The Fordwich Arms

"Fordwich Arms I am doing something I’ve never done before - leaving a poor review as a result of an appalling experience at a restaurant. In fact we’ve had two poor experiences at this establishment, the most recent one being the worst I could ever imagine. The first occasion involved us prepaying a deposit for a party of 4 only for it not to be discounted from our bill on the evening. It took three phone calls with management and seven weeks to resolve this. I just put it down to a bad experience. However, this does not even come close to my most recent experience of what I could only describe as utterly inhumane behaviour. A party of 6 of us pre-booked a table at this restaurant for my birthday on New Year’s Eve. We paid a deposit of £660. Very sadly my father had an accident on 27th December which led to his passing on New Year’s Eve, my birthday and the date of our booking. One of our party called the restaurant on 27th December in advance to make the manager, Elliot, aware of what had happened and to request a postponement of our dinner date. He received a recital of nonsense about terms and conditions and that our dinner date could neither be refunded nor changed to a later date. We were not seeking a refund. We were simply requesting a goodwill gesture to allow us to change our reservation to a later date once I had a chance to return to the UK. When asked how management view such extenuating circumstances the manager and owners neither cared nor wanted to hear anything about it. Another recital of terms and conditions ensued. We are utterly disgusted by this experience, not to mention £660 worse off, and just feel compelled to share this horrifying story with anyone ever considering making a reservation at this establishment. There are no words. I just feel everyone should be aware of what kind of people run this place and draw their own conclusions before ever considering making a reservation at this place. Are Guy, Daniel and Natasha really in business? I wonder what the Michelin Group would think about how they are represented in this instance. Good luck to them if that’s how they conduct their business. We will certainly never be returning."

"Fantastic food. Have got into their stride. Beautiful old pub on the river. Nice to dine on the lovely wisteria covered terrace by the river on a sunny day. Unfortunately service very slow due to the kitchen. Apparently they have several new chefs so taking time to get up to speed. Waiting service was as impeccable as ever"

"It feels a little incongruous to be served such wonderful "fine dining" food in a pub bar, but - once the drinkers had quietened down a bit, you forgot where you were - the dishes transported you away ! The friendly, helpful service was also an important factor. Possibly it would have been best to have had a table in the main restaurant - but as late bookers, beggars can't be choosers....."