Reviews of Black Horse, Donington on Bain
Review by Lou Pawson on 9th March, 2016
Add your review Date visited: 6th March 2016
The Blackhorse pub is my local . I have not been in for several years as previous landlord was rude aggressive and not a pleasant person.
It is with great happiness we have a new family running it. We have been in several times since their arrival in December 2015 and every time we are made very welcome . The food is excellent so on Mothers day I took 16 close family & friends for Sunday lunch. They didn't let us down , I can safely say their Sunday roasts are to die for and the staff are friendly funny and attentive . Well worth a visit x
Review by Graham on 20th September, 2014
Add your review Date visited: 18 September 2014
A lunchtime visit for a snack and not busy. Have eaten much better. Main complaint was bruschetta with mushrooms in creamy sauce. It came as half a baguette sliced in two with the sauce and mushroom on top. Salmon with prawns and cream cheese was ok but the salad was rudimentary. No dressing. Whitebait was just passable. No dressing. No one came to ask if we needed anything until I had gone to pay the bill. Rating Quality 5 Value 5 . Wine at £4.00 for 175ml was of reasonable quality. Good beer was in short supply. Maybe a glitch but worrying for a widely known restaurant.
Review by ralph taylor on 8th September, 2014
Add your review Date visited: 6-7/09/14
In my opinion all the bad reviews should be taken off because they are obviously out of date. My friend and I stayed the 1 night whilst visiting cadwell park. the welcome was very friendly, the room was basic,but spacious,clean, tv,tea & coffee. Saturday nights meal ended up with my friend and I + 10 more friends who were staying at cadwell park overnight having a very good meal + some very good beers, which no-one complained about,in the morning the full English breakfast set us up for the following day. all this at a very reasonable price. we would stay here again anytime.
Review by Jo on 8th March, 2014
Add your review Date visited: 7/3/14
Our experience could not be more different to the previous reviews. We stopped off for lunch whilst doing the Viking way. We had a warm welcome, the landlord and waitress were friendly, our freshly prepared food was ready in 10 minutes and the pub itself was cosy and comfortable. I am very pleased we hadn't read the previous reviews - based on our experience you should give it a try!
Review by CJU on 30th October, 2012
Add your review Date visited: 27/10/2012
Stayed overnight and had breakfast
It was cold wet weather so looked forward to a cosy atmosphere.
On arrival,a lady demanded to know exactly what time we would want breakfast between 7.00 and 8.30. Said 8.30, only to be told that was too late.
Our bedroom smelled absolutely horrible from damp. We would not have stayed if we had any other option.
In the morning, the dining area in the pub was really cold at breakfast-time. I mentioned this to a member of staff and the only response was a stare.
Please don't support this pub, there must be better options in the area
Review by Robbie on 15th April, 2012
Add your review Date visited: 15 April 2012
Just back from the Black Horse with 20 odd walking group. Plenty of room in the car park and great to see the toilets open in the morning prior to the walk. A lady took our orders so on our return we could sit down to eat immediately. The food was excellent, hot and plentiful. The staff were efficient, friendly and obliging. The pub was very cosy, clean and has a very good atmosphere with low beams and plenty of space. All this and food at a very reasonable price. I would recommend this pub to anyone and will certainly return. Excellent walkers pub
Review by Pete Daniels on 27th November, 2011
Add your review Date visited: 27-11-2011
Excellent meal, I'm full to busting, good ale and very friendly service. Our fourth meal at this pub and not yet been disappointed.
One of the few pubs I dare recommend since we moved to the area. must also add the price was very reasonable. Pete D.
Review by unhappy customer on 31st August, 2011
Add your review Date visited: august
What a place to stay!!!!!!!
Got out of the car and the first thing was nearly standing in a fresh pile of dog mess, not a good start. When we went into the place, which on first impressions looked like a typical quaint pub,it was obvious there was something amiss here. There was a distinct lack of locals,and a very depressing atmosphere.Not a warm welcome from the male staff (who i presume to be the landlord)it was almost as if we were putting him out.Friends of ours stayed here about nine years ago and recommended this place to us, all i can say that it must be under different management since then.There are many more things i could go on about eg room, food, drink, prices,etc, etc, but what is the point.Never again.
Review by Roger Harvey on 7th June, 2011
Add your review Date visited: 1 June 2011
If either my wife or I had read the earlier reviews on this site before our visit it is probable that we would not have gone and so would have missed a really splendid lunch. It is in a truely rural location and the doors only opened at 12am prompt - and that minor point is the nearest to a complaint that we could make. We had a drink in a cosy snug area and I enjoyed a well kept pint of Theakstons whilst waiting for our food to be, as it turned out, freshly prepared. The barman (who I assumed was the landlord) carried our drinks for us whilst escorting us to our table in the separate dining area. I had the steak and stilton pie - this was most enjoyable with plenty of tender meat and a flavoursome gravy accompanied by freshly prepared chips (new potatoes) and an assortment of tasty fresh vegetables. My wife also enjoyed her chicken dish which she described as being full of good flavours. In both of our opinions this was
unpretentious English Pub food at its best and we will be returning to sample it again in the not to distant future.
Review by Brenda Watts on 24th April, 2011
Add your review Date visited: 23/04/11
Wish I had read these reviews before I visited for a meal. When the waitress asked us if everything was ok we told her that the steaks were a bit tough and very fatty which was met with a very surly response. The bar man ( who appears to be the landlord) had obviously been forewarned and met us with a very aggressive "IN YOUR OPINION" . They don't like criticism of any kind it seems. The rest of the food we had was very average. On leaving we said we would not be coming again and would recommend others not to which was met with "I will sue you for slander" ---not the right man for the job I think.
Review by L.d.walker on 28th January, 2011
Add your review Date visited: Not visited
We stayed here ten years ago and were very satisfied with the food and accommodation. what has gone wrong? We were intending to book again, but not now. the landlord sounds grim. we have booked nearby.
Review by bully bully on 8th August, 2010
Add your review Date visited: 01/08/2010
wow shocking reviews ,
i actually live in the village and only dare enter on a rare event .
This place is like pulling your own teeth its the pits even the locals wont use this pub
My partner ordered an overpriced very average meal and dare'd ask for an extra sachet of mayo and was faced with an awful attitude from the kitchen of how dare she and your not allowed more than one packet .
We've vowed never to use this place again like most of the other locals .
The pub should be a real focal point of the pretty village of donigton on bain
Review by K Brown on 5th July, 2010
Add your review Date visited: 27,28 June 2010
I had cancelled my regular booking at a nearby village to stay with some motorcycle enthusiast friends at a pub they had been to twisce before. I arrived a litle after the main party and was greeted by my friends ion the beer garden. They were a little unhappy as one of them had placed a beer on the table and sat down only to find the beer launched on to the floor as the tables were unstable. Later they had commented to the waitress that it would be nice if the beer coud be replaced as it was down to the facilities and no fault of their own that the beer had been lost. Later the waitress appeared distressed and could not discuss the matter. The Landlord apparently had been told' they are not going to pay for it' and took the attitude that the party (6) should pay immidiately for the 2 night stay and was not only very rude but would not even discuss the issue with the tables and the beer. Overall my thoughts are a very pleasnat location and reasonable pub with reasonable food spoilt from characters from little britain that would not know customer service if they fell over it! I could undertsand it if any of ou party were rude or as blunt as the landlord but it seems he has several personalities and they changed regularly. It looks like it will be my first and last visit as there are many equally good locations to stay at in the future and given the regularity of some of my friends it could have only have lead to more bookings which unfortunately has now been lost.
Review by Unhappy Customer on 3rd July, 2010
Add your review Date visited: 28/6/10
I have to say the female staff there were very pleasant, but obviously terrified by the Landlord and one of them was bought to tears at one point.
None of use will ever stay there again!!
Review by Paul on 3rd July, 2010
Add your review Date visited: 28/29 June 2010
Beware of the garden furniture it's falling apart. When we placed our drinks in the centre of one of the bench tables it didn't just fall over when we sat down, they were literally thrown off the table altogether! The snooty landlord's attitude was very "couldn't care less", when we politely enquired about replacements for our drinks we were subjected to abuse and ordered to pay our B&B bills on the spot, before we'd even stayed!
Find a place that values your custom, this place doesn't.
Review by anne shepherd on 6th May, 2010
Add your review Date visited: 5 June 2010
Dreadful place. We visited last night and parked in the empty car park next to a black porsche cayenne before a lovely evening walk and anticipated country meal. On our return to the car park we found our car blocked in by a black porsche carrera. (The car park was still empty). We ordered drinks and asked the landlord to unblock us. He immediately barked that he "didn't like our attitude". What a reception! All ideas of eating there evaporated.
His son then unblocked us confirming that we had taken his private standing since he had no intention of parking his £90,000 pound car on the "muddy, dog-fouled carpark", but on the tarmac section clearly coned off for his private use.
We cannot review the food here, but stay clear if you would like a lovely country pub with a pleasant atmosphere.
Review by george t on 19th October, 2009
Add your review Date visited: 8/5/09
Really badly run pub with no thought for the paying public, The chap behind the bar (spitting image of the miserable yorkie from daziel and pasco) did'nt seem to want customers in the place and we were treated as an inconvenience.
A great shame as the pub, village and local area are really nice as are the locals.
Review by m todd on 7th October, 2008
Add your review Date visited: 01/10/08
A lovely unspoilt country inn which offers gorgeous pub food as it should be not pretending to be a fancy restaurant no wander so many of our fellow racers reccomended it.
Review by ken wilby on 9th September, 2008
Add your review Date visited: 25/8/08
Appalling establishment,appalling managment,petty rules,treated as though
they are doing you a faver to let you stay which we did not.Dared to complain
that shower did not work, after all evening trying to convince us that we did not know how to use it eventually
admitted it did not. Dared to say that we should have a reduction because of no shower immediately told to pay in full before we went to bed or leave.After a heated exchange were told to leave or police would be called this was now after midnight never one word of apology.The only good thing was the road out of the village. Bisil Fawlty looks a saint compared to these people.
Review by Evelyn Parker on 28th December, 2007
Add your review Date visited: 14/15/16 December
What a Gem of a pub totally unspoilt and welcoming.
Following recomendations of many of our friends who have stayed at the Black Horse whilst vising the nearby Cadwell Park race track. We decided to stay there on a short walking break before the christmas holidays.
we could not have wished for anywhere better the bar was full of old world charm the rooms were very spacious and comfortable and the service and atmosphere was magnificent it was nice to see that customer service is still alive and kicking.
A wonderfull stay and we will certainly be going back in the near future.
Review by pete mitchell on 10th September, 2007
Add your review Date visited: 8/9 sept 2007
Absolutley appalling..from the minute we arrived to the moment we left our party was made to feel that the owners were doing us a huge favour just by having us there.Breakfast is served until 8.30(woe betide you if you arrive late or indeed early!)and we were asked to leave the dining room at 9 as they needed to clean up.A friend joined us for lunch(which was pretty poor) one day and it was implied that we had sneaked her in and that she had stayed the night.I could go on and on but would really like to try and forget our stay here..no soul,no manners ,no humour and driven totally by petty rules(mostly about times).We were glad to leave
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