Be A VIP For A Night (Toby Carvery)

Member Name: Brown_eyes1984

Product:	Toby Carvery
Date:	02/03/05 (2016 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: nice food, Great value, get treated like a VIP

Disadvantages: Yorkshire puddings and beg not always cooked properly

We all fancy going out for something to eat every now and again, whether it's because we're tired and we can't be bothered to cook, or we just fancy a change of scenery. Either way we just want the hard work done for us for a change. But just how many places provide healthy alternatives to cooking? There are Chinese places, Indian places, Kebab places, all of which aren't healthy. Most restauraunts serve meals that are absolutely caked in calories and fat and with most people nowadays watching their weight this isn't good news. But despair not as there is a place I've found where you can eat healthily, providing meals that are both delicious and have the recommended daily 5 portions of veg with them. This place is the 'Toby Carvery'.

*** A Little Info ***

The Toby Carvery has carvery restauraunts all around the UK. They are owned and operated by 'Mitchells and Butlers' who are the UK's leading operator of managed pubs, bars and restauraunts with over 2000 outlets. The outlet I will be referring to in this review is the Swindon one.

*** My Opinion On... ***

Here you will find what I thought about the atmosphere, the staff, the food, the prices and everything else you may need to know about the restauraunt itself. Hopefully this will give you the best idea of whether or not the Toby Carvery is for you.

1) First Impressions

Approaching the building you notice it is quite elegant looking and has a nice set out car park. The doorway is quite wide so it would be easy to fit wheelchairs through and pushchairs. The decor is also very tasteful and elegant looking. The staff are well dressed and wearing big smiles ready to greet you and the atmosphere is friendly and welcoming. It seems like a warm, family place but at the same time elegant and intimate enough for a special celebration for two. So first impressions are definitely good.

2) Meeting and Greeting

This isn't a place where you just walk in and sit down and go over to the bar to order. When you enter through the door you notice a little desk just after the entrance way. This is where you have to wait for a member of staff to come and greet you. Now if you are a new to this you may not realize at first that you do have to wait as there isn't always a member of staff there ready and waiting, especially when the restauraunt is packed. But fear not as if you don't realize, when you are making your way around to find a table someone will spot you and guide you to where you want to be. You are always made welcome with a big smile and a friendly, bubbly member of staff. Before guiding you to a table they will ask you how many of you there are and seem as though there was just me and my fiance they led us to a nice quiet section where we could eat in peace and in a more intimate setting. They give you a menu, ask if you would like a drink and let you know that another member of staff will be with you shortly. This person will then be your waiter/waitress for the night.

3) The Menu

As well as the famous Carvery meal there are also other traditional meals if you would prefer including fish and chips (although they have a slightly posher name), pie (also with a posher name) and chicken and bacon parcels.

There are also a few starters to choose from including soup, Prawn cocktail and pate, and quite a big selection of delicious puddings which include Ice cream, Jam Roly Poly and chocolate cake.

Personally I don't have to worry about the childrens menu but you will find that they do cater for children with meals like sausage and chips, chicken nuggets, and even a smaller sized carvery.

There's something for everyone and at not bad prices too! To be honest I've never had a starter, a pudding or anything other than the carvery. Why's that you may wonder? Well read on!

4) The Famous Carvery

When I first came here I was amazed by what you get for your money. When you first hear what the carvery actually is you think 'I'm not too sure about the value for money' because what you get is 3 meats, an optional yorkshire pudding and veg. But when you actually get to the counter and see what you are getting that is when you realize just how good value the meal is.

As I just mentioned you go to a counter to get your food. Now the great thing about this is you actually see everything you are getting and see the chef cut the meat right in front of you. We've all heard nightmare stories about chefs spitting in food without us knowing or dropping it on the floor and still serving it, but with this counter they haven't got a chance to do anything like that and I doubt in this place they would anyway. Anyway the meat selection is usually Turkey, Beef or 'Ham' and that's exactly what it was when I had my last meal there. You don't have to have all three meats though, you can have just one if you'd prefer and you get just as much as you would with all three so you don't have to worry about your value for money going down the pan! The chef will ask you which meat you would like and whether you would like a yorkshire pudding and after you've told him he gets to work cutting and serving it onto a plate. Then he hands it to you and invites you to help yourself to his veg (ooer!).

Onto the veg and there is usually a big selection so it's extremely easy to have your 5 portions. There's the usual carrots and broccoli, Roast parsnips, cauliflower cheese, shredded swede, mashed potato and roast potatoes. You help yourself to as much as you like and then move onto the not so obvious sauce section.

Yep you get to put on your own gravy or variety of sauces and you can have as much as you like too! Now the variety of sauces tends to change but main selections are gravy, parsley sauce, horseradish sauce, mint sauce and apple sauce. All are in quite big pots so you don't have to worry about them running out anytime soon!

And that's when you head back to your table ready to eat the huge mountain of food that you've built up.

5) The Taste

The taste of everything differs from time to time but the meat is always cooked to perfection and has a very nice, succulent taste. The turkey was nice and soft and quite strong in flavour as was the beef and the ham. The ham last time I went was a little salty but it was still nice.

The vegetables on the other hand are the ones that tend to differ in taste depending on the times that you go. I have eaten here around five times and each time has been different. Now this is also due to the fact that each time there has been a different chef; there definitely doesn't seem to be a regular chef there. The cauliflower cheese differs in taste quite a lot. The cheese sauce on it is quite strong and the taste of the cauliflower is extremely strong and sometimes it can be a little uncooked. I've never had it where it has been too undercooked but some days it definitely could have been improved on. All in all though the veg is usually nice and enjoyable and tastes almost as good as when I make it (hehe).

The yorkshire pudding option has changed because you used to be able to help yourself so my guess is people were being a little too greedy with them and now they choose to give you just one. The quality of them since that option changed though seems to have gone downhill. They are a little crispy but not too hard and the texture of them isn't as nice as it used to be with it feeling a little like cardboard. However the taste isn't bad. It's nothing to write home about but it still isn't bad. So I preferred it when you helped yourself to the yorkshire puddings but I'll still have them again now as they help fill you up and they aren't that bad.

6) Service With A Smile

There's nothing worse than a moody waiter or waitress so luckily enough all the staff you see in here are smiley and friendly. They care about their customers and although they sometimes come across a little too friendly, they still make you feel welcome and important.

I was amazed at how polite the staff were when I first went there. The chef generally calls you sir, love or lady which is really nice especially when I'm used to getting looked down to when I go out to eat because we're only young. But there's no discrimination here! Your waitress/waiter for the night is really helpful and friendly and greets you politely as well as checking whether your meal was ok and that you enjoyed it. I will say though that it is slightly annoying when you are eating and have a mouthful of food and your waiter/waitress comes to ask if you are enjoying it. It is extremely hard to talk confidently with either a mouth full or gravy on your chin! Apart from that though I really do rate the service as excellent.

7) Waiting times

Upon arriving it usually only takes around a couple of minutes to get seated, less if it isn't that busy and obviously more if it is packed. The most I have seen anybody wait for is around ten minutes which isn't too bad but still not good on the legs!

Once seated you wait approximately five minutes for your drinks to be served and for your waiter/waitress to come and see what you will be eating. If you choose the carvery, depending on when you arrive, you will be told to go up and help yourself when you are ready. So within twenty minutes at the most you usually have your meal. This for me is a normal amount of time compared to other places but usually we get it even quicker than that so it's actually better than most places! Other meals usually take up to fifteen minutes to arrive at your table.

8) The Atmosphere

As I said earlier the place has a elegant atmosphere but still keeps the family feeling there with it. It isn't the quietest of places especially if you are placed with children but I always find that children aren't usually bad behaved so it's not too bad. Music is played at a low volume and thankfully it's not heavy metal or anything like that! It really does feel welcoming and I don't feel uncomfortable in any way while I'm there. You feel equal to everyone else. Depending on where you sit, the tables aren't usually placed too close together so you can still chat to whoever you are with without the feeling of being listened to. People generally seem to mind their own business and are too focused on themselves to worry what you are doing. This is great news if you feel uncomfortable while eating out in front of people.

9) Prices

I think the prices are reasonable with main meals usually around 6.95 and starters being 3.00. Puddings are also usually around 3.00 so it's all pretty good value. There's a lunchtime carvery selection where you get a choice of 3 different breads and one choice of meat and then all the veg and sauce you want for just 3.99. That to me is superb value and more filling than the 3 meats selection carvery! Drinks though i feel are expensive. I'm not a big alcohol drinker so I choose to have pepsi. This sets us back 2.00 a glass which to me is expensive for a glass of pop, I mean you can buy a bottle cheaper than that! A bottle of wine can cost around the eight pound mark and I have no idea about anything else. Do expect the prices to be slightly higher than you are used to though as there definitely isn't an happy hour in here!

10) Disabled access

I have absolutely no idea about disabled access. The only guess that the restauraunt is suitable for disabled access is the width of the doorway. Of course that doesn't prove anything so I would advise you to ring first just to check. I would have thought they would offer disabled access though but still better to be safe than sorry!

11) Dress Code

There is no specific dress code here so you can get away with wearing whatever you want (within reason!). I just wear jeans, jumper and trainers and I've never been looked at funny so that's good! Just wear something that you feel comfortable in.

*** My Overall Opinion ***

I really would recommend eating out here as it is healthier than your average restauraunt and you do get a lot for your money. I am always extremely full after having the carvery and definitely can't manage a pudding. Make sure you wear comfortable trousers as they will be pushed to the limit after you've finished! It is family friendly and intimate which is great and I love the friendly service you receive. So if you haven't yet been to the Toby Carvery make sure you check out the nearest one to you. Trust me, you won't be disappointed!

Aimee xxx

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