Awfull food

My comments are the same as in today's paper.See belowThe Royal Oak, HavantThe Royal Oak« Previous « PreviousNext » Next »View GalleryADVERTISEMENTPublished Date: 17 April 2009 By Carol Godsmark The Royal Oak on Langstone Harbour has been serving customers since the 17th century.The building is a fusion of three 15th century cottages and it's one of those 'gee whizz, this is the Real England' village pub moments when walking down Langstone's appealing high street, with the pub at the end facing the water. It has the feel of Mary Hopkin's 60s hit Those Were The Days, featuring the lyric 'once upon a time there was a tavern where we used to raise a glass or two'. The friendly, three-roomed pub is crammed full of relaxed people, some with dogs, and one mewling baby.A crackling fire burns, the bar's space is at a premium and so is the seating, the pub mainly given over to dining, tables jostling for space. The pub's website gives those looking for good grub further cheer, advertising 'plenty of home-cooked specials which include delicious fresh fish dishes, all cooked from fresh'. Had I stumbled across a great nirvana which has managed to keep its fine food secret?Or were they merely words?I spied the specials board.By its very name, specials should be just that. Kinda good.I spotted battered haddock with new potatoes and vegetables; chicken, ham and leek pie; lasagne and braised beef with mash and vegetables, all dishes under the £10 mark.There's also a full-blown menu which swiftly gives the impression that the kitchen would struggle to cope with all of these dishes made from scratch. There are more than 30 of them.Start maybe with a chicken liver parfait; baked mushroom and goat's cheese or soup of the day.Continue with sticky lemon chicken; beef and ale pie; lamb shank in mint gravy or duck with dauphinoise potatoes, prices ranging from just under £4 for the soup to £10.45 for the duck. Back to the specials board by the bar to order. 'What's made here?' I asked. The barman went down the list, looked down and said 'the braised beef' without much conviction. I could see why he looked bashful when I tried to cut it. The grey, tough slabs of meat and uncooked onion didn't yield to my knife and the mash was decidedly second-rate. The parsnips were still hard and the carrots cheap.This grim Dickensian food was left.I decided to give the kitchen another chance.This time the barmaid, when asked what was made in-house, replied 'I'm ashamed to say it's only the soup'. The braised beef had suddenly joined the ranks of bought-in food.I then had a dire dessert, a round blackberry and apple suet pudding that was beige-grey and splattered upside down on the plate.One mouthful later it too was left. And for this I was being charged £4.25.What is sad is that the chef can serve this and expect people to be jumping for joy. And what is management thinking of?Just where were those 'home-cooked specials' promoted on the website? My advice is try another Royal Oak, in the village of East Lavant near Chichester instead. There, real food reigns. My bill came to just under £17.Royal Oak, 19 Langstone High Street, Havant PO8 0B2. (023) 9248 3125. Open: For food from midday-9pm every day and 11am-11 pm for general opening.Food: *Service: ***Atmosphere: ****Disabled access: Small entrance and little space inside for wheelchairs but staff are very helpful and accommodating so ask.How to get there: Exit on the A27 at Havant going towards Hayling Island, the pub at end of the High Street on the left before the bridge to the island. Restricted parking on-street.The full article contains 620 words and appears in The News newspaper.Page 1 of 1Last Updated: 17 April 2009 7:02 AM Source: The News Location: Portsmouth Bookmark:Del.icio.us Digg Facebook reddit StumbleUpon Prev1Next1 Tooter,Havant 17/04/2009 09:14:18 As a loyal regular I have to reluctantly agree that this review is spot on. Nice beer and atmosphere, but the inability to produce the simple short order ploughmans quickly instead of queueing it with the cooked meals, taking over an hour on a busy day, is bad kitchen organisation.Report Unsuitable

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