The Ivy Castle View Reviews Summary

Atmosphere & Decor

Pros:

• "The decor is high quality and creates a good atmosphere."
• "The interior design is beautiful with a balcony providing views of Guildford castle during the summer."
• "Very good ambiance and decoration."
• "The atmosphere was beautiful and so incredibly welcoming."
• "The atmosphere of the restaurant was great and had views of the castle."
• "The atmosphere is welcoming, the view is beautiful."
• "The venue is right at the very pinnacle in Guildford. The ambience is frenetic with a touch of class."
• "The restaurant decor is beautiful and the views are impressive."

Cons:

• "The restaurant looks a little tired. A lick of paint and some new tables would go a long way."
• "The smell was a bit strong when entering but was fine after a while."
• "It was exceedingly noisy when full. Maybe some soft fabric wall, or floor covering, would help."
• "During summer, despite the windows being open the heat was too much and they clearly need aircon."
• "The place was very crowded and very noisy, making it difficult to hear each other."
• "The place seemed very packed with tables being quite close."
• "Although the restaurant was half empty, it was also very noisy."
• "For the price it is good value for money look forward to going again however my only criticisms are that my husband wasnt given a finger bowl, he had a dish with prawns in their shells, nor a hand wipe for his fingers and the cloak room was too full to take our coats."

Food Quality

Pros:

• "The food turned out to be surprisingly good."
• "The food was amazing."
• "Food was nice (what I had anyway)."
• "The food and drinks were above average, tasted good but could have had a bit more flavour."
• "The food was good and the restaurant decor was excellent with nice atmosphere."
• "The food is always presented lovely but service was bit slow."
• "I generally much prefer a veggie alternative to everyday dishes like sausage and mash or a Sunday roast to fancy pants ‘cheffing’ where they’ve gone all out to assault the taste buds."
• "The food was great. I had lobster linguine which had a generous amount of lobster and the tomatoes in the sauce were delicious."

Cons:

• "Sadly we had a poor experience here today. 4 of us went for lunch and the service was below what you would expect. Very little interaction with the staff almost silent."
• "The large bar had nothing on tap which was disappointing."
• "The Xmas decorations are very festive and the food is so so."
• "Food service was good but then after the initial flurry, we were totally ignored."
• "Food was fantastic and atmosphere was great. Service was terribly slow and seemed understaffed."
• "The restaurant is really nice, the décor, has been really well thought out and it is a very nice outlet to dine at. Unfortunately the food is just ok for the prices."
• "Food is always presented lovely but service was bit slow. We had to ask for our empty dishes to be taken away."
• "Food was ok but no more than that. We ordered Champagne and olives for a pre-starter. However, the starter came first and the Champagne and olives only after we reminded them."

Service Quality

Pros:

• "The service we received from the moment we were inside was fantastic, and didn't at any point feel rushed to finish up and leave."
• "The staff were very attentive and could not be faulted. In that respect it did feel a step up from your local gastro pub."
• "Some of the servers were very nice and interactive and others not so much."
• "The service was great and the bubbly was flowing."
• "The staff were all very approachable and friendly, and did a very good job considering just how very busy the place was."
• "Great service from staff who are very prompt and direct, really friendly and went out of their way to help us out on our visit."
• "Food came out with minimal wait and was exceptional."
• "Service was excellent, all the serving staff are incredibly friendly, nothing is too much trouble."

Cons:

• "The service on the other hand was cordial and friendly but two of the things we ordered were forgotten on the way to the bar."
• "Sadly we had a poor experience here today. 4 of us went for lunch and the service was below what you would expect. Very little interaction with the staff almost silent."
• "The staff was just busy walking around while not very attentive to their customers."
• "When we arrived, we were treated excellently. Food service was good but then after the initial flurry, we were totally ignored."
• "Service was terribly slow and seemed understaffed. It wasn't just us, most tables had to try and flag someone down at some point."
• "Unfortunately the food is just ok for the prices and the service staff have been trained to the point of it feeling forced."
• "The customer service was great, and food was lovely as always. However it was quite crowded, and the table for 2 is very small so felt like I was going to knock something over all the time."
• "Had a great evening this week with some friends we hadn’t seen for a couple of years. The food was up to the usual high standard and the service was particularly excellent."