The Red Lion & Sun Reviews Summary

Service

Pros:

• "Plus, the service was friendly and attentive."
• "Service was very quick and staff very friendly."
• "Our American server was fabulous."
• "It was amazing best food I have had in a pub, so polite and friendly service nothing too much trouble."
• "Staff were very friendly and helpful but we are very disappointed with the food."
• "The service was fantastic."
• "Staff are super friendly and attentive."

Cons:

• "Slow service. Cold roasts and one had to be sent back - we waited 40 minutes for a replacement."
• "However the staff were stressed out and over stretched so we waited a long time to be served."
• "Greeted aggressively outside by a guy in hiviz who looked like a bouncer asking if we had a reservation."
• "They literally gave us no time to finish our drinks and were rude when asking us to leave."
• "Slow service, badly organised!! We've now been here 45 minutes and haven't been brought a drink yet."
• "One member of staff wearing flip flops (serving food) was one of the rudest and most repugnant people I have come across."
• "The managers seemed stressed and unapproachable...our waiting staff were friendly enough but despite us sitting in the main thoroughfare for collecting food and drinks it was hard to get anyone's attention."

Food Quality

Pros:

• "Absolutely amazing food and Sunday roast. Definitely worth it!"
• "The food can't really be classed as pub food, due to exceeding the quality boundaries."
• "Every dish of food we tasted was so fresh and delicious we couldn't fault a thing."
• "The Sunday lunch was sublime - my belly pork was cooked to perfection."
• "Food quality is consistently good."
• "All of the food was absolutely incredible."
• "The fish, the meat, the veg are all mouthwateringly amazing."

Cons:

• "We had some nice-ish clams but then I had a decidedly dry lemon sole and my friend had a really drab monkfish curry."
• "Some slow cooked pork rib which was ok except for the half which hadn’t been submerged in the sauce and was dry and chewy."
• "Food really mediocre. Horrible chips. Sauces tasted like they'd been bought in a supermarket from the value range."
• "Main course (lamb) too fatty, inedible."
• "Very poor roast turkey. Meat thick tasteless and chewy."
• "The food was pretty average pork belly with shredded cabbage and a couple of roast potatoes and a watery flavourless gravy."
• "The roast dinner was very bland and overpriced."

Atmosphere

Pros:

• "A delight: cheerful in the summer, cosy in the winter."
• "All in all a really lovely and special atmosphere."
• "Great atmosphere- family and dog oriented."
• "The place has a lively environment during the weekends."
• "Beautiful garden setting we went looking for fish and chips but went on a Sunday so we actually lucked out because the had Sunday roast."
• "The atmosphere is cracking."
• "The pub has a nice ambience."

Cons:

• "It smells. It's tired. The place smells as though it needs a good cleaning, not just a 'pub' smell."
• "The whole place felt like a football hooligan time pub rather than somewhere that you would go to eat."
• "Disgusting staff lack of hygiene. I could not believe my eyes seeing the chef on his break speaking on his mobile with one hand and picking his nose constantly with the other."
• "Still has the weird plastic marquee from pandemic time outside which ruins the garden. Not really a pub atmosphere."
• "Actually got chucked out of the pub by the hysterical owner who is unable to accept any criticism."
• "The Vegan Roast was really poor. The potatoes were so dry and there really wasn't much on the plate."
• "The regular food is not worth it. They are selling decent pub grub for West End prices."

Value

Pros:

• "What a fantastic Sunday lunch. I had the Pork Belly which was perfectly cooked and great value."
• "The beef was really good though and just a small bug bare they squeezed it all on a plate not big enough in my opinion."
• "There’s intelligent sourcing with some good value wines by the bottle."
• "Pricing compares very favourably with the rest of Highgate (and elsewhere)."
• "Good value, decent portions and plenty of atmosphere."
• "Starters and mains with a round of drinks for 2 came to circ £55 which was, in my opinion, very reasonable for the location and quality of the food."
• "The Sunday roast portions are big and delicious."

Cons:

• "For a £110 for 2 including 4 drinks isn’t a great start for first time customers."
• "Small menu and expensive."
• "Only gripe is that it's a bit pricey."
• "I received my bill i was charged £3.60 for sitting near the fire place (Fire side) even though it was a quiet Wednesday afternoon with lots of empty tables."
• "Beer is eye wateringly expensive."
• "It's pricey as its a gastro and not a spoons type pub but it's worth it."
• "But I have to admit, it was a bit on the pricey side."

Management and Staff Response

Pros:

• "He was dealt with by one of the staff... who handled things with remarkable restraint."
• "The owner eventually sorted things out."
• "A management that promptly, courteously and constructively responds to review criticism of problems also inspires confidence."
• "Many Thanks to the staff, that were so helpful to us when we broke down opposite, waiting for recovery to arrive."
• "The staff are friendly and super competent."
• "Both the food and service was great."
• "Service was excellent and all dishes freshly prepared which meant we had time between courses to chat and enjoy the atmosphere."

Cons:

• "UPDATE: A reply to my review then accuses me of being a 'malicious' and 'fake account'."
• "UPDATE #2: 'Heath' gets very upset with every review he deems a troll or fake account."
• "Actually got chucked out of the pub by the hysterical owner who is unable to accept any criticism."
• "We booked a table in the back garden, in advance by calling the pub, as we wanted a nicer seating area for my husbands birthday, and on the phone we were assured that they reserved a table for us in the back garden. When we arrived on the day, they told us that there were no tables available in the back garden."
• "A very inattentive level service given the 12.5% service charge added."
• "The managers seemed stressed and unapproachable...our waiting staff were friendly enough but despite us sitting in the main thoroughfare for collecting food and drinks it was hard to get anyone's attention."
• "Overrated roast half empty plate and plenty of fat in the meat."