The Clissold Arms

I visited for one of the restaurant's Greek nights, which was extremely popular and created a fantastic atmosphere. The venue was very busy, the music was enjoyable, and the food was good, making for an entertaining evening overall. Unfortunately, the service struggled to keep up with the demands of the event. We often found ourselves having to ask for the next course of the meze to be brought out, and at one point we even had to collect bread ourselves. Given that the event was organised in advance, I felt there could have been better coordination and communication between the staff and the tables they were responsible for serving. That said, the restaurant was exceptionally busy, and I appreciate that events of this size can be challenging to manage. Because I've only visited during this particular event and haven't experienced the restaurant on a normal day, I don't want to be overly critical or assume that this reflects their usual standard of service. Overall, it was a fun evening with good food, music, and atmosphere. While the service could certainly have been more organised, I would be willing to visit again outside of an event to experience the restaurant under normal circumstances.

The service was ok but how a pub could forget to bring the drinks, but they managed to. Staff seem to have that skill of not meeting a customer’s eye when they want something. The kleftico was excellent. The souvla was grey boney and very dry and hard. The manager offered a sharper knife! And said that it was meant to be like that. It was taken off the bill. We were given our portion of baklava free, but I thought it was meant to come with ice cream?

We booked a private space here for a wake, and unfortunately the experience was extremely disappointing. When we arrived, there was nobody to welcome us, guide us, or explain where we should go. The space did not feel properly prepared, and several of the chairs had holes in them, meaning some guests could not sit comfortably. For such a sensitive occasion, this was incredibly embarrassing. We had ordered tea and coffee, but the tea urn was never provided, despite being paid for. There was only coffee, and even that was served without milk. The food was not set up when we arrived, and we had to go looking for staff to ask for items that had already been arranged. No one came to check on us or serve us during the reception. On top of this, we were charged an extra £30 for paying by card, which had not been communicated to us in advance. Had we known, we would have brought cash. This was a wake for our father, not a normal casual booking. On such an emotional day, the last thing we should have had to do was chase staff, question what had been provided, and deal with unclear charges. The lack of organisation, care and communication made an already difficult day even more stressful. Very disappointing, and I would not recommend this venue for an important or sensitive family occasion.