The Forge in Cheshire West and Chester

Really lovely restaurant. Nice ambience, food is very good and the team were all so friendly. My burger was a little pink for my liking, however team swiftly checked to see how everything was and popped it back on and it came out perfect! (I know I ruin my food, as I like it a bit more well done so my bad for not advising the restaurant!) Looking at when I can come back next!

We booked here for a Sunday lunch, anticipating lovely roast beef and Yorkshire pudding. The beef was tough. It was advertised to be striploin but appeared to be blade roast. The Yorkshire pudding wasn’t freshly cooked and was as tough as old boots. The peas were frozen, which is fine generally but they certainly weren’t the sweet juicy baby peas. The carrots were also frozen and soggy and quite unappealing. We’re giving two points. One for the gravy and one for the horseradish.

Tricky one it was nice but not exceptional, butter straight from freezer, roast Luke warm not hot, cheese board like the butter had come straight out of the chiller I like my cheeses at room temperature, the bill did not match the lack of attention to detail, service or the food served not likely to revisit

Wonderful evening at The Forge last night. Place was busy and buzzing… lovely ambience.. Cocktails delicious… and strong… Food was yummy and plentiful.. Would certainly recommend.. Service was spot on

No lovely bar staff made us feel welcome how ever food not so good we where early doors are anvesary wife ordered starter as I did always try q starter in a new restaurant cos if they can't get that right please move on don't wait to have everything then complain and expect a refund come on guys you know how it works! Food as a starter was rubbish! So we didn't order a main Head Chef didn't seem to understand poor waiter's havein to explain no get the head chef out let him explain so sorry fantastic front of house but Chef be accountable for your cooking

Coffee stop. Best I've ever had. Lovely furnishings in lounge area and nice variety of Jazz music. Clean and well kept place with staff that look clean, hygienic and sensible. Place did not look open, but lunch or dinner service weren't on. It is structurally part of a hotel. I want to visit here again. I'd be extremely happy to dine here too.

Arrived very early for our booking (40mins) and despite the restaurant being fairly busy for the time, we were very well looked after and Sean the manager couldn’t do enough for us to make us feel comfortable while we waited at the bar and had a cocktail. Once we were sat the service was snappy but not pushy in the way that you come to expect in high calibre dining. We had a sharing ribeye (medium) and it was melt in the mouth. Beats Upstairs at the Grill for me.

Came here during the Chester races the experience was fantastic, great team, great service, food and drinks are all top notch and i'd recommend to anyone walking down from the train station to consider this great place.

Fantastic visit celebrating a birthday. Staff went out of their way to make it a special occasion for us. Great experience. Really appreciated that the restaurant manager went the extra mile for us even though the birthday boy was an Everton fan lol

Great food and fantastic service from Josh and Cam. Sharing steaks are a must! Enjoyed watching the open kitchen and perfectly recommended wine. Look forward to going back soon!

Had a evening meal at forge this summer bank holiday, (Sunday menu) Me and my partner wished we had never bothered, Over priced steak Over priced wine Poor starter choice so we opted out at the ordering process which the waitress pressured us to have a few. We declined the starters and ordered a sharing fillet steak 900g Moments later another waiter came over and asked again are we sure we dont want starters we declined again, we wanted starters but they wasn't a good choice on Sunday menu. We then got pressured into a expensive bottle of wine, Food came at a good time Then to top it off steak came blue in the centre all slimey we asked for medium not so bloody, it came dripping, Service charge already added was disappointing as-well they did not impress us at all the staff seemed bored of their job Paid 200 + for a poor amount of service and food We had a maccies at Cheshire oaks on the way home 10/10 their 👍

Great time, absolute top service! Tom at the bar is an asset to the company!

Having been disappointed on our last visit, I can gladly say that I was very happy this time. Had a good cocktail pre dinner and a nice glass of red with the Sunday lunch, the beef was cooked perfectly

Not a great experience Food average triple cooked chips (frozen chips) that Says enough. Service well lacked it all. Not intentive at all more interested in stood chatting. Wouldn't be eating here again

Had lunch here on Friday and I have to say it was fantastic! Cami served us and was knowledgeable and friendly. The background music was chilled and we thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Would most definitely recommend this place and look forward to our return.

Service, food, drinks & atmosphere all top notch. We were excellently looked after from start to finish. Knowledge staff with great steak recommendations. Will be back soon

Service was good enough and food was tasty but small portions for a lot of money! Wine list equally v pricey. Restaurant was empty on a Saturday night - wonder why. There’s no parking anywhere near the restaurant and some limited parking a shortish walk away, so all things taken into consideration I can’t recommend as a destination venue.

Amazing meal for anniversary - Service is exemplary and the food is beautiful! The most chocolatey white chocolate mousse we have ever had. Only one vegetarian option per course but they were executed to such a high standard it was an excellent experience. High quality produce used and thoughtfully, sustainably sourced meats.

Amazing food. Price that is eye watering with service charge to boot. Save this place for a special occasion. It'll be worth it.

First visit to Chester and staying at the Hotel Indigo. Previous similar stays the restaurants at Indigos are very good - this experience was not so ! Table felt as if it was the naughty corner despite being plenty of other tables. Next to a door that fed the back of the kitchen so was constantly banging from the other side. Starter okay. Main meal, where do you start ? Chefs your take on Sunday roast needs reviewing. One slither of fatty beef and not even a full chicken breast for nearly £25. You need to visit Yorkshire where they get it right. Desert, that was very questionable too. BlackBerry crème brûlée was like yoghurt and the ginger cake was like a brick. We certainly don’t mind paying for good food but this was far from good. Too many nice restaurants in the area to serve food to this standard.

An absolutely delicious Sunday roast. Everything was delicious. Maybe a bit less salt in gravy and it would be outstanding. The beef is the best I’ve tasted

Had an amazing Sunday lunch. We have been before and never been disappointed. Food and service was superb. We were a family of 6. 2 children and 4 adults.

Food was nice . Service average never asked if our food was ok . Had a voucher from buy a gift then got told they don’t do them , got charged £28 for 2 glasses of wine then they put VAT on top of the food & drink , won’t be going again 👎🏼

Attentive staff and great food. Steaks were cooked to perfection. Ox cheek bon bons out of this world good.

Best food I’ve had in Chester. I’ll let you decide what that means.

Fantastic restaurant . Great Sunday lunch and we will be back again

I had gluten-free options, which were excellent.

Quiet night, even though it was a Thursday. Service very slow, and VAT was added to the price on the menu!

Had full English breakfast on the 29th May, we were sitted by the most lovely lady host as we entered made us feel so welcome, breakfast was well cooked abit cold but ok, very clean place and the waitres was very nice always smiling, a gentleman in black cleaning tables making sure the place stays clean, the whole team that morning were lovely. Thank you to the lovely lady host.

Stay away,use use your money another place

Most wonderful meal and service... Well and Worthily recommended. However. The Chef constantly on a mobile device in Front of House was somewhat Unprofessional 😳

We were booked in the restaurant on Sunday evening having also booked into the hotel we were disappointed to find that it was only the Sunday lunch menu.. this is not well documented on the website.. as it was my birthday meal we were looking forward to a lovely dinner I’m sorry to say the Sunday lunch was terrible, the beef and lamb was chewy and sinuey and not off a roast joint. Most of it was left. the veg lacked imagination peas and carrots, the Yorkshire’s overcooked and dry.. the roast potatoes well overcooked and tasteless..the ham hock croquettes were crispy and overcooked and the pardon peppers lacked taste. the dinner was not warm either.. The duty manager tried his best to put it right, but won’t be back, went to bed very dissatisfied and disappointed..

Pleasant setting next to the Indigo Hotel. Nice variety of dishes prepared well both to the eye and pallet. Good service.

Delicious - Ribeye steak picked from fridge. Veg was tasty, Recommend the Dirty Mash!

One of the best steaks I've had! 800g sirloin off the bone, sliced up perfectly, cooked near enough infront of me. Accompanied by a side of dirty mash, this was glorious. Kudos to the chefs behind the scenes

Food is delicious, full of big flavours and great presentation in a visible kitchen. Staff are very attentive, and ambient is cozy. Lack of vegetarian options in the menu. Only one main? Try two and maybe I will come back. Marlish water overpriced. It's just water not holy water come on!

Nice cosy restaurant and the staff are extremely friendly and attentive. The appetizer bread was very tasty but what ever you do, keep away from the steaks!!! Cost me about £80 for a piece of meat which was unfortunately tasteless and had a very strong and overpowering meaty scent!

The service was not as good as the meal, we came to the restaurant for a birthday meal they wrote us a nice card but they took our order and took about an hour before our starters came out. It was just over an hour and a quarter before our mains came out, they got one main wrong after clarifying twice which main we ordered. We also asked for a desert for our dairy free friend twice before they rectified it and got us something that he could eat. But apart from the incompetence of the front of house staff we had a great meal that show the skill of the chef.

Excellent food and service. Helen our server was knowledgeable and efficient. Let down by being slight squashed in a corner table and the use of large industrial wine glasses for the Port and Pudding wine that slightly spoilt the last course.

Disappointing long evening meal for us. Something delayed our main 1 hour after the starter and dessert over half an hour after ordering. The food definitely prioritises presentation over taste. Sadly, I can't say I would recommend The Forge to anyone.

We had very high expectations of this place but unfortunately it ended up being a bit of a disappointing experience for us. The food was okay but nothing to rave about.

We were not very happy with the food, very small portions. We were given this meal with a bottle of wine as a Christmas gift, when we arrived we were shown to a very small table in the corner, in front of a private door. And when we asked for our wine, we was given a small glass of wine. The pork was almost raw. We will not be returning. The parking is very very bad. We had to walk at least half a mile.

Quite expensive, no fillet or chateaubriand, which is strange for a predominantly steakhouse, paid around £101 pounds per kilogram for sirloin.

I decided to leave this review after talking to multiple people about my experience and they all confirmed it was an odd one. My experience: I was a guest at the restaurant early this week, courtesy of a surprise birthday meal from my partner. The food was good, and so was the wine selection. The atmosphere was calm and cosy, with a touch of class from the friendly waiters. What went wrong: We had starters and main, with an initial plan for some dessert. At some point during the meal, I excused myself to the bathroom and when I got back my partner had a distraught look on her face. When I asked what happened, she reluctantly told me she had inquired from the waiter that if we ordered some dessert, could it be brought on a plate with the words "happy birthday' written on it. She was then told by a red-faced waiter (who she saw asking the chef multiple times) that "The chef we have in today refuse to do that" This is what I cant seem to understand, and everyone I have spoken to about it agrees. Now... it would be easy to bring in the race thing here, but i cannot see any definitive reason for this. My partner had the thought that the chef maybe did noy want to "cheapen" the dish. Here's my thought on that, if I'm the one ordering the dessert, then surely the dish will be more valued because of the personal service. Either way, I will be paying full price for the dish, even though its been cheapen with the words "happy birthday" Needless to say, that incident ruined the rest of the evening for us and we paid and left as soon as we could. Interestingly, i have been to other brilliant restaurants in Chester like 'Upstairs At The Grill' and 'Sticky Walnut'... they had no problem doing that for their paying customers. In fact, for my previous birthday celebration at Sticky Walnut, no one asked the staffs to do that, but I was presented with a dessert and the words "happy birthday" written on it (SEE ATTACHED PIC FOR STICKY WALNUT DESSERT PICTURE). That meant a lot! Can anyone give an adequate reason why the chefs at The Forge refused to do that?

Went to the forge for a quick birthday meal last night. Bread- I think the bread may have been a day past when I would have served it but It was adequate. Butter I found slightly too salty, flavours were good just a little bit too much salt for my taste. Not sure if the bread contributed to this. Starters- The croquettes are very good, beautifully seasoned, great flavour. Beef cheek- a tad disappointing had to add our own salt as the meat was slightly under seasoned. Decent flavours but a pinch of salt would have made all the difference. Main- Dry aged sirloin, exceptional to be fair and I don’t say that lightly. Beautifully cooked to a perfect medium rare. I’ve had worse steaks in eateries that have and retain stars on a yearly basis. Very very good cookery and fantastic flavour. Sides- Triple cooked chips were light yet flavourful. Nothing special but what can you expect from triple cooked chips. Decent. Dirty mash, highlight of the sides. I wouldn’t bother with the chips next time. That’s not to say they were bad, but the dirty mash made them look very average. Great flavour, beautiful gravy and great texture. Service- Good. The blonde lady (sorry I didn’t catch your name) was attentive and knowledgeable, I also like that they did not stop us during our meal to ask if the food is too our liking, we would have said if it wasn’t and it’s refreshing to see eateries without any stars practicing this. If I’m being really picky when our wine needed topping up it would have been nice not having to pour it ourselves but with 2 waiting staff and a fairly busy evening I don’t think it’s reasonable to expect this. Overall good service. Overall- enjoyed a pleasant meal, steak by far the highlight and really was very very good. Nice quiet ambiance and great music. Also enjoy the open kitchen format, great to see professionals that are passionate about what they do at work. 4 1/2 out of 5 for me. If the beef cheek had a pinch of salt would have been 5.

Phenomenal experience at a delightful venue. Food was consistently outstanding, not the best ever but not too far from it! Service was outstanding, attentive and warm. Will be returning soon.

Wonderful night! Friendliest service we have had for a long while. Food magnificent - and cooked in a visible kitchen area. We had the Sunday roast menu. The best beef sirloin cooked to perfection, and with green veg even I ate. Pudding was lavender and thyme creme brulee. Superb!

Genuinely can not fault it . Great from start to finish. Steak is to die for !

Fabulous meal in relaxed atmosphere. What seemed to be a limited range of options turned out to be a cornucopia of flavours . Beautifully presented dishes and their greatest secret is "dirty mash"; the most incredible side dish full of flavour. Definitely worth a visit even if you're not a hotel guest. Staff really attentive but not intrusive. An open kitchen as well so you can see the passion and attention that goes in to the presentation of each dish.

The young man serving drinks was fantastic, but that's where the enjoyment ended. We ordered steak, which was ordered rare but arrived blue. They had already cut it up so we didn't send it back. I didn't enjoy the steak at all. It was completely tasteless. It was £92 for just the steak itself, which was grossly over priced for the quality. I have had much better steaks for half the price. The service from the food staff wasn't great - we paid the service charge that was added on and didn't enjoy the meal at all, so when the server asked if we wanted change, we said yes. The server presented us with around £6 change all in 10p coins (which we felt was some kind of statement). Finally, we asked for our coats and were given the wrong ones. We had to go into the cloak room with the server to track down ours. The whole experience was a shambles. I feel the restaurant is beautifully presented decoration-wise, but the quality of service and food doesn't match up. The Forge is a bit of a sheep in wolves' clothing. There are plenty of other fine restaurants in Chester, so I would recommend you try one of those.

Stunning meal, fantastic service and great atmosphere being able to see the chefs in action. Highly recommend!!

Impromptu lunch. Absolutely fabulous from the bar to the restaurant. Food was amazing cannot fault it at all. Beautiful surroundings. 😍 will definitely be back!

Sadly disappointing: amazing food let down by the service. Started off so well, really attentive service to sit down and drinks order taken, food order taken, wine poured, etc. Felt really excited at this point that we were in for a great night. Then it just went downhill after that. Waited over 45 minutes for our main meal after the starter, and we had to ask where our food was. After.the dessert the kitchen was being cleared away, staff stood around chatting, nobody asked if we wanted coffee (this was approx 9.45pm). Nobody checked if there was anything else we needed. We had to try and grab someone to ask for the bill. Shame because the food was faultless. If I'm paying this much money I expect more attentive service, from start right though to the end. And they added 12.5% service charge to the bill. Won't be returning.

Attended a business lunch here. The food is excellent, great taste and some nice twists in the preparation. Parking is the only negetive(the lack of any) so walk there or get a taxi.

Excellent food. Lovely staff. Highly recommended! The scallops for starter were definitely the highlight - loved them. Incredible venison for main too. We went for dinner with our 1 year old and the staff were really great with him too.

A truly delicious venison meal with a perfect balance of flavours. A memorable dinner in every way.

Meat was very tasty and scotch egg and sides were good, but I think quite expensive when coupled with the service which was a bit inexperienced, though friendly. Dessert was underwhelming.

Don’t know how anyone can give this a one star !phenomenally good . And super friendly staff . Value for money is amazing and the quality the food is prepared to is outstanding ! Would recommend highly

We visited for lunch yesterday, Friday 22 September. We were greeted by Helen who remained with us throughout our visit. The menu was creative and intriguing at the same time. Dishes were beautifully presented and flavoursome. Helen made us feel really comfortable. She has a serious knowledge of the charity shops in our home town of Frodsham. We had a fabulous visit and Helen is an asset to cherish. Would definitely recommend

Portions are very small for the price but quality and flavors were very nice. Amazing service and all around great choice for a fine dining experience.

Amazing food, really well cooked and presented and lots of interesting choices and twists on original dishes. Staff were also brilliant and the kitchen is open to the seating area so you can get a feel for what's going on! Totally recommend.

The Sunday roast menu was delicious and very tasty. They take care with the food here. Good service and a lovely space!

Genuinely some of the best food I've ever eaten. Excellent service and the restaurant looks amazing. WELL recommend and you won't be disappointed.

Service was good Cramped seating Disappointed with the quality of the steak

Met with friends as we really like meeting at the Forge. Helpful and friendly staff.

Absolutely brilliant, lovely food and cocktails and service was fantastic, we went for lunch and the 3 cocktails menu last Saturday and will definitely be back xx

Had the set lunch menu which was very nice, good service and nice inside.

Lovely service and decor but the food needs a little improvement. Given you’re likely to have steak for main, it would be great to have more fish options for starters. We all had the curried scallops but they weren’t good. The steak & sides were tasty though.

At The Forge, we had the pleasure of trying their wild venison scotch egg, which was hands down the best scotch egg I've ever tasted. The flavours were exceptional, and it left a lasting impression. On the other hand, the sirloin of beef didn't meet my expectations. The fat wasn't rendered down enough, resulting in a chewy texture that was a bit disappointing. One of the highlights was the captivating open kitchen, allowing guests to witness the skilled team in action. However, there were occasional fumes from the open kitchen that was unpleasant at times. Nevertheless, the service team was welcoming and friendly, adding to the overall positive experience.

An absolute amazing experience. The food totally devine, watching the skillful Chefs cook with such passion, working with such Joy along side one another, was delightful to see. Our waiter was extremely friendly and the service from everyone was first class. Thank you for a wonderful evening, we shall most definitely be returning on our next trip to Chester.

My friend and I spent a very enjoyable afternoon at the Jigsaw Fashion Show, at the Forge yesterday. I would like to say the service was excellent. I would like to thank Henry for his excellent customer service, he noticed I hadn't eaten my meal as the Beef was too rare for me and arranged for another meal. That was very much appreciated, Thank you Henry.

The Forge was very busy. Excellent standards and service. Food was very tasty. Highly recommend. Visited the Forge Restaurant last night for a Chef Special 7 course taster menu. Food was delicious with service and standards excellent.

Myself and my wife were treated to Sunday lunch at the forge it wasn't very nice starters just made ok .The Sunday lunch was very poor every thing seemed average roast beef was more like steak my son had to return his meal the meat was to rare he was asked how he wanted his beef by the waitrees he said wanted not red .The waiting on was sloppy and not professional overall a very disappionted and we paid the price 144 pounds 3 people a joke I would not recommend this place

Had Sunday dinner here,very odd place with average food, way overpriced for quality. I will not coming back

Beautiful restaurant .Excellent food and service.

My expectations were high, but everything was just mediocre. Service was awful. My husband and I were the first in the restaurant for the evening, we were given menus and were left sitting for far too long, whilst the staff hung around the bar. Seemingly having a staff meeting? Maybe this should be carried out 'before' any customers are seated in their restaurant? Just came across as VERY unprofessional. Plus, food was just 'OK'. We were not impressed at all. Will definitely not be returning. Would NOT recommend.

Forge is set in the hotel indigo and has a lovely vibe to the place. The food was nice however as with fine dining the portion sizes are very small and I don’t think it was just our table that noticed this. I think I had more meat with the pigeon starter (£12) then I did with the sirloin main (£30). I know it’s fine dining and I am aware you pay a lot more but even at that price the value for money is quite ridiculous. The sirloin was two slices, about a credit card size and 5mm thick. However my partner ordered a fish main and got a huge chunk of fish, so she was very pleased. I over saw the portion sizes of the chicken and pork and again both dishes lacked size on the protein. The sirloin comes with ‘some’ veggies but without the chips (additional cost..I think £6) I would have gone hungry. All in all, it’s a good place to eat but be prepared for small plates The photo is of the pigeon starter, I didn’t take a photo of the main unfortunately due to being sat next two some other guests who kept being a little awkward

If you go with the expectation that the more you pay, the less you get to eat, you won't be disappointed. The food you get is beautifully cooked and presented. Just not much of it. One slice of lamb for £30 was a bit steep. Be sure to order lots of sides.