Willow

We were let down one Sunday to go out to a birthday lunch and had dressed up and had nowhere to go so I rang Willow at the last minute and got fitted in to arrive for lunch within 20 minutes phew!!

We could park in the car park just at the back- always a bonus not having to walk 2 miles and getting stressed into the bargain - i didn't like the outside stair case as I walk with a stick however I made it up into the restaurant- The staff were just lovely- very attentive without overdoing it

The decor is modern with lots of wood but makes it feel cosy and not too pretentious.

The food - we had Sunday lunch with starters from the a la carte menu- was very enjoyable - and the roast beef was rare as we like it. the wine list is a bit 'top heavy' price wise but has some excellent wines if you want to splash out .

I hope to return next month for a birthday dinner - I only hope it's as good as the lunch !- I'll let you know!

P.S In case you are wondering, I got down the stairs with tripping up, what a bonus!
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Michele
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 6
Monday, October 11, 2010

My Husband and I ate at this restaurant for the first time on Saturday night with a catalogue of mishaps. We were given the cocktail menu (not the wine menu) and asked to see the wine menu twice but on each occasion were rudely told you are holding it until they realised their error.

My starter of Asparagus with grilled vegetables was cold (deliberately) but not very appetising. The Pan Fried Sea Bass was full of bones (one expects the odd bone in fish but not every mouthful), cheap fishmonger I presume here. The Ginger and Lemon Crème Brulee was the equivalent of three teaspoonfuls and not a hint of ginger or lemon in it and not cheap at £4.95 a pot. The choice on the menu is obviously designed to be fresh but to be told at 9.00pm on a Saturday night they have run out of Tuna was a bit disheartening to say the least. The waiter decided to eat his dinner on the table next to ours at about 10.00 o'clock most unromantic. The service swung from over the top to nowhere to be seen, not getting it right.

The menu was full of Supps in brackets which we found off putting too.

The interior décor was the only positive aspect to this restaurant. Overall, very over priced and trying to compete with West End restaurants but getting it very wrong. With a bill of almost £100 we expected much more from this set up; they are better off doing burgers and chips.
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2 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 1
Monday, August 09, 2010

My wife and I visited Willow very shortly after it opened last year.

It had been refurbished to a high standard - lots of dark wood and leather. The ambiance was good and all the tables were full.

However, we were seated on a table for two in a corner and didn't seem to have an allocated waiter. After 10 mins at the table I asked a waiter for a drinks list /menu. 10 minutes later I had to usher someone over to give our wine order, which was served shortly afterwards. A full 40 mins later and no-one had been over to take our food order. At this point I got up a asked to speak with the manager and explained the service problem. After this the waitstaff were very attentive. However, I was quite stressed out by this point - it is very rare for me to complain at a restaurant - and this detracted from our enjoyment.

The food wasn't cheap but was good - we had the signature lamb dish.

I made a mental note not to go back until the service issues (which I suppose are common with a new restaurant with new staff) had been ironed out.

I might pop in again soon - see if it has improved.
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Jon
5 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 5
Saturday, November 28, 2009

As we arrived we where greeted by a scruffy manager/owner. The food was just adequate for what we paid for, nothing more.

Only the service matched our expectation, except that the wine ordered wasn't available...

An average experience. Do not expect much if you were to be in the area.

Good luck!
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4 Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 2
Monday, April 27, 2009

Wonderful food, great wine list and service. The cocktail bar downstairs is lovely and the deco great. Eaten there twice now and each time was lovely.
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Nikki
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Saturday, March 28, 2009