Donington Manor

After travelling 100 miles, I arrived at the time the hotel had confirmed, but it was locked and nobody answered the Ring doorbell. The phone number they gave me went unanswered too. I'd booked one night through Booking.com, and the hotel had contacted me that day to confirm my arrival time and explain how to get into the car park. I waited more than two hours, then contacted Booking.com customer service, who tried to reach the hotel and said someone would call me. I waited until 21:30 before finding somewhere else to stay. Booking.com eventually gave me a full refund, but that took two weeks. The hotel still hasn't replied or explained why I couldn't get in. Disgraceful service. I'd avoid it and stay elsewhere.

The food tasted good, but there weren't many choices on the Sunday menu. The roast potatoes were neither hot nor crispy, as if they'd been cooked an hour or two before serving. I mentioned it to the staff, but nothing was done.

I got an afternoon tea voucher for my birthday, and it was still in date when I tried to book. I'd already called three times and been promised a callback. When I finally got through, I was told they no longer accept vouchers. Very poor customer service, with no empathy. I wouldn't recommend them.

Our first courses on the Groupon deal were just about passable, then both pork loin dinners arrived cold, like they'd been sitting out for ages. The Paxo stuffing was hard and dry, there was no gravy, the mash and vegetables were cold, and the roast potatoes were coated in cold duck fat. The pork itself was poor quality. This was more like roadside café food, and probably would have been better and definitely hotter there. We never got the third course. We waited until we'd had enough and left, with no idea if it would ever have come. Nobody checked whether things were okay, and when our two nearly full plates were cleared, nobody said a word. As we left, staff must have realized dessert hadn't been served, but still said nothing. Other diners were also complaining about slow service and cold food. The hotel has character and feels like a reminder of better times, but the food, service and staff organization need to improve. Even with the Groupon discount for Sunday lunch for two, it was disappointing. I wouldn't pay full price.