Ember Inns offer a modern take on the best of a traditional local pub. There's no better place to enjoy Cask Marque-certified real ales, fine wines and delicious classic pub food. Whether you want to eat at a family-friendly pub, relax with a pint a...
Is Ember Inns legit?
Ember Inns (www.emberinns.co.uk) has a 2.5 out of 5 rating on OK.one, based on 101 user reviews collected here. It is listed under Restaurants & Bars and its reputation is poor. 46% of reviews are 1 star, a relatively high share; The business has not yet replied to negative reviews; Reviews mostly discuss Product, Quality. Last updated 2026-09-06.
What reviewers say
AI generated
Most reviewers were unhappy with their experience overall. Consumers frequently complained that the food was often served cold, overcooked, or completely lacking in flavor, leaving many deeply disappointed with their dining choices. Patrons also noted that the service was frequently frustratingly slow, and staff members were occasionally perceived as unfriendly or unhelpful when handling complaints.
Some people were satisfied with the delicious meals and the exceptionally friendly, welcoming staff who made their special visits truly enjoyable. Others mentioned that certain venues were beautifully decorated and well-presented, creating a pleasant and relaxing atmosphere for family gatherings and seasonal celebrations.
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My husband and I had our wedding reception at The North Star Chessington, 3 years ago on the 31st August, everyone loved the food, the service was top notch and quickly served, staff were great.
So we thought we would return there for our 3rd Anniversary dinner, we ordered our dinner starters turned up nothing like the usually delicious battered mushrooms these were soggy and chewy, then we waited over half an hour for our mains, I had chosen salmon with crushed new potatoes and peas, my husband chose the Doom Bar steak pie with chips and vegetables, my salmon was over cooked dry with so much pepper on the skin I could not eat that, the new potatoes were floury and dry, I had about three mouthfuls but could not stomach any more. My husband found his pie over cooked the pastry was hard to cut on top and so tough on the crust at the bottom he could not get through it, his chips looked terrible and tasted awful too they actually looked as if they were leftovers from somewhere then heated up, dry and tasteless.
All in all a very disappointing visit, I did complain and the female server issued a part refund, but that did not make up for the disappointment. I would have to consider very carefully before returning.
We were both taken aback with the fact there were several dogs in the eating areas, some barking some whining, not something I really want in a restaurant
I have just returned from lunch at the Bramley Cottage in Redditch. I chose the lunchtime 2 courses option and could not believe what was presented as haddock and chips. The piece of fish was mms bigger than a fish finger, overcooked and very unappetising. I had requested garden peas and was served mushy peas. The chips were only just warm. When I complained about the size of the fish the waitress said, I know, that's the way it comes. When she came back and offered a free dessert or drink I told her that I had already paid for them and asked if I could have a voucher instead. She said she was very sorry, but she couldn't do that. Needless to say, I will not be returning.!!
I went to The Crown in Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield for Sunday lunch today (30/08/2026). I had a dreadful meal.
Greasy batter on soggy water filled mushrooms to start.
Cold watery gravy in the gravy boat. Processed gammon (complete wafer thin circular slice of processed meat) hard around the edges and was advertised as hand carved, flaky bits of what was supposed to be hand carved turkey that was tasteless, chewy lumps of roast beef, hard and in edible Yorkshire pudding and stuffing that was dry and had a crumbly texture.
Having left the majority of my main course I asked for some time to allow me to digest the food I was able to eat before being served my desert. Staff members were constantly hovering over and around me trying to make eye contact. Eventually I asked for my desert which was the only food that arrived hot and was completely edible.
The whole experience has been awful. I’ll never eat there or at an Ember Inn again.
I complained when I got home as I was in my own and didn’t feel comfortable to do so when I was there. Also, I don’t want to attract attention to myself as there were a lot of other diners. I received a very basic reply and forced apology but no offer to refund the almost £30 I spent on food and inedible food.
Shocking. First and last time I eat there.
The lunchtime set menu of fish & chips should be more appropriately named chips & fish reflecting the meagre portion of battered haddock.
Generally unattentive staff.
We won't be rushing back.
Visited the Justinlees pub in Dalkeith and I have to say the bar staff must be the worst I have ever had to encounter!! Josh in particular was extremely rude but both staff Josh and a girl l didn't catch her name spent most of the night chatting at the end of the bar while our empty glasses accumulated to 13 where we decided to give them a hand as they were obviously overworked. They were very abrupt ,rude and obnoxious absolutely no customer service skills whatsoever. 1st impressions count a lot I WONT BE BACK !!!
Computer created adds have no sympathy or try solve issues.
I recently received a personalised email inviting me to return to Ember Inns with an offer of 40% off food. Unfortunately, the email was one of those "do not reply" advertisements, so there was no opportunity to explain why I have not returned.
For over twenty years, my family and I regularly enjoyed meals at Thisvrestaurant. We appreciated both the food and the atmosphere, and I had known the manager since her days at the Wrose Bull in the 1990s, when our family frequently dined there.
Sadly, following one particularly unpleasant visit, I was told by senior Ember Inns staff that, because my comments had upset some members of staff, it would be best if my family and I did not return, for my own safety.I have respected that request ever since, despite genuinely missing a restaurant we had enjoyed for many years.
What made that day especially difficult was that a close friend with autism had taken his own life that very morning. I had simply wanted a quiet meal with my family. Instead, the atmosphere was far from peaceful. The manager, who normally maintained excellent standards and controlled the restaurant well, was not present. There were several service errors, including an issue with the bill that affected my usual discount, and the overall experience was unlike anything we had previously known there.
Meeting the manager by chance a few days ago in a retail park reminded me of those events. I know she had worked hard to improve standards, and I believe the situation was upsetting for her as well.
Receiving an invitation to "come back" naturally brought those memories to the surface. I still remember the many happy years we spent at The Stone Trough, which is why this remains disappointing. If Ember Inns wishes to encourage former loyal customers to return, it would be helpful if there were also a way for those customers to explain why they stopped coming in the first place.
The Dog Hagley Road West. It is not advertised that if you eat off the set menu your portion will be very small. I had haddock and chips which would only be suitable for a small child, the haddock resembled the size of a fish finger.
Just like to say thank you 🙏 for the great food staff are very friendly and the Chef came to say hello as I requested to see him to say thank you for the great food and he was very friendly and we said our thanks, keep up the great work guys 🙏👍🏻
Chefs name was Metin 👍🏻
Great pub, food was excellent & staff very helpful & friendly. Any questions we had, Jane was there to answer & offered alternatives with our food choices. Well worth a visit.
We booked a table for four people at the 3 Brooks bradley stoke, we ordered our meals we under stood there was a 1 hour wait ,fair enough, 5 minutes before our meals were ready ,the waitress, in formed me they had no eggs for my gammon steak ,I could not believe it, tesco is o lying 2 minutes walk away,the standard of the beer was very poor as well ,all in all as it's our local we won't be going back for awhile
After the 1stever bad experience a few monthsago at THE BARTON ARMS, WORSEY, MANCHESTER, my wife & myself returned for lunch today & all I can say is WOW. As if the last visit never happened.As has been the case for at least 15 years of our visits, the Staff & Management were Superb, Food was perfectly cooked & well presented, Atmosphere was very relaxing.A big thanks to everyone concerned including the Chef & those behind the scenes for making our Lunch a very enjoyable experience.
Below standard
And reponse from the bowling green was also substandard. May as well said we are not bothered we know we don’t do well and nothing will change
Email reply (have ordinal )
Hello David,
Thanks for taking the time to send us your feedback, and I do apologise for the issues you encountered with the tough meat and inadequate service during your visit yesterday, this is not the standard that we aim for and it's not good enough.
In terms of the drinks taking a while through the app, we have been having a few IT issues with this system which we are working hard behind the scenes to resolve.
Regarding team competence, we do have a number of new starters, perhaps they are not as skilled in handling guest enquiries with the confidence of a team member who has been doing the job for some time. Once again I apologise for this and assure you that we are working hard to get the up to speed as quickly as possible. In our service cycle we don't tend to seat guests at their tables when they arrive for bookings, the reserved signs is one thing you mentioned in your email which is unlikely to change. However, the poor food quality, team training and speed of service from the app are all things that we're actively trying to improve, I do hope you will return soon and give us a chance to give you a better experience.
Kind regards,
Original email
Booked in for 8 people for lunch. It was an unbearably hot day, 30 degrees plus.
Firstly, no salads available.
Several people ordered starters, the rest were on mains only, or mains plus dessert.
The starters arrived, plus one main.
After that, mains arrived, but at different times.
Several starters and mains had salad on the plate?
Desserts were also staggered, so we didn't eat together much!
The food was mediocre to poor.
Double doors leading outside were opened by one of our party to try for a through flow of air. They were closed by staff as the council didn't allow them to be opened.
A long drink of orange juice topped up with soda water plus a large lemonade cost £7.75.
Not a good experience.
I tried to book a meal for 9 people, on a Wednesday lunchtime at an Ember Inns pub, the Markeaton in Derby.
I tried their online booking service. That said nothing was available. If I wanted a dog friendly table (?) I could leave my details and someone would review the request, so I did leave my contact details. I waited a couple of days, then repeated the process. Nothing.
I rang the pub. No answer, leave a message. I did. No one returned my call. After a further 2 days I rang again. This time I was very firm and clear that I wasn't happy at being ignored, and asked that they contact me today. Nothing.
I checked the Ember Inns website. I used the Facebook link at the bottom and sent a message. That was rejected, not delivered.
The 9 of us are going elsewhere, strangely, to another Ember Inns pub that took my online booking with no problems.
Avoid the Markeaton in Derby!
6adults and 4chikdren the Robin Hood pub at Millhouses Sheffield. Wow what a disaster with service and quality of food. 6meals out to the table at all differnts times in a 40min period,1child left until everyone had finished before his came. Terrible. Boycott if possible.
Have visited The White Hart on many occasions as our son lives in Benfleet and always enjoyed our time there for meals and drinks. However, we booked for a meal with our grandchildren today and were very disappointed with the meal. My husband ordered the beef roast dinner. The beef was tough and stringy and he could not get a knife through the roast potato. The waitress asked him if he would like a sharper knife!!
My granddaughter ordered the chicken tenders with baked beans - the chicken came out on its own and we were then asked if we would all like to be served our meals together. Total shambles.
I spoke to the manager and he refunded our money. I felt quite upset that it came to this as we have always enjoyed visiting this pub.
Cold food. Poor service. Won’t go there again. Went to The Dog Inn on Friday 23rd May…
Went to The Dog Inn on Friday 23rd May 2026 at 6 o’clock. We were very disappointed in our experience. The meals were very poor and not as described and the scampi served to me was dreadfully over cooked. Service was poor. We waited for our meals but the wait for our desserts was ridiculous. We waited 20 minutes, I spoke to a server who said I’ll have a look for you and they came after a further 15 minutes only for the custard to be cold, completely cold, to be served with a hot pudding. When pointed out the pudding was taken away and microwaved. Very poor food, very poor service. Yesterday’s experience was not good. We use several Ember Inns in Birmingham and this was our poorest visit!! Very disappointing.
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