Radcliffe Arms, Hermitage Road

Total Team Rating

We would like to say before you read the reviews, please take time to read the interesting "Write to reply" we had from the Radcliffe after showing them one of the reviews. Interesting customer service. This can be found at the bottom of the page.

Harry's Review

Oh dear oh dear oh dear. Where to start with tonight’s review! Such high expectations and what did we get….

We had booked a table for 4 in the conservatory for 8 pm, a guest reviewer was with the terrible trio. So we arrived arrived early at ten to eight to be shown a table for 4 in the main pub, not a problem except that we had specifically booked a table in the conservatory we said. The barman replied “that’s OK we’ll get you a table in the conservatory” so we ordered a pint and had a chat at the bar only to be told that actually the conservatory was full so we took the table in the main bar. This set the tone for the whole evening where nothing was delivered as should be.

We had actually blown our schedule to make a trip to the Radcliffe to partake of their 2 hanger steaks and a bottle of wine offer for £15 each. Having sat at the table we were waiting some considerable time for any service at all. When eventually the waiter did ask us, we had a bit of an internal communication error as our guest reviewer decided he didn’t want the steak deal. We asked the waiter to give us 2 minutes just while we sorted out. 

Fully 15 minutes later the waiter returned, Maurice and Mick had decided to go for the steak, our guest and myself went for the pork belly with Flemish beans and mash on the specials board. 

Having ordered, the waiter then returned to tell us that the hanger steak had gone as they had a run on them. At that stage we were ready to bale out, as the only reason we had come in the first instance was this deal. The waiter to be fair did then ask the chef if we could have a free upgrade to a sirloin which was agreed so we stayed, though it was touch and go.  

The main took an age to come. We had entered the pub at ten to eight and it was nine thirty before our food arrived. The only thing that could have saved the evening would be superb quality food. Unfortunately this didn’t happen either. The pork belly was a generous size, but needed to be cooked more to tenderize, the crackling was just hard. There was a gravy/jus on the side which was quite salty – just average food really.  None of us wanted to stay any longer so we paid and left as soon as we had finished our mains.

Overall very disappointed with the whole evening and experience at the Radcliffe and won’t be back there unless I hear that things have significantly improved.

Food 2.5

Venue/Service 2

Value for Money 2

Maurice's review

I had been looking forward to going to The Radcliffe, it must be at least 18 months since my last visit. I used to work close by and popped in once in a while for lunch just after the refurb and was always very impressed. As well as the usual team we had a guest reviewer with us, so I decided to book in advance. Well this in itself should have been a sign of things to come. I had spoken to a very nice chap who requested last name, then first name, then required time, then would i like the conservatory or the bar area, etc. Once I had confirmed all this information he then decided he wasn’t able to make the booking and put me on to another chap. I then had to go over everything again as nothing had been written down. A minor frustration but a telling sign given what followed.

Our table was booked in the conservatory for 8:00pm we arrived early and had a drink at the bar. I must say a nice range of beers and ales on offer, so not for your traditional Fosters drinker. But it was nice to have something new. On asking for our table we were pointed to a table by the kitchen doors. I mentioned I had booked a table in the conservatory, and was informed “sorry there are no tables left in there, besides most people want to eat in here”. I reiterated my point, to be told that the waitress has now said there was a table free, excellent. Ohhh no hang on 2 minutes later we were then told that that table had now gone and we would have to eat in bar area.

So we took our seats at 7:50. The purpose of choosing this restaurant on this night was to try their special offer which was “2 Hanger Steaks and a bottle of wine for £30”. Then we waited, then waited, then tried several times to catch the waiters eye, and just as we were going to leave. Service. I promptly ordered my Hanger steak to be told “I am sorry sir we have just served the last one”. I am afraid at this point the menu, hit the table followed by a moody “That’s it I give up, just forget it” I had a stunned look from the waiter. “Im sorry sir but I can’t help it if we have sold out”. I went on to explain we had been waiting for over 40 mins and had he served us sooner we would have been in time, In fairness he handled the complaint well and offered to replace the steaks with Sirloin. The deal was done.

Sadly just as we thought we could move on with our evening, we were presented with yet another 30 minute wait before the main course actually arrived.

Ok my steak looked good, it was cooked well, medium rare with a little blood, if not a little on the cold side as if it had been kept under heating lights for a little while. The chips, well what can I say, there is a McDonalds just up the road, and I think someone ran up there and grabbed a portion for my plate. OK they were fine they were French fries, but in a gastro pub you expect more.

I will let the guys comment on their mains, but I got the vibe they were not impressed, something to do with a couple of strategically placed napkins at the end.

We debated a desert, for about 1 min, as we realised that they shut in about an hour and there was no way they were going to be able to serve before then.So that’s it really, a huge disappointment. I used to really enjoy there lunch menu and service used to be great, but its almost like they have given up trying. I know The Hermitage and The Highlander must be a threat to them, but they should be rising to the challenge not throwing in the towel.

Food 2.5
Venue/Service 2
Value for Money 2

Mick's Review

Well I was really looking forward to this evenings feast, Maurice had pre-booked the meal the previous week, as we had been informed that the Radcliffe Arms were doing a steak meal deal with a bottle of wine for two people for £30.00, so Maurice checked with our guest reviewer as we knew he liked steak, perfect we thought, (I knew it wasn't gonna be good, as Maurice when making the booking gave all the details and requests only to be told, sorry I can't take this booking ill have to hand it over to someone else) having made the booking for 20.00 and requested to be seated in the conservatory, we turned up slightly before 20.00 and bought beers and told the barman we had booked to eat at 20.00 and in the conservatory, ah he said I think the conservatory is fully booked but there might be a place, having checked he came back ah sorry but the table has been given to someone else (good start to the evening we all thought) so we settled for a table inside, well we waited for a while and the waiter came and asked for our order ( I had previously been prepped by Maurice on what "hanging steak was" so I explained this to our guest reviewer who then screwed the total arrangement by asking for the pork belly (after agreeing the previous week to go for the steak/wine deal), at this point we asked the water to give us a couple of minutes as we had to decide what to do.

Thanks to Harry's kindness he decided to go for the pork belly so that left Maurice and Mick to go for the steak/deal, well that's good, but 20 minutes later the waiter came back and was ready to take our order, too which he informed us that "ALL" the steak had been taken , oh great that's screwed us up even more, but, credit to the waiter he said he would ask the Chef if  he would be able to get us sirloin Steak instead, he came back and informed us that was ok, so we ordered, now having been in the restaurant for 50 minutes it was gonna be another 30 minutes before the meal turned, just in time as I and Maurice were within seconds of saying stuff it enough is enough when the meal turned up.

I know the guest reviewer and Harry were not totally happy with their meal, I must say when eventually the meal turned up, it was nicely presented, but the steak was good, disappointed that it was served with (what i can only describe as "McDonald" style french fries and NOT hand cut chips, but the whole debacle had spoiled what I thought was going to be a good evening, when we had all finished we paid up and left, with a great sense of disappointment

Food 2.5

Venue/Service 2

Value for Money 2

Radcliffe Arms response to our review:

Dear Maurice Matthews,

Thank you for your email detailing your visit to The Radcliffe Arms this week. I’m sorry you did not enjoy your time here, and I’m sorry we had already run out of our “Steak Deal” Hangar steaks by the time you came to order. This does happen from time to time, particularly if it is a very busy night, fully booked in fact, and we would normally upgrade any customers to Ribeye or Sirloin accordingly, as my colleague (who’s an ex-footman to the Duke of Edinburgh by the way) did in this case.

I see also that you didn’t like the chips. We have fluctuated between serving the skinny fries and big chunky hand-cut chips, during the almost four years we’ve been cooking at The Radcliffe, and there is a slight majority of customers in favour of the skinny fries, probably because there is more fat & salt in them, everyone always wants what’s bad for them. I’ve seen exactly the same served in everywhere from the Ivy to McDonalds, Burger King to the Savoy, they are very popular.

I was also very concerned that you seemed to have to wait an hour & fifteen minutes to have your order taken in the first place, and then a further forty-five minutes to receive your food. On closer enquiry, the staff on duty don’t quite share your recollection of events, and searching the till data doesn’t appear to back up your fiction. Let me enlighten you a little; You sat at 7.55pm, having enjoyed some of the best beer in Hitchin at the bar (thanks for those compliments) and your order for two medium-rare sirloins & two pork belly went to the kitchen at exactly 8.30pm. So, a 35 minute wait. To finish drinks, peruse the menu, and given it was busy, about right, rather than an hour & a quarter. By your estimation, you wouldn’t have even got your food until 9.50pm, which would have been remarkable, given that you paid your bill and left at 9.34pm.

It’s very rare that someone comes along, masquerading as a genuine customer, with a genuine complaint, and I call them out on it. If there is ever a scintilla of doubt, I try to bend over backwards to make that person feel welcome, and keep them well fed and leaving happy. You guys on the other hand are, in my opinion, on a bully-boy fishing expedition to see what you can wangle for free, with the added threat of a public complaint via social media.

I won't stand for it. Please don't come here again.

Regards

Stuart Alder

Our Response

Dear Stuart,

Thanks for your reply, but you appear to have completely misunderstood the purpose of our reviews and web site, but a couple of points before we address that.

1) With respect to the timing however you look at it we arrived before 8 pm, had one course and left after 9.30. That constitutes slow service, given that we left immediately after finishing eating. Whilst it is clear that you were busy that wasn’t conveyed to us. If we had been told that the kitchen was running late and there would be a delay that would have at least have given us warning.
2) The upgrade to sirloin wasn’t offered when we were informed that the hanger steak was off, but only when we were discussing leaving. The waiter who was courteous and with whom we have no issues said that he would ask the kitchen about whether an upgrade could be offered, so we do not believe it is fair for you to say that offering an upgrade is normal practice.

In all our reviews we have been completely anonymous, no discount or special treatment has been asked for or expected before, during or after our visit. The rationale is that we are treated no differently to any other customers so get to see what the service is like for “genuine customers”.

The Radcliffe is the eighth review that we have done. For each of these we have paid in full and left the establishment without them being aware that we have reviewed them. In your establishment we also paid the bill in full, so we are unclear how you could be of the opinion that we are trying to wangle something for free? We went to the Radcliffe expecting to get a good meal and give a good review – that didn’t happen on the evening in question. If you read other reviews you will see that we have given 4 marks plus to other venues simply based on the good service and food we received from them. No financial incentive played any part on these reviews, or will do going forward.

To call us bullies is not only extremely insulting but also laughable – we are anything but.

As for being not welcome in the Radcliffe I can assure you that none of us will lose any sleep over that.

The Pint and a Pie Team

The Three Moorhens, Hitchin Hill

Team Rating

Harry's Review

So up to the Three Moorhens for our next food session. Not a pub that I have used very much so didn’t know what to expect. The place is a bit TARDIS like in that it looks small from the outside, but is really quite spacious on the inside. Again a Greene King house. Maurice arrived a few mins before Mick and myself and was struggling to get served at the bar. Staff were covering both the food and bar sales and service was slow.

The pub is done out well with a traditional theme and has a comfy feel. There is ample seating outside and I could imagine it being very busy on a warm summer weekend

Got a pint of IPA, good value at £2.59 a pint and a good pint in itself. We found a table and perched ourselves there. Service it is fair to say was sporadic. There didn’t seem to be enough staff working, so when we were asked if we were ready to order, we asked for 5 minutes and it was more like 20 mins and then a different waitress.

None of us wanted starters, so it was straight into the mains. I went for the lamb shank as this one of my faves and success! It was on. However I did get asked by the waitress if I wanted seasonal veg with that, not realising that was an extra dish I said yes, given that the lamb shank already came with peas, probably not necessary! When the dish came up to add insult to injury, the kitchen had run out of broccoli, so to add to the carrot and cauli in the veg side dish they gave extra peas. So a bit of a pea fest… The dish came up with the lamb shank on a bed of mash, a bit of gravy, peas and a small jug of mint sauce. The veg was average, there were far too many peas, the mash OK and not enough gravy. However the lamb shank was a triumph. Beautifully cooked and a good size, there was a generous amount of tender lamb which fell off the bone.

For pud I went for the easy option of the trio of ice cream – just what I fancied at the time. It was very nice and a generous portion, which I also noticed for the other puds for Maurice and Mick, you certainly couldn’t complain about the dessert portions. We did wait a long time for the desserts to arrive, so much so that Maurice was on the edge of having a sense of humour failure.

In summary the food was middle range pub grub, done OK but spoiled a bit by slow service. From looking at the menu, there are good deals to be had on certain nights. For my meal today I would say fairly average across the board, the lamb shank was great but balanced out by not great veg and slow service.
Service and venue: 3/5
Food and drink: 3/5
Value for money: 3/5

Maurice's Review

It has been a long time since I have been to the Moorhens at least 10 years I would say, so not sure what to expect. All I know is last time I went I had a falling out with the waiter because I ordered a Caesar salad and it came with tomatoes, cucumber and mixed leaves. That's a salad not a Caesar salad. Oh sugar I just realised I still haven't let go!!!!

Anyway on arrival I was shocked to find how many chairs were outside, if this was on a beech in spain woohooo but not sure how they handle the good old British weather. The inside had been redecorated to a high standards and I was hopeful it was going to be a good night.

Anyway that's where the fun ended for me, I was stood at the bar for approx 15 min before being served. The reason for this is that there was only 1 bar staff on, and they were also handling all the food orders. However when I asked if they were busy the answer was "no more than normal".

The good news however was its a cheap round so an extra point by the other boys I am sure.

Starters: Nothing really caught my eye on this, not sure why they had enough range.

Main: Hunters Chicken

This has become a regular in pubs I think, basically a chicken breasts, with bacon on the top, bbq sauce and melted cheese. This came with good old chips and a salad. Overall not a bad dish, only comment I would make is that the chicken was very dry, and a little on the small side, but overall for a pub food - not bad.

Pudding: Apple Crumble and Cream

At first arrival the pudding looked huge, and indeed it was a heck of a portion. The crumble top was lovely and thick and sugary. The apple was sweet and just soft enough not to be mushy. The heat was perfect and didn't burn the mouth. Overall the highlight of the night.


Summary:
Apart from the exceptionally slow service from the point of the first pint to the point of almost cancelling my order for pudding after such a wait, this wasn't bad. It was your typical pub food, Goldilocks would be happy as it wasn't great and it wasn't awful it was just right.

Service and venue: 3/5
Food and drink: 3/5
Value for money: 3/5

Mick's Review

Arrived to hear that Maurice had been told that it was not too busy by the bar staff, oh good I thought this should be good, oh how wrong could I have been, it took Maurice a good 10 minutes to get served ( not bad for a pub that was - not too busy).

We sat down and ordered our meals my main meal was - Gammon and chips with double egg and peas, the staff friendly and helpful, the meal arrived, nice and hot and very tasty. I must admit I was rather surprised as I was not expecting this, but sadly it went downhill from there.

I noticed that 3 ladies arrived and sat at a table close by, and ordered their drinks and they duly arrived, when we had finished our main meals, we ordered dessert, in the meantime the table with the 3 ladies had received their main meals and had also received a second round of drinks, before our food arrived.

We waited 10 minutes for our dessert, still nothing arrived, no explanation from the staff and I mentioned to Harry and Maurice that I thought we were now one waitress down. 15 minutes later Maurice is getting more that agitated that we had still not received our desserts, and was extremely close in cancelling his dessert order, just as that decision was about to be made all our desserts turned up ( and not before time). For my dessert I ordered the sticky toffee pudding, which was very nice and very tasty, but due to the delay in receiving the dessert I felt this let the place down, very disappointed as it had started out very well indeed.


Service and venue: 2/5
Food and drink: 3/5
Value for money: 2.5/5

Highlander, Upper Tilehouse Street, Hitchin

Team Rating

Mick's Review

The pub is very welcoming and has several beers and lagers and is nicely decorated.

Starter - Homemade Pork Pâté with Orange and Pistachio's

Accompanied by a little salad, small white onions and small gherkins also a nice lightly spiced chutney and a warn Quotidian roll. I was amazed to see such a generous portion for this starter and I was not disappointed, the pâté tasted really nice and was very flavorsome with the salad, chutney and pickles, this was a very delicious starter.

Main meal: Carribean Jerk rice.

Again once it had been served this was a nice generous serving, with the initial first few mouthfuls the flavors really hit the taste buds, it was a really tasteful and enjoyable meal, and there was just the right amount of sauce to go with the rice.

Dessert: Treacle Sponge Pudding with Cinnemon Custard

As with the starter and main meal this was very well presented and above all this pudding and custard were very hot and very tasty.

For the first time in 3 nights out Harry's choice of meal WAS on the menu, which sadly for me was a disappointment as I had had a small trophy lined up to present to Harry for what could have been his Hatrick. A really excellent evening out, very enjoyable meal a good rapport with the staff who were all very friendly and helpful and would recommend this venue and would advise people to book in advance, just to make sure of your place. I will certainly revisit the Highlander in the future.

Service and venue: 4.5/5

Food and drink: 4.5/5

Value for money: 5/5

  Maurice's Review

Venue: The Highlander is on Tilehouse street and I drive past it most nights on the way home from work and every time I look through the window I think “I must try that place”. So I was a happy boy to have pulled this one out the hat as my first choice. 

I met the guys there and was pleasantly surprised when I walked in, a nice classic looking pub with mostly wooden decor. Very busy for midweek, and a mixture of punters from young to old, wide selection of beers, lagers and wines at a reasonable price. 

The only real disappointing thing about it was the tables were very close together, so you didn't really feel very private, also as the evening progressed it got darker and darker to the point it was very hard to see your food. Although I would add this was mostly due to the location of the table.

Starter: Fresh Devon Crab with Lime Mayo £7.95

The starter was a little slow coming out, but they were very busy, but when it arrived it was well worth waiting for. Presentation was stunning, and my god what a lot of crab. The moment I took my first mouthful the freshness of the crab was obvious. The lime was subtle but there. Accompanied by a fresh warm roll and the lemon mayonnaise, this served as a great accompaniment. I was very impressed. 

Jerk Chicken with Coconut Rice

This was a gamble. I didn’t know what to expect and was going to play it safe and go for a steak, but I decided to try something new. Funny thing was I saw the server come out with our meals and spot are table had yet to be cleared. He very professionally kept walking past went around the bar and back in the kitchen before coming out and clearing the table. That may sound daft but I have had people clear and serve at the same time before, ANNOYING! So top marks for being a pro.

The food looked great (from what I could see in the light). The first mouthful was “A taste sensation” to quote Peter Kay. A whole burst of flavours, from toms, coconut to spices and nuts. A nice generous serving and the flavour had a few surprises throughout, but overall very good.

Homemade Chocolate Brownie

Another lovely looking dish and the brownies were nice and warm and soft and gooey, just how it should be. With a nice white chocolate melting out at certain points, it was a delight. I was worried that it was going to beat me because I only went for a dessert to see if they could manage 3 superb courses, and it’s fair to say they did!

Service and venue: 4/5

Food and drink: 4.5/5

Value for money: 4/5

Harry's Review

The Highlander is a traditional pub building on the Luton Road out of Hitchin, so just outside the town centre. A few years back the pub was tastefully refurbished and re-launched with a gastro theme. The pub is cheerful and clean and you do feel comfortable in there if eating, it is not really a drinking only pub at busy food serving times.

I arrived at roughly the same time as the other two and ordered a round of Greene King IPA, Greene King Mild and Kronenbourg 1664 for the lager lout Maurice. I was pleasantly surprised to get change from £10 so the beer is very reasonably priced and my GK Mild was also a nice pint.

The place appeared to be busy for a Wednesday and the barman confirmed this. We did get a table and decided to go for starter and main. I went for the paté and duck leg comfit.

The paté was homemade pork, pistachio and orange – an interesting combination!  It came served with hot roll from the Hitchin Quotidian bakery, a small dressed leaf and cherry tomato salad and a couple of pots containing pickled gherkins and onions in one a mildly spicy chutney in the other. This combination was quite delicious and I cannot find anything to knock about this dish except that of I was doing it I would have used a sweet chutney, but that is merely personal taste and in no way detracts from the quality of the dish.

The service for the starter was a little slow but this is forgivable given that it was busy and clearly quality had not been compromised for speed.

My first choice main (on for once!) arrived soon after the starter. The duck leg was beautifully cooked and fell off the bone. The duck was served on a bed of sautéed potatoes mushrooms and some other stuff dressed in a thick jus. 

And here a bit of a whinge – I’m all for a bit of subdued lighting, but as the sun went down it was so dark on our table it was difficult to see what you were eating so I can’t give you a more detailed description. The whole dish was very rich and possibly could have benefited from the veg being a bit lighter, but that is again just personal taste – I certainly could not fault the quality.

Feeling a bit stuffed as the portion sizes of the starter and main were generous I wouldn't normally go for a pud, but we all three decided to go for it as the first two courses had been so good. 

I went for seasonal fruit clafoutis, which was a pastry, infused with fruit that was probably apple with a big scoop of tangy raspberry sorbet on top. This again was very nice and despite being reasonably full from the first two courses, I managed to finish with no problem.

The food bill was just under £25 per head, I think excellent value for money given the high standard and generous portion sizes.
In summary a thoroughly enjoyable meal with a couple of pints of good beer in a pleasant environment with good company. I would definitely recommend the Highlander on the strength of our visit and I think that booking would be advisable. I will certainly be back!

Service and venue: 4.5/5
Food and drink: 5/5
Value for money: 5/5