Bents - The Fresh Approach Restaurant

Good lunch on Valentine’s Day, but, the value was good but the price point was high. The beef was incredibly hard to cut, the potatoes were amazing, and the unknown purple vegetable had some weird taste (as well as the lettuce). Overall, I would come here again but not so often because the price point is incredibly high.Edit: *the lady at the checkout was looking at the credit card reader pin

Fresh approach-- not so fresh!Ploughman's lunch, dry bread, dry sausage roll to the point neither could be eaten. The small amount of ham and cheese where good.The serving staff ignored me and only served me when I asked at the sandwich counter where did I order.On the plus side the staff who greet and the cleaning staff where lovely and work very hard.Overall an experience I won't be repeating.It's a shame, the other cafe is usually very good but was closed today.UPDATESo after speaking to the lovely manageress.I was offered a complimentary lunch which I took advantage of today. I must say it was a BIG IMPROVEMENT. The place was exceptionally busy but it looks like my comments have helped to sort out a few issues. Keep up the good work and I now give you a 4*.

We have always wanted to experience sitting in The Fresh Approach Restaurant when visiting Bents, but never had until today because of the queues and prices. Today we decided to have a treat of a hot chocolate each; also maybe some soup for myself and a toasted sandwich or similar for my husband who hadn't had any lunch. Despite waiting until well after the lunchtime mass, it was still very crowded and noisy. Undeterred we carried on. I saw a simple carrot and coriander soup was over £8 which I thought ridiculous, and the rest of the prices were very much overpriced. Because of my need to eat 'little and often' and hubby having had nothing, we decided to share a children's Margaherita pizza.When we got to the till we were asked for the table number. There was no indication that we needed to do this. When we said we didn't have one, we were told (nicely) we would have to go over and find one and come back with the number. I got rather agitated as my blood sugar was going low and I said why is there no provisions for people with disabilities? I stated that to walk across and around trying to find a table for the number and back again would cause me additional pain to what I was already in. I got the impression the ladies really wanted to help but they were 'tied' to the position they were in behind the counters. We were on the verge of saying, 'Stuff it' which is most unlike us being in our 60s and 70s. In the end they did find us a table and number, and carried the drinks over (We would have much preffered the drinks with the pizza as by the time the pizza arrived, the already luke warm hot chocolates were nearly cold. We noticed that the drinks on the table next to us had been left by the occupants, so I think they may have had the same issue with the temperature.When the pizza arrived it was a big disappointment. As a pizza lover I do have the discernment as to what is good and not so good. The base was nondescript and tasteless; akin to one from an economy pack from Tesco. The tomato 'sauce' was actually tomato puree, definitely not a proper pizza sauce. The cheese topping was just that! Again a cheap cheese probably cheddar. It certainly wasn't mozzarella like a Margharita should have. There was no basil or sliced tomato on top, nor any herbs on (nor at the table to sprinkle on). Just because it was a children's pizza shouldn't mean you should economise on ingredients.To add to all this was the constant clanging and noise. I appreciate this can't always be avoided, but for the time of day it was excessive.On a positive note: The staff were very good and helpful; especially the 2 ladies who were cleaning the tables. Both noticed I was using a napkin for my slice of pizza and offered to bring over a side plate. Can't fault the staff.Would I return again? It would take some convincing as Bents are definitely not disabled or accessibility friendly. The fact the staff felt so reluctant to leave their posts to help, and there was no other staff to help said it all!

Normally I really enjoy coming here to eat but today was very poor. Firstly we ordered soup and it tasted burnt Probally because the bottom of the pan was burnt and continually stirring it in. It was too overpowering so I complained. There was no apology and after some time agreed to refund me. I'm sorry but at £8.15 a bowl I don't think burnt soup is acceptable. We also ordered sandwiches the lady serving us was excellent and greeted us with a big smile however we noticed the bread was stale and the cherry tomatoes soggy. This time we didn't complain I just hope this was a one off and not a recurring problem. I think had we received an apology I would not have felt the need to write a review. We were inconvenienced and could not enjoy the soup we were looking forward to eating. Finally I was never asked for my Bents card and j am sure I would have been entitled to a free drink or cake for my birthday unless they stopped doing that now.

I have never experienced anything like it in my life.My husband and I visited on Sunday with my mother in law. In all the garden centres and other similar establishments that we’ve visited have I not been able to order a toasted teacake!I was mostly confused by how different types of dishes had to be ordered from different areas. My husband decided on quiche with chips and salad, sounds simple enough. Unfortunately not, you had to get the hot quiche counter, go to the salad bar and order the chips when ordering hot drinks that would be brought to the table in approximately ten minutes.At this point, in my wisdom, I decided that a toasted sandwich would be a simple option. Oh no! Go to the sandwich counter, order the toasted sandwich and wait for it while my husband’s quiche is going cold, and I still haven’t ordered the chips or hot drinks.My mother in law opted for soup in absence of a toasted teacake. Yes, you’ve guessed it! Go to the soup area and get that.Finally, we have a rapidly cooling quiche, toasted sandwich and soup on our tray and go to join the queue for the hot drinks and those chips which needless to say I didn’t order in the end.Instead, he opted for a scone to enjoy with a cuppa after the cool quiche and soggy saladAfter eventually ordering the hot drinks and paying not far off £50 for soup, a toasted sandwich, cold quiche, a scone, a pot of tea for 2 and a cappuccino we sat down…half an hour after finding a table. The quiche at this point was cold, the toasted sandwich had definitively had its day. My mother in law was lucky that the very overpriced soup was ordered just before we got the drinks. She should be grateful that we didn’t order hers first!I commented to the staff members that in all the places that we visit regularly, I have honestly never seen anything like it. This fell on deaf ears but I’m assuming that it’s not the first times she has heard such comments.If you’re thinking of a visit here, I’d definitely advise you to have lunch before you go!

Not good. Very slow, disorganised and haphazard way of serving food. Having been to Bents many times, and enjoyed the garden centre and Christmas decorations display, the experience of eating at The Fresh Approach today was appalling. When greeted at the entrance we were told we had to order soup from one counter, hot food from another counter and hot drinks then pay at another place. Completely haphazard and disorganised. I had to send elderly relatives around the counters, one got lost. A staff member rescued her and guided her back to our table. Obviously distressed she was upset. I stood in a sandwich queue for 25 mins and found that I could have ordered the soup, the drinks and paid all in one place! We all ate at different tines, our coffees were cold and the whoke experience was bad. Get some staff that know what they are doing. People around me were all saying the same as me. Very poor experience exacerbated by poor staff knowledge. Do better next time!

fantastic place for a bite to eat. bit pricey but delicious…especially the lemon meringue pie!chicken caesar salad was lovely too. my friends quiche was a bit of a let down for the price…tiny salad garnish,tiny tub of tasteless coleslaw and a few new potatoes on the side. quiche was supposed to be goats cheese and mixed peppers…she found two pieces of pepper in it!this is a self serve restaurant so anyone visiting with mobility issues will struggle and will have to ask for assistance.

We regularly visit Bents and it's restaurant, but it is becoming increasingly chaotic with each visit. Today I could only describe it as organised chaos. If you want a sandwich and cake you have to join 2 different queues, if you want soup and a main meal you have to join 2 different queues. If you are be buying food/drinks for several people you end up having to join several different queues, meaning it can take ages to get just a couple of items. Today we opted for coffee and cakes to save moving from one queue to another. I can honestly say that the carrot cake (£4.95) was the worst carrot cake I have ever had. It was incredibly dry and tasteless. I would have taken it back and complained, but I could not face battling my way through the hoards of people moving from one queue to another and just genuinely not knowing where to go, that I didn't bother. I just left the cake. I really think this cafe/restaurant needs to have table service to save the chaos. It's getting to the point where we will visit the garden centre, but not bother with refreshments, which is a shame because it used to have excellent food and be well organised. The only good thing today was a decent latte..

Haven’t been for a while, ambiance fine nice place to sit in the sun. Service friendly and helpful BUT…had a sausage sandwich on white bread. Sausages undercooked , greasy and salty. White bread cutIike a doorstop and too much butter. Flat white coffee in a tiny cup. Overpriced and greasy spoon cafe quality. Disappointing to say the least.