The Fire Stables

Dreadful. About as 'gastronomic' as my local chippy, and that is being unfair on my local chippy.

Avoid, unless you have had a skinful before you eat. This is a pub with very average food and even worse service. It is not a restaurant and I struggle with the claim of 'gastro-pub'.
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james tyler
Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 2
Sunday, August 24, 2008

First time I have ever written a review although we have eaten out most weeks for last 10 years. But tonight our experience was so awful I had to comment. Main problem was only one waiter who seemed rather unbalanced. He was literally running across the restaurant in such a fashion it alarmed customers. After taking our order he literally threw the menus across the room like a discus. The general feeling this engendered was unnerving and a desire to get out asap. Unfortunately it took more than 90 minutes for our main course to arrive, My wife's fish was fine but my rissotto was very rich and overfacing. Given the eccentric behaviour of the sole waiter and the lengthy delay in delivering food (with no explanation) we didn't feel comfortable asking for an accompanying salad or anything else and our intuition was just to get out as soon as possible. A most unsettling and unpleasant experience. This may have been an unusual experience but it is one we have not had anywhere in London. Rather surprisingly the waiter said he had not included cost of any starter on our bill which was commendable (and hinted at some unspoken problem) but we would still the cross the road to avoid being dragged inside again. Approach with extreme caution!
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Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 4
Tuesday, April 01, 2008

My husband and have been there regularly in the last 3 years - pub and restaurant - and were always satisfied with the service as well as the food.

The service is throughout friendly and obliging. Service and kitchen staff are quite flexible and try to meet special orders and wishes. Both pub and restaurant have a nice and warm atmosphere and the food is quite tasty.
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Billy
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Thursday, March 13, 2008

Excellant service - waiters very attentive and also smiling and polite;

Food was great - especially the toffee pudding!!!!!!
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Maurice
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Thursday, February 28, 2008

Went to the Firestables for drinks and dinner with friends last Saturday night

what an enjoyable evening they have just changed their wine list and we had a really nice bottle/s of viognier for dinner we the duck spring rolls, mushroom bruschetta and the avo & mozzarella salad for starters all very tasty fresh and arrived rather swiftly for mains we had the beef fillet which was cooked to perfection, the duck breast rather lovely with the beetroot risotto and the sea bass again cooked brilliantly.

By this time we could not try even look at the pudding

Oh and did I mention the service it was fantastic, really attentive nothing was too much of a problem and we were always approached with a smile

We will definitely be going there again
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Gavin mcloud
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Thursday, September 20, 2007

Not sure what has happened over the last year or so, but all I can say is whatever happened is a great shame. This gastropub used to be fantastic, service was at times disjointed but always attentive and courteous, now it is simply non-existent. But the greatest disappointment is the food! You could previously rely on an astoundingly well cooked lamb shank (for a gastropub) but now will have to make do with a burnt burger and chips at an exorbitant price. Wherever the old management and chef have gone, please bring them back!
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Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 1
Thursday, September 06, 2007

It's not often that I get the urge to review a bar or restaurant but I've twice now made a mental note to do so after visiting the Fire Stables. Being a local to the area I've visited this bar and restaurant on a number of occasions and I'm sad to say that the quality of the food and service has become increasingly disappointing.

The Fire Stables has great premises in a fabulous location in the centre of wimbledon village but if the management think that this alone is enough to sustain successful long term business I believe they will be disappointed. I have twice now given them the benefit of the doubt but I won't be doing so again. My main bug bear apart from the average, somewhat overpriced food (but let's not forget this Wimbeldon village we're talking about) is the service or complete lack thereof from the waiting staff and the management.

Three visits ago I went for a meal with a friend and ordered a glass of wine with dinner. When the bill arrived they charged us for a bottle. Easy mistake to make granted but rather than apologise and correct the bill, the waitress argued with me and only when I pointed to the single glass did she apologise and correct the bill.

The next time I visited was with four friends. To cut to the chase most of us had a three course meal with aperitifs, wine and coffee. The meal was ok. We all fancied the same starter but there was only one left. Not a big deal as I think if you visit a gastro pub using what you hope to be fresh ingredients, popular dishes will likely run out at bsome point in the evening. After a pleasant evening, when the bill arrived we noticed a few random drinks which prompted us to run throgh it in more detail. In the event, it transpired they had over-charged us by well over £100. Given that this wasn't the first time this had happened to me, we politely pointed out the errors and asked if the waiter could please send over the manager. With a smaller amount we really wouldn't have bothered but for this sum it seemed warranted. There was no apology from the waiter who a few minutes later placed an adjusted bill on the table with no further comment. We had to call him over again and ask if the manager was coming. His response was that the bill had been adjusted. Still no apology. At this point two of us went to find the manager ourselves. After waiting at the bar for a few minutes I explained the situation to the manager who she said she had been too busy to come over and had asked him to re-adjust the bill. Still no apology. Only when I pointed this out did we actually get one. It transpired that the people at the table before us had paid with vouchers and they hadn't cleared the outstanding payment on their billing system from our table. I work in sales and am fully aware that accidents do happen, however a little customer service or a swift apology usually goes a long away. In such circumstances, I wouldn't normally expect to have to ask for one.

Two or three months later I had a friend to stay and we were planning a night out in the village. You really would have thought I'd have learned by now but ever the optimist I was still hoping that The Fire Stables I formerly knew and loved might have sprung back to life. I think the writing was however on the wall when we went in on a Friday night at 8pm and the restaurant area was half empty (this place used to be heaving). Two waiters were working that night. One seemed very attentive and pleasant (sadly he wasn't looking after our table), the other was the same waiter we had last time. The food came quickly but was nothing to write home about although there was a reasonable selection for my friend who's a vegetarian. The service was once again however exceptionally poor with a series of grunts and mumbles from the waiter. He was pretty much in his own world and spent most of his time re-arranging salt and pepper pots ot the service desk while customers tried to get his attention. There was also clear tension between the two waiters who had a quite blatant argument over in the service area.

Per the guidelines of this site, I have drawn the managements attention to what I personally consider to be poor service but I can only assume that the staff are picking it up from the management's 'easy come easy go' attitude. I think this is a huge shame. If they could improve the food and maybe show a bit more interest in customer service I think they could turn this around but I can't see this happening any time soon.

Sadly, I for one won't be returning any time soon.
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Judith - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 4
Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Simply the worst food I have had in a restaurant for a long time with not much better service, and I am not one of those people who expects the earth.

Where do I start ?

The menu was limited (granted 2 of us were "raving" veggies.)

The portions were very small (and expensive). The Sunday roast is served in a bowl. The burger was raw and the spaghetti fish bowl was just that .... just cooked spaghetti and bits of fish.

I'd go as far as to say that not even their coffee was up to scratch.

If place won an award back in 2001 ..... seems about the same time Rubik’s cube was around.

Thankfully I was able to stop at Tesco on the way home for a sandwich.
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Sean
Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 2
Monday, March 05, 2007

Ate at the Fire Stables this evening for the sixth time. Love the place. Love the ambiance. The staff are great and very attentive. The food is desperately poor. They desperately need a chef. Burger and chips and salad should be easy. Burger cremated. Chips undercooked and greasy. Salad boring. Why oh why in such a wonderful site should someone not have a GOOD chef?
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Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 0
Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Been to the restaurant twice in two months this year already and both times the food has been excellent, can't wait to go back. Enjoyed the wine of the month recommendation. Very popular with good atmosphere. Staff friendly and service good. What a gem! Helen - Epsom
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helen davies
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Friday, February 03, 2006