Restaurants, Pubs, Clubs and Bars reviews made by reviewer 'grahamer'

Enjoyed a nice meal at The Swiss House last night. The service is very courteous and attentive, the food is of good quality and fresh with a reasonable selection to choose from.

I started with a queenie pancake, which was delicious, and had home-made fish fingers for the main course. If I have one (small) niggle it would be that the plates are piled too high with food. I have a pretty good appetite, but no way could I face a dessert after my main course.

Prices are not unreasonable for the type of restaurant and food on offer. All-in-all, a very good place to go... I'll be visiting again soon!

Just had a rather disappointing Sunday Carvery at The Tynwald Hill. It wasn't that the food was bad - it was simply that the food could not be rated as 'good'.

From a choice of beef, pork or chicken, two of us had chicken, one had beef and one had pork. The chicken looked like shredded chicken leg or wing and the pork was sliced so thin you could see through it. The vegetables were plentiful but, sadly, all the food was only just warm.

On the plus side, that waiter (landlord?) was polite and smiley, but we all left feeling disappointed.

The Highwayman is very "nouveau pub" without quite sinking to the depths of "nouveau theme pub"! The beer is OK. The food is OK. The staff are fine. The surrounds are "nouveau OK". The loudspeakers are turned up just a bit too high.

Difficult to say much against it, but difficult to find too much in it's favour. It's bland, it's a pub. You can get a drink and something to eat. That about sums it up!

L'experience seems to have collected a decent reputation under false pretences (unless they were having a bad hair day when we ate there). Poor service, overpriced food, small portions and an atmosphere like the Marie Celeste. The snails were good (if overpriced) but I can get those in freezer packs from Robinson's opposite B&Q.

Don't expect vegetables with your ??25 steak!! Onion rings or mushrooms or a simple side salad costs an extra ??3.50. The best I can say is that at least the wines were French. ... Not a very good l'experience!

Enjoyed a great macaroni cheese at the Crosby a little while back. They do typical pub grub and my mate tried the chicken stuffed with haggis. He was well happy! Beer was spot on. Service was excellent and the atmosphere very congenial (the locals didn't seem at all hostile!!). Would certainly recommend this pub-restaurant to anyone wondering whether to make a visit.

The pub side is par for the course - nothing outstanding but nothing to grumble about. The restaurant is a notch higher, serving decent quality food (slightly better choice than your standard gastro-boozer) in "restaurant" surroundings, as opposed to a small round, wooden table with salt & pepper cruet and old vinegar stains!

Good access and parking, well situated on the main Port Erin-Castletown road, and friendly staff. Can't quite make it 4 stars, but a big 3+

Lovely to go somewhere where the staff are pleased to see you and the food is prepared well. I've been here several times over the years and never had any (major) issues. Generally, the meals have been pleasant and unrushed. Always fairly substantial with great steaks and excellent lamb chops. Presentation is good and the food is always hot. I would recommend The Hawthorne for good home quality food.

Just saw some other reviews of the Horse & Plough comparing the landlord to "Victor Meldrew", "Mr Grumpy" and making observations like "the most miserable landlord in the western world". Interesting that because I must have gone when he was having a night off! I found the staff to be polite and welcoming enough (in a pubby sort of way).

The food was nothing to write home about though. Bland, too spicy, luke warm, cold, over-cooked, undercooked, greasy, dry ... all colours of the rainbow depending on what each of us had ordered. The beer was beer! Nuff said.

It took a bit of persuading to get me to go into Views coz, from the outside, it looks plastic and formica. Inside, surprise, surprise, it's plastic & formica!

In fairness, the food was good (freshly cooked and decent servings) but the service was poor. We spent more time waiting than eating as the giggly girlies were far too busy discussing important matters like the colour of their nail varnish to take care of their (half-dozen) tables. No repeat trip for me!

I took some visitors to the train (then met them in Port Erin later). The waiting room (sorry - the Ticket Hall) is a credit to everyone concerned. It has retained all its old character yet serves good, hot food and drinks efficiently and with lots of genuine smiles. I confess, I only stayed long enough for a coffee and a slice of cake, but I saw some king-size breakfasts being served (literally) on shovels. What a novel idea (and what excellent, freshly-cooked food). I just need to find an excuse to enjoy a full meal there... I'm sure I'll think of something!

As always, the Royal India never fails to please. The manager is an absolute gem - always courteous, always smiling, always professional. The food is freshly cooked and extremely tasty. Like the previous reviewer, I've now worked through most of the menu - with GREAT pleasure. And when get to the end, I shall simply start again!!

We've used the Harbour Lights in Peel several times now and have always been more than satisfied with the food and the service. Their scallop starter is to die for! This is how a small informal restaurant should be - congrats Harbour Lights.

The food is always reliable at The Hop Garden, it's the disorganised oft-changing staff that can sometimes spoil an otherwise pleasant meal. Don't order your dessert and your coffee at the same time, the coffee inevitably arrives first and goes cold!

I admit it was approaching 5pm, but the lady didn't seem interested in serving us and the scones & stuff tasted like they'd been standing out in the rain! Not somewhere I would rush back to unless everywhere else was shut.

Something wrong here, but I can't quite put my finger on it. The food is fine (if a little overpriced) and the location is fine, but it just feels sterile and plastic. I suspect it's the robo-staff that have difficulty acknowledging that you exist.

What a dump! They have one of the finest views on The Island, but they can't get their act together to even serve a hot cup of tea. Rude staff, dirty floor and tables, stale bread, high prices. I can't think of a single redeeming feature... not one!

Excellent establishment. Cozy nooks, real beer, nice food, pleasant staff, good coffee. This is a "proper" pub, run by "proper" people for "proper" pub-goers

Only went in for coffee a snack for the kids. I'm glad about that because I can't imagine what a full meal would be like. Slow, unfriendly service and very sad looking snacks. Not to be repeated.

When you go in, you get the feeling that nobody cares about anything. The place looks dirty and the furnishing are old and scarred. The word 'presentation' isn't in their vocabulary with an odd tin of coke as a counter display. Sad!!

As always, The Abbey was 100%, top class. Best food on The Isle of man and best service on The Isle of Man, and all at a reasonable price. It's clear the owners understand food and wine, and use that knowledge in this establishment.

Like the previous reviewer, I was unsure whether the new owners would match the standards of the previous Watermargin. They did!!

The reception/bar area is relaxing and comfortable. The restaurant has been redecorated and the views are as stunning as ever. The food was excellent as was the service. Staff were very polite and friendly and they treated us like our custom meant something to them (a lesson still to be learned by some restaurants on the Island)

Love this place! The food is excellent, but the serving staff take the biscuit! Apart from being very professional, if you take the time to talk to them they are a veritable cabaret! Good food, good wine AND a smiley cabaret. What more do you want?

It's a pub! It's difficult to find much more to say about it. We went in because we had just come down from Snaefell and it was time for a late afternoon "snifter" before happy hour celebrations!

The staff were plenty friendly enough. The beer was your standard fayre (which pleased one of our visitors because it was the first time he'd been to the Island, and he had got a sudden crush on H&B beers!)

The furniture and decoration were the wrong side of "past their best" but all-in-all it was a solid enough experience.

Went with a group of people and we had a thoroughly good meal, served by pleasant and professional staff. Lovely new bar and dining area. Well worth a visit.

We only had sandwiches and drinks, but I can tell you that everything was beautifully presented, fresh, and reasonably priced. I shall be very happy to go back next time we're in the south.

Fairly average pub grub. Served in good time and was hot, so plus points there. Satff were very friendly. Cost was about right for what we had.

It was a miserable old day when we went, but the food and the service at Port St, Mary Harbour Lights cheered us up no end. Our visitors even put photos and descriptions on their blog when they got home. Well done Harbour Lights.

Always a good, honest reliable pint and good, honest reliable pub grub. Prices are right - the place is professionally run, staff are friendly - oh, and did I mention the beer wasn't bad???

How tragic that such a beautiful setting should be wasted running an establishment that even Basil Fawlty would run from. The food is waaaay overpriced. The staff are untrained and miserable and the whole thing is just a waste of money. Stay at home!

I used to go to the Pavilion from time-to-time when Mike and Carol ran it, and it was always first class. Long time since I went, so I decided to make another pilgrimage, and I'm glad I did. We enjoyed an excellent meal with good, friendly service. Quality food, well cooked in pleasant surroundings and good value for money. What more could you ask from this type of small restaurant?

Somewhere between three stars and four so I gave it four because of the excellent homemade steak pie!

We ate at HQ based on reviews we had read elsewhere and, to our delight, found that those reviews were totally accurate. HQ Bar & Restaurant does, indeed, lift the wining-dining experience up a notch in Douglas. It's not the "type" of food, nor the "choice" of food, because that's all pretty standard stuff in GB. It was the attention to detail, the excellent service, the relaxed atmosphere, the great beer (Bosun), the hot, fresh food, the quick service and the good value. Can't say fairer than that!

Not the first time we've been to Portofino, but it may be a while before we go back. Yes, the prices were high but the food was excellent and the staff were fine. However the owner is getting VERY self-important and it takes the edge off the meal.