Chambers in Stafford

[zebidee]

Good on you for replying to the comments, chef, hope to see you around more often. Still intending to come and visit, I'll definitely request to say hi when we do make it!

edit: and same goes to southernfolk, sorry, I missed your posts, easy to do when checking the new posts!

 

[shoes]

And where were you at 7.30 pm last wednesday? Hmmmm?

 

[zebidee]

And where were you at 7.30 pm last wednesday? Hmmmm?

Working

 

[Scoot Doggy Dogg]

Hi everyone sorry for the delay in commenting I have been busy. i can assure you all complaints are taken seriously and considered. Hopefully i can answer some of them.

Andreas Rex

Unfortunatly you were served the completely wrong dish. On the main menu we have a Belly pork dish with Hoi sin, pak choi and bean sprouts. On this dish you had a carrot and cardamon puree not a mustard creme fraiche. On the set menu there was also a belly pork dish with black pudding and apple. This is a comunication issue between front of house and the kitchen. For this i am sorry. The pepper sauce is mentioned on the menu but we have now bought mini jugs for the sauce to go out seperate.

Juice Comedy

The uniform aspect i personally agree with you but it is the opinion of the owners and managment to go the other way. Just like the pictures on the wall they aren't to everyones taste but it is the owners and is merely an opinion. The sausages i assure you are not Asda but local pork sausages made no more than 3 days earlier by Hopkinson's & sons butchers on the weston road. They are a great butchers and personally i think their sausages are top notch. The menus are on the front as you walk in and again is the opinion of the owners not to put them on the table. We want Chambers to be as popular for drinkers as for diners which is why we dont lay up the tables before hand. As for not being cleared for ages this is unacceptable and i apologise for this. We now have a member of staff designated for each room so this hopefully will never happen again.

Speak 65

The signs outside the toilets are on order and i completely agree with you that the current ones look dreadful. We have been let down by suppliers twice. The decor as i said before is the taste of the owners and they are very happy with it but is subjective. One mans poison and all that. The scotch egg is completely unacceptable and for that i apologise. I have a brand new team of 7 chefs with only 2 having previously worked in a kitchen and their learning curve is steep. The beef that you had is prime Aberdeen Angus sirloin and incredibly expensive but i believe top quality. We could go for a lesser cut say rib or topside but we want to serve the best. We have increased the slices of beef from 2 - 3 so i hope this will rectify the problem.


At the end of the day I take all complaints personnally and wish to be the best we can be everytime for every diner. I am more than happy to speak to any guest at the table and welcome feedback ( good or bad) and will act upon every one of them. We are new to Stafford and we are learning all the time.

I am fully supportive of any owners [or chefs] who have the balls to ressurect what was an empty building and was due to be so for a long time in the current climate. My wife and I enjoyed our lunch and beer in the Chambers a couple of weeks ago. Staff and management were helpful and the service was good. I didn't even notice the signs for the toilets or that the pics were the same as Hogshead (FFS). I can't help thinking that the Forum has gone on a bit of a witch hunt here.

The wife had the offending sausages and on the back of that she is going to the butchers for more and extras for our xmas fare.

Give them a chance to get established. The town is starting to shift away from the red bull and vodka culture and I, for one, welcome it.

 

[Withnail]

I can't help thinking that the Forum has gone on a bit of a witch hunt

I can't speak out of experience of eating there but that sounds a little harsh. Some folk who had bad experiences simply reported on them. Chambers probably took a little long in coming on here to explain their position but absolute top marks for them so doing now.

I think it's fair to say that everybody wishes them to succeed.

 

[art vandalay]

hey ho

new to the forum and only been living in the ford for a couple of yearse when the sun opened, I thought it was a breath of fresh air, however since the arrival of Chambers my friends and I cannot stay away. The manager and staff have been very very helpful and the food although a few teething problems on the whole has been head and shoulders above any other establishment in stafford when it comes to quality and value. The Wine list is the best in stafford, the beer is very well kept. Service even when very busy is outstanding for Stafford. I hope that this Pub (and it is a pub) thrives and conquers.

 

[art vandalay]

Very over-rated in my opinion.
We went for a meal a week ago.
Scotch eggs on first cut, looked amazing, egg was still slightly runny. However on closer inspection, the sausagemeat was totally raw.
Haddock fishcakes had stringy rubbery black bits in them. Possibly bits of skin, but they said it was mussels, despite no mention of mussells on the menu.
Whitebait was soggy and the tartare sauce was tasteless.
Roast beef dinner was no better - very little meat and half had to be left as was pure fat. Considering a decent quality carvery can be had at the Raddie for £3.59, it was a rip-off.
Soup was very very good though, and they did a nice cheeseboard and ther were no complaints about the desserts.

We were offered free drinks but on inspection of the bill afterwards, I am sure this didnt happen.

Despite signs saying they welcome families, there are no baby changing facilities.
The finish on the decor isnt always great, sign outside the ladies stuck on with tape. Mismatched pictures in areas isnt great.

They are charging a reasonable amount without delivering on the quality. For the quality of the food, they should be charging about 50% of what they are.

Seems to me like they are after making a quick buck which I find offensive as they obviously think we wouldnt know the difference. Doesnt compare at all with the better restaurants around.

In my opinion one of the worst meals I have ever had - Avoid unless they up their game considerably

and which rival establisment do you work for?

 

[art vandalay]

Very over-rated in my opinion.
We went for a meal a week ago.
Scotch eggs on first cut, looked amazing, egg was still slightly runny. However on closer inspection, the sausagemeat was totally raw.
Haddock fishcakes had stringy rubbery black bits in them. Possibly bits of skin, but they said it was mussels, despite no mention of mussells on the menu.
Whitebait was soggy and the tartare sauce was tasteless.
Roast beef dinner was no better - very little meat and half had to be left as was pure fat. Considering a decent quality carvery can be had at the Raddie for £3.59, it was a rip-off.
Soup was very very good though, and they did a nice cheeseboard and ther were no complaints about the desserts.

We were offered free drinks but on inspection of the bill afterwards, I am sure this didnt happen.

Despite signs saying they welcome families, there are no baby changing facilities.
The finish on the decor isnt always great, sign outside the ladies stuck on with tape. Mismatched pictures in areas isnt great.

They are charging a reasonable amount without delivering on the quality. For the quality of the food, they should be charging about 50% of what they are.

Seems to me like they are after making a quick buck which I find offensive as they obviously think we wouldnt know the difference. Doesnt compare at all with the better restaurants around.

In my opinion one of the worst meals I have ever had - Avoid unless they up their game considerably

Couldnt agree with you more their speak65.

Went in for first time last night, and did not have a great experiance.

Myself and a mate had a pint of real ale each, charged us £6.10, when the barman finally decided to serve us. My mate was paying, gave him a tenner and then said i think ive got the 10p to make it easier for him, but the barman couldnt even be bothered to wait to see if he had, rung in the order and then spent about 2 minitues counting the change.

Managed to have a chat with one of the owners, to give some feedback.

Being a new establishment, you would think that they would appreciate any feedback, be it good or bad.

How wrong we were.

Gave our opinion that we thought the beer was overpriced, told us it should have been £5.90 and then we were told in no uncertain terms to basically f**k off.

What an atitude to have with your now non returning customers.

Hopefully i can get to the next heart of staffordshire CAMRA meeting, will def not recommend this place.

And another critisism, the staff looked scruffy, i would have thought that a so called "gastro pub" (god how i hate that term!) they would have made some effort to kit them out in proper uniforms.

Spoilt what was otherwise a nice night out, thanks to Pie n Ale and the Sun.

whoa there leslie

uniforms what do you suggest "brown shirts" I don't think the Chambers is being labelled as a Gastro pub i think that you may be stereotyping the establisment a tad. the beer is well kept and varied it is a warm and welcoming establishment, wetherspoons is a camra pub do you honestly think this place could not be a worthy camra member?

 

[bignico]

pictures,

wake up and gro wup, Stafford has been a culinay and cultural desert for 50 years or more,

food good, beer good, wine lost good, weatherspoons comparisons - none

if you really dont knoe the difference between food and drink and budget

kindly go back under the working class stone you crawled out from

Roll on Chambers - good food, drinks and none of the usuual stafford crowd

tally ho!

 

[bignico]

Very over-rated in my opinion.
We went for a meal a week ago.
Scotch eggs on first cut, looked amazing, egg was still slightly runny. However on closer inspection, the sausagemeat was totally raw.
Haddock fishcakes had stringy rubbery black bits in them. Possibly bits of skin, but they said it was mussels, despite no mention of mussells on the menu.
Whitebait was soggy and the tartare sauce was tasteless.
Roast beef dinner was no better - very little meat and half had to be left as was pure fat. Considering a decent quality carvery can be had at the Raddie for £3.59, it was a rip-off.
Soup was very very good though, and they did a nice cheeseboard and ther were no complaints about the desserts.

We were offered free drinks but on inspection of the bill afterwards, I am sure this didnt happen.

Despite signs saying they welcome families, there are no baby changing facilities.
The finish on the decor isnt always great, sign outside the ladies stuck on with tape. Mismatched pictures in areas isnt great.

They are charging a reasonable amount without delivering on the quality. For the quality of the food, they should be charging about 50% of what they are.

Seems to me like they are after making a quick buck which I find offensive as they obviously think we wouldnt know the difference. Doesnt compare at all with the better restaurants around.

In my opinion one of the worst meals I have ever had - Avoid unless they up their game considerably

and which rival establisment do you work for?

What!!!!!!!! you absolute Sham, Please for the sake of everyone with any culture, taste and class, go back to the Radford Bank and eat your fill, Steroid fed beef, overcooked veg, and disgraceful service, you are welcome.

 

[bignico]

Very over-rated in my opinion.
We went for a meal a week ago.
Scotch eggs on first cut, looked amazing, egg was still slightly runny. However on closer inspection, the sausagemeat was totally raw.
Haddock fishcakes had stringy rubbery black bits in them. Possibly bits of skin, but they said it was mussels, despite no mention of mussells on the menu.
Whitebait was soggy and the tartare sauce was tasteless.
Roast beef dinner was no better - very little meat and half had to be left as was pure fat. Considering a decent quality carvery can be had at the Raddie for £3.59, it was a rip-off.
Soup was very very good though, and they did a nice cheeseboard and ther were no complaints about the desserts.

We were offered free drinks but on inspection of the bill afterwards, I am sure this didnt happen.

Despite signs saying they welcome families, there are no baby changing facilities.
The finish on the decor isnt always great, sign outside the ladies stuck on with tape. Mismatched pictures in areas isnt great.

They are charging a reasonable amount without delivering on the quality. For the quality of the food, they should be charging about 50% of what they are.

MMMMMMMmmmmm suspect your sort are not the target market, if agruaing over £0.20p and a comaprison between cuisine and swill is in your best interest please for the sake of the town .
Seems to me like they are after making a quick buck which I find offensive as they obviously think we wouldnt know the difference. Doesnt compare at all with the better restaurants around.

In my opinion one of the worst meals I have ever had - Avoid unless they up their game considerably

Couldnt agree with you more their speak65.

Went in for first time last night, and did not have a great experiance.

Myself and a mate had a pint of real ale each, charged us £6.10, when the barman finally decided to serve us. My mate was paying, gave him a tenner and then said i think ive got the 10p to make it easier for him, but the barman couldnt even be bothered to wait to see if he had, rung in the order and then spent about 2 minitues counting the change.

Managed to have a chat with one of the owners, to give some feedback.

Being a new establishment, you would think that they would appreciate any feedback, be it good or bad.

How wrong we were.

Gave our opinion that we thought the beer was overpriced, told us it should have been £5.90 and then we were told in no uncertain terms to basically f**k off.

What an atitude to have with your now non returning customers.

Hopefully i can get to the next heart of staffordshire CAMRA meeting, will def not recommend this place.

And another critisism, the staff looked scruffy, i would have thought that a so called "gastro pub" (god how i hate that term!) they would have made some effort to kit them out in proper uniforms.

Spoilt what was otherwise a nice night out, thanks to Pie n Ale and the Sun.

whoa there leslie

uniforms what do you suggest "brown shirts" I don't think the Chambers is being labelled as a Gastro pub i think that you may be stereotyping the establisment a tad. the beer is well kept and varied it is a warm and welcoming establishment, wetherspoons is a camra pub do you honestly think this place could not be a worthy camra member?

 

[bignico]

£6.10 for two pint of ale. With being close to the college I had to pricing the bar was somewhat fun. Out pricing the students, yet being cheap enough not to get comments like this is difficult. But, the ales range between £2.60 - £3.10 on the odd occasion, depending on who brews it (I.e Timothy taylors is expensive because they can be) but the majority of the time the ales are priced on the gravity of the ale.

Timmy Taylor's Landlord £2.65 in The Bell at Haughton. As a small village pub they will not have the buying power of the larger establisments.

I hope Todd is able to 'up the game' here as I would like to give the place a go but have been put off by the recent comments on here.

Sorry, but this is a fine dining institute not a student bar

enjoy the good food, beer and service but do not judge on price, some things are better experienced than judged

 

[John Marwood]

If i had recently started a business i would be glad of any critical appraisal - far better this than customers vanishing never to appear again because of some unspoken unhappiness
Each happy customer is a free ad for your company

Of course if mistakes are made and repeated then this will not make for a happy future

As for price - margins are very tight in catering today and if the food and drink are bob on then I for one would be happy paying these prices

Knowing where produce originated is more importsnt to me than others it would appear

I ate a meal at a certain village restaurant recently and the chef said he can tell when he has a Stafford customer - they eat the cheapest thing on the menu and then spend all their money getting shitfaced

Great service is essential to every business today - without it you/we/ l cannot survive

Communication is a key to success and that includes listening

Good luck

 

[aalan]

bignico and art vandalay don't sound like they work for Chambers, do they??

 

[aalan]

go back under the working class stone you crawled out from

and none of the usuual stafford crowd

tally ho!

What do you mean exactly? What's wrong with being working class? Usual Stafford crowd??? Do you not live in Stafford?

 

[bignico]

bignico and art vandalay don't sound like they work for Chambers, do they??

Absolutely not, Been driven to log on to this forum by the disgraceful witch hunt that appears to be happening to any new establishment, I would suggest most of the people who post messages here have an alterior motive.
I am not, repeat not, any more than a food loving Staffordian, sick of the culture of "Size over Style". People no longer eat out in Stafford as the usual establishments offer nothing new, and certainly no quality.
I have eaten out at restaurants all over the world, from 3 Michelin stars, to market cafes, and Stafford needs this place.
The Swan etc are purveyors of the "size over style" ethic, that encourages portion size, and menu size over freshly prepared ingredients, and home cooked specials.
Suggest if price and portion size is more important than quality, atmosphere and a new menu everyday, you go back to the radford bank, for your overcooked beef carvery with all you can eat vegetables and a plastic glass of carling.

 

[Bob]

Very over-rated in my opinion.
We went for a meal a week ago.
Scotch eggs on first cut, looked amazing, egg was still slightly runny. However on closer inspection, the sausagemeat was totally raw.
Haddock fishcakes had stringy rubbery black bits in them. Possibly bits of skin, but they said it was mussels, despite no mention of mussells on the menu.
Whitebait was soggy and the tartare sauce was tasteless.
Roast beef dinner was no better - very little meat and half had to be left as was pure fat. Considering a decent quality carvery can be had at the Raddie for £3.59, it was a rip-off.
Soup was very very good though, and they did a nice cheeseboard and ther were no complaints about the desserts.

We were offered free drinks but on inspection of the bill afterwards, I am sure this didnt happen.

Despite signs saying they welcome families, there are no baby changing facilities.
The finish on the decor isnt always great, sign outside the ladies stuck on with tape. Mismatched pictures in areas isnt great.

They are charging a reasonable amount without delivering on the quality. For the quality of the food, they should be charging about 50% of what they are.

Seems to me like they are after making a quick buck which I find offensive as they obviously think we wouldnt know the difference. Doesnt compare at all with the better restaurants around.

In my opinion one of the worst meals I have ever had - Avoid unless they up their game considerably

and which rival establisment do you work for?

What!!!!!!!! you absolute Sham, Please for the sake of everyone with any culture, taste and class, go back to the Radford Bank and eat your fill, Steroid fed beef, overcooked veg, and disgraceful service, you are welcome.

What a comment to make - so nobody is allowed an opinion - you think that everyone has an agenda? Grow Up!!! This forum isn't meant to be about slagging people off who simply comment on poor quality and poor service, I'm in agreement that you get served a better quality of meal for a fairer price and with grater customer service at the Radford Bank than I myself did on the day we visited Chambers - but that's just my opinion and I have no affiliation with any rival business!

 

[ToriRat]

Strange appearances of new users after complaints is a common internets phenomenon...I wonder if there is a name for this species of troll?

Subtle it is not.

 

[Withnail]

wonder if there is a name for this species of troll?

Ulterioll?

 

[ToriRat]

Nice, I like it