The Huntsman Pantry and Bar in Three Rivers

Waited for a long time without any sign of staff, actually went to the hotel reception to check the restaurant was indeed open, was told yes, they are probably just busy. Eventually got a table and ordered drinks, was told they had Becks Blue as an alcohol free alternative only to be told 5 minutes later that she had dropped the last one. I ordered the Buttermilk Chicken Burger and skin on fries but unfortunately received what can only be described as a wafer thin, bone dry, supermarket ‘smart price’ breaded escalope and oven chips. Now don’t get me wrong, I have no issue with supermarket food but I do not expect to be charged £14 for it! My daughter ordered the mini fish fingers from the children’s menu but ended up with huge, overcooked, greasy fish goujons which remained untouched. Very, very poor.

Tesco’s afternoon tea I think this fittingly Describes what we were met with when we visited the Hunton Park Hotel, on Saturday the 5th March 3pm. Initially went to reception and sent by one member of staff to to one restaurant in a different part of the hotel. Then sent by a second member of staff who directed us to the bar in where the afternoon tea was, at a totally different bar. We waited 15 minutes to be served at the bar, as no one was on serving and there was a wedding on at the same time, that was also waiting for service. When we were served, informed them that we had an afternoon tea booked, they prepped a table for us. We sat down and waited for afternoon tea which were brought in coffee and a very small selection of cakes and sandwiches (emphasis on small). All of which, I can confidently say, purchased from Tesco. The scones were microwaved and went stodgy/soggy in the middle. The cream, question if it was in date? Sandwiches, Tesco meal deal with the crusts cut off. I recognise the distinct taste of the chicken mayo as it directly resembles the one I like from Tesco, in addition, the cakes were clearly the ones you by on the shelf that had been cut up into rations.. not portions. Furthermore, the time it was taken to produce the afternoon tea was about 3/4 minutes max, which lead me to a conclusion it was not ‘fresh’ or indeed, pre packaged. The staff that brought the drinks to us, nearly spilt on us, and exclaimed ‘sh*t’. To top it off. We did not have any plates to eat off, or any cutlery to eat from and when requested cutlery, we got a huff, eye roll and only received the cutlery, by a different member of staff, when I had eaten my stodgy scone. So today I learned a new skill. Applying clotted cream to a scone using a spoon. to give this visit a description… Abysmal, go to Tesco, and do it yourself! On the upside, if you’ve sadly booked to visit/stay here, Harry Potter studios is only up the road and did not disappoint!