Feathers Inn, The

Rebecca Grogan (17 January 2009)

We had a superb Sunday lunch at the Feathers, it was very tasty indeed. We had the beef, which was lovely. Just read the previous review. They do not serve steaks of beef but slices of rib. I am not sure if the reviewer realises what this means. Rib is a cut of meat that is very special; it’s most definitely the best cut of beef for roasting. It has fat through it and around it which you do not eat, but imparts flavour and keeps it juicy. Cuts of meat are a personal preference but for us it would be rib every time and preferably not well done. As for the staff I did not have this experience, in fact they went out of their way to make sure our children were happy with their choices and that their meals arrived quickly. They brought a high chair over as soon as we came in and made us feel at home. This is not the usual response from stuffy places. When we explained that my partner did not like parsnips they did not flinch in offering us an alternative and brought the vegetables separate so that we could select the ones we wanted. We were offered more gravy and more vegetables too. In fact there was no fault to be found in the service in spite of them being incredibly busy - thumbs up from us. We are already booked back in next Sunday and looking forward to it.

Claire (30 December 2008)

We travelled for over an hour to get to the Feathers, based on some recommendations and the fact that they had won so many awards recently. The meal started badly. We were given menus, sat down, chose our poison, as it were, and when the staff came to take our order, were informed that the fish was ‘all gone’. This might seem trivial, but when there are only three other main course options, it does limit somewhat. Regardless, we ordered, paying a supplement to have 28 day aged beef as part of a Sunday roast, our expectations were high at £14 for Sunday roast in a pub. The starters arrived and were good. Venison pâté with homemade pickles and lovely bread, home cooked ham with Cumberland sauce. When the main courses arrived, however, the disappointment began. It is no wonder that they need to charge so much with the portion size of beef they provide. We had two, inch thick steaks which, laid side by side, would have covered the whole dinner plate. One side of the ‘slices’ of beef was completely rare, the other, well done. In addition, the beef was tasteless, gristly and fatty. The carrots and sprouts looked like they had been lying around the kitchen for hours and the roast potatoes and Yorkshire pudding were charred.

The chap who seemed to be in charge asked us if our food was okay. When we said ‘not really’ he smiled and walked off. We were a little flabbergasted. We ate virtually nothing and when he came to clear the plates, he muttered something about taking money off the bill. This wasn't really the point - we'd travelled quite a distance for good food and service and were receiving neither. When the bill arrived, he had charged for one of the beef roasts, but taken the other off the bill. When questioned, he said that no one else had complained about the beef, and were in fact ‘raving’ about it. I have eaten in some wonderful places and they are all characterised by excellent local produce, are all in the pricier bracket, but never allow themselves to become pretentious. As far as I'm concerned, at least on the day we were there, the Feathers got it all wrong. Pretensions abound and customer service seemed to be low on the priority list. Needless to say, we won't be going back. I somehow don't think they'll be bothered - we had the distinct impression that they felt themselves untouchable.

See more reviews of Feathers Inn, The