Hermitage Road Restaurant & Bar in North Hertfordshire

Menu slightly limited but good quality food at a fair to higher price

Always like to support local businesses and Hermitage coffe bar is by no means inexpensive, but nevertheless, I wanted to support them. There were about 5 members of staff behind the counter. Only x1 food order ahead of mine on the pass. As I only ordered a plain bagel with butter, it shouldn't be long After seeing the order ahead of mine go out I waited for my toasted bagel. And waited and waited. Whilst the counter top was slowly wiped down, in order to not disturb the chat they were having. So I went up and asked for my order, stating it is only a plan bagel. A few minutes later it just happened to be ready. It was totally anemic. So pale that the lady, sat near me, just laughed. Seriously guys. You charge ALOT and the quality of your food is very good, but at these prices your services should be much better.

Nice food, good staff lovely building. And learnt the origin of an old saying

Great place, great food, great drinks, great staff, would highly recommend

35 minutes to get a drink to the table let alone food. 3 hours for two courses. Lamb chops were minute and over cooked not medium as advertised on menu. Disappointing as usually very good but not tonight.

No change of menu from a year ago. Portion size down, prices up. Starters were good, mixed main course quality and small dessert portions. Seems expensive for the whole experience. The restaurant had a good atmosphere. Some noisy children around. Can get cold near windows. Might need to ask them to increase heating. Booked online for 1215 but refused to take food orders until 1230. Service was good and attentive.

I really want to like this restaurant as it’s in great setting, has an excellent menu and we’ve had a couple of really lovely dinners here. But we’ve now had two bad experiences now and I think that will put us off returning. First experience was a Sunday lunch where I had a chop that (genuinely) looked half eaten (see picture). We really thought maybe they’d given us a leftover from another plate. We alerted the waitress who took it to the kitchen but didn’t come back! By the time we got her attention again I’d finished my dinner so we asked her what the kitchen said and she said “oh yeah they said it’s not meant to be like that”. But no apology, no replacement no offer of a refund… we then had to ask for it to be taken off the bill. Second time last night involved a pork chop (again!) which looked very slightly pink (edges very pink, middle was more debatable - we thought “maybe it will be ok, stick to the middle….”) We should have asked for it to be reheated but in typical British fashion just ate half and left half of it. Since coming home from the meal I’ve spent some significant time in the bathroom. So maybe you’ll be okay at this restaurant if you avoid the pork chops!

Highly recommend, lovely food and atmosphere. Lucia the waitress was so sweet and helpful.

Upstairs in the restaurant is lovely - high ceiling & the exposed brickwork of the old ballroom gives it lots of atmosphere. The ladies toilets (always sth I judge a restaurant by) were wonderful - very clean & pretty classy! The food was as I expected - good quality & served by busy but polite & friendly staff.

We like going here for Breakfast lunch and dinner - lovely venue excellent staff and amazing grub! wonderfully prepared and cooked - have not had a bad time yet in 7 years plus! Still good loving the oyster mushroom jambalaya. Still great service too

I really want to like this restaurant as it’s in great setting, has an excellent menu and we’ve had a couple of really lovely dinners here. But we’ve now had two bad experiences now and I think that will put us off returning. First experience was a Sunday lunch where my husband had a chop that (genuinely) looked half eaten. We really thought maybe they’d given us a leftover from another plate. We alerted the waitress who took it to the kitchen but didn’t come back! By the time we got her attention again I’d finished my dinner so we asked her what the kitchen said and she said “oh yeah they said it’s not meant to be like that”. But no apology, no replacement no offer of a refund… we then had to ask for it to be taken off the bill. Second time last night involved a pork chop (again!) which looked very slightly pink (edges very pink, middle was more debatable - we thought “maybe it will be ok, stick to the middle….”) We should have asked for it to be reheated but in typical British fashion just ate half and left half of it. My husband has then come home from the meal with a bad belly overnight. So maybe you’ll be okay at this restaurant if you avoid the pork chops!

A warm welcome from friendly staff,food always delicious.

Great place, fantastic building.

Went last night we had a large table, 20 people, service and food was great,

Inviting atmosphere and always delicious food

This Bar / Cafe is sooo cute and very spacious, massive! Lovely staff and delicious food I had a toffee crisp and my dad had Jamaican Ginger bread, they were both scrumptious!

Great meal out with a lovely atmosphere- thank you Ellis, you were fab.

Always ticks our boxes. Its one of our favorite restaurants in Hitchin. Oysters were truely fantastic. Our main courses were bang on. Our waitress (red hair with a fringe) was so attentive to us and i had a bit of banter with her. As we were leaving the manager spoke to us and asked how our meal was and their service i mentioned our waitress and the food. 5+ stars.

Food was OK, service attentive, but place is loud and alcohol driven. Former gig venue.

30 minute train journey from London, 15 minute walk from the train Station great location for shopping, this beautifully presented restaurant, bar & separate large coffee shop exceeded our expectations. Great service with highly polished -& professional staff, food & drink totally gorgeous & delightfully presented. Really great Sunday lunch... absolute best Roast potatoes I've EVER had...Extensive menu with our party all impressed with their meals. Definitely recommend whether for a quiet meal or larger celebration... beautiful settings, would definitely return., so thank you Hermione Rd for helping make our family reunion so super.

Stunning restaurant, great Chef

Do not go if you have allergies! took my wife and kids to the hermitage. All ordered food & made the servers & kitchen staff aware of my son's severe nut allergy. Food was prepared & cooked based on this. The large bearded bloke bought our food over and said, "we've done the best we can to cater for his allergies, the rest is in the hands of the gods". What sort of idiot would come out with a comment like that? What sort of company has this approach and employs idiots like this?

Came to the restaurant for drinks and nibbles. We had some cocktails and some starters (small plates perfect to go with a drink). The scallops on a curry sauce and korean fried chicken were fantastic! Thought the decor and atmosphere was modern with a great vibe.

Absolutely appalling service tonight. Bar staff had no interest in waiting customers. Walked out.

Unusually busy for a Wednesday. Food and cocktails were delicious

Had a lovely meal on Sat with my partner for his birthday, the staff especially Molly were very attentive and even treated us to a sweet free of charge. Highly recommend a visit.

A warm welcome and a great lunch with friends. The service was really good and all the staff were helpful, friendly and professional The food was all great. Very tasty and nicely presented. The menu had plenty of choice

Great food, excellent service in a nice restaurant

Went here for our wedding anniversary and had the most lovely time. Service was really good, relaxed but still attentive. The food was delicious. Everyone was so friendly and kind. They noticed it was our first anniversary and gave us dessert on the house. It made our day feel really special. The set menu was great value. Would highly recommend for a good value, special occasion.

Great quality food, atmosphere and service highly recommend if you have an event, they are very helpful and provide a fast efficient great quality services insuring everyone's meal is served together

Good food and cocktails. Service was great. Friendly staff, conscientious without being over the top. Was a birthday meal for my wife. Would visit again.

We had such a lovely lunch experience.The Korean chicken,T bone pork,fish n chips n sticky toffee pudding n creme brulee n Rose wine was just amazing.Simran who served us n Rigu the manager were so helpful gave us such lovely service that we will definitely come again.

It was our first time, and we found the entire experience perfect. The food was amazing and Nick was incredible. All in all 10 out of 10

First visit and will definitely be back. Lovely food, great service and the restaurant is spacious, no tables crammed together.

Excellent service from welcome through to completion of our meal, food was fantastic and the ambiance is the restaurant even for a Tuesday evening was wonderful.

We were served by Ellis, fantastic service and fantastic food as always. What a great night. They made my birthday special.

Excellent as always Great service, attentive but not overbearing Food was fantastic and decent value Pork belly ribs were particularly enjoyable Will be back again soon

Great service. Great atmosphere. Great food. Great drinks selection. Thank you!

Very nice experience with tasty food in a great restaurant

A lovely restaurant and good fast efficient service. Our friends were visiting from Somerset and chose The Hermitage as we have been several time before. But disappointed with the crab linguini, not much flavour or seafood in it. The chia dessert very disappointing.

We went on a busy Sunday morning. A lot has changed since the last time we visited. The space is much bigger and they have some lovely ideas in place like the complimentary filtered water machines. The menu still has the selection of homemade bagels with a range of toppings from traditional lox (salmon and cream cheese) to an Elvis (peanut butter, jam and bananas). I feel the menu could be expanded out a bit. Some more breakfast items would be great. The coffee is still excellent and one of the best in Hertfordshire.

Birthday celebration. Staff did very well to serve 14

Wonderful evening had by our party of 14 for my fiancé's 50th birthday. Food was superb, service amazing and although the cost was relatively high, it was worth every single penny

Lovely place, nice food, good jazz gigs. The Madison is the best cocktail ever!

Great place to have dinner in Hitchin, I would highly recommend. Lovely atmosphere, friendly service, great food and thanks for the desert taster, much appreciated 👍

Delicious food in a beautiful restaurant with a lovely atmosphere.

Service was really good, but some of the food was tasteless and not very nice particularly the primavera risotto

We went as a family for my mum’s birthday and we had so much fun. The environment is so lively and comfortable as well as beautiful. I had the calamari and lasagna, both so good and filling. Everyone loved their meal and our waitress was so sweet and friendly. I highly suggest this place.

A great place. Surprisingly wonderful. We will be back for sure.

Nice restaurant been a few times. Always like the food.

Lovely staff and delicious food!

Very expensive place... Service & atmosphere was great, but the food wasn't worth the money. Curry had to be returned for reheating, and the steak just wasn't great. Edit - we went a second time, the food was brilliant this time, excellent service and atmosphere again. Increased to 4 stars

Came here for a roast on Sunday and was very happy with the food, service & atmosphere in the restaurant. The portion sizes were very generous & all servers were very helpful & friendly. Have been here once before but not for Sunday roast, so we wanted to check it out which did not disappoint. There is also a very nice bar area with a huge window area looking out onto the street which is very nice especially when the weather is lovely.

Normally love the Herm - unusually disappointing food. Nicoise salad was over-priced and underwhelming

Had a really lovely meal here this evening by myself. I was greeted warmly and took me to my seat. The decor in here is pretty high end. The chairs are very comfy and the booths looked good too. My server was uk eat, friendly and efficient. Faultless. I ordered the mozzarella balls which, technically are snacks, as a starter and they were delicious. Good blend of cheese and jam. A single slice of apple would’ve been a nice addition but honestly were tasty as they came. For my main I went for pork ribs which I don’t usually go for. They were presented well (see photo) and my knife cut through them like butter. Great great dish and very well priced. Unusual to combine flavours and textures in a dish this well. I had a glass of picpoul and overall the meal was great value. Place was chilled and had a good vibe (Wednesday evening) and seemingly nice clientele. It’s not absolute fine dining at its highest but it’s the tier below and would be great for nice celebrations if you’re at all nearby. Perfect for groups or just dates or mates. Will definitely go again

Made to feel very welcome by gentlemen behind the bar think his name was Nick he went over and above to celabrate our anniversary

The food is always good here but this time I tried the waffles bacon and maple syrup. The waffles started to go a bit hard before I had finished, and a little bit more maple syrup would have been good. But overall I will continue to tell or bring my friends here so they can experience it.

Gorgeous Sunday Roast with attentive friendly and smiley staff

Such a lovely restaurant. Good level of busy. Staff are friendly and helpful. Amazing roast dinner - such a tasty stuffing.

A nice venue with good but overpriced food, this restaurant is really let down by the general attitude of the staff. On first arrival, they dis not even acknowledge us and then proceeded to say they couldn’t find our booking. The situation was compounded by the surly attitude of the waiting staff. For the prices charged, I would have expected a much higher quality of personnel.

I was happy with my mains and delicious Blondie dessert. The guys asked for medium Steaks, however 2 of the 3 were well done… or maybe just not to their taste. We had a lovely evening all in all

Average,expensive, wouldn't return for a meal but possibly for a drink nothing Doorman a couple of cocky little girls.🤡

The main course was not hot enough. The broccoli was hard and needed more cooking. The roast chicken portion was quite small. We have had better meals at the Hermitage.

We had a wonderful Sunday lunch and enjoyed by all the family young and old. The staff were lovely.

Wonder food loved sticky chicken and ribs .Great staff definitely go again great Friday night out .

Really poor value for money which I’ve heard a few times but as I love the bagel bar I wanted to try. The food was not great at all and at £24 for the dish. Pasta was congealed, lacked a lot of flavour. Disappointing effort for the price you pay.

Good food and good understanding of dietary requirements. Bit pricey for the portion size

Had a lovely lunch here - their set menu (two courses for £22) was extremely good value and high quality / good portion size.

Always great coffees, fantastic bagels and lovely staff

Much improved from my last visit. Service excellent and food very tasty. My only comment, is that portions are quite small, but you come to expect that from this sort of place.

The service is excellent and staff are very attentive. However, the menu is limited and the food is not good value. Food is overpriced and not great quality. This is a real shame as it spoils the experience.

Really lovely food and a lovely waitress. For lunchtime the music was a little loud as we found ourselves talking loud to hear each other !

Came for Sunday brunch it was excellent everyone we encountered was helpful service was excellent

Very enjoyable fathers day meal - delicious food & drinks but a little pricey!

Limited menu but good steak. Poor choice of no-alcohol drinks. A bit noisy!

My friends and I were visiting Hitchin and we had dinner at this restaurant on a recommendation by a local. Their Seared Seabass was so brilliantly delicious , that we could not stop raving about it. Their Chef Oliver Steward, was so kind, that he taught us how he made it. I do not usually write reviews but I had to share the experience. It is a gem of a place with a wonderful ambience, attentive waiters and a master chef.

We visited Hermitage today for a Sunday Roast lunch. It was excellent. I chose Beef and my partner had Chicken, both were beautifully prepared and presented. All of the team there are energetic and helpful, and Junker, who looked after us was great. Look forward to returning soon

I’ve come to the restaurant numerous times but yesterday was the first time I had the roast and just wow 👌🏼 I will be back! Best roast I’ve had in a while, it was delish!

Really lovely evening! Food was so good. We will return. Thank you

Excellent! Didnt expect that they treated a free dessert with a candle for the birthday person. Thanks for the outstanding service!

Fantastic service. Very welcoming and friendly staff. To top it all of the food was delicious 😋

An excellent Sunday lunch with great service provided by lovely people. Food was great, super wine list and atmosphere was spot on.

After many great experiences at this restaurant we’ve found the service to be getting slower and slower more recently. 30 minutes for a round of drinks. 45 mins for starters on one occasion. We’ve visited twice in one month and we do love this place and the food is very good. The staff are superb but the service is just slow. For the price point there is room for improvement.

Really nice venue, food was really good and the actual building itself is really interesting. Unfortunately male toilets were out of order but the service and food were both exceptional on the evening.

Haven’t been to HR for a while, great food on the set lunch menu and attentive service. I will be back!!!!

FYI they charge £2 for water (filtered tap water) and there is a 12.5% "discretionary" fee. Food was good but not great.

Bar service shocking, no acknowledgement of one standing there, no eye contact, bar not even busy. Food service even worst, given a menu and after 15 minutes had to go and find someone, now what is a real worry is the fact the young man who took the food order bid not ask about allergies, plates not cleared away after we had finished. Had to ask them to be removed even though 2 members of staff came over to take drinks orders

Lovely food and absolutely lovely service. We were made to feel really welcome with our 2 year old and the grandparents. We were sat in a booth with a fab high chair attached to the table for my son, he loved it! The waiting staff were really nice and attentive. Really impressed 😊

Delicious oysters. Great friendly service

Steak and chips was really good. Decor and atmosphere good.

Ordered a scone with jam and cream,was More like a tea cake and didn't enjoy it Staff said they would tell the supplier, As from 75 miles north found it a bit expensive too,,, sorry

Too many people sitting on laptops taking most of the tables set up for 3-4 people. Maybe they can sort out a single seated area for these customers.

Everything was wonderful especially Amy and the nice lad that served me sadly forgot his name, it's my age!

Booking recommended as it is quite busy.

really wonderful atmosphere and the staff are just delightful . The food was ok , not as good as my last visit and i did think the mains were a bit pricey - well mine was as it was mostly rice with spices and a few mushrooms - but then i should have gone for the set menu which is excellent value for money..... For a cool night out in a great venue with lovely staff and fab cocktails i will definitely be back x

We were a group of 5 celebrating a big birthday we had a lovely evening staff were very friendly and helpful with cake and service, bar staff were great and made some amazing cocktails food was really good lots to choose from and catered for all dietary requirements. The lady on reception was really lovely friendly and helpful my only negative would be that there was a big party that took over the whole of the bar area so we didn’t have anywhere to sit for our pre drinks but other than that great evening.

Lovely staff, good was fab. Very noisy which can be an issue if you have anyone with hearing loss with you. Lovely atmosphere though.

Great setting, engaging and helpful staff, wonderful food.

Just had our first meal here and will definitely be coming back. The setting is excellent, the food is phenomenal and the service is exceptional. This place came highly recommended and it delivered. Just wonderful. Thank you HRB&R!

Love the place but let down by the food I had the sweet potato curry it was poor