The best restaurants serving British food in South East

14/3/25 I would have awarded 5 stars, BUT, the food the food is never very hot. Tonight, the rider was quick, taking 35 mins, BUT sadly the food still wasnt hot. I cannot fault the food other than that, because its always fresh and the fish is delicious. Its just i like my food hot, not lukewarm. I did order express rider once but he still took the same length of time and yep the food wasnt hot. So the express deliveroo isnt worth the extra money. I will say the drivers are always very polite and friendly. So, i do tip when i can. If you could just look into the timing so the food arrives hotter, then i will award 5 stars. I usually order every week.

Aunque por una vez el café no se había quedado sin lo que queríamos el tiempo que tardó en ser servido fue increíble. Personal amable, pero no lo suficiente de ellos o demasiado lento. Casi pierdo la voluntad de Vive. Usará M&S a partir de ahora

lovely food.. l should have asked for a spare plate and only one serving of sandwiches between me and mum - mum and l had cheese and fig chutney sandwiches - crisps and green salad. Dad had one of his favorite sandwiches. l had a juice and pot of tea for one.. my dad had a beer l think and mum had ginger beer. service was ok.. bit slow but totally understanding that there where a lot of people dining in on account of the rain. it was really nice to see a few of the same staff we saw on our last visit in February. l really liked the rooms and loved just sitting there looking around at the artwork etc while eating my lunch.

We used to go here when it was called the Chocolate Cafe, which was always great value for money, lovely food and very busy. We went to the rebranded Viv’s Cafe where the number of customers and value for money menu options were very much down in our opinion. I had a bacon brie and cranberry toastie with side portion of chips (at £12.50) and my wife had a fishfinger wrap (at £11.0). The bacon turned into ham and the fishfinger wrap was mediocre at best. Probably won’t be going back to where we originally spent many a lunchtime snacks at.

Perfectly functional venue selling reasonable snacks (not the cheapest) but traffic seem efficient and organised. Clean and serviceable.

Large pub, good value for drinks, friendly staff. This is a place for a couple of quick drinks whilst out an about.

If I had opened my takeaway large cod and chips nearer the shop, I would have taken them back and asked for a refund! The chips were completely inedible, limp and so greasy could not bc eat more than 2 or 3. The fish was no better really, greasy and not very tasty! This place needs to up its game for sure plus why put greasy fish in the same box as very greasy chips !!!

It is such a shame that this brilliant chef is supported by a team of people who have absolutely no idea what is going on. This was our fourth trip back. Each time we have been here since the refurbishment, the quality and flavour of the food has been amazing but each time, we have had terrible service. This was the last chance and I'm afraid we won't be going back. We put in our order for food and drink which just disappeared off the face of the earth. Our lunch wine was served before the pre–lunch drinks, had to keep looking at the staff for any sign of food to which they panicked on the realisation that we were STILL there with no meal. One of the young male waiters, who actually was on the ball, couldn't apologise enough and genuinely looked very embarrassed at the whole shambles. Credit to him, credit to chef but the rest of you, sort yourselves out! It's just not good enough.

Las mesas no limpias durante mucho tiempo se han dejado durante unos buenos 20 minutos. Encuentro que el personal es muy educado y hablador, lo que es agradable ver que el lugar es muy relajado, pero a veces para relajarse y también he notado que la gente wen quiere tomar bollos o pasteles de distancia, simplemente se ponen en una bolsa de papel, no hay caja o nada para mantenerlos frescos, lo que es decepcionante, viajamos por todo el país y probar todo tipo de diferentes salones de té, este es muy local para nosotros y el té es realmente bueno y probablemente uno de los más baratos que hemos visitado en esta zona, estoy seguro de que la cocina está muy limpia, pero la sala de estar no es como tal. La comida se ve muy bien, pero es un poco caro para su persona de todos los días que encuentro allí tratando de atender a los grupos de edad avanzada. Este lugar también es agradable para perros, que también es bueno para ver. Se necesita un poco de atención a los detalles con la limpieza de las placas porque si estuviera lloviendo la gente de fuera estaría dentro y no habría suficientes mesas ya que el lugar sucio se dejan durante mucho tiempo solo sentado allí

The tables were not being cleared quickly and the one we sat at had obviously been cleared but not wiped down and the children's colouring from the previous incumbent was still there. There was no one clearing the tables and when we left there were 7 tables inside and 5 outside uncleared because the 3 members of staff were so busy dealing with the busy lunch time. The table service was being managed but just one person. The service was slow and they forgot one of the items ordered. This is in no way a criticism of the staff - they were doing their best. They are clearly understaffed. The millionaires tray bake (£3.49) was sickly, the shortbread was hard and not topped with real chocolate. The victoria sponge (£3.99) sliver - not a slice, was filled with something that was not real buttercream. The strawberry and banana 'smoothie' (£4.99) was thin and separated in the glass almost immediately . The tea (£2.80) was definitely a cheap brand and tasted poor. The mocha (£3.70) was acceptable. To be fair, the main meals did look nice and good sized portions. There is a sign by the entrance asking patrons to wait to be seated but the staff didn't have time to seat people and an elderly lady with a walker had to stand for a bit before seating herself. It's such a pity. This is a lovely setting but, if management are reading this, it's time for an overhaul of your practices and product offering.

Only had drinks ( latte and coffee frappe with fresh cream). Cream was just going off. I returned the frappe and it was disposed of instantly along with the open milk. The cream spraying thing bob was cleaned out and I got a new frappe. Was given a thorough apology too. I doubt they stand there tasting the squirty cream every ten minutes. These things happen. I found the staff nice, cheerful and polite.

Having arranged to meet friends here, I was really looking forward to it and ended up being so disappointed. The selection of cakes was nothing special and the slice of chocolate cake I chose looked nicer than it tasted. Factory-made, it was dry and overly sweet (with not much actual chocolate flavour). It had clearly been on display for days and had an odd aftertaste. I ordered a latte but the barista (clearly untrained) served it with such a HUGE foam top that it ended up being a cappuccino. Not what I asked for and way too strong for me, as a result. I asked them to remedy it but all she did was add a tiny bit of milk, leaving the 3 inch foam layer intact. The only thing this cafe has going for it is free parking and a nice display of Christmas items for sale nearby in the garden centre. If you want a well-made coffee from baristas who know what they're doing and fresh (tasty) cake, I'd recommend going elsewhere.

Very well positioned, it is a nice place to stop for a meal and to admire the views. Food is good, but is not cheap and service can be hit and miss depending on how busy they are, but overall pleasant. Toilets were clean and they do accommodate children pretty well.

Nice lunch; reasonable value for money; friendly service; airy light cafe; tasty specials and nice to do a bit of shopping afterwards;

I bought cod and chips from the Gordon chippy and ate them from a box, on a bench in the grassy area opposite the little shop. Had to wait, so they were piping hot. I really enjoyed them. At first, I thought the chips looked grotty--but it was only because they were browned. But chips don't have to be golden, and they had fresh white potato inside and lots of flavour. The cod was decent, with plenty of white flesh, in a rich batter. Friendly lady served me, old enough to remember how fish and chips should be.