Pip is located in the Treehouse Hotel and does have a lobby feel to it although we were seated on the far side which was more cosy and away from hotel comings and goings; my cushions were particularly comfortable and the glass bottles were nearly as fun to look at as the people watching from the opposite side from the table. It has a lovely colourful vibe and the staff (when not MIA) are very pleasant.
It took ages to both give and receive our drinks order which didnt give a good first impression and by the time my delicious bar snack (gougeres) had arrived I had finished my delicious cocktail (cobbler, a perfectly balanced version using amontillado sherry).
From the small plates we had the mussels, these were very disappointing, the cider and burnt butter were not well balanced in my opinion. I added salt to counteract the almost bitter cider factor. In contrast, the Yorkshire hash could have done with a more acidic (tomato etc) factor to lift it.
Mains were better, Lancashire hotpot isn't my thing but it was an excellent version albeit very small. I had the garstang blue and soused pear salad which had a fantastic dressing (anchovy and cabernet sauvignon and assuming the garstang blue sort of mushed in because i couldnt see any chunks in the salad) with the chicken supreme wich was perfectly cooked. I had a glass of orange wine as well which was tasty, loved the muscat element. Crushed potates weren't very flavoursome in themselves but went well with the mushroom ketchup from another dish.
The chocolate cake with fennel cream was decent although I probably would jsut go for dessert wines next time, the late harvest sauvignon blanc is like my fave sauternes and the grenache noir has the sweetness of port cut through with a red wine taste.
Due to slow service through dinner took over 2 hours which is fine if you want to linger but we would have preferred the option to move on to our next activity. Slow service was an issue for me at The Creameries as well and in both cases the food isnt good enough to outweigh the annoyance of that.
For breakfast, the veggie version came with some really dry falafel which in the end I left. The grilled tomato and sausages were great. Overnight oats were inedible, the croissants were some of the best I'd ever had. A complete mixed bag.
Overall, Pip is all over the place. I wouldn't refuse to go back if someone else wanted to, but I wouldn't return or recommend. From the many other reviews I've read, this restaurant is an absolute roll of the dice in terms of quality of the food and service. read more
