Neil W.
Yelp
Quick review: Keep driving. This is hit-or-miss overpriced food (when it didn't run out or even show up), served barely above room temperature in a chaotic, near-comically poorly run pub setting.
In what may be one of our family's worst dining experiences ever, we made the terrible mistake of ignoring multiple warning signs that things weren't right at Arnold's. The waitstaff seemed to be short handed, and with no visible bartender, runner or busboys to help in the medium-sized not overly busy space. With multiple parties waiting, tables sat uncleared, while others that had been set up weren't promptly seated. Food from the kitchen sat for extended periods without being served, while servers and hostesses ran around frantically. The faces of diners who had been sat showed a range of emotions from bewilderment to exasperation to frustration and anger.
Our party (two families, seven total) was large enough to occupy two tables, which they kindly accommodated after a half hour wait and sat us adjacent to each other. The disparity in service between the two tables - mine with the adults, the other with teens - was remarkable. Bad and really bad is how I would summarize it.
After seeing some of the chaos, and noting that we were the first party of a new wave of diners, we promptly gave the server our entire order. Our kids were hungry so we thought getting in orders for appetizers quickly would work to everyone's favor. It's unclear if that was a smart move or not, since our server basically ignored us for the next 45 minutes as we waited for our food. She stopped - slowed, actually - to express regret at one point, but even that couldn't make up for the rolling disaster that was still to come.
After a half hour, I finally managed to get someone who I think was an employee to get water for our table. I observed another server across the room ask another table if the glass of wine that had been sitting unattended was theirs - they said no, but then she shrugged and gave it to them and they all laughed. I figured that was the glass I had ordered. Our server came out to apologize and announce that the restaurant had run out of fries, reducing the potential of two orders of fish and chips by half.
Fifteen minutes later the food for the kids table arrived suddenly and all at once. With this came the additional news that the pizza my daughter had ordered was not going to arrive. They were out of that as well, and for some reason only just noticed. She asked for a veggie burger. Only one of the the three appetizers ordered showed up.
For our table, our mains arrived, just above room temperature. I waited in vain for my salad while I ate my pork chop, which was small but decent. My wife's trout was very good but the portion was tiny, while my friend's steak was unremarkable. I was still waiting for my glass of wine. The kids said the fish portion of their now fish-and-salad orders was still partly frozen, and the only appetizer to make an appearance was the calamari, which they said was tiny and "disgusting". A third order was "good", while they waited for the last (substitute) item, the veggie burger.
While we ate, we couldn't help but notice tables around us that had been seated after us being served before us, and with items we had ordered but which never materialized on our tables. In contrast, a couple who sat for an eternity finally got their food, but had to have it boxed to go.
After finishing our food, we flagged down our server to ask where my daughter's main was. I asked after my wine and was promptly delivered a glass with an apology. I said I could assume my salad was never going to appear and the server looked mortified and we cancelled it.
My daughter's black bean burger arrived, which was mediocre. We asked for the check, not even contemplating dessert. Without comment, we were only charged for our mains, with the (one of four actually delivered) appetizers and two drinks comp'd.