The Red Lion, Barnes Reviews Summary

Ambience

Pros:

• "Fresh flowers are placed around and many other small touches that bring a very cosy ambience."
• "Nice cosy atmosphere and good food."
• "Great outdoor garden and front patio area is also good for catching the sun and watching the world go by."
• "Thoughtfully decorated interior conferring a degree of authenticity."
• "For a boiling day, the Red Lion was a good choice - the inside's big and airy, with a mix of tables and sofas, and there's a huge garden out the back too."
• "Lovely decor and seating available, plus there’s a warm fire place."
• "A nice, newly renovated, outdoor area is also available with great open fire and snug drinking huts."

Cons:

• "THE ATMOSPHEAR LEAVE A BIT TO BE DESIRED AND I DONT SEE THE BAR MANAGER PETE NO MORE."
• "However, it’s on Fullers list of pubs that have a playground, which is why we went there but… no. They have a beer garden, and a pingpong table but no playground."
• "Just pity the Chesterfield couches have gone either side of the fire."

Service

Pros:

• "Outstanding customer service."
• "Always had great service here."
• "Staff were very good at getting me to register via a QR code."
• "Attentive staff."
• "Shaun is an absolute asset to this pub, nothing is too much trouble!"
• "It is notable for the efficient, friendly and relaxed service, especially in the dining room."
• "Plus charming service to match."

Cons:

• "Came for a quiet drink with a few friends. Treated rudely as soon as we walked in with an expression from a waitress, 'really?'."
• "Used to be really good but recently I find that the staff has become a bit obnoxious."
• "Service was a little slow as it was busy."
• "Poor service today. Rude bar man, tall with light hair, offered no apology, just simply said they were busy."
• "Shocking level of service and a lack of any remorse at all."
• "Some creepy drunk told us to ‘get the h out of here’ and the bar staff said nothing to the man."
• "Place is empty, waited 40 mins for food."

Food & Drink

Pros:

• "A beautiful pub with a wide selection of beers on tap."
• "The cod with cauliflower mash and fried calamari and prawns was superb."
• "Surprisingly good food, exceptional service and a lovely English beer garden as well."
• "Your usual pub classics, but done to a very high standard."
• "The chicken and leek pie is a Red Lion classic and the fish and chips are reliably excellent too."
• "The plant-based burger is to die for."
• "Excellent food just like home cook- special the roasted courgette."

Cons:

• "But last week after me and my partner went there and my partner had a burger, then he was unwell with food poisoning for a few days."
• "The quality of the sausages... basically I wouldn't feed them to my dog. Appalling."
• "Unfortunately the fish and chips was disappointing. The batter was too thick, there wasn’t much fish, and it was very greasy."
• "Burgers were small, bland and boring and the mac & cheese and salad was overpriced and not tasty at all."
• "The food was disappointing chicken roast looked dry, the roast beef were very thin and not enough, burger was over cooked, roast potatoes were very dry but Yorkshire was good."
• "Received virtually frozen fillings in toasted club sandwich on cold winter day."
• "Really awful food. Went about a month ago when they reopened, very small portions and chips were all burnt and old like it was left overs from yesterday."

Pricing & Value

Pros:

• "Very well priced."
• "Super good value for money and guests were all very happy and looked after."
• "Portions are not big but reasonably priced and full of fresh flavours."
• "Food came out promptly and was really lovely and well priced."
• "The menu had good choice of food at very reasonable prices."
• "The food was good and reasonably priced."
• "The food was fresh and the chef knows his craft!"

Cons:

• "Very expensive but the beers tasted really nice."
• "How they justify prices I will never know. Double gin over £10."
• "No chance of me coming back here. Too expensive."
• "The food was awful and way overpriced."
• "For £22 plus a service charge I would have expected a lot better."
• "A roast with a decent wine will set you back about £35- expensive, but honestly it’s worth the price tag imo."
• "Although it's situated in a wealthy part of London, the prices do not have to reflect that...it's not very welcoming to those not from the area."

Family & Pet Friendliness

Pros:

• "The pub is super dog friendly with lots of water bowls and not too cramped inside."
• "Highly recommend this atmosphere which welcomes pet dogs too !!!"
• "They have just refurbished and the outdoor area is much better now, with a small play area for kids which has improved it even more."

Cons:

• "Went Easter Saturday with friends and kids (4 adults and 4 children) for drinks and food. Met at 5pm and had drinks in the garden. Went to order food at 6pm and was told we had to leave because they don't allow children after 6pm."
• "NO signs whatsoever, but apparently children are not allowed."
• "However if you have children be warned - no kids menu after 6pm."
• "Children of any age are not permitted after 6pm as it turns out."
• "My daughter went to ask for an ice cream at 5:40pm, and was told off to leave."
• "If you have a no children allowed policy, signs on the doors would be a good place to start."
• "Dogs are allowed but not kids. Disgraceful."