The Harrow at Bishopstone Reviews Summary

Ambiance and Decor

Pros:

• "The Harrow was a delightful establishment with an aura of warmth and comfort that enveloped one upon entering."
• "The decor was friendly and contemporary, with a good ambience."
• "The pub was very inviting once we got off the car park."
• "The decor preserved traditional features with contemporary touches."
• "The outdoor seating set up is one of the best I have visited, with plenty of tables well spaced out."
• "Recent renovations have seen a beautiful outside covered seating area and inside partitions between tables allow for a covid safety conscious environment."
• "The central fire place was lovely & warming & matched well to the overall decor, which is a mix of rustic, traditional with a modern clean look."
• "The new outdoor seating is fabulous, really beautiful."

Cons:

• "It’s a bit of an odd layout to get outside having to walk through the entire pub to go to the bar."
• "The staff are absolutely fantastic... Nice atmosphere inside... but the manager took onboard what we said about the food, in which we were very disappointed."
• "Nice venue, staff were friendly & attentive, but my food was over-seasoned."

Service and Staff

Pros:

• "The service was equally impressive, with a team of well-trained and knowledgeable staff."
• "Service was friendly, attentive and intelligent."
• "The atmosphere is lovely with hilarious banter from the staff."
• "The staff are incredibly friendly, the service was quick."
• "The staff is very kind & polite & cleaning standards are high."
• "The staff are polite, attentive and engaging."
• "The staff were amazing.. food was lovely, I totally recommend this place."
• "The service was first class, led by the exceptional Josh, and every plate of food that arrived was beautifully presented."

Cons:

• "Our waitress was rude when we were saying we didn’t want anything on the burgers."
• "Food was lovely service was excellent but asked for rice pudding - which is served cold as I have had it before and last time they warmed it up for me. This time the Chef said NO as he wasn’t prepared to put it in the microwave."
• "There was 16 in our party so we had to pre order our food 2 weeks in advance. Arrived at the Harrow to be told some the food we pre ordered had run out."
• "The service was terrible we had to flag down someone if we wanted to order more drinks."
• "Bad service we were seated and it took 20 minutes to be asked for drink order."
• "We sat ages waiting to give a drinks order, despite the venue being otherwise empty, and staff lined up at the bar chatting."
• "Staff polite and helpful when approached. Shown to outside area but from afar and not to table."

Food Quality and Variety

Pros:

• "The culinary creations presented by the Harrow's chefs were nothing short of masterpieces."
• "The food is absolutely delicious! The menu is varied so there's something for everyone."
• "This really is a hidden gem - Michelin-quality food at pub prices."
• "Food was delicious. We shared the pulled pork & apple croquette and devilled whitebait."
• "The food was outstanding. The outdoor seating set up is one of the best I have visited."
• "The food at the Harrow has definitely gone to another level. Beetroot panacotta was a real delight, as was the trout."
• "The food was fantastic! However, the afternoon was completely ruined by the awful, awful service."
• "Fantastic food but the worst service in the area."

Cons:

• "The steaks were horrendous, so tough to cut through. Wasn’t even given a steak knife even though we asked for them!!!"
• "The burgers were questionable. The buns were nearly burnt, the bacon was near enough raw."
• "I have ordered cottage pie expecting it to come with the traditional pastry & more veg but instead the dish had the chef twist to it & no pastry at all."
• "The food was well presented, although my chicken and leek pie a little short on veg."
• "However, both the meals that my wife and I had were both a bit bland. We would say that they were under seasoned."
• "The main courses came out the serving was massive!! Like an American diner!! And the quality was poor, the pork and lamb didn’t taste of anything very odd."
• "Cosy and comfortable covered seating area. Staff polite and helpful when approached... Food was average to disappointing."
• "The dinners arrived reasonably quickly (we were first in) and they looked the part. However, my daughter noticed the vegan meals had been served with cauliflower cheese, which wasn’t listed as included in the vegan option."