Restaurants at The Ickworth Hotel in St Edmundsbury

The hotel and the grounds are lovely. The restaurant however is abysmal. we ordered two scones and a cheese and pickle sandwich. This took over 35 minutes and when the sandwich arrived it looked like it had been made by monkeys. Imagine 99% pickle oozing out the side of two slices of thin cheap bread. Couldn't see any cheese whatsoever. I honestly don't think this was prepared by a chef. The staff were clearly flustered, we could hear other tables complaining and I suspect someone just cobbled it together. Embarrassing.

Afternoon tea booked for a birthday (noted in the booking) with dog. Checked on booking last week and double checked on dog and I was informed we would be in the conservatory. Arrived 15 minutes early to the hotel with the dog and were told we would be in the conservatory. At the conservatory informed we were in a different room. Bearing in mind there were only two people present in the conservatory! We were shown to an empty warm carpeted room with drab stained chairs and were not given a choice of which table to sit at and given a table behind the door. Ordered tea (were not provided with a choice) . Ordered sparkling water which arrived in an unsealed bottle and it was barely sparkling. 35 mins after arriving and really forgotten about I walked to ask where the cream tea was and informed it was being made’fresh’. It arrived with no explanation about the deserts and was anything but ‘fresh’. Hard corners of bread. Warmed scones that went cold and rock hard and dry. To top all of this they automatically added a 20% tip. I did not have the strength to reduce this. It was a huge disappointment and I would not recommend. Their ‘waggy tails tea’ welcome was non existent. No acknowledgement of my daughter’s birthday. As I say disappointed.

I had the burger which was absolutely awful with no sauces to counter the dried out taste. The service was not compatible to the high prices charged, we had to ask for the correct cutalry. Certainly not woth the £ 200÷ for 3 people.

We had a lovely experience here. They have a great menu and enjoyed our meal in a very nice dining area.

Always been good, the food and the service. I come to Ickworth for work; to use the presentation spaces. The staff make things go smoothly for me. The surroundings are lovely and the facilities good.

Really good atmosphere, really nice food and drinks service was good.

Lovely surroundings to enjoy a traditional Afternoon Tea.

Had a terrible experience. Rump steak was tiny. No check back No offer of condiments. Dirty water glass. Was very disappointed. The rest of Ickeorth House is excellent , really disappointed with the restaurant.

Went for afternoon tea for 3 people. Took a long time to bring the order and there seemed to be a lot of confusion from staff about which one was standard, which was gluten free and which was the child's. Multiple back-and-forth trips to the kitchen ensued. When the food finally arrived it turned out to be very small portions given the high price. Vegetable sticks for the child were dried out, as if they'd been lying around for hours. A weird banana cake infused with thyme that was inedible. GF scones were cold to the touch. The lone macaron had no flavour at all. There was a single slab of dry chocolate cake. Staff seemed perpetually confused and the food was bad. Making it worse was the £95 cost, which is frankly rude given the poor quality and small portions. Spoiled a nice family day out at Ickworth.

Thoroughly enjoyed our first visit here for Sunday Lunch. The menu is seasonal and varied each week. Really enjoyed the salmon and roast beef. The food was excellent and well presented. The location is lovely being set in the idyllic grounds of Ickworth house. The atmosphere is family friendly and the hospitality is brilliant. Front of house staff make sure everything is perfect. We will definitely be back.

Birthday treats... wish we hadn't bothered. Not returning customers for sure. Definitely not fine dining. Very overpriced, average food of small portions and not very well presented. Fish curry contained mussel meat which had been so overcooked that the meat was almost non existent. I wish I'd taken photos! Desert was so expensive for what it was. We were also unaware that we could've eaten our meals other than in the conservatory.

Lilly one of the staff is just brilliant. Patient, helpful and knowledgeable. Thanks for making our evening brilliant.