The Red Lion Handcross - Haywards Heath

The restaurant has undergone a complete revision since the previous reviews, as the food was excellent, the service was good, and there was no significant wait for the food. We stopped in for lunch to break up a long trip and were delighted with our meals. I enjoyed a delicious and nourishing bowl with falafel, while my wife had a hearty root vegetable bag with chips on the side, followed by a warm lemon and blueberry polenta cake for dessert. The atmosphere was very nice and comfortable, though the prices were on the higher side. It's worth noting that this restaurant is located in the affluent Home Counties, so it may be difficult to compare with other nearby facilities. (Review updated on 2021-12-21)

I appreciate the vegan menu options at this restaurant, but the wait for food was excruciatingly slow. The quality of the food was average and did not live up to the creative descriptions on the menu.

The restaurant has beautiful decor, but the service is very poor and extremely slow. They do offer a separate vegan menu, which is great. I decided to try the vegan burger, but it tasted more like falafel instead of the advertised roasted eggplant, spinach, and harissa burger. The burger was served on a small and crusty rustic roll with red pepper cumin purée, charred spring onions, red chili, and a cauliflower couscous salad. Unfortunately, the burger did not come with chips like the meat burgers do, and it took a lot of effort to finally order a side of sweet potatoes. The desserts were also disappointing, with one item not matching its description on the menu and another having the wrong accompaniment of ice cream instead of sorbet. Overall, the experience was underwhelming.

There must have been a complete revamp since the previous reviews because the food was excellent, the service was fine and there was no appreciable wait for the food. We called in for lunch to break up a long journey and I had a delicious nourish bowl with falafel and my wife had a candied root vegetable bake (with chips on the side) followed by a warm lemon and blueberry polenta cake. Very nice indeed. Very comfortable surroundings but it is expensive. We put it down to it being in the wealthy Home Counties (being from the far Westcountry ourselves) so I don’t know how it would compare with other establishments nearby. Updated from previous review on 2021-12-21

Great to see vegan options but the wait for food is painfully slow. Food itself is average and sadly does not match the imaginative descriptions on the menu.