Qype User (DanGle…)
Yelp
My sister booked a table for myself and my mother and father for their Golden Wedding Anniversary. We have been to the P & G many times in the past and it was always excellent, but not for around ten years. It has certainly changed. Our arrival seemed to catch the staff by surprise and they were not able to seat us in the lounge while our table was readied. It was up to us to then find our table since the waitress, who beckoned us to our table, walked ahead without waiting for any of our party, particularly for my mother who is infirm. I then found myself sitting at a setting that was covered in some sort of sooty material, which was eventually cleared away after some prompting. My prawn cocktail consisted of some prawns (fewer than found in an M&S prawn sandwich by my reckoning) covered in a barely discernible layer of sauce, with a leaf of lettuce, some slices of red pepper and cucumber. The prawns did not seem particularly fresh. £8.95 for that. My mother's mackerel was fresh and tasty, half a fillet. My sister's crab I'm not sure about: she had not eaten crab before. For mains I had duck done three ways, which was execrable. The sourness of the gooseberries was overpowering, the breast was too rare and without flavour, the comfit like cardboard in flavour and colouring. Rosti with creamed celeriac accompaniment did not work at all. My father's chop was too rare for him (risky with pork), the crackling too hard and flavourless, the mash potato gooey. My mother's pudding was rhubarb trifle (note to any chef worth his chops: rhubarb is a spring "fruit", and by July it is rank). The accompanying biscuits were cooked to an ancient, recently-unearthed recipe, as the accompanying note explained. The cloves in them were completely overpowering, quite nasty. It is better that this recipe remains buried, in my view, and I am quite capable of making my own mind up about the food I am eating I do not need a note of explanation. My sister, father and me did not risk the desserts. And don't forget, readers, if you want vegetables with your mains, they are a separate order. We were not told this.
In conclusion: I am furious that this was so poor. This was a special occasion that we had saved up for at a restaurant that we know well and used to love.