I was excited in the run up...I had a table booked, the tide would be in and I'd heard good things about The Island Street Bar...
I arrived and the bar looked stylish and very different for Salcombe, the view across the water to the meadows and beyond was great, I had a lovely cold beer and the menu looked exciting.
My excitement was gradually sucked away...the service was absolutely appalling, we waited over 50 minutes between starters and main courses and it wasn't even that busy. Our wine just about managed to be served with our main courses, but we were almost finished. A steak had to be sent back as it was "blue" when it should have been "medium"...
As for my food, the starter was fantastic, Crab Chowder, very very good! But that is where the praise stops. My main was, at best, average and it was most definitely an utter rip off; Sea Bass, £17.50...OK I agree that is what you would pay in most places these days, however, in most places you would get the whole fish or 2 or 3 fillets but Salcombe being Salcombe I got 1(!!) exceedingly small fillet. I was gobsmacked, 1 fillet and a few green beans for £17.50! What nonsense.
The final disappointment was not being able to fit in a desert and coffee despite being there for 2 hours...in the end we gave up got the bill and left.
My enthusiasm for what should have been a great restaurant had disappeared and I was left feeling, that the food was over priced, the service was utter rubbish but most importantly I was still HUNGRY!
Saturday 21 August 2010
So Disappointing...
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31 comments:
I went only a couple of weeks ago and was extremely unimpressed, poor service and overpriced food. They also screwed up my booking which was made 3 weeks before we went and so we ended up sitting outside...we also didn't manage a pudding in the 2 hours we were there...when will Salcombe manage to get a decent restaurant?
We went in July during Merlin Week, sat down and waited, and waited and waited! After 40 minutes no one had acknowledged our existence so we left!
Maybe Mr Winking Prawn junior who runs it (loose term of phrase) is more interested in looking the big I am around town than growing a successful business?
To the above!
I am actually going to disagree!
Since Island Street Bar And Grill has opened we were privileged enough to get to know not just the owners but all the employees who have made us feel very welcome every time we enter their establishment.
The Bar and Grill is now an integral part of the way Salcombe works!
We have enjoyed the parties, comedy nights, food and the band nights and have had a damn good time!
We have eaten many times at the ISBG and the chefs have been very accommodating.
If you wanted to eat at le Manoir aux quat'saisons
http://www.manoir.com/web/olem/le_manoir.jspyou should make a reservation (It is rather nice there) and stop complaining!
I am sorry to Mr Anonymous Merlin Rocket.....
Maybe 40 minutes could have been spent just enjoying yourself rather than thinking that the world evolves around you!!!!!!!!
This is how Salcombe is...you come here because you enjoy how it is!
Please dont RUIN it for the rest of us who enjoy having less idiots and more nice people!
We were their most evenings during the Merlin Rocket week and were most impressed with the whole ambiance and service of Island Street Bar.
Our food was served and eaten with a smile and the only thing that put a bit of a dampener on the evening was the extremely rude and arrogant people who sail the Merlin Rockets and think that they own not just Salcombe but the slipway as well.
Oh dear these cowardly visitors who come and slander the way we work as a community?! As a town everyone tries and pulls together, Merlin Rockets & unhappy visitors can be quite malicious. The Bar & Grill in Salcombe has been super fun, surely we all have teething problems but oh my gosh what a team, what fun. The music & atmosphere is the best about. We love it. Why oh why do people return to places they don't like just to be disappointed and try to ruin others livelihoods. Salcombe is super fun. Our guests & residents make it the more enjoyable. We love it, I am lucky to raise my family here. Please if you are to listen to these sites that bring you down before you even visit somewhere you'll be disappointed from the start. Let’s all have the choice to make a own decisions and let the bitter ones rot in their own angry salty minds....I LOVE SALCOMBE, all in it and all around it!!!! Well done all who have made and continue to make our beautiful town work!!!
Maybe from the defensive nature of the last three posts above, someone has hit a nerve with the "owner"??
I never said I was a Merlin sailor, I said I went during Mrlin week. Try reading it. I also never said I was a visitor, in fact I live in the South Hams and have done for 40+ years unlike some of the pseudo "locals" on here who have emigrated from all over the UK and now like to think of themselves as born and bread!!
Maybe some of the comments on trip advisor regarding the attitude of the owners & staff at the Winking Prawn(which in the past I have ignored) are justified???
Happy Salcombe........Well said!
Had a fantastic night at the Bar and Grill.
Band were excellent and I would like to say thankyou to the guys who started singing Hey Jude with the band as the whole evening had such a fantastic atmosphere.
Life is what you make of it!
We will no doubt be there throughout the Bank holiday weekend
Having been the unhappy recipient of some comments on Trip Advisor lately, I know all too well what an effect poor comments can have on your business and even more so your morale.
We've eaten at the ISBG twice now -first time was great - second time not quite so great, but not poor and totally nothing to moan about.
However, the service was absolutely fine....young people, eager to please, smiley faces and not too long to wait to be served.
I think it's great to have somewhere different to go to for drinks after work or on a rare hour or two off, and I think their cocktails whilst not cheap are pretty fabulous!! The entertainment thats been on has been good as well.
In the height of summer you are never going to get served hugely quickly - we all try to get it as right as often as possible - give the ISBG team a chance.
Well said Liz.
The ISBG is a fantastic addition to Salcombe and Im sure I will have many happy nights (and days) in there.
But all the posts above are valid, regardless of viewpoint. There's the old sales saying "that peoples perception is reality".
You can't please all the people all the time but you must be able to take "constructive criticism" on board otherwise you will lose customers.
Ah you see I think 'constructive criticism' is fine, and in our business feedback whether good or poor is valuable - but it's when that 'criticism' is personal such as I have had endured and has been made to Luke: 'Maybe Mr Winking Prawn junior who runs it (loose term of phrase) is more interested in looking the big I am around town than growing a successful business?'
That is not criticism - that is just plain nasty.............In my opinion!
Here's to a busy Bank Holiday for all!!
Liz
You have got to ask yourself why anyone would sit there for 40 mins, I think most people would have said something or called somebody over after 15 mins tops??
Maybe they were over refreshed before they arrived and the staff were hoping they might just leave??
Well said Liz!
I went to the Island Street Bar and Grill today for lunch,it was great! The survice was fab and the food was amazing. Try the burgers they're awesome!
I think that your personal opinion of someone should not be posted on a blog that potential customers can read, it's petty and immature. If you have a problem with Luke and his business then don't go there, and you can miss out on all the fun.
Anybody that knows Salcome, knows 'Mr and Mrs Winking prawn', Luke, Lucy and their whole team are a big part of the town. Your on holiday, try having fun rather than rushing home to jump on here and start posting small minded offensive comments.
Everytime i've visited the bar and grill ive had nothing but brilliant service, and fantastic food. The waitresses are chatty and constantly rushing around trying to cater to everybody's needs.
Shut the f*ck up and if you cant come up with any constructive comments I suggest you say nothing.
Go team prawn!!
Love sitting on the deck when the tide is in. Always a fun place.
Had an excellent time there last night. It was packed.
The staff were excellent catering for all of our requests and the band were superb.
Thankyou.
As Bank Holiday Sunday proved, there are several hundred people with good experiences of the Bar and Grill. By far more than the few that wish to spread their bad ones on here.
Both points are valid, just saying you're in the minority.
So sit down.
x
It's great to see so many positive comments on the ISBG...I suppose the lesson for the WP crew is that one bad experience can lead to bad publicity be it through word of mouth or on blogs, review sites etc...
For all of your positive experiences one or two bad ones can be very damaging...as you can guarantee these bad experiences will be shared...and lets not forget that no-one should have a bad experience at those prices!
I suspect some of these positive comments may have a vested interest?!!?
Been to ISBG many times, mainly for breakfast and lunch, always a good experience; Sometimes the service is slower/faster than others but who cares?
My only comment would be; There could be more food choices for the little ones and I like my pancakes thinner!
Keep the good work up and I hope you are there for many years to come.
Hopefully when Mr 00Devon saves up to come down next year he can go to the Bar and Grill again and leave with a positive experience and post a blog about the positive side.
Remember you are on holiday....relax!
Charging £17.50 for a sliver of Bass in Salcombe, in the summer, of all places is quite ludicrous (given they are on the doorstep). Prawn team do need to be a little careful as grumpy Mr Prawn seems to be upsetting staff and customers at the WP quite regularly. Saw and heard of a few bust-ups over the season over at the WP. Like 00Devon, I still list the WP as a favourite but the policy of not serving children in the garden / tent seems strange.
A major hotelier with links to a Food journo was most upset and is letting it be known. An owner of several Holiday lets in the North Sands area was also upset apparently. Can feel a bad review coming on ......Need to be careful who you pick your fights with!
First things first, I have no links with either establishments, other than I am a customer.
As a family I think both WP & ISBG are fun places, they do alot right, which unfortunately is not reported as human nature prefers to concentrate on negative experiences as opposed to the 99/100 they had a positive one.
I have read a few bad reports on the attitude of the owner at the Winking Prawn but as a small business owner I can sympathise as during a busy season you are always going to rub someone up the wrong way, especially in a place like Salcombe which has it's share of spoilt middle class underachievers visiting, who somehow made it to adulthood with the help of "Nanny" and don't like the words "No & Wait".
To "No and Wait" Erh No. With that mantra you will stay as a 'small business'. "Yes, We can" should be the mantra. And don't badmouth visitors with small-minded cliches about class and achievement. They have choices and after a bad year for Salcombe this season, business knows that more effort will be needed to keep them coming back and spending.
Quite obviously where possible the answer should be "yes we can" but that is not always an option with some people.
As a visitor, customer, home owner and regular in Salcombe for approaching half a decade I can honestly say that I have never seen so many rude, ignorant, arrogant and self serving individuals as the last two years!
Call that small minded if you will but thats the problem with society today, monies more importent than manners!
Let's go back to the basics! As a customer spending my hard earned cash, if any business gives me seriously substandard goods or service, it cannot expect more business from me. To use an internet forum to let others know about your experince is both legitimate and usually helpful to other potential customers, and hopefully to the business itself. Where this ceases to be useful is if an exagerated or biased view is taken, particularly of individuals. In this case OOdevon stated exactly what his experience was at the ISBG. No problem - why all this vitriol??
Have a look at Trip Advisor.com for more comments on Salcombe pubs and restaurants!
They can't be doing to bad, couldn't get in last night as Comedy Evening/Burger deal was fully booked.
For service, hospitality and quality food, The Salcombe Coffee Company is highly recommended for dinners!!
I am local but have no interest in the WP or ISB&G. I have eaten at the ISB@G four or five times. I would give it 7 out of 10, it is better as a bar than a grill ... however it could very easily be really good, like all restaurants in Salcombe it relies on local youngsters and they could be much better if properly trained.
It probably would benefit from a good front of house, to be fair to the first posters I always have had to make myself known to the bar staff.
It would also be great to see a few fresh specials, if you are local/regular you will get bored with the menu.
Whatever this is tons better than the Oyster Shack it replaces.
I love the atmosphere at the WP and the Bar-B-Q is good, a proper meal a year with a load of friends is fun, but the food is a bit samey year to year ... but love Popcorn Shrimps.
For a fantastic meal in the South Hams try the Seahorse at Dartmouth, better value all around I am afraid.
Another vote for the Coffee Company as well.
having just come across this article i agree completely about the sizes of the meal and pricing, but as was said as well it is in salcombe and because of the holiday trade the prices have to be that bit more extravagant for the business to survive as there simply isnt enough local people to provide year round trade.
The attitudes of the owners certainly need to be improved and i would say that the saving grace for the bar and grill is the entertainment it regularly provides, having said this musicians that can be found there can be found in other places in the area where a drink doesn't cost you your house.
I would say to Liz that having worked in catering in and around salcombe for the past 10 years or so (having lived here all my life) that the service and the quality of the food you are going to receive being in the same industry as them is going to naturally be better then the average customer.
On the whole the restaurants in Salcombe have been steadily declining for years and whilst people still flood back in the summer months willing to pay outrageous prices for poorer quality then would be expected in another location nothing is going to change
OMG all this ranting on and getting personal with individuals makes me laugh and wonder about some of the writers objectives. A private letter to whom it may concern would have been a possible subtle initiative if there was a real issue here. As Liz said: constructive critisism please! no bitterness Mr or Mrs AnonyMouse please. I think everyone should be happy about the choices that we currently have here in Salcombe to eat and drink at ones leisure. in the current climate it would be a shame to see local businesses going out of business simply because the bass was the wrong size or over- priced or u had to wait such a long time that you could simply not bear it anymore to sit on your bum in the sun overlooking batson creek. believe me it s NOT nice to see businesses ending up as empty shells or conversions into holiday homes in this town. Un & employment is a big issue and has a huge impact on this town. These restaurants, bars and pubs create work and not just for the benefits of the poor sods that live here.Be happy folks, enjoy Salcombe as it is and stop moaning! we will never live up to the high expecations of every single one that enters this town in whatever form, shape and capacity. Locals, grockles, visitors and all u em and un-employed I wish u all a smashing summer 2011 in salcombe!
Well said to the previous blogger.
I've eaten in Island Street many, many times since it opened and loved it both during the buzzing summer months and in the winter too.
Of course some teething problems are to be expected from any new venture and constructive criticism should be voiced. I fail to see how it is helpful to criticise on a blog such as this, it won't solve anything and if you care about precious salcombe so much it would have been far more beneficial to everyone involved to voice any opinions directly to those involved.
As for my own personal opinion, I think ISBG has been a great asset to salcombe as a town and I love that they have tried something fresh and different. Not just your standard cream walls and blue and white stripy curtains. Don't get me wrong, I love all that too but it is nice to see something more original.
How rare it is these days to actually see the owners of a business there, front of house, chatting to customers day and night. I don't agree with any of the comments amount the owners, they've always made a real effort to get to know customers, especially if you're in there regularly.
I wish the ISBG all the best for their second year, keep it up, especially all the live music. Burgers are amazing, and having been back at the weekend I see they've added new bits to the menu which is always refreshing. And good luck to all the other local businesses, I'm sure after a long winter you're dying to get busy again.
Bring on the sunshine and some happy people!
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