called into the Briar Dene hotel on Saturday 22nd August 2015 for a meal with my lady. first of all, the deco was a mix of 70's, 80's and 90's but was clean and tidy although could do with being updated.,
we were seated by the bar and ordered one large glass of house red and a pint of bitter. total cost £11.20.
we then ordered our meal, my lady chose iconic Prawn Cocktail and I ordered the mushroom soup, crispy cippets and truffle oil, we then ordered sirloin steak with home made chips (when we enquired earlier on the phone re the steaks, there was no mention of any supplement) and I ordered the confit Goosenargh duck leg with curried pug lentils and smoked bacon cassoulet.
the starters duly arrived and the iconic Prawn Cocktail was very nice but the mushroom soup was filled with a large dollop of squirty cream and too many cippets (croutons).
on to the main course, the steak was cooked to our liking but it was a very chewy piece of meat, not worthy of the price, never mind the supplement and the chips tasted and looked like frozen chips.
the Goosenargh duck leg was so full of heat that I couldnt touch it for about 5-10 minutes, it was incredibly hot as if it had been zapped several times in the microwave and the meat itself was chewy and bland, the curried pug lentils were overcooked and tasted burnt.
the vegetables were cooked to perfection and seasoned very well.
when we were asked how our meal was, we stated the problems with it and we were offered a discount of not paying for the main courses, a bottle of wine or a voucher for our next visit, we opted not to pay for the main courses (the young waitress was very apologetic and we did feel sorry for her but I was annoyed that no management came to enquire about our issues)
on to the amenities, the toilets are clean and tidy although they too could do with being updated and there is no lock on the gentleman's cubicle., hot running water and hand drier as per standard.
it wasn't busy on the night, I feel that a little investment into the restaurant would go a long way as the Briar Dene hotel is situated in a good central location in Cleveleys but lets itself down. read more