"Our experience of visiting Merryhatton Garden Centre for lunch today has ensured that we won’t be returning anytime soon. There were three of us: my wife and I with our two-year-old grandson. The restaurant was busy but there was no waiting for a table; it was only after we were seated that the waiting began! It took about 15 minutes before our order was taken; one soup, one panini and one children’s box to include a ham sandwich and a box of orange juice. After about 15 minutes, the adults’ drinks were served but there was no milk for the tea (which had been requested) and nothing for the little boy. After a further 30+ minute wait – during which time we asked twice when our food would be served – it eventually arrived … for the adults. A further reminder had to be given before the child’s box arrived … which was very disappointing. The orange juice ordered was served as apple juice and the ham sandwich looked more like something you might serve in a truckers’ ‘greasy spoon’ caf’. The ‘doorsteps’ of cold, hard bread with thick crusts contained several slices of what looked more like gammon steak than ham suitable for a two-year-old and, needless to say, was not eaten. Had it been served to me, I wouldn’t have eaten it either. When I went to pay the bill, I commented to our server that we were less than impressed. He apologised for the delays because they were “busy” and said he would let the kitchen know that we weren’t happy with the ham sandwich. I expressed surprise that the the price of the sandwich wasn’t being deducted from our bill and was told that couldn’t be done. Another member of staff made the comment that, if the sandwich was too big, my grandson, “… could have eaten a bit of it.” I consider it unacceptable to keep a two-year-old waiting for so long for a poor attempt at a child’s meal. The food which my wife and I had was fine but to serve it more than half-an-hour after the drinks was also unacceptable. Merryhatton Garden Centre is well placed to provide an enjoyable eating out experience but their lack of an adequate system for serving food coupled with their poor customer service has left us feeling very let down."
