Smugglers Cove in Tendring

Tip dont order starter as then your mains order is put to back and wait for mains is 45 minutes plus

We both had the carvery but because there was not many people in the restaurant,the carvery wasn't hot like it normally is, it was just lukewarm and there wasn't much choice of vegetables,but apart from that everything else was ok.

Food was OK, nothing special. Service was good and staff are lovely. Atmosphere isn't the same. Used to visit Smugglers often, and it was welcoming.

This place as just had a total makeover and looks great the carvery as gone and that is now part of the restaurant with a new menu the food was very nice and the service was fast and friendly worth a visit £25 to £30 a head

Very warm and quick welcoming. Bar staff were all lovely and chatty which made it more welcoming. Food was very presentable and good value for money. Will definitely be returning.

Well this pub has had a new lease of life great entertainment line up sport on tvs, carvery gone,, but food food is still as good,

Great atmosphere, friendly staff and helpful, food was nice and accommodating for kids, would recommend, great for families

The food was lovely, reasonable price and the staff were very helpful. The pub looked great too

We had a delicious lunch and a couple of drinks at the aviator, staff were so helpful.

Came in late and had one of the best roasts I’ve ever tasted. Big plates and top quality food. I’ll definitely make this a regular spot of mine.

An absolutely delicious roast dinner - much better than the old carvery format. So hot, fresh and amazing service. Love the refit!

Lovely welcome and showed to our table. There were 4 of us and all enjoyed their meal and yummy desserts. Staff very friendly and helpful so overall lovely experience which catered well for gluten free too. Will certainly be back.

we have been a number of times now with family, sons and their wives and children, twice with grandsons and a couple on our own we have never been disappointed

Staff are not attentive, waited a long time to be seated whilst staff ignored us or finished their conversations. Drinks didn’t arrive within 20 minutes and staff were disinterested when I went to the bar to collect them and check our order came through. Member of staff cleaning the area wasn’t around to help as she was having a private conversation with friends. Food was quite nice, portions were decent. Probably wouldn’t go again due to the poor experience with staff.

It’s great to be able to sit and have a drink, more of a pub atmosphere. Lots of people there, definitely a change for the better

3 of us went to lunch, was surprised, it was really nice, clean, staff was great, food good if you are going , best to book

Good food, great service and good prices.

The staff were very polite and helpful, dealing with a request for a dish to be chaged slightly, without any fuss. We had a great experience lovely food, atmosphere and the prices are on par with other establishments. Having a voucher meant we could indulge ourselves with some delicious deserts. All in all had a fantastic time and would definitely return. In addition I think it will be a new stop off place when we walk our dogs at brook park. Especially sitting outside when the weather is great in the sun, with my lady, dogs and a great pint. Nothing would make me happier. Thank you to all the staff both front of house and those in the kitchen etc, you all did exemplary. Takecare all and kindest regards Chris.

Would have got 5 stars but some food and drinks not available

Good all round service.staff great. Good food.

I had my birthday here there was 10 of us. The fish was horrible with no flavour, had better from Aldi. The steaks were over cooked. The food over all wasn't great One of the waitress tried to put a spoon that had fallen on the floor back on the plate but another member of staff stopped her and told her she can't do that. So make us all wonder how many times has she done that. It looks lovely inside but I'm not going out to eat somewhere for the interior. So the food really needs to step up. I probably won't return unless it's because I have been invited by a friend for a birthday ect shame I tried this place several times when it was the smugglers cove and wasn't impressed and it's the same now but with a new name.

We dined in and want to say how dissatisfied we were with the whole experience. The booking was at 4.30pm. When we went to order food, for the second time in two visits there were items not avaliable on the menu. Today it happened to be cheese and tomato pasta for our granddaughter which was the main reason for the visit. So after having to choose something else for her to eat we waited for the food. Now here's the second issue. Twice when we were still eating someone came up to our table and started removing empty plates when someone at the table still hadn't finished eating. This should not happen. I appreciate it's a busy week but we felt totally rushed and unappreciated. To top it all off when my friend had literally put her wine glass down, someone else swooped past and took the glass off the table. I still had drink left. If this is how you treat regular patrons (we used to visit the Smugglers Cove on a regular basis) then it's unlikely we'll continue to visit. Taking into account, I used to visit even during covid times to support the business. Also since the refurbishment, the table spacing is so close that when someone sat at the next table the seat backs were touching. Again, we felt rushed to the point that we just left after 45 minutes of what I believe to be an hour and a half booking? Being asked constantly 'are you done?' is not the way to make diners feel welcomed.

Noisy and ok if you're happy ordering by app or at the bar - I prefer proper waitress service.

Food was hot and tasty. Service was quick although it was not really busy.

So dissapointed this was our go to place to eat 4 of us ordered 1 meal was okay The other 3 of us had awful meals cold chips bun on burger had to be sent back as it wasn’t toasted as for the alterations the tables are so close together you can’t move no courtesy checks will not be booking again such a pity

Service very good, food very nice and menu has alot of variety. Good value too. Modern and spacious. Would recommend.

Generally a nice place to go for something to eat

Always love coming to smugglers cove and enjoy the food although this time I had 2 bits of meat that were both the end bits and couldn't eat them.

Staff like robots kids left to run riot. Change of name and change of atmosphere and enjoyment

Nice clean room, plenty of tea/coffee, great location for my needs , would definitely stay again.

RIP SMUGGLLERS COVE. We have eaten regularly at the smuggler's cove over the past 5 years. We wanted to try it out after the refit. The staff are still friendly and helpful and it looks nice but I think it was better before. I didn't understand why it changed from a nice family venue to a sports bar. The food is quite expensive for Clacton now and I thnk it is better than before, but it took over an hour to turn up. Also the choice of puddings was very limited so we left without having any.

Our table was booked for 6pm. Table wasn't ready for us until 6.20. Food took 45 minutes to come and that was after we had to change three meals as they had run out. And one of our meals came out wrong, so they had to redo it. Even our icecream took over half hour to come out.

Took too long to be served between courses considering how fast they were when it reopened this is 100 times slower

Would not recommend. 15 minutes wait for table even though we booked online 45 minutes wait for mains 50 minutes wait for desert When I complained I was told by the manager very abrupt that she only had one cook one potwasher and that that's how it is now. The revamped has not worked with poor management like this. To top this all of there was 6 people behind the bar not doing much... What a dampen to my clacton holiday...

Lovely staff.clean tidy. Great food

Excellent staff and service, really nice tasty food Karen and kiren were really good

Lovely refit of the old smugglers bar. Liking the new vibe and glad to see new and more staff onsite. Drink are a little pricey but the atmosphere covers for that. Not eaten much there other than the odd starter bit so far so good. Well done guys keep up the good work. 👍👍

Staff helpful. Lisa waitress worked really hard

Fantastic, just been refurbished, great food,great choice of beer and fantastic sports bar

It used to be table service at the Smugglers and I expected the same to happen in the Aviator, so I am really disappointed that orders are at the bar. This means I and friends and family are less likely to go. I want to sit and relax when I go out for a meal..

Excellent customer service. Knowledgeable staff around Coeliac disease and cross contamination. Great menu with lots of choice. My daughter enjoyed having a burger WITH a bun which is a novelty and I was happy as I didn't have to provide extra gf food to accompany her meal. We shall return!

Have been to Smugglers Cove (now the aviator) many times, and have always had a good experience. We were looking forward to trying out The Aviator (previously Smugglers cove) now it has been refurbished. Was very disappointed. It's changed from a family friendly restaurant, to a pub/sports bar. Was too noisy. No longer offered table service, you now have to go up to the bar and que, or use the app. To be honest, didn't even stay to try the food. Was looking forward to a nice meal, but with the football on, it was too noisy. So we left. Was going to explain to the staff, but couldn't find anyone.

Such a shame this place has changed, we dined there on many occasions over the years, but went this week after refurbishment & was very disappointed, made it into 2 bars, we went to the family one & it was much smaller & not a lot of room between tables. PLEASE bring back the carvery, will not be using it anymore.

Lovely welcoming venue fantastic Irish manager, with great sense of humour. Excellent food & great service

Top notch staff, clean and comfortable. Good night, stay in the hotel. The evening meal was fantastic. Breakfast was made even better by the manager Liam. My partner enjoyed meeting another Liam.

Have been here a few times and stayed at the hotel. The restaurant is such a great atmosphere and the staff in there are absolutely first class. Very very friendly, make you feel welcome and the food is beautiful.. Would absolutely love to work here. I will definitely be back again ***

Really good service and quick with food. So great for kids. Also has a little park outside for kids.

Very welcoming & quick to take our order. We all had a regular carvery which had a good choice of meats & vegetables. The only problem was the beef was not as tender as it normally is. A bit disappointed with that but overall a pleasant experience.

Delicious! First timer here and won’t be my last!

Situated in a retail park on the outskirts of Claton town centre, The Aviator provides traditional pub food, combined with a good friendly atmosphere. Those of you who like to watch sport and have a meal this would a perfect choice with the multiple TV screens. Ample parking available. That said, the women's toilet needed to be aired and cleaned.

Very tasty steak perfectly cooked lovely hot chips and good value steak.and drink 12.95

Absolutely shocking behaving !!! Most the staff were rude when asked questions regarding the food and also Food was dry and presented appalling and the plates were hot and the food was warm.desert given without spoons or forks and had to wait 10 tens for a spoon while the girl we asked for them from was stood talking to other members of staff at the front and also my nan who has coeliac was given a normal apple crumble instead of a gluten free one (thankfully she didn’t eat it and double checked with staff). When she got her apple crumble it had no ice cream or custard because apparently the gluten free apple crumble doesn’t come with anything even though it says it does come with custard but the staff said it doesn’t so it’s false advertisement..safe to say we shall never be returning after the awful experience

Updated refurbishment lovely but very similar design as to other local establishments Food could be hotter

It’s such a shame it was my leaving do that my colleagues had booked 20 of us it was very busy told only 1 roast left slow service wrong dinners brought out food really not up to standard 20 people who won’t return and who tell others about their experience !!

Really disappointed with our visit today. It was chaotic and we waited for 20 mins for someone to take our order and then 40 mins to receive the food. My grandson wanted the kids pasta dish and it was unavailable, he then decided on the kids curry and that was also unavailable. The food order for me was incorrect and had to be sent back. The food seemed dry and details such as gravy etc was forgotten. We then waited a further 35 mins for desert and had to chase it up. We concluded the separate sections to the restaurants causes more confusion and seems pointless. We have been regular customers to the old Smugglers Cove and whilst the service was frequently poor we tolerated this because the food was good. However, today the food was poor and the service was worse than previously. I really had high hopes for the new Aviator that the service would improve but feel disappointed that it remains poor and now with the added confusion of the separate sections and the poor food. I think we may now be looking for another regular ‘go to’ family restaurant.

We dined here for Mother's Day this year and god I wish we hadn’t. My mother had a roast that was missing some components, the Yorkshire was rock solid and had to be sent back and she had a mushroom within her meat which was from someone else’s food very shocking, all our food was cold and burnt at the same time?. Me and my friends ordered a chicken burger each which comes with gravy this wasn’t in the plate and once we asked about it we were told it would be shortly and never arrived. Nobody came to ask us how are meal was throughout our experience which again was not great. Overall the food took too long to arrive and when it did the quality was not good. Such a shame as the pub itself is lovely decorated and the staff were friendly. I will not be returning here again and I would not recommend to anyone in the future. plus note there is a McDonald’s over the road so go there instead.

Awful. Food was largely inedible. Service nonexistent as you have to order at the bar then reminded them we had ordered an hour later! The ‘restaurant’ is actually now just a pub with a cramped eating area where they’ve crammed in extra tables so there’s no space to actually eat. This was a good restaurant when it was the Smugglers Cove but now my recommendation is to avoid it at all costs. Overpriced and rubbish.

Peaceful and enjoyable stay, friendly staff, food was great.

We attended The Aviator on the 29th March 2025. Our food took 45 minutes to come out and was not up to a good standard. My nephew (9 years old) complained that the child's burger meal was spicy and he has felt sick since. My niece (13 years old) has ended up with D&V after a mac and cheese meal, the steak on the mixed grill was fatty and chewy, my Partner that had the mixed grill has suffered with his stomach since, chicken on a different meal was tough and chewy and that meal was not eaten after 1 bite of the chicken, the lasagna that I had was tasteless and i have felt ill and have had bad bowels since. Our total bill came to over £100, I can honestly say that we will NOT be returning here.

What a great night we had. We came with family there was 11 of us in total. The restaurant was super busy and yet the food still arrived piping hot and in a timely manner..all the food was lovely. The staff were all friendly and helpful a special shout out to Liam the manager and Brooke. No complaints throughout. There was a live band. So we stayed for that after and the music was outstanding and the whole atmosphere of the new bar area was so lovely to see. A much needed improvement I'd say and I really look forward to more love music events etc. Thank you to the whole team for a great evening

Well what can I say Start with drinks good selection but red wines not as advertised no merlot no malbec as advertised just a vinegar red house wine with the excuse "we have no input into what they send we just get what they have and the menu is just a guide" beer flat as if glasses had grease on them. Food starters cauliflower wings and onion bhaji too well done virtually burnt. Soup with no flavour. Shortage of sauces on dishes mint dressing stale bread. Mains again lack of detail with half the component missing from prawn salad and no tartar sauce with the scampi. Yes we did complain and they sorted it. Offer of free drinks declined. no refund requested or offered. BUT they have been open for 3 weeks and either they have not been trained properly or the lack of detail is down to inexperienced staff in the kitchen some body should be supervising you would hope. The resturant staff can't be at fault but it has changed for the worse, I can see this just being just another sports bar that you can't have a conversation with the person next door due to the noise and just drink and watch sports. Yes they were relatively busy but I can't see them coping with the summer season on the resturant side judging by the amount of tables that complained and left leaving plates just pecked at. Sorry to say something has to change and if this is the way they are going I do not think it will survive with serving food. Just my opinion I am sure some people have had fantastic experiance. Unfortunately not us. And yes we will not return

We visited as a family service was shocking. Ordered some drinks from a member of staff got told customers drink guiness out of a can wtf. Was shocked when wanted a glass and had to pour it myself other half's drink also had to pour ourselves. Worst of all we had to wait for hour and a half for food was ridiculous evey customer complaining about the wait. Food was ok but certinaly not worth the wait the venue is clearly run by inexperienced teenagers seemily front and back of house. We won't be visiting again that's for sure

Great night. Atmosphere was lovely and everyone enjoyed it. Great band playing tonight too😄

Superb food and service. Band playing tonight and they were brilliant. Great evening and lovely atmosphere 😄. Family night out and everyone enjoyed it.

As expected for a pub restaurant. Staff are polite and efficient.

Good idea for Sports Bar / Family Restaurant, hope standards continue!

Had dinner here for my mum's birthday and was made to feel welcome. Friendly staff, good choice of food and drink and a very relaxed atmosphere.

Unfortunately I wouldn’t recommend or be returning. The environment was extremely chaotic and enclosed! Tables wedged in as tight as possible, can’t even move your seat without hitting the person behind you. The ordering system of going to the till or an app takes away the relationship with the staff and also makes it a pain when ordering for a table where the bill needs to be split! We ordered and it took 15 minutes to receive drinks and 25 minutes to receive starters! We did a second order for another starter as we changed our mind, the waitress said to just do a second order and it’ll be added, it came out 25 minutes after the first lot! Ridiculous. After starters the waiter came and asked if we were waiting for desserts! Just a shambles. 3 tables walked out after being seated. The new upgrade of blocking it into 2 sections was an awful idea. We had 5 different servers which again you don’t build a rapour with anyone so also it makes your staff miss out on tips. Albeit the food was nicer than it ever has been, it’s being let down by the chaotic way it’s being ran

Disappointing birthday meal. I asked for a Bacardi and coke and got Malibu and coke. Had bbq cauliflower wings that were cooked too much, like little crisps. Main meal asked for vegan tortillas. Got no vegan chilli and very little sauces. Really just a bowl of tortillas for £9.99. Told the staff but no offer of free drink or reduction in meal. Very disappointed as went last week and it was delicious.

Staff are very friendly. Restaurant was very busy when we arrived but signifficantly quieter shortly after sitting down. Menu is not great, with the exception of the grill, all are Brakes style bought in products. I get why in today's climate and this is no different than your competitors do, but Harvester have the 'free' salad bar and Hungry Horse are much cheaper than you. You can't provide comparable products to Hungry Horse but charge a lot more.

Food was cold, had to ask for missing Yorkshire puddings, as well as watch the awful display of junior staff having no idea what to do

We found that although it was busy, it was very well organised. Our food arrived quickly. The manager came over to ask if everything was OK and if we needed anything else. The staff were friendly and due to all of the above, we will definitely visit again.

Great pub, clean and very efficient service. Fantastic pub for the whole family.

Extremely friendly staff (even my children complimented in it) Excellent efficient food service Food was amazing quality Have already booked to come again and the children are keen to come and watch the football in their new local pub 😀

Excellent vist with family great food and atmosphere ,massive improvement from previous ,very friendly manager Liam clean looking staff we will definitely return . Thank you

Our first visit following the renovation. A massive greeting from the lovely manager Liam who was genuinely interested in our feedback. Great team, looked very smart and professional. Food was really good. We all 5 of us had different items but all really enjoyed them. Generous portions too. Good luck Aviator, you deserve it!

Great food, great staff and very clean! Liam and his team are amazing! Will be going back without a shadow of a doubt. Highly recommend!

We entered as a perfectly healthy family of 4 on my birthday around 6.30pm on the 18th March and as I write this at 9.48am on the 19th March my 3 year old son is still being uncontrollably sick. Me, my wife, my daughter and my son have all been Sick/Diarrhea throughout the night. Seriously look into your food hygiene/re-heating/contamination!!!

Great place to eat and sleep the staff and service was great We love the referb We come here 3 to 4 times a year from leicester

We had the most wonderful tasty Sunday roast and we Sunday roast it all sorts of places and this has to be the best. It was amazing compliments to the chef. We will definitely be having this as our new place to have Sunday dinner. It was plenty of fold lots of vegetables absolutely beautiful and the staff were friendly and couldn’t be more helpful. Highly recommended.

Fantastic looking pub after a a time being closed! Was seeing family and popped in for a bite tons eat!!!

This place had the best carvery around the go to place with family and friends. Not anymore the revamp has ruined it. The carvery has been scrapped. Slapped on plate roast dinner is terrible. This has gone from a warm family restaurant to a noisy self service sports bar. 5 years of good tines are over. Will not use again. Unbelievable refit for the worse.

Great food, accommodating and friendly staff. Would definitely recommend coming here for a lovely meal with family.

All okay , reasonably priced , service was very good , food was okay

Food good and reasonable prices, bar prices though too expensive

Excellent service from staff and manager, absolutely delicious dinner!

Phoned about booking table for carvery, no longer do this OMG 😲 best meal they done totally ruined it, will not be going there anymore 😭

Great food and service. Really good value for money. We’ll definitely be back. Remodelling of the place looks fab.

We were a party of 8. Although we had a wait, being the waitress was really busy, we all had a great meal, no complaints, our waitress was good.

Food good, but now an order at the bar, queues at the bar, carry drinks through a busy pub, have to go back to the bar to order more drinks/dessert. Not for us!

Nice welcome not over the top.slightly long wait for food.but all very good when arrived.again staff checked everything ok a couple of times again done nicely

Honestly, may have been a busy day (Valentines) lunch wasn't good. The left hand side searing area was like being in a totally diffrent pub, felt very old school eastend. Sorry

Excellent all round stay.Staff sooooo friendly and helpful,food gr8 value for money as well as very tasty.Room was very comfy as was the huge most comfortable bed ever,great night's sleep.Thank you smugglers for a fantastic experience. Defo see you all:again in the near future.

Guests fighting in the night, had to leave at 3 am due to son being very distressed. Messaged hotel but been ignored. Cannot comment on food as ate out

Cannot rate food as didn’t eat anything

Went for breakfast at Smugglers cove, staff were very friendly made us welcome and couldn’t do enough. Tea, coffee and juice were unlimited, pastries, fruit, cereal and toast were all included with the cooked breakfast. We could swap items on ordering, the food was cooked to order and excellent. Will definitely be going again.

Go about every two weeks, could do with a regular change of menu. Waiting and other staff all very good and pleasant

I come here often. Food is nice, not really had a bad meal or service. I do object to paying extra for a little gravy boat ! You should also be told if there's an extra charge if you ask for more. I've never been charged elsewhere for more gravy. Also the tea pot is tiny, doesn't even fill the cup you're given. They only half fill the pot too. The toilets stink of sewer, it is awful. The locks are broken on doors, they need a revamp.

Popped in for something to eat very nice

reception v good and friendly. room was cleaned to a good standard.but seeing as it was a double room with 2 of us checked in i thought we should have had 2 chairs not 1.