Fairlops Waters is, without doubt, one of the most bizarre places you'll ever go to. What is it…read moreexactly?. Well, I've lived near it all my life and visited many times. But I have no idea what it is. Let's look at the facts; They do have a bar. They do have a golf driving range. They did have a kids play area which was awesome before It got closed down for rumoured health and safety violations. There is a lake, where people go sailing and the like. There are ocassionally people in the bar. These are the only facts I have. So It does have a bar - but I wouldn't say 'Oh, Fairlop Waters? It's a bar'. Because it's not. Nobody would ever say "hey, let's pop down Fairlop Waters for a pint". It just wouldn't happen. And despite having a bar - there's never anybody there. Maybe one sixty year old, the same guy who's always there and has always looked sixty. But that's it. How do they make money?. Nobody knows. Quite honestly the most bizarre place you'll ever visit. Mind-boggling. How do I rate it? I could rate it five stars, I could rate it one. But truth is, I have no idea what the criteria is. I have no idea what it is. No idea. Somebody help me out here.

Although, disappointing in many respects. If you're looking for a place of beauty to just spend…read moresome time with the dogs, or to jog around the lake, or just for a ramble then it's a great place to go. Many people can be seen just sitting by the lake whiling away the hours. Yeah, I remember when it was an awesome and lively place about 20 years ago. The pub was packed and an awesome place to visit, not so much now. Also the activity center was an excellent facility, now closed down. So what's left? Well, when Fairlop was given money to "improve" the area, they built climbing frames and wooden exercise areas all around the lake. Not necessarily a good choice of resources, but good for the kids, also a boulder park for climbing (unsupervised and at your own risk). The lake itself is used for boating, these have to be hired and licensed fishing, this has not changed. There has always been a pub, although this has become more of a bar area and restaurant in more recent times. There is the full size golf course, driving range and a nature reserve area. So the first four months of 2016 have seen refurbishment and new activity areas put in around the lake and in their new "high ropes" climbing area. The refurbishment has been to the Fairlop suite, a function room for weddings and conferences, with a new bar area and toilets. So it depends what you want really. If you're looking for a nice walk with the dog, or just a job around a beautiful lake, or a round of golf, or boating, angling or climbing a wall then this is a pretty good spot for all these things. More a place of relaxation now than the hot spot it used to be.

Me and my partner visited Topgolf Chigwell hoping for a quick game of golf and breakfast. The only…read moretruly positive part of this experience was Aaron (a tall, young staff member), who showed genuine professionalism, care and integrity throughout. Aaron took our order straight away and made us feel welcome. Unfortunately, after 45 minutes, our breakfast never arrived. What stood out was that we didn't even need to chase him. He approached us himself, apologised sincerely and explained that he had been trying to chase up the order with his team. This showed real responsibility and maturity. Aaron did not fail us - his team and management failed him. When we asked for a refund receipt, the manager avoided eye contact and did not speak to us directly, which felt unprofessional and uncomfortable. There was no leadership presence or accountability from management. We observed several team members displaying poor attitude, lack of urgency and unprofessional behaviour. There was a serious lack of leadership on the floor. A good manager should support both guests and their staff - and in this case, Aaron was left to carry the situation alone. Aaron showed more leadership, integrity and emotional intelligence than the rest of the team combined. He should be recognised, supported, and valued - not left to fix problems created by others. This venue seriously needs to review staff attitudes and management standards. If people are unhappy in their roles, it reflects in their behaviour. Customers can feel that energy. Aaron is the standard - not the exception.

I went to a party here on Saturday and the service was quite poorly but still an amazing…read moreexperience! The food is delicious and it was a short time but really glorious!

I attended a wedding here at the weekend and was impressed by the location, decorations and…read morescenery. A bit of the interior feels a bit old fashioned but that may be the look they are going for. The fact it is quite remote allows privacy and the music to blast however the people wishing to do a round of golf may be put off! Plenty of parking too. Overall I had a great time and was very impressed with the features on offer. Great outdoors pics as the weather was nice too.

As we got out of the car in the middle of nowhere, my dining companions looked as me as if this…read moretime I had finally lost my mind. I had promised them a tasty restaurant I'd read about online, and instead they were staring balefully at a dodgy-looking car park. Undefeated, I led the way to the building. It is a golf clubhouse on the outside, but inside there are a few surprises. Not least the incredible Indian spiced cod loin, but I will come to that. Through a couple of innocuous doors my redemption awaited: a small friendly restaurant with two large doors open to the golf course as the sun set. I expect most reviewers might plump for the words hidden gem at this point, but I settled for the looks of relief on the faces of my fellow diners. The place is run by Tony and Joanne, a very personable husband-and-wife pair who have renovated the 9 hole course over the last 2 years. The restaurant has opened over the past few months. Happily you don't need to play golf or be a member to eat here, so we dived into the menu, which had a distinctly northern Indian feel. It also offered some European dishes for less adventurous palates. The chefs will also cook indian dishes that aren't on the menu, so we went for a Tarka Dall on the side. We were ready for a nice dinner, but we weren't expecting the high-end restaurant fare that graced the plates placed in front of us. Appealingly presented without being too fussy, our mouths watered and our conversation dried up as we feasted contentedly on some of the best Indian food I had eaten in years. The cod loin was the star of the night, though my meat eating cohorts were also impressed with the lamb shank and chicken tikka stuffed roti bread. All of us agreed the food was unbelievably tasty, beautifully presented and thoughtfully served. Main course prices range from around £6-16. If I ate the cod every time, I would count this place as a treat as opposed to a regular haunt. The verdict? A pleasant surprise we think the place definitely merits a return visit, not just for the food, but for the incredible service and lovely atmosphere. The only reason for 4 stars instead of 5? Dessert is yet to be sampled. So yes, that car park (which really wasn't that dodgy) will be revisited, not with trepidation, but instead with joyous expectation and, this time, a suitably empty stomach.

This place is only a few minutes from the busy Loughton high road…read more Think ! small friendly, wooden country guest house, with beautiful green views. The dining room is an average size with glass patio doors which run along the whole length of the room, giving you the most fabulous green views of the golfing greens and trees . My partner and I sat by the window looking at the sun going down, while sipping Champagne, completely relaxed as if we were hundreds of miles away from Loughton, on holiday.. They played very relaxing background music at just the perfect volume. The service is excellent, the food is very good, try the snake bite as a starter, there are other dishes on the menu not just curry, the lamb was excellent. The food and wine prices are very reasonable, the food is always fresh and so very tasty. It gets busy so make sure you book early.