The Assembly House Reviews Summary

Food Quality

Pros:

• "Lovely food delicious tomato starter followed by salmon and samphire on a a bed of sea food."
• "The food was lovely and very fresh and the portions were very generous."
• "The food was great and the staff were very polite and attentive."
• "The food was delicious and plenty of it."
• "The afternoon tea was delicious and very very fresh."
• "The food... 😋 It was all beautiful and tasted amazing."
• "The food we had consisted of sandwiches with delicious fillings and we were even given a free top up of them."

Cons:

• "The food arrived was of very poor quality."
• "Fish was not fresh, cooked from frozen, 3 small pots of what looked like food processor fish."
• "The food was the biggest disappointment. The sandwiches were like doorstops, and the filling was so thin you couldn't taste what you were eating."
• "The meal was bland and sloppy, I certainly won't be rushing back for a meal there."
• "The savoury afternoon tea was a big disappointment."
• "The cakes were disappointing, they looked lovely but most of them were very bland."
• "The chocolate cake was more like a plain brownie which was very dry and crusty."

Service

Pros:

• "The staff were professional and courteous, especially the wonderful Michelle."
• "Service was excellent and we were well looked after, would definitely recommend."
• "We had outstanding customer service from the servers."
• "Staff really helpful polite. Nothing too much trouble."
• "Staff are friendly and welcoming."
• "The staff were helpful and friendly."
• "Staff were just brilliant."

Cons:

• "The manager who we called over was extremely rude and didn't have time to listen to our complaints properly."
• "Had to ask someone to serve us as the waitresses were too interested in preparing napkins."
• "Service can be hit and miss."
• "We were not asked if we wanted a drink when we were seated and had to call over to a member of staff to both ask for a drink and to question the menu."
• "We had to keep asking for everything as no one came over to us."
• "The venue is lovely but is let down by poor quality control in the kitchen and a lack of attentiveness from the waiting staff."
• "staff are incredibly classist, rude and judgmental."

Value for Money

Pros:

• "Seems a bit pricey initially but is honestly great value for money in terms of quality and quantity."
• "The rooms may seem expensive but after a birthday treat weekend, we thought our room was remarkable value."
• "At £21.95 for three courses this is excellent value."
• "We had a cream tea which was very good value for money, endless tea/coffee and more than enough to eat."
• "Gorgeous afternoon tea and Champagne... We were offered more sandwiches at no extra cost too."
• "The food we had consisted of sandwiches with delicious fillings and we were even given a free top up of them."
• "This is one superb hotel, with old style rooms finished to a very high standard."

Cons:

• "87 POUNDS for effectively 6 finger sized sandwiches, some scones and cakes. Absolute rip off."
• "Very poor for the money. Trying hard to be something it is not."
• "The normal price of an afternoon tea at The Assembly House is £27.50 I believe and will have been at least that on Mother's Day (we didn't pay as it was a present), but based on our experience, it is not worth that amount."
• "For £45 afternoon tea not worth it."
• "This took the final bill to over £50 which I feel is too steep for an Afternoon Tea."
• "after spending 42.00 pounds for an afternoon cream tea for two, I was left with the distinct impression that the incredibly small offerings were even too inadequate for our relatively small appetites."
• "Disappointing. Paid over £400 for two nights here. Parking is a truly miserable experience."

Parking

Pros:

• "A fantastic venue right in the centre of Norwich with lots of parking options around it."
• "As a resident, parking facilities are made readily available."
• "Disabled parking available."

Cons:

• "Such a lovely place to stay but the car park is definitely a challenge, not for the faint hearted or impatient."
• "The only down side is the lack of parking that belongs to the venue."
• "The downfall is the parking, I found a space in their car park but was told I can't park there."
• "Sneaky parking traps at the Assembly House!"
• "Parking is a truly miserable experience arriving as we did late on a wet evening. The parking lot is tiny, difficult to find and cramped."
• "I was told 'no we cant let you out as there is a wedding underway'."
• "Rooms are not in main building but in an annex. You will get wet walking to breakfast if it was raining."

Atmosphere & Decor

Pros:

• "The building itself is amazing, beautiful and very luxurious."
• "What a treasure this place is. A really incredible building and a great piece of heritage."
• "The Assembly House has gorgeous high ceilings, tons of features and it’s tall windows allow masses of light in."
• "A beautiful building. Restored after a major fire some years ago."
• "Beautiful building in the heart of Norwich."
• "Lovely period surroundings - quite elegant."
• "Gorgeous historic building next to the Theatre Royal."

Cons:

• "Room looks wonderful. Alas, the bathroom of the room above is over the bed."
• "Room 14 ok but felt like a garage conversion."
• "The only real negative for us was the place is looking a little tired and looks like it would benefit from a bit of a refresh."
• "Our table was in a functions room, possibly a ballroom. Decoratively not great, we would have expected it to be more luxuriant rather than pale washed out colours."
• "The room was quite bland and not that warm. The service was atrocious."
• "Being in a private room upstairs there was no atmosphere."
• "The doors to the kitchens need to be closed. All we could hear was crashing, clinking and water!"