The Deeside Inn - Aberdeenshire

Despite its five-star premise and beautifully designed interior, our dining experience at this restaurant quickly turned sour. Upon arrival, we were disappointed to be ignored by three staff members, a sure sign of poor service. Despite booking ahead and being drawn in by the enticing menu we had seen online, featuring haggis, a grill selection, and the omelette Arnold Bennett we were excited to try, the menu we were presented with was significantly smaller than what was advertised. We were informed that the menu had been changed at the start of the year, with other patrons having complained about the limited options. To make matters worse, one dish was unavailable, a pie had to be served without its pastry, broccoli was substituted with mange tout, and our drink order was incorrect. The final disappointment came when the bill was presented with a 10% service charge already included, despite our previous concerns. After requesting to speak to the manager, a small deduction was made from the bill, saving this review from being given one star. It is worth noting that the website still has not been updated at the time of this review, and we would recommend trying other dining options in Ballater.

Despite its appearance as a wonderful venue, this establishment turned out to be horrible. The front of house had a beautiful decor, but the rooms were lackluster. The bathroom window was rotted, requiring the handyman to close it, and the draught had to be stopped with a towel. The handle to the shower control fell off, creating another task for the handyman. Expecting a nice meal in the restaurant, we were disappointed to learn that dinner would be served in the bar with a limited menu. The overcooked and dry salmon, along with my partner's misrepresented chicken supreme, left much to be desired. The following day, breakfast had undercooked poached eggs, served in the dining room at least. When we brought these issues up, all we received was a casual apology. The waitstaff and bar manager did their best to manage the 20 or so customers, while the manager was nowhere to be found until after the rush. The bedroom window was also rotting and moldy. Despite being advertised as a 5-star AA venue, I would rate it as a 3-star. I have had better experiences at Travel Lodges. This establishment falls short of other Crear Hotels and Johanssen Group's high standards. I would not recommend this place to family or friends. A new management team is desperately needed.

My friends and I had a great dining experience here. The Venison pie was outstanding, with tender, lean meat and delicious gravy. The restaurant had a pleasant ambiance, although a noisy table of guests and slow service were minor drawbacks. We would still consider returning in the future.

I am a very picky 5 star type of girl lol and this restaurant made me entire time in ballater. It was the entire Scottish experience I cannot even explain! These 3 men sat and drank beers while playing Scottish music. Which I never knew I loved! I listen to rap and country lol! It was incredible I don’t know if they were hired or playing for beer or just for fun! I’m still desiring to find out! I love the culture here it is so friendly our waiter was so kind and bar tented. You can tell it’s a casual small town vibe so don’t expect fast service anywhere in this city! Usually two ppl are running the whole restaurant because it’s not that busy! Which I got the hang of expecting that and it’s just fine! This Los Angeles girl adapted! And I truly felt like I was on the titanic listening to that Scottish music and wanted to get up and dance sooo bad!!!!! Which I’m sure they probably wouldn’t have minded lol my daughters 7 and 9 years old left with a real Scottish experience we will never forget! Seriously thank you! Food was amazing we loved everything! Kids loved the mag and cheese and burger and we got the venison pie, risotto, and chichien all amazing!

Ghillies Pub service defines poor. On Thursday June 8 we arrived before 5:00 pm. We had to obtain the meal menu on our own. The server was occupying a table until about 5:10 when the attentive bar tender sent her our way. At about 5:45 we were wondering where our order was. It appeared to us that our server had not sent our order to the kitchen. The bar keeper found the order and let us know that it would be about 10 minutes. The server asked us if she could be of service, oblivious to the fact that she took our order. At about 6:10 we asked for our drink tab and that the food order is cancelled. Amazingly, our tab had a charge for a different wine and an obligatory 10% service gratuity added on. There were at most three tables occupied while we were there so it was not a matter of the staff being inundated by a large group of patrons.