This review is just for the restaurant…read more Came here for a work meeting and my first impression was-- I feel so tall. I'm petite, but the doors are short, which was fun. The spot is very charming and quaint. Staff are really nice and friendly. Food was quite good. Really enjoyed the soup and banoffie dessert was yummy. No complaints. I'd definitely come back!

This is a review on the restaurant. It's a nice cute pub and the food is excellent. The waiters…read morewere kind and the service good. Overall this was a nice place to come and have a delicious and slightly posh meal with the family.

Brilliant hotel great services great staff great food great entertainment. Rooms are very clean and…read morethey get cleaned every day. Simply brilliant definitely worth the money...

In its short lifetime of 169 years, 33 London street, has hosted diverse cultural activities - an…read moreeducational institute, theatre, church then pub. It's now the "Great Expectations" pub and hotel, names after the Charles Dicken's book because at hte building's opening in 1843 Charles Dickens read from his work. Some sources say he read from "Great Expectations" and others "Pickwick papers". The current owners have maintained some of the 'feel' of the original architecture in two rooms at the front of the pub. As you move towards the back the rooms have been opened up, there's a pool table in rooms with low ceilings and a generally cosey atmosphere. I suspect the place comes alive in the evenings with youngsters. During the day it's often pleasantly quiet, easy to look around and find a good seat. The different spaces, rooms, make it a great place for groups to meet. I've tended to meet with friends here mid-afternoon to pass the time planning subsersive events and vacations. The food cheap and cheerful comfort food, I've had some good jacket (baked) potatoes with cheese and beans here. Yummy! I think they have wireless interent in the bar (saw a base station) but I'm not sure, I'll check next time I'm there with friends planning the overthrough of my kitchen.

This is my favourite pub in the whole wide world. Seriously. If you are in Reading then go here…read more And if you live in Reading then you will have no doubt heard about this place and frequented it already. Named after the famous novel, as any fan of literature or indeed anyone who paid attention will know, this pub has so much character and is as grand as Mrs Faversham, i.e you can still let your hair down in there, even if it appears a little imposing. I have so many great memories from here, from becoming very friendly with the great owner 'IAAAANNN' to drinking the bar dry at birthday outings, to sitting on the carpetted area outside the toilets and having deep conversations with friends. Also, scrambling for the sofa area, where you could comfortably fit a large group of people and feel like you were having a private party. The parts of the pub are named aptly after places in the book. There is even a cobbled style road running through it. They also have LOADS of books in there, if you wanted to go and read (in the day mind) it would also be the perfect place for a cup of tea and a good book. Oh and the cheesy chips and big sarnies were exquisite. A really good pub, one not too be missed when in Reading. It is also a hotel, but I have never stayed the night. But I bet it would be really fun!

I've traveled a fair amount for work, all over the world, and stayed at some amazing properties…read more The Forbury is easily one of the top two hotels I've ever experienced. This property was not my original Reading reservation. Without berating another property just a few blocks away, suffice it to say when I called from the other place that I was dissatisfied with and was going to leave after being in my room there for a matter of minutes after a day that started at 4am in another country, the Forbury came through. At the last minute on a night when there was an event in the facility, Hannah found me a wonderful room, and was the most pleasant and helpful professional I've experienced in a long while. They were booked solid, and she took things to a level of service that one could easily consider legendary. The hotel itself is already well known, we'll documented, and is of course wonderfully well appointed. The rooms in the variations I have experienced this trip are warmly decorated and fitted with class and comfort, but the heated wood floors were especially perfect during the cold front that just blew through and left a bit of snow... But the service... THAT is what brings me back and leads me to evangelize businesses, and employees like Hannah are what truly make good businesses great. The Forbury is great.

Don't arrive by car! Nice hotel but very poor parking. No street parking available so was told to…read moredrive approx. 1.5 miles to rear of hotel (yes, you read that correctly) to find hotel car park. When we eventually found it in the dark (no signs telling us it was their car park), found door to hotel shut! Waited for someone to exit so we could enter. Tables are chairs stacked in hall and it looked like a staff entrance, not one for the paying public!

The room was small and hot. it had no air conditioning…read more The hotel was outdated and looked a bit shabby. Breakfast was small and no particularly nice. However it was clean and cheap. We only encountered one member of staff and she was polite and friendly. Although did ignore us somewhat and her duties at breakfast (no juice, no menu etc...). But she was pleasant.

I eat here fairly regularly with my young son. Mostly because it is a convenient pitstop with its…read moreown large car park, and is usually nearly empty, which means I can get a fairly grown up and decent meal without my nearly-two-year-old disturbing too many people. The decor of the place is a little dated, owing more to the 90s than this century, although they have recently replaced all the nasty green chairs with leather and suede in browns and beiges. Foodwise, I pretty much always order the burger and a couple of side dishes for me and my son to share. The burger itself is small, often on a plain white bun, though it is usually very nicely cooked, and topped with decent relish and very tasty cheese. The accompanying salad is basic to the point of disappointing -just a big pile of chopped iceberg, sliced cucumber and tomato. The potato wedges are usually pretty tasty. Garlic bread is in sliced baguette form and you can get it topped with the same tasty cheddar that is on the burgers. What lets it all down is that it is all bizarrely served on cold plates! The greeting here is usually very friendly, particularly from the foreign waitress who seems to be the regular server on Saturdays. However, their opening hours for food at the weekend are rather restricted - currently just two hours on a Saturday lunchtime - and if you catch them a touch early you'd think the place was closed (even though the bar currently doubles as the hotel reception), and you'll need to wander around looking for a member of staff. One interesting thing about this place is, as the name suggests, its nod to local artists. There are always different pictures and artwork on the walls and in the cabinets when I visit, all for sale. Nearly every time I've been lately, they have talked of being under new management and talk of a new menu. Some changes have certainly happened, such as the new furniture, but the menu has been static since I first started going nearly two years ago. All in all, it's nice enough to keep me going back, and reasonable value for money. But I can't help thinking it could do better. This place could be a little gem. They seem to be trying... Just not hard enough.

Went there today for afternoon tea. The worst experience ever. As an non white woman going…read moresomewhere quite "fancy" as a gift from my girlfriend just to be racial abused by the customers and let down by the staff. Besides, the food was atrocious and not worth £30 EACH! Included : 1 tiny scone 1 tiny tea cake 1 split brown bread with smoked salmon (tasted off) 2 sandwiches (looked disgusting) 4 kinds of small taster cakes Tea and coffee was so weak it tasted like boiled water Waste of Money. Never going there again.

This is one of my favourite hotels in the area! The location is great as you are walking distance…read moreto shops, parking can be a struggle sometime but there is off-street parking! If you ever stay in this hotel and want a really special treat I would recommend booking a RIver view suite. Each suite is named after luxury champagne and the river view suites are called Comtes de Champagne, Laurent Perrier and Ruinart . These are duplex rooms with King size beds with Egyptian cotton. Each having stunning open plan bathrooms and lounge area upstairs with French doors leading onto a heated balcony and outdoor bath with breathtaking views of the River Thames and Regatta lawns. The bathroom has another flat screen television and each bathroom has a open rolltop bath enough to share for two people and a monsoon walk in shower which there is ampul of complimentary toiletries. There is a double sink and a large mirror as well as a very large L shaped leather sofa. The amazing view outside can also be enjoyed in another roll top bath outside which is allows you privacy from other rooms or buildings but also you can enjoy the beauty of the stars in the sky at night! I go here every year and try to stay more than one night! It's a luxury treat but a very romantic weekend!

Stunning beautiful restaurant grounds next to the river. I love the quail or various foil roasting…read moreon the spit on the old open fireplace! Service is always great and you feel well catered to. Food is typically good. Fairly expensive. Great for special occasions.

The French Horn is a superb top-end restaurant in a picturesque location next to a well-known…read moreThames traffic jam. The first thing that strikes you about this place is how difficult it can be getting across the road from the car park to the main building because of a surprisingly heavy flow of traffic. Having gone into the creeper-covered building, cordially greeted and sat in the bar, I was presented with table d'hôte and the à la carte menus and some nibbles: olives and home-made cheese straws. I was offered a glass of champagne, but opted for a glass of red wine. The bar area is comfortable and (nicely) old-fashioned. Surprisingly for a summer evening there was a fire and duck spit-roasting in front of it: this apparently is one of the house specials and was strongly recommended by a friend. On the à la carte menu starters typically range from over £10 to £22, with lobster and caviar much dearer; the main courses range from around £25 to £40. I went for the table d'hôte menu and chose Pâté de Foie Gras with toasted Brioche for £11.50 followed by Foie de Veau: liver and bacon served with potatoes dauphinois, mange tout and braised fennel for £21. I decided to be good and not have a pudding, but there was a nice selection including cheese or a soufflé for £9.50 and coffee & Petit Fours was £5.50. Overall I'd highly recommend the French Horn for a special occasion. The food and service are excellent. The French Horn is also a hotel, with rooms ranging from £125 to £170 per night, but I haven't stayed.

Very cute hotel nestled in the heart of Reading. Check-in was smooth and they have a bar which was…read moreopen until late night. Lighting is sparse in the room at night - I had two desk lamps and a floor lamp in the room. So, if you want to work at night that can be an issue. I loved how the bathroom had both a tub and shower

Let's just start by saying that I spend roughly 9 hours at the property which was about 9 hours too…read moremuch. I was not a fan and for ease of reading, I'll break down as follows: THE GOOD: *Prime location if you are traveling via train as it's literally adjacent to the Reading Station. In fact, the hotel overlooks the car loop. *Centrally located in the city centre, if thats your need or desire. THE NEEDS ATTENTION: *Where do I start as there is so much that really requires attention. I was told that this used to be a popular chain in the UK which seems to have had a major downturn in recent times. The overall sentiment here is that the property needs a real good scrubbing and updating. *The design is dark. Super dark. To the point that literally one lightbulb is illuminating the surface areas. This doesn't work well in the bathroom when in need of virtually anything requiring a mirror. *The guest room was fair at best - the carpet was stained and held a film of fifth that I did not feel comfortable walking around w/out shoes. The doors didn't have a secure closure. My safe did not function at all. There was a stench of extreme body odor in the room which I believe originates from zero to little air flow due to... *The rooms feature a key card light switch which means you have to place your room key card in a slot to activate the lights and HVAC in the room. I understand this as an efficiency play however it doesn't do well for the room setting as there is zero air flow when you vacate the room. It's also an outdated system often found at the cheaper hotel properties. Not a fan as there are better ways to accomodate sustainability. *The bed was fairly stiff and featured just two tiny bed pillows - of all areas to scale back on, this was a head scratcher. It didn't have a fresh or overly clean sense to it. *The towels need to be refreshed and more fluffy. *The bathroom overall was depressing - dark, dingy and smelly. Oddly enough the hot faucets displayed a custom printed tag warning that the pipe can get extremely hot. The fixtures are very dated. Again the lighting in here is atrocious. I don't think the floors were properly cleaned in years. *The walls and ceiling are paper thin. I think a heard of elephants were staying in the room above me on the 4th floor as I heard loud footsteps throughout the night and early AM for hours while I was waking up. So odd as the rooms are fairly small - how could so much walking occur. *My view was of a wall outside so nothing to note of there. Unless you need a hotel of a certain price point and location, I'd consider elsewhere.

I really enjoyed the Crowne Plaza in Reading UK. I arrived really early after a very long flight…read moreand they went out of their way to check me in about 5 hours early without additional cost. Nice looking hotel along the Thames River with a great running path with swans everywhere. Room was clean, nice layout, room to do yoga, nice bathroom. Breakfast was 9 pounds if you purchased in advance and it was fantastic.

A great place to stay in Reading, UK. The Crowne Plaza Hotel…read morein Reading, UK, offers a comfortable and convenient stay for travelers. One notable feature is its parking availability, making it stress-free for guests with vehicles. Prices are a little higher than other hotels but they are worth it for their breakfast and ambience. The hotel typically provides ample parking space, ensuring a hassle-free experience upon arrival. Check-in at the Crowne Plaza is known for its efficiency and friendly service. The staff is welcoming and eager to assist, making the process smooth and enjoyable for guests. The staff was pleasant, well-dressed, and helpful upon our arrival. It is conveniently located on the south side of the Caversham Bridge. It is a particularly good place to stay for those interested in the scenic beauty of the Thames River. Situated nearby, it allows guests to take leisurely strolls along the riverbanks, enjoying the picturesque views and serene atmosphere. The Thames Path, a popular walking trail, is easily accessible from the hotel, making it a great choice for nature enthusiasts. Overall, the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Reading is a well-rounded choice for both business and leisure travelers. With its easy parking, seamless check-in, and proximity to the Thames River, it offers a comfortable and enjoyable stay in this charming part of the UK.

What an amazing find…read more Was a great stay here on my recent UK travels to the area! The staff was exceptional and the room as functional very clean and quiet. The restaurant and bar are also first rate! A perfect few days stay in a truly charming area and hotel.

I'm not impressed with the customer service and lack of friendliness at this hotel. We walked into…read morethe bar/restaurant and was curtly greeted by the East Asian bar manager. He acted like we were bothering him with his piss port attitude. My wife Asked for waters and he slammed one water on the bar. I had to asked for another water. We are guests of the hotel and just looking for a meal in the restaurant. I can tell you we won't be staying here again and I suggest management reevaluating the unfriendly staff they have hired at this location to serve their guests. Hilton has failed their brand at this location.