WinePress at the Donnington Valley in West Berkshire

We had opted for the bottomless option. Starters were ok (dated but good). Mains were poor - chicken was dry, and the offering of pork belly as a roast for £45+ per head should not even be on there! Veg were extremely poor in terms of quality and range compared to similar offerings at other establishments nearby. Pudding was - quite frankly - awful; lemon tart had such a thin layer of filling that barely tasted of lemon. Chocolate ‘Nemesis’ was chewy, small and underwhelming - definitely what you would not normally expect from a chocolate pudding. The bottomless offering was a strong draw; service was great and drinks options were (mostly) ok; wine quality was far in excess of other local competitors. However, overall, the poor food quality meant this was not an option we’d be looking to repeat - a real shame in view of our past custom here.

Excellent Sunday Lunch, probably the best one we have had in and around Newbury! The meat was well cut and tasty as well as carved at your table, so you can select your size of carved meat. My wife had salmon, which is not normally on a Sunday Lunch menu or any fish at all. Had a lovely atmosphere in the restaurant with a singer to add to this along with friendly and helpful staff.

Had a wonderful, memorable meal here on a recent stay. We were well looked after by staff. The menu and the wine list is varied and enticing. My friend and I shared the smoked salmon with cucumber jelly and prawns to start; the prawns were divine (however no finger bowl). For main we both had the lamb rump; which was cooked to perfection, tender and flavourful. For dessert my friend had a perfect homemade looking Bakewell tart and I had the chocolate nemesis which was prettily presented. It really was an excellent 3 course meal.

Service was the redeeming factor here. Everyone was very accommodating and they prepared a nice dessert for my girlfriend’s bday. Food was another story. Flat iron steak to share burnt to a crisp when asked for rare. Using a wedge of meat thicker at one end than the other. Need to change this in method of preparation. We won’t eat here again. When I mentioned it was tougher than old boots I got an “apology and mention to chef.” Not really what you’d expect for £50. T

Had afternoon tea for two booked in the 26th March. Restaurant was practically empty there were 3 other covers in there at the same time as us. Afternoon tea came out which consisted of 8 finger sandwiches, 2 scones and 4 cakes between 2 of us. Tea and coffee was served, one cup each, after being sat there for 40 mins I finally got the waiters attention to ask if we could have some more tea and coffee and some more finger sandwiches. We were told the tea and coffee would come but if we wanted more sandwiches then we needed to pay for them! Have had many an afternoon tea is various hotels and have never been told if you wanted more sandwiches you had to pay for them! £47 wasted in my view. Needless to say will not be going back there for afternoon tea again!

The restaurant is - simply - outstanding. The menu is short but varied, And all 6 of us enjoyed the ambiance, service and, not least, the delicious and well presented food. The Shepherd's Pie and Chocolate Nemesis particularly appreciated by our youngest guests. And I thought the seasonal greens (a side dish) exemplified the chef's skill. Of course, the wine selection is excellent too,

The service was attentive and reasonably friendly. We had starters and then shared the chatesubriand for two.. well cooked with delicious sauces (blue cheese and red wine jus) and chips, however the garnish of cooked tomatoes and limp lambs' lettuce was best left on the side. However, the meal was spoilt by the terrible noise and atmosphere.. little sound insulation meant that everyone needed to shout to be heard and this was only tolerable for an hour. It was like eating in a canteen and altogether made for a disappointing experience.

We were warned the night before that the place had gone down hill which we took with a pinch of salt, thinking the friends were just being fussy. We were wrong. Our booking was 9:30pm because the restaurant was packed apparently. We had a lovely drink in the bar and went down to the restaurant to find it pretty much empty. We were told to order starter, main and choose our dessert right away because the last kitchen orders were 9:30 so felt somewhat harassed. The starter of calamari was reasonable but the crispy chilli beef was literally a bowl of blackened beef rind, no salad garnish or chilli slices, just what looked like cremated rind which was terribly tough and chewy, piled in to a little bowl. We both thought we'd play it safe and order the 'Dirty Chicken Burger' which came with fries. It was massive but sadly lacking coleslaw (was supposed to be in it) and the chicken breast was again really very tough and dry like leather that had been reheated about a dozen times. The desserts were both actually ok but after the first two courses the tone had been set and our meal out ruined. It wasn't helped by a complete lack of ambience bar one table to two very drunk ladies repeating themselves over and over to each other and a table of three to the other side of us 'F-ing and blinding' throughout. The final straw was waiting for our taxi outside the reception where there were several piles of vomit from either people arriving back from races or leaving the very large 50th birthday party that was going on. I appreciate sometimes the kitchen can be overwhelmed when there are large events etc going on and things can't always be perfect, but having had a lovely meal in the past here, this was a real let down. Never again.

The Hangout at Donnington Valley is a really pretty setting. 5 stars for that plus the Cote de boeuf for two and all the desserts were excellent. 2 stars (maximum) for the falafel burger and for the limited veggie menu, only about half the options they show online. Also the staff seemed nice but nervous and untrained. (Better than well-trained and nasty I suppose!) It was all fine, but the food doesn’t live up to the setting, at least for vegetarians. 5 of us shared one ‘grazing plate’, 5 main courses, 3 desserts, a drink each and 2 coffees came to £200.

Waiting staff were more interested in serving the guests who were sat outside on the day of our visit for some reason. They took around 35 mins to take our orders, then forgot to bring our drinks...😅 Food was good on the other hand but no pics as we devoured them soon as the plates landed on our table! Manage to take a pic of the menu though.

Great food friendly service --we did eat out to help out with added extras this meant a free bottle of wine and two steaks for £20!! Wine was one of the best house wines I've ever had in restaurant --sacchetto Pino Grigio very good will definitely go again. The outdoor area is designed to allow customers to eat outside in any weather and they have made it look attractive and welcoming --well done!

We have eaten at the Winepress restaurant a few times and were curious to try their new outdoors Hangout restaurant. The chairs were very uncomfortable but the tables were well placed and we couldn't hear any other diners a nearby tables. They did have some awful music blasting out of a nearby sound system and we asked for it to be turned down as it was awful and not necessary. It did start to get cold about 9.30pm and there weren't enough patio heaters on but we had finished eating by then so we moved to finish out drinks in the bar. Can't wait for them to bring back they full menu though. As their menu before had a lot of options

Very enjoyable meal had by all the family, the food was extremely tasty and great value. The staff were very attentive and their measures to protect against COVID made us feel very safe. The chef was very happy to provide a meal not on the menu for my wife as a result of her dietary needs.

A very warm welcome from the manager I think she was. The staff were very good with my husband’s food allergy, checking everything. The menu was very interesting and well thought out and everything we had was beautifully presented. The food was tasty and of good quality. The staff were working very hard, but seemed young and inexperienced. They did try hard but it seemed badly organised, we were asked for our food order before drinks, one drink arrived and a wait before the other drink, we were not offered any more drinks. It would have been better to have one server for the whole meal, than lots of different ones. Overall it was a lovely evening, good food and nice staff, that just need a bit more training and organising.

The restaurant was very busy on this Saturday evening in December & therefore the service may have suffered. We opted for the nibbles as opposed to normal starters & they were beautiful. Bread, olives, goats cheese bon bons, & crispy chilli beef were our choices. The mains were just ok, spatchcock chicken & a lamb dish. However the star was the mango cheesecake dessert with basil sorbet. The speed of service slowed down as the evening progressed due to the number of people dining.

We have eaten in this restaurant over the years for dinner and occasionally stayed overnight and eaten breakfast here too. The restaurant has a new Chef and it's made a huge difference. The menu has a lot to select from and it's very good quality. Just the change the Hotel needs and we will now start eating here more frequently as a result. The Hotel had some system problems so my online booking had been lost (aswell as many more bookings). However, we were able to still eat here on the night and the service was very good.

Donnington Valley hotel is in a delightful location on the edge of Newbury and is surrounded by open countryside and a golf course belonging to the hotel. Living locally we have always been impressed by the appearance of the hotel and the attention given to the upkeep of the grounds. Our first time eating in the restaurant for many years, having returned to Newbury after thirty five years living in the Bath / Bristol area, we were full of high expectations. Entering the reception lobby there is an impression of quality and occasion which unfortunately disappears on entering the main restaurant. The ambience is more cheap commercial hotel rather than a smart and modern establishment. A feeling of Costa maroon with a functional feel rather than a venue for special occasions. The floor and decor would also benefit from a makeover which would do much to make it a welcoming experience rather than just a place to eat. The restaurant was virtually empty and, strangely, for a Sunday lunchtime, it appeared that only two tables were taking the roast lunch, others opting for the hotel’s afternoon tea. In all an odd feeling about the place. Starters arrived and these were all of good quality resulting in compliments regarding their comparison with other restaurants in the area. Mains of roast chicken, pork and duck were however less enjoyable consisting of basic rather than quality ingredients. A lack of any sort of gravy or juice didn’t help matters (on revisiting the website it looks as though they forgot the gravy!). Opting to skip a dessert, coffee was enjoyable as was the wine taken with the meal. Driving back into Newbury we commented that better roasts are available at The Toby in London Road as we passed by. In summary, waiting staff were attentive and pleasant but the overall experience and restaurant ambience was less than enjoyable.

Good pale ale collection and pies for dinner.

I have eaten here before and was impressed with both the service and the food so for our Anniversary we decided to have lunch here. The service as before was excellent, very attentive, friendly but unobtrusive, and as expected the food was superb. We decided to go no expense spared and though it wasn't cheap we felt it was excellent value considering the quality of the lunch. Afterwards we sat outside for coffee and the staff brought us complimentary desert as an anniversary treat. We will definitely revisit.

We enjoyed a lovely dinner here on a Thursday. My mum and myself were staying for a spa treat. My mums friend also joined us for dinner. Service was excellent and food came out quick. The food was amazing! Couldn’t fault it at all. We were all stuffed afterwards which is always a sign of a good meal! Would definitely recommend. The staff were so helpful and accommodating. We then ate in here the following morning for breakfast which was included in our stay and oh my it was again so good. We had so much to choose from.

We enjoyed a three course dinner mid-week. Restaurant has a lovely atmosphere. All food was absolutely delicious and beautifully presented. Would highly recommend

Great choice on menu, everything cooked to perfection, Breakfast superb, dinner excellent, special requests catered.

We went to the winepress on Sunday we were not staying at the hotel but you really need to book. The food was excellent and the staff very friendly and efficient. They heard it was our wedding anniversary and came out with a plate with the wording happy anniversary and two small cakes on it, this was a lovely thought.I would certainly recommend this restaurant and if we were in Newbury again would visit it.

Party of 4 on a DBB. Limited choice on the set menu but you can have all of the Al a Cart at a small additional price, all we have was very well presented very tasty. Staff were absolutely brilliant friendly professional

We stayed in the hotel on Sunday night and was glad we'd booked in advance a table in the restaurant and it was full. We've eaten here before and it was noticeably there is a new Head Chef as the menu was fantastic and we loved the meals we ordered. It was our anniversary and they made a special little effort and gave us a decorated plate after our meal

Visited this lovely restaurant and hotel for a business dinner. Unfortunately, I was staying in a hotel nearby and certainly not as nice as this one; however, much cheaper as well.

Visited with my parents and aunt for an afternoon tea. Lovely restaurant with nice views of the grounds. Staff were very friendly. Afternoon tea was lovely - I had my own special dairy free selection brought out to me with dairy free scones, cakes and sandwiches - all of which were delicious! Bottomless tea, and a good selection of jams for the scones! Very reasonably priced. Will definitely return.

Fantastic Valentines Dinner with champagne to start & lovely wines served with all 5 courses. Service in Wine Press is excellent, but a bit slow in bar,especially bar snacks at lunchtime.

I booked an afternoon tea for three to celebrate my wifes 60th birthday. This was booked in person by myself about 4 weeks ago. When we arrived this afternoon at 3.00pm. Our table had been moved from the Wine Press to the bar (we hadn't been informed). Our table had also been taken by someone else who hadn't booked and just came in on the off chance. The staff realised their mistake but kept my wife, my mother in law and myself standing around while they rushed around preparing a table. We should at least have been offered a seat in the reception surely?

The food was excellent and the staff were friendly and helpful. The food was a little different but really tasty. The cost was included in our stay but we thought it was really good value for what you got. You were given plenty of time to enjoy it.

Excellent food, even on the set menu if you have the dinner, bed and breakfast option, but you can always pay a supplement for the a l carte menu.

I wanted somewhere a little bit special to take my friend for afternoon tea as it was her birthday and we could not have been happier , the finger sandwiches were on a nice thick bread with lovely fillings salmon ...cheese & pickle ...ham & mustard...cheese & cucumber, the mini cakes were dainty and tasty ... mini Victoria sponges ... pumpkin seed cake... chocolate mousse cake ....almond bakewell .... and scones to die for crisp outer and soft inside with jam and loads of clotted cream ....with pots of tea and coffee plus a glass of prosecco ... well worth the money .... A Big Thank You to Jo in Winepress ......

We stayed at the hotel for 2 nights and had dinner at the WinePress on both nights. The food was excellent and the service was great. Special mention to Paolo for looking after us.

Un hotel encantador, un interior precioso y el personal no podía hacer más por ti. Pasamos más de 2 horas tener nuestro té de la tarde y la comida era deliciosa, incluso tuvimos sándwiches adicionales. Y Madre tanto Nan encantó y yo no mi nan volveremos como ella vive en Newbury. Precio muy razonable para el té de la tarde y aún más especial, ya que nos dieron a cada madre y flores nan por el Día de la madre. Servicio encantador lugar increíble. Que no podía hacer lo suficiente. Gracias.

Me espera un par de reuniones de trabajo de un mes en este hotel y hemos comenzado a comer en el restaurante. Tuve que admitir que originalmente no esperaba mucho más de lo normal.

Nuestro descanso nocturno incluía una comida en el Vino de prensa. Hay un menú que está incluido, pero se puede actualizar cada campo del menú a la carta. Esto muestra el costo extra de cada plato que es muy servicial. Opté por cambiar nuestro principal campo de el bife de costilla que estaba preparado, presentado y sirve perfectamente. La única decepción fue la patatas cocinadas ligeramente menor a lo que fue mano de vuelta. La lista de vinos es un poco caro. Cometimos el error de pedir una botella de vino, que estaba en la jarra menú (50cl) así que la botella (75 cl) era mucho más caro de lo que originalmente se esperaba pero hey, estaba delicioso! En general, fue una muy buena experiencia y esperamos volver en septiembre.

Otro bien presentado en el Ayin "Todo esto me hace llorar;. El servicio, como siempre, fue impecable. El menú pequeño tenía algo para todo el mundo y de un gran valor teniendo en cuenta la calidad de la buena. Disfruté especialmente la Piedra de lubina....

Fuimos como parte de un paquete, así que no esperaba una comida regular. Tengo que decir muy satisfechos con lo que nos dieron. Restaurante agradable, personal atento, estaba planeando sólo 2 platos, pero la piedra lubina Mejillones Mariniere que era excelente y tenía que probar el desastre de Eton. Muy buen ambiente y volveremos en algún momento.

Again fantastic, staff very attentive,great food cooked fresh, we will come again, stay the night, the rooms are great & breakfast to die for.

I have eaten here alone and with our company at team dinners. The food whilst very good is not that varied, but what they give you is good quality. The buffet breakfast is varied and plenty to eat. It has pleasant surroundings and the staff are very friendly and accommodating.

Evening meal which was part of the deal. Very comprehensive wine list with good variety old and new world. Pleasant staff and tasty food well presented.

we stayed at the hotel and had our evening meal and breakfast in the winepress. The food was good quality, well presented and hot. very nice

Having just moved to the area we wanted to find a venue for Sunday lunch.Donnington Valley Hotel and Spa is literally on our doorstep so it was an easy choice. We booked a table for one pm and were shown to a pleasant position near the patio.The restaurant was quite busy but this was mainly due to a large party of young students.Service was good in an efficient but non intrusive way. The food was very good, the bread was obviously baked on the premises, both mine and my wife's starters were very tasty and just the right size. The roast beef was nicely cooked with just the right amount of pink, gravy was flavoured well with just the right amount of salt. Desert was delicious the chocolate torte was exceptional and the presentation of my cheesecake was superb. I would recommend a Sunday lunch here.

At the end of the day this place hasn't succeeded in raising itself above the standard of a fairly good hotel restaurant. The wine list is of course comprehensive (given gthe name!) but the food choice and quality doesn't keep up. As far as I could see it changes very rarely so doesn't make good use of seasonal products and there seems to be a lot of advance prep in the kitchen - eg. the cauliflower tempura that came with the fish tasted fatty and soggy- probably because it had been prepped a couple of hours in advance... The chocolate tart/ sorbet is tasty enough with a rich real chocolate filling nicely balanced by the fruit sorbet. Maybe try and do less/ more seasonally but better?

Dined here with 6 golfing buddies as part of a golf break. Service with a smile. Attentive without being over zealous. Great menu and very good food. Well presented and expertly cooked. Highly recommend.

Overall my experience of the WinePress was very pleasant; the food was very tasty, the menu offered a good range of selections and great vegetarian choices were available, staff were attentive to our needs, extras such as bread and table water were a nice inclusion.My only two issues were firstly that my main and dessert were just warm, not hot, which gave the impression that they may have been say there for a while. Secondly, while Donnington Valley has a lovely interior and overall a very pleasant atmosphere, the music was quite inappropriate at times! For the two hours that we spent in the restaurant, they played a mixture of cheesey-pop, classical and rock music! As a music enthusiast, this bothered me quite a bit, and at times it really ruined the atmosphere. If they had invested in a more relaxed and consistent solution, the experience would have been greatly improved.

Had dinner and breakfast here as part of the golf package. The food was very tasty and the portions were generous - didn't have room for dessert sadly! Will make sure I do next time. Service was also very good - and breakfast was very good as well. All pretty good value as well.

Busy Sunday yet very attentive service and delicious food! Highly recommend. Mussels, lamb shank and creme caramel...yes please!

I met a friend here for a drink as I had visited before and stayed overnight and enjoyed the experience, but that was some 5 years ago. We met in the bar, my friend ordered tea and I ordered coffee. It was not forthcoming so we asked again and we were asked what we had ordered and eventually the drinks came, served by a lounge waiter who clearly hates his job (my advice - leave your job). The bar area upstairs was fairly empty apart from a family with a screaming child (it happens - I've got children) and a young couple having a drink. We finished our conversation and asked for the bill and then we had to ask again and then we got the bill. We went down to reception as the waiting staff completely disappeared and were told but some staff that we had to pay in the bar so we did. While waiting to pay in the bar, as the paper roll on the card machine had run out, (is there no warning of imminent paper expiry - I would have thought so) we noticed how dirty it was and poorly stocked, if 3 people had come in and ordered 3 gins and tonics the tonic would have run out. Anyway, enough said, our impression was that all the staff didn't really want to be there. A real shame, let's hope they improve after all the property is the sister hotel to the fabulous Vineyard at Stockcross.

Nice enough meal, nothing special. Expensive for what it is. Wine is extremely expensive, considering the quality of the hotel. Mark-up horrendous on what we purchased.Did not particularly feel special. Disappointing overall.

Stayed at the Donnington Valley Hotel for a golf week-end, but arrived a day earlier and dined in the restaurant on Friday night. The meal choice for six of us was taken from the Market Menu which had a good selection. Service was excellent and friendly. The variety of meals chosen by the six of us were presented well and tasted good. The wine choice was good and not overly expensive for red and white wines.

Ate here during our stay and it was very good. All the food was excellent with the Steak being a highlight. Only niggles was it is a little expensive and service on the night was a little slow but not awfully so.

Lovely room setting and good staff. Eat as a group of 12 staying at hotel and playing golf. Had set menu as part of deal which we choose on arrival. Good quality , good presentation and reasonable portions enough to satify 12 hungry golfers aged between 30 & 65.Excellent wine selection and claims to have a choice of 3000 wine that you can choose by the glass!!!Overall highly recommended.

Fabulous valentines meal for two, could have fed 4.The service & quality of the food was great & the wine was very reasonably priced.

The food was amazing and the service second to non. You are not rushed to choose your food or to consume it. Well presented and hot, which is a bonus as this is one of my pet hates.

Booked a surprise afternoon tea for my wife and daughter and walked out very dissapointed the waitress was very friendly but the actual afternoon tea itself was very poor sandwich selection very basic bread not fresh scones were dry and cakes very average such a shame as we like the interior of the hotel and like I said the waitress was very nice but food TERRIBLE

Had a very pleasant evening in the wine press. Excellent service and lovely meal. My rib eye steak was cooked to perfection. Quite pricey but very nice.

Wouldn't return as not great menu choice and lots of drunk customers who were very loud and annoying

We have dinned in the Winepress tonight and unfortunately it was far from being a meal any of us would like to repeat, the average score from any one of the 11 people dinning was 6 out of tenThe meal actually started OK ish when the starters were served but as soon as we got the mains we weren’t impressed, the blue steak wasn’t blue and most of the steaks were over chargrilled to the point they felt burnt – some of the people were just saying that we were better off if we went to a pub.As if the above wasn’t enough, when we got served the coffees they were all cold and if that wasn’t enough one of the guys ordered a cappuccino and he was served was looked like a black coffee and he was asked if he wants some mike with that – just to reiterate, when he was served he was told ‘here’s your cappuccino’ … and if that’s not enough, when we got the bill they charged us for the coffees which stayed untouched on the table (obviously I insisted to take them all off the bill)It's a shame that a plan for a nice meal turned out to be a gastronomical disaster.

What an absolute treat for me Donnington Valley Hotel booked for a group of girlfriends for weekend, had an amazing meal at the WinePress Restaurant, Michelin Star standard, in my view! My friends arranged with the staff of the restaurant great table, allowed table decorations, very large 50 balloons and presented a cake to me! There were other birthday celebrations carrying on in the restaurant but I felt no less special, thanks to excellent waiting staff. The meal itself one of the best I have eaten, I had Frittata with a black olive tapenade, delicious and fresh followed by halibut with mixed shredded veg in a coconut and chilli sauce. Amazing wine too, the wine list is about 100 pages long! Wow. Will definitely return.

great meal with wine matched to each course - an excellent experience. The food was all freshly cooked from scratch and tasting the wines made us think more about what we are eating - thanks Chris for your attention

Good food, cheerful staff and it was surprisingly busy the Sunday evening that we visited. Access to restaurant areas not very easy if you have mobility issues, stairs from foyer have no real handrail.

A really well laid out restaurant with a great atmosphere, service, and really nicely cooked food. A large win selection too

Great food and the management team are completely on the ball with service. Doesn't always follow down to some of the staff running round clearing tables though, who looked either grim or a bit lost, but that's a minor observation rather than any sort of a complaint.Overall great food, great service and good value, as well as knowledgable in helping choose a wine.

Just been, 2 adults and a kid. It's a nice enough place, and comfortable sofas upstairs. We just had the bar menu.Personable service, but so slow to get things out of the kitchen.. and two mistakes in the order, I had one side turn up after I finished which was a first. Food was good enough, my wife was pretty complimentary about the minute steak (more like 30..), and the veggie burger was a good effort, if a little dry.Knocking of a star for the service

A breadth of food selection to accommodate a big group all with different tastes, also an extensive selection of wines, champagne to go with afternoon cream tea.

Enjoyable breakfast - plenty of choice and all the specials you would expect. Service was excellent.

Really great attentive service and can find nothing to fault with the restaurant for dinner or breakfast.

Food is really lovely. I had sole stuffed with lobster, with a saffron orange cream sauce. Service is very good. Wine cellar is extremely extensive and well chosen.

I was made to feel welcome from the moment we walked in , the food &service was fantastic I would truly recommend the experience for anybody with family or friends. lt was a wnderfull day with family to enjoy sunday lunch in a wonderfull setting , look forward to the next visit .

Once you get over the rather over facing 55 page wine menu, the food is quite simply divine and the restaurant staff and helpful and courteous making the whole experience an extremely pleasurable one.

We were staying at the hotel using the Bacchanalian Feast 2 night break. First night we chose to eat at the bar, which has a really good menu, great food, great portion size and great prices. I couldn't finish any of my food, no matter how much i wanted too! Haddock, Chips and mushy peas were to die for! The second night we ate in the Winepress restaurant. In our deal, we could order 3 courses from the Market Menu or choose something from the a la carte menu for a supplement. We also had wine to match the courses we chose, I couldn't make the most of this as I'm pregnant but it was enjoyable to hear the wine expert telling my husband about each one, his knowledge of them was incredible. To start I had the cauliflower and cheese tart which was pleasant, my husband had the pork and black pudding terrine which he really enjoyed. We both had the braised beef, which was so tender it fell apart as soon as the fork touched it and we both agreed it was the best beef we've ever had. The accompaniment of horseradish mashed potato was lovely. For dessert, I had the milk chocolate fondant from the a la carte menu and it was absolutely delicious. They even waived the supplement for my dessert as I didn't have the matching wines which was thoughtful- I didn't even ask. My husband had the lemon mousse and sorbet which he found refreshing. The wines that were chosen for each of his courses were perfect and went so well. The staff were very attentive but not in your face and let you take your time and enjoy your meal. The only downside for us was the crying baby and their annoying sibling seated a few tables away. But that isn't the staffs fault! But please be aware, It's not the kind of place to take young children who want to wander round looking at people as they eat!Sorry for the essay, we just both really enjoyed the food and experience!!

Food lacked flavour and very bland. Service was appalling. Can't speak for the a la carte menu but we ate from the market menu, wouldn't eat there again.

Outstanding Service and polite staff, food choices were excellent and would happily go back there just for Dinner if it was closer to home.

Booked afternoon tea at The Winepress as a thank you present. The surroundings are lovely we had a table in front of a roaring log fire perfect on a cold November afternoon. Service excellent really good selection of sandwiches something to tempt the taste buds of all in our party age range 9 to 68. Would definitely book again.

We took my stepdaughter and her boyfriend for dinner to celebrate her birthday. Being young, they were nervous about being unsuitably dressed. The staff were fantastic and made us all feel welcome and at ease, and gave just the right amount of attention. The dinner was beautiful, we all found it hard to make a choice from the menu as it all looked so good. We will definitely visit again. And won't be worried about how to dress! You are very lucky to have such great staff Donnington Valley, make sure you keep them!

Very attentive service. Staff were very professional and very friendly. Really enjoyable and fulfilling dining experience

service not good the food was cooked with far to much salt did not enjoy any meals very disapointed will not use again drinks well overpriced check price of liquers

Great little restaurant with an international range of staff which strangely made it feel more cosmopolitan. The food was very nice and the Rib eye steak was to die for. Fantastic selection of wines at reasonable prices and service is second to none.

As soon as we were seated I had the impression that the staff weren't quite geared up for afternoon tea. We were asked what we'd like to drink which, given we'd ordered the afternoon tea with glass of Prosecco, I thought should have been fairly obvious.The sandwiches, scones and cakes were perfectly good, but the staff weren't at all attentive and we were pretty much left to our own devices. We had to chase them up after the glass of wine to get tea served, and the poor girl trying to take out order clearly had some difficulties understanding what we were saying. 4 stars for the food and drink, 2 for the service. Very disappointing for a well known local 4 star hotel.

see my review on the hotel, excellent food and great staff. Not cheap and my only negative is that there wasn't anything I liked from the 4 courses on their Market Menu (pigeon, belly pork!, rather unusual choices in my book). It therefore costs us a fair bit more to upgrade but we both had excellent steaks. Fantastic choice of wines and some unusual wines. We picked an Indian sauvignon blanc which we both loved.

Owing to our overnight stay at the hotel we decided to utilise the restaurant . Having been seated at our table and having sat patiently for ten minutes we requested some wine , as we had previously studied the highly acclaimed wine list on the internet. So far so good ! The restaurant appeared more than adequately staffed but they mostly seemed more interested in chatting amongst themselves rather than looking after customers. We had to request both the menus and water after 20 minutes as they had not been forthcoming . The food that followed was in our opinion disappointing given the west end prices attached to the dishes. Certainly not west end quality ... The steak was well done despite requesting rare , and the venison was also over cooked which is quite an achievement with such a dense meat . Admittedly the cost of the steak (£39 total salad,chips and sauce charged as accompaniments ) was omitted from the bill. Rather perversely the celebrity team from British Bake Off we're staying and dinning last night ..... I wonder what they thought ? The staff are friendly and obliging but they lack leadership and direction . We would not return for dining

We met the head chief personally. His menus cater for every need. He has worked here for many years. His passion for cooking shows through each dish that is delivered. Thank you so much Kelvin!

Had two great meals at the WinePress whilst staying at the hotel. Good value and quality. Service was good, if a little slow at times, but very friendly.

We had lunch . All three courses we're excellent I had the pork and crackling was excellent. It was very quite so the service was excellent. Drinks were a bit expensive the meal cost about £30 per head including drinks but the starter and the sweet were very good value of money. . . ..

My wife and I were booked in for afternoon tea at 1:00pm. We arrived at the bar ( usual afternoon tea location ) on time. The single member of bar staff had 2 people to serve before us, it took her 10 minutes to produce a single bottle of wine for the first person. We were finally attended to after 12 minutes only to be told that we didn't appear on their list of reservations. After some checking we were led to the restaurant were our reservation oddly appeared for 4 people instead of 2. We sat down at 1:15.A pot of tea arrived quite efficiently and then sadly that was it. By 1:35 I'd exhausted the tea pot and asked for another. What came back was rather like dish water and I suspect the waitress just added hot water to the existing tea bags. At 1:40 the waitress came over to inform us that the food would arrive in a few minutes. At 1:55 there was still not any sight of food, not even a slice if bread to tide us over. We gave up and left to enjoy excellent service and food at Red House in Marsh Benham.All in all, not the romantic post valentine tea we'd hoped for. I marked one star up from the worst rating as we've actually had good there in the past. Just a shame that we weren't given the opportunity to try it today.

We went for the champagne high tea for our Valentine's and did not have a good experience. The staff were not very helpful and service was very slow. At one point we had to ask more than 3 times for what we had ordered, although the table next to us were being served. To add insult to injury, we found one of our jackets that was taken by the waiter on the floor when we were leaving. Certainly would not recommend.

My husband and I booked a table at the restaurant two weeks ago and we weren't to be disappointed. The service was impeccable only matched by the quality of the food and extensive wine list. What set this apart from other good restaurants was the depth of knowledge of the waitress and the attention of detail to ensure we had a very memorable experience. The food was fresh and cooked to order. Even the chef came out of the kitchen to make sure we were happy with the quality of food we had chosen. Both my husband and I have never seen such an extensive list of wines but in case there was any issue whether we had chosen correctly, the wine waiter was on hand to advise. Overall our experience was first rate and first class. The restaurant itself was packed, not surprising given our experience. We have eaten at many establishments including the Crab at Chieveley which has a first class reputation but in all honesty compared to WinePress at Donnington it is very second rate.

Food and service was first class definitely worth a visit. Reasonably priced wines. Staff were very friendly and professional and restaurant layout allows privacy as tables are not too close together

We were staying at the hotel with an inclusive dinner package, and although this was choices from The Market Menu, we could also choose from the a la carte at a small supplement. However, we found the meal choices were really first rate, delicious , with some novel flavour/ingredient combinations that were scrumptious - the candied walnuts with pork particularly stood out. Definitely worth a visit, and definitely special occasion cooking.

Nicely unhurried in spacious and relaxed restaurant, with polite, professional service. Set lunch menu excellent value and delicious and will certainly use again for business.

Food was wonderful the staff are very helpful and polite. Good selection of dishes on the menu and a good wine list too.

Both the wine list and menus had the most amazing choice, it was quite difficult to make a choice. However all three courses we ordered, a mixture of both menus, were of the utmost quality, prepared and served by professionals. Quite delicious and portions were just right, we did not feel overstuffed and uncomfortable. Could not fault the epxerience at all.

We stayed for a 21st birthday at the hotel and our package included a 3 course meal at the restaurant. We were greeted with a smile and shown to our table. The service was very efficient but not intrusive which was perfect. We were shown a wine menu on arrival and chose a bottle to have at the table which was bought over and poured for us and then placed into an ice bucket. As our glasses got near to empty, somebody was there to fill them up again. The food was delicious, but just a bit on the small side for the prices. This restaurant definitely is not large home cooking, but more exquisite dining. There was a lot of choice and we decided on a mozzarella with Mediterranean vegetable starter and also a Salmon terrine starter. For mains I had stone baked bass and my partner had roasted lamb leg, both which were served on little beds of various sauces and vegetables. For dessert we both went for the Baileys and dark chocolate mousse which was to die for! Only small, but you wouldn't need anymore as it was quite rich. It was a lovely gesture when they came up with our desserts and on mine they had written Happy Birthday in chocolate. It was a lovely touch and we had a great evening dining with them. Throughout the whole evening, the service was great. We also had breakfast in the same room, and there was a huge choice ranging from cereal to cooked breakfast (eggs, bacon, sausages, beans, hash browns, black pudding) and toast was bought to your table on request. There were little jam/marmalade pots on the table. There was also tea, coffee and fruit juices available. This was a self service breakfast, and it was really delicious again.

Friends had taken a spa weekend break at the hotel and we joined them for Sunday Lunch. The food was good (although choice was rather limited) and service attentive. The restaurant is large and airy. There was plenty of space in the lounge for pre lunch drinks and post lunch coffee.Ample parking and about 10 minutes drive from Newbury in a very pretty location.

As usual had a very good lunch at the Winepress. Excellent choices on the market menu which at £18 for 2 courses (£22 for 3) including a glass of wine was excellent value. The quality of the food is superb with good presentation. Staff are very attentive. Only negative is atmosphere as the restaurant was practically empty except for our party of 8.

Excellent wine list worth borrowing for an enjoyable read, superb selection, and some great rarities - yet priced sensibly.

Very nice restaurant. We ate here two nights in a row (stay and eat deal). Both times we ate of the set menu that was included. All four of us found something we liked on the menu, which shows it was pretty varied. On the first evening we had a sommelier and he matched some lovely wines to each course. On the second night, even though he wasn't supposed to be matching wines, he helped us choose some wine. Very nice chap. The other waiters were also fantastic. There when you needed them, and not buzzing around when you didn't. The food was also excellent.

We had dinner for 3 on a Friday evening here and found the food, service and setting to be really beautiful. The menu was very well-balanced and appealing - we had partridge, calves liver and steak for our main courses and all were sensational. The sommelier was most helpful and personable and his recommendation proved spot-on. The service was faultless. I had a wonderful white chocolate cheesecake while the others had the cheeseboard and chocolate pot - all excellent. A small point, but one I find important - the dining chairs were comfortable! The napery as well as the food was beautifully presented and every member of the young team worked seamlessly together to provide a truly relaxed and enjoyable dining experience. Thankyou all for a lovely evening!

The whole experience was amazing!Staff were incredibly polite and helpful. The rooms were warm, clean and immaculate. Well stocked with tea, biscuits, water and all the necessary products. The food and restaurant is top notch, can not fault Donnington Valley in anyway!