table was laid out ready for us. Our table was booked for 12 and there was only us and one other table of people in the room at the time. We got served the tea and coffee which was poured by the waiters and waitress. Normally for an afternoon tea you get left with a pot of tea or coffee on the table. As this didn't happen we had to continuously call the staff over to top us up or pour more. We hated doing this as its a little embarrassing having to call someone over, I think we should have just been left a pot of tea or coffee or the staff be checking/coming over to ask if you want a top up. The other thing that really annoyed me is there was no music playing for the first 25minutes we were there. All we could hear was the staff in the kitchen and at the bar talking about what they had done the night before. it was just a shame as this was very distracting. I know we were there early, however I feel like this ruined the day as no one just didn't seem ready for us. The food and setting was lovely, can't fault it. I think going forward someone of senior authority needs to check everything is set up and ready to go before opening. I feel a bit cheated of the experience if I'm being honest, which is a shame cause everything else was so good...

When we arrived there was nobody to greet us but soon a young lady took us to our table and made us very welcome.This was a family meal and the ambience was very good. A lovely barn with lots of nice beams. The service was good and a nice choice on the menue. There was a good range of wines.

The best meals we have eaten in months. This was a Travelzoo offer -£35 for two 3 course meals. This was exceptional value. We received a lovely friendly welcome from the receptionist. The service from Curtis the young waiter was attentive from the minute we arrived. The food was delicious - cooked by Stuart and plated beautifully by Keith. This was a celebratory meal for an important anniversary and it could not have been better. We will definitely return and would wholeheartedly recommend to others who enjoy fine dining.

Went for 60th birthday with 5 friends, I vegan. Very disappointed and staff very un attentive. Tea for vegan came with clotted cream, had to keep getting up to ask for tea and coffee. Tea for the other 5 was ok however presentation was poor and no explanation regarding what was on the stand, crammed onto one stand foe 5 people. This is the 2nd time I have been and on both occasions not great. Defiantly gone down in the last 2 years.

We were a party of 14 and were seated at 2 tables pushed together. It was a little odd as there was a round table which was higher than the rectangular table so it was like paupers at the banquet if you were on the low table, lol. We had drinks in the bar pre-dinner and the restaurant manager took our orders here before being shown into the dining room. I commend his patience as 5 of us decided to order off menu and preferred a whole fillet steak instead of the beef medallions which were on the specials board - so basically asked chef not to cut the fillets up!Fresh warm bread was served at the table along with olives and sundried tomatoes. I love a restaurant that provides real butter! For starters I chose the seared scallops and prawns - tasty morsels indeed. My fillet steak came with all the trimmings as you'd expect - home cooked chips, onion rings, tomatoes, flat mushroom and salad garnish. Although my meat looked small on the plate it was surprisingly filling and cooked to medium as I like it and tender. Finally dessert was selection of ice cream in a waffle cone. I opted for blackberry, chocolate and beetroot! The beetroot was quite sweet and not at all what I expected, but not to my taste.Overall I was satisfied with my meal as were most of the diners, although one guest was not impressed with any of his courses both in portion and taste so I think he just picked wrong on the night? Service was professional and courteous. It worked out to be just over £40 per head including wine so for a fine dining restaurant that's not bad at all.I would come here again in the future.

Booked here for a meal believing it to be good by its reviews , starters were ok but nothing special ,main I had monk fish it looked dry and was ,the fish was in a parcel of what looked like leek but was very dry ,the fish was about the size of a fish finger was over cooked To the point of terrible,dessert cheese board the celery was black on both ends ,it looked almost rotten ,overall the food was like mutton dressed as lamb ,the place looks nice and is clean ,shame the food lets it down

We were really looking forward to our award winning restaurant meal., but was a little dissapointed as it is quite expensive for the mains ect and it didn't come with any vegetables on some dishes, and the lamb was under cooked and fatty, didn't get veg until I had nearly finished my meal and had to ask about them, dessert was very good with a nice coffee.

We visited here earlier in the week and we won't be returning. The service was slow waiting an hour for starters to arrive. When starters arrived the soup of the day wasn't what the waitress had said it was meaning that my mother in law didn't even eat it. The beef fillet medallion main was small and the sauce was overly sweet and everything was under seasoned. The dessert was not much better with the soufflés doughy and flat with no taste of coffee. The panna cotta was just like cream and had no wobble. The custard tasted like raw alcohol.Overall a bad experience and we will not be returning.

The location of this restaurant is excellent - peaceful area and lovely gardens. The restaurant itself is a converted barn with a very high ceiling and exposed beams. The tables are placed a reasonable distance apart so other tables' conversations are not a distraction.Each table is simply and attractively decorated with fresh white linen tablecloths and napkins. So overall the ambience is warm and comfortable.Four of us dined there last evening and there was general agreement that the place is let down by service and to a lesser extent, the food.The waiting staff are very willing but quite young and I guess, inexperienced. The guy who took our order must have said "no problem" 20 times in the evening. "I'd like scallops" said my wife. "No problem" said he. We were not offered bread rolls or breadsticks at all, we had to ask for our wine glasses to be replenished whenever they were empty. One of our party ordered cheese and she asked by two different waiters if she'd like port with it. She declined on both occasions.The food was of a good standard but no better. My wife ordered rack of lamb and confessed on the way home that it was barely luke warm when she got it! (Yes, I know). Portions were, shall I say, minimalist. My colleague ordered pigeon breast to start. I think there were two pieces on the plate (may have been three) and each could have just fitted into a thimble. He weighs 18 stone and while we are not the type of people who praise a restaurant because portions are huge, he was hungry when we got home.We were told by the waiter that the special of the day was beef pie with thyme. After looking at the menu, I ordered the special. The waiter looked bemused and we reminded him that he had announced what was the special on giving us the menus. "Oh yes, he replied " I think that beef pie was available as bar food but you can still have it".All-in-all, the experience was dissapointing. Our bill for 4 came to around £190. Would we return? Put it this way, when booking, my wife also ordered a table for four for next Saturday. She will be cancelling the reservation tomorrow.

We had a lovely evening here, the menu was varied, the food was fresh and it was all hot. The menu had good variety, although on a £70 meal, I felt it funny to be charged for six slices of bread, however fresh and chef's artesian it was. The service was young girls who appeared quite inexperienced and this let it down. After we'd ordered my partner had to inform them how he'd like his steak, despite ordering the bread, another waitress then came and took my bread plate, and my partner had to request a steak knife and one wasn't provided. However, my scallop starter was delicious, as was my duck main, and he said his food was very good. The wine list was also good, and had multiple options that could be taken by the glass.

Went to Ivy Farm for meal to celebrate an 80th birthday. There were 10 in the party and it was booked in advance. The service was so bad as there was clearly not enough staff to look after the restaurant..we felt sorry for the one waitress who seemed to be left on her own .For the main course several choose the filet of beef and they all said it was tough... for the price they charged it should have been good. I will say that the lamb I choose was very nice however. Everyone was disappointed with the lack of vegetables with their meal. However, the starters and deserts were also disappointing and very mundane. There was nobody to look after the drinks on our table and the host was left to go to the bar and fetch them. Our hosts choose this venue as they thought it would be special but left feeling very disappointed. (The meal was booked for 1.00 pm and by the time we left it was 4.20 ) won't be going back....

This has a nice setting, the barn was nicely decorated and the staff were very warm and friendly, I have to agree with some other comments, the terrine starters for me was not very nice, other members had duck and a cheese soufflé which the enjoyed. I then went traditional and had the Turkey presentation was top drawer, however I felt the turkey was a bit bland for me, the other members had steak and they finished there plates wrong choice for me. Onto the pudding back to traditional for me, but Cold Christmas pudding not on, should have gone down the cheese board route, looked very good. Should one expect more on a Christmas Day, with the price paid, it wouldn't have taken to much tweaking.

The food was tasty and plentiful with excellent and professional service in a large, bright barn type room.