The At Macdonald Crutherland House

Our family was extremely disappointed with our stay at this restaurant for various reasons. We had planned to stay overnight for Easter and were promised Easter activities from 12-4 on Sunday. However, when we arrived at 2pm, we were informed that the activities had already ended. The pints we ordered at the bar were flat, and we were surprised to be charged an additional £10 per child for dinner, even though we had booked through booking.com for a family of four on a Dinner, Bed, and Breakfast package. The service was slow throughout the day and night, and it took 25 minutes for our bill to arrive, which was incorrect. As we tried to sort out the bill, the waitress cleared an almost full bottle of Prosecco, priced at £37.50, from our table. The restaurant prices did not match the quality of the food we received, which was subpar for a pub. Furthermore, a cupboard door in our bedroom came off its rails, posing a safety hazard. Overall, while the staff were polite, our experience was unpleasant and I would not recommend this restaurant to others.

My partner and I got engaged at this hotel years ago, so it holds a special place in our hearts. It used to be our go-to spot for special occasions, but after a recent birthday meal, we will never return. The service was terrible, the staff seemed disinterested, and the food tasted like it had been frozen or store-bought. The cutlery was dirty, the food arrived cold, and the wine was served warm. Everything was overpriced. The bar staff were rude, slow, and constantly had to leave the bar to retrieve items. The cocktails tasted awful and took over 20 minutes to be served. The prawn cocktail, priced at over £10, contained low-quality prawns swimming in pink water, likely from being defrosted. The main course was lukewarm, with sautéed potatoes that were essentially a large potato cut lengthwise and fried. There was no presentation to speak of. The passion fruit cheesecake tasted fine, but it still had plastic wrapping on it, indicating it was store-bought. The staff rudely asked if we were finished while chatting and giggling at the reception desk near our table. The layout of the tables resembled a school exam room, which was unattractive. When we requested two coffees at the bar after dinner, the waitress audibly sighed and appeared uninterested. There was litter and exposed wires near our table in the dining room, which looked messy and unsafe. McDonalds would have provided better food and service than this establishment.

I would definately recommend the food here it wasnt just good it was exceptional everything was cooked to perfection was hot and came out on warm plates a big thank you to the kitchen staff.

My dinner experience was not great, the staff appeared to be disorganized. The tomato soup was delicious, but the veggie curry rice lacked flavor and came with a dry half of pita bread. It was expensive and not very appetizing.

I stayed here for 2 nights for work purposes and with the hotel being a “Macdonald’s” and a ‘spa’, I expected the highest quality. Oh no, this was a massive disappointment. The room and hotel is generally tired but clean and ok, no real complaints although definitely not high quality. Marks in the carpets and walls, torn wallpaper, damp in the bathroom, it certainly wouldn’t meet the standards of Chanel 4’s ‘four in a bed’, I’m really not sure how they get 4 AA stars! Breakfast was great on both days, good food and great staff. The corridors to the rooms have radiators but these were not turned on leaving the spaces very cold. On both evenings at meal times the ‘management’ seem to make arbitrary decisions without any consideration of the impact on their guests or their poor staff who were left to deal with the fallout. This is unacceptable. On the first night I was informed that the restaurant, in which I had booked a table for myself and a colleague, was closed due to short staffing, and hence all guests were directed to the bar area. Ok no problem, however this contains just 9 seating areas of which only 6 that I would consider suitable for eating at, unless of course you want to eat from your lap. On the first evening the bar was full leaving staff struggling to cope meaning guests were waiting for both the bar and food. The restaurant menu was only made available after my request as I was not impressed with the bar menu and neither are what are advertised on their website. On the first night, I had roast chicken and a side of haggis which was great, compliments to the chef. On the second night, again the restaurant was closed yet on this occasion only the ‘bar’ menu had been made available to guests. This menu is not great, is very limited to sandwiches, salad, a few starters and burgers certainly not great for anyone with any dietary restrictions, irrespective of those wanting a good range of choice. Also offered but not on the menu, and this turned out to be the best of a bad choice, was fish and chips. I had this and it was delicious, so again compliments to the chef who served lightly battered fish cooked to perfection with home made chips and a lovely minted pea mash. Not a huge portion which was perfect for me. So all in all not too bad in terms of the food being quality, although had the fish and chips not been offered as an option, I probably would have done what another guest did and order a takeaway. Really, as this price? This hotel is certainly not as advertised and so the hotel is not meeting their contractual obligation towards guests as they promise one thing and do not deliver. This is totally out of order. The guests and staff are being severely let down by management who were nowhere to be seen at such a time of short staffing, leaving a skeleton staff to cover both reception and the bar/meal orders, alI saw was the receptionist, one waiter and I was led to believe there was just one chef for probably one of the busiest times for any hotel. I lost count of how many times I heard staff say sorry. Prior to coming here on this occasion I had made a booking for December, for myself and a colleague, and again, for work purposes. However once guests are here they become a captive audience at the mercy of a management that does not seem to care, so I will be cancelling this booking, never to return. A shame because it is the staff and their hard work that try to make this a place good.