after having dined here more than 40-50 times in the past decade, i can honestly say that at least a third of those experiences were glaringly sub par...and fifteen bad meals here for an average of 4 people per visit means that thousands of dollars were unnecessarily wasted. moreover, almost all of these ruined meals could have been so easily avoided had management been even moderately vigilant.
here are some examples: #1 several times we have visited when the restaurant was at less than 33% occupancy with tons of seating options, and the hostess sat us down right next to people with infants/young children...who inevitably started crying. in point of fact, in 2009, they did this to us when the only two parties at the place were us and a family with a baby! my friends felt incredibly guilty when we cast shame on that family by asking to be moved away from them...its not like it was their fault. that, in my opinion was inexcusable. #2 i often order the fish and chips, and anyone who knows about this dish understands that it must be served hot and crispy as opposed to letting it sit until luke warm and soggy. yet at least 50% of the time, i get it after it has sat a long time...several times i have actually had to hunt my waitress down to inform her that my fish is sitting and getting cold in plain sight on the counter. #3 there are many instances of poor hygiene. like a previous reviewer has stated, i have seen at the gentleman pouring water at tables with his fingers touching the rim of the glasstimeandtimeagain, not only for us but for neighboring tables. several times i have even had them pick up my empty water glass with their finger all the way inside my glass in order to move it to my place setting when seating our party! this is inexcusable...even mcdonalds workers know not to do this. also, i have had waiters drag their sleeve over my food when reaching across the table. and onetimewhen i asked for a straw the waiter handed it to me with his bare hand....if they are going to do this, why on earth don't they provide wrapped straws? #4 i get really bothered when i order a beer, and i see the bartender pour it right away, and then the waitress lets it sit for ten or so minutes until it is semi flat. this happens every single visit....without fail.