What an odd review this is to write, given I've been visiting The Balloch House for over twenty years. I've seen it through many transformations, from dusty old man pub to its current guise as tourist friendly eatery and local watering hole.
I will try and leave aside the many memories of stumbling from here to get the last train home (and usually failing and crashing at a friends house).
Inside the low ceilinged bar, all wooden beams and pillars, the bar extends out to a large 'restaurant' area through the back. The bar itself offers a limited range of beverages, but there is usually something to meet most tastes - from generic lagers, to craft ales, most spirits and wines as well - and the staff are effecient if a little curt at times (likely to combat the large number of tourists they have deal with as Balloch sits at the 'start' of Loch Lomond).
The menu hasn't changed much in the past couple of years and offers all the usual pub favourites; steak pie, fish and chips, fajitas and so on. I plumped for the barbeque chicken, my friends had the fish and chips, and steak pie as well (with a side order of cauliflower cheese). I hadn't had much to eat all day, so was pretty hungry and the two pints I'd already had had somewhat increased my OHMYGODINEEDINMAFACENAO desire level.
So it was a bit annoying that, about 45 mins later, we had to ask where our food was. By this point we were ALL starving, but lo and behold it turned up about 10 minutes later. Funny how that happens, huh!
My barbeque chicken was ok; butterflied chicken breast in a rich, tangy barbeque sauce, with some nice chunky chips on the side. The sauce was a little on the vinegary side for my tastebuds but the chicken was nice and moist, the 'proper' chips a welcome sight on the plate and it all soon vanished (did I mention I was hungry?).
I snagged a little try of the cauliflower cheese, but was largely unimpressed although if it was being judged on temperature then they clearly have the most efficient heat retaining plates in the world!
All in, four pints and a meal for about £22 seemed reasonable but it would've been a lot easier to stomach if the food had arrived a lot sooner and had been of higher quality.
I will visit the Balloch House again, as I said, it's been a meeting place for me and my closest friends for many years, I can only hope the menu and service improve before we visit again. read more