Henry's'

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Reviews of Henry's, Aveley

Best rates for a Local Hotel

Review by s on 14th January, 2013

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Unable to get in touch with anyone re refunding paid deposit made Nov 2012 for party on Feb 2 nd 2013! Anyone please help. Phones appear cut off. Gates closed, no contact at all.

Date visited: party booked but venue closed - sarah.daniels@gmx.co.uk

Review by joanne baker on 3rd January, 2013

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I wonder if anyone could tell me what is happening with henry's as we are meant to be getting married here in june and i went there this evening and its closed down , they have my £200.00 deposit i have done all of my wedding invitations at a cost of £100.00 and im gutted feel sick to the core no warning what so ever i got told by a on site guard that everyone was sacked on new years eve . someone please HELP ME . Joanne baker

Date visited: 3/1/2013

Review by Rachel & Kenny Reid on 30th August, 2012

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Have been to Henry's on quite a few occassions for food and has always been great. On Saturday 25th August 2012 we held our evening reception in their Large Marquee and I can honestly say hand on heart that we had a fantastic time. We had booked the marquee back in February and made arrangements with Fleur and James on how many tables we wanted, what food we would like etc. On the day I went and set up the tables with my friend and sister and the staff just let us get on with it....I also had an outside disco group come in and set up the starlit dancefloor and uplighters and they commented on how accomodating the staff were with them. We were meant to be having wedding photo's in the afternoon and were coming back to the marquee for 5pm but due to a terrific thunderstorm and getting soaked by the rain we turned up much earlier and managed to persuade the staff to let us in the marquee earlier. James and Fleur were very good, they let our guests in to sit down and started handing out drinks straight away and I can't thank them enough for being so understanding. The food was excellent, we had 4 joints of meat sliced with 6 different sides, plus a platter of deserts and I have to say a big thankyou to James and another guy (sorry don't know his name) who not only got the food for the top table but also served our grandparents too. We also had an evening buffet which I didnt actually get the pleasure of tasting but I was told by guests that it was good. Overall the marquee was a brilliant size, the food was excellent, the bar service was efficient and we had an amazing time. Even our guests commented on how good the staff were, so thankyou James, Fluer and staff for being involved, for having a laugh with us and for helping to make our wedding reception a success! :) will be popping by soon for dinner!

Date visited: 25th August 2012

Review by Mr & Mrs Adams on 5th August, 2012

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We had our Wedding Reception here on 23 June 2012. We cannot thank Henrys enough for all their hard work. We hired the marquee and had canapes, hog roast and dessert for 80 followed by an evening buffet for around 150. Everybody commented on how lovely the food was and how lovely Henrys and the grounds were. The service was brilliant and the staff were friendly! We read some of the reviews online before we booked our Reception and were slightly concerned but decided that we would see for ourselves. We were not let down and were genuinely impressed with everything! We had no complaints! We would definitely recommend Henrys for any occasion and urge anyone reading the bad reviews to give it another thought! Thank you Henrys!!

Date visited: 23 June 2012

Review by Kayleigh Preston on 21st May, 2012

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We had our wedding reception here as the grounds were beautiful but unfortunately for us our wedding was ruined by Henrys as they had no organisation what so ever! I would advise NEVER to have a wedding, funeral or gathering of any sort here.

Date visited: 6,8,12

Review by CAROLE BATCHELOR on 7th April, 2012

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Very disappointing visit. Too many people not enough staff. Waited too long for food, especially the children.Table clearance slow and never a check on if all was ok! There seemed to be no managenent organisation. A family get together for Easter ruined. We have been in the past and found it fairly good, although I think the menu is very limited. This was our last visit!

Date visited: 6th April 2012

Review by sarah on 7th April, 2012

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Came here for family gettogether & to have a nice meal, how wrong we were!! we visited here last year & had no problems, this year however was a different story. there were 11 adults, 11 kids, we waited over an hour for our starters, some of us waited longer, waited another 45 mins for dinner, which came wivth no veg, when it did we had to share a measly little bowl, the peas were rock hard, by the time the adults had finished our dinners, the kids had still not been given theirs, we continuosly asked the waitress, fleur or wotever her name was, she said she had no more orders for spag bol, altho we had ordered 3 portions, so kids had to wait longer for it to be cooked, then she came out wiv an extra portion of battered fish which we said 3 times we didnt order she left it on table , very rude she woz, when we went to complain to manager he was rude, huffing away, coming out with all the crap, by this time we Had been there over 4 hrs, the table had not been cleared, we werent asked if the meal was o.k, or if we wanted any drinks or desserts, we said the kids should have been served 1st OBVIOUSLY, fleurs response was if you wanted the kids served 1st you should have said - we had family come all the way from surrey, efield & london, all disappointed & will not be visiting again.

Date visited: 6/4/2012

Review by Saz on 17th March, 2012

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Food and service was excellent but the extremely loud, bassy music coming from the wedding event on site made me feel very unrelaxed and made the experience less enjoyable.

Date visited: 17/03/12

Review by Patricia Reeves on 22nd December, 2011

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Took a party of 22 persons to a Christmas Party evening at the Carvery. We were NOT impressed. Overcrowded and very claustrophobic The service was very poor - we waited an age for the starters to come out (all food pre-ordered). The plates at the carvery station were cold, wet and some had food residue on them (obviously not washed properly). The carvery food was OK but not very warm and the gravy was almost cold. Tables far too close together, everyone was getting jostled as people were trying to get the the bar for drinks or to the toilets at the far end of the eating area. Most of our party left after eating which took forever due to the slow service. A few braved it to the downstairs bar, where is was comfortable and spacious. Would not recommend this venue under its current mode of operation.

Date visited: 16th December 2011

Review by Hayley on 9th August, 2011

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We attended a family get together roughly 35 people. We were charged 1.45 for an english breakfast tea (advertised as English breakfast tea) which we saw were pg tips pyramid bags- questioning the guy making it he said 'we have no english breakfast teabags!' The coke both diet and normal were awful no one could put their finger on what was wrong with it but it tasted terrible it couldnt be consumed! The outside was swarmed with Wasps suggesting a huge nearby nest and one of the kids were stung. Around 15 people chose to eat and order bar food as and when they were hungry so around 3-5 orders at a time. These orders had to be chased continuously waiting over an hour at a time. We were advised that this was due to there being a new chef. Bar manager at the time gave us a complimentary bottle of rose as an apology which was nice of him but the food was awful and later on once we had all left and parted we all reported back to each other that were all suffering bad tummy pains and diorrhoea, one being my one year old baby who only had a handful of food. We are still feeling the effects 3 days later. The place is beautiful inside and out with a nice little park for the kids, a bouncy castle and some boars and ducks which the kids loved and it is a shame that we had this experience because I will not be returning to this venue and would now not recommend it at all.

Date visited: 06/08/2011

Review by sasha condron on 8th May, 2011

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I was told about this pub as I was looking for a wedding venue and fell in love with it so we have booked our reception here, then we had some lunch and the food and service was lovely, I am a bar manager in Wickford and understand that keeping everyone happy is very hard but the manager was really nice and showed us around, when then went in to the marquee the hall although small done up lovely with the lights and pots of flowers then a nice size room with a big bar. I am having my wedding in august 2012 I will update my revue to let others know how I got on with henrys

Date visited: 2/05/11

Review by John & Karen Deller on 23rd April, 2011

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Both John & I would like to thank Rebecca, James & the rest of the staff at Henry's for the fantastic hard work and superb hospitality before, during & after our wedding reception!. All throughout the evening we were being complimented on the location, venue, music and most of all the food and service!. Hats off to you all guys, please use this review to promote your wonderful services!! Thank you once again. Karen & John Deller

Date visited: 16th April 2011

Review by Tracey on 5th April, 2011

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A couple of these 'good' reviews have naems that sound like Henry's employees to me. Just remember it may be cheap but you get what you pay for. If you are booking for a special event bear this in mind.....

Date visited: 05042011

Review by Rebecca hewett on 30th March, 2011

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it is great at henry's i recently had a function at henry's the staff couldn’t be anymore helpful and for the price it was fantastic for £895 with a buffet and dj i dont know how they get away with doing so cheep everywhere else we looked at was well overpriced for what they were offering and henry's marquee by far was the best. the staff were very laid back and we all had a great laugh with them and we never wanted for anything. even when there was drinks that were not avalible out in the marquee for example there is no Guinness pump the staff was more that happy to go and get us one as and when we wanted it. the food was great it was presented extremely good, tasted great and there was soo much left over. i would defiantly have other family partys there. and we go back at least once a month to have a sunday carvery which we can not fought for the price it was great and the staff were so helpful consedering how busy they always are they can never do enough to help and get you what you want. highly recommend you go there and see what is like for yourself.

Date visited: 27th feb

Review by Jane on 19th October, 2010

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I booked Henrys (marquee) for my wedding reception next year, paid my deposit, only to be told 2 weeks later that they had double booked and that they could offer me the restaurant or refund my deposit!!! This phone call was made by a inexperienced young bloke not even the manager, who just kept going quite when questioned why this had happened! I was promised a call by the manager in the evening, as i advised that i wasnt happy with the situation, a phone call that i never recieved ....i had to continous chase the manager over the next couple of days and when i actually tracked her down she was so unaware of our disappoinment or the seriousness of the situation. To cut a long story short i would seriously advise anyone considering to have any special celebration at Henrys to reconsider and dont be fooled by their spill and very reasonable prices. I would suggest you do what me and my partner did, extend your budget and go else where !!!

Date visited: 27/08/10

Review by peter robinson on 5th October, 2010

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WEhave been to several functions @ henrys will on the whole most of them very good ( apart from nieces 18th and her silly friends ). We have just booked a function for next year and they have held theirs prices for 4 years now !!!!!!!, not many places doing that now. We have booked a marquee for 150 people with a simple buffet and dj on a friday for £695 no one locally is cheaper. Went for the sunday carvery recently and food and service was great all for £8.50 per head, still one of the busiest carverys in thurrock 5 years running. People seem to have champagne taste but beer money in thurrock , but at henrys they try to keep the balance. We still will go back for more.

Date visited: 2 nd october 2010

Review by Tracey Hart on 28th September, 2010

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This is a warning for anyone considering booking Henrys for their wedding reception. Although the food and the DJ supplied on the night were fantastic the rest of the staff were very poorly trained and quite disinterested in serving guests and keeping the bar stocked. We practically had to manage them ourselves. The worst thing about the evening was the complete lack of care for our property. We were hurried out of the door at the end of the evening and assured we would be able to collect everything in the morning. The following day we arrived to find everything missing including the wedding cake stand (worth about £50) although the cake that was sitting on the stand was returned to us. Where everything had disappeared to no one could tell me. After several phone calls some of the items miraculously turned up but no cake stand. I had been promised a replacement by the Manager, Chi, but more than a month later and numereous phone calls and weak excuses it still has not yet arrived. I have no doubt that he is hoping I will have to give up eventually. Not very professional and business like! This business took a huge amount of money over the bar at our reception and they have shown a complete lack of respect to us as customers. It is a shame as it could be such a lovely venue. The garden is unkempt and there are the remnants of old and dirty rabbit and hamster hutches near the entrance to the pub. There is also a problem with their central heating system as the radiators need to be on so that they have hot water (a staff member told us this when we aksed if the radiator could be switched off) . The clue should have been in the number of portable fans (many not working) dotted around the place. It was not a particularly hot evening but all the guests were sweltering in the heat of the radiators. Despite all this the DJ was fantastic and the food was good. but the lack of respect from the manager has marred the memory of my wedding day.

Date visited: 13/08/2010

Review by Mike Brown on 26th April, 2010

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Great location, I attended a wedding reception on 23rd April 2010. It took nearly 4 hours to serve a 3 course meal for 10 adults and 3 children, the service was a disgrace the food was appalling. It completely ruined the Bride and Grooms special day.

Date visited: 23/04/2010

Review by karen daves on 23rd January, 2010

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it was amazing we really enjoyed our selves. i phoned and booked a big party of 33 for the Sunday carver expecting it to be really slim of us getting one but we did with no problems. me and my family go in there every week and i have never had any problems. the staff are fantastic they always make us feel welcome and always help us as much as they possibly can. the new manager has bin working there part time for a few years now whilst she was training at Westminster college. when she finally got her diploma in June she started working there full time and we have defiantly noticed the fantastic differences since especially when she arranged and sorted out my daughters christening party in the small marquee in the summer i could not of planned it better my self she excelled our expectations, anyway back to Sunday the food was fantastic the service was quick and efficient considering it was a big party the meet was amazing the gammon and beef was cooked perfectly the turkey was slightly dry but i always expect that with turkey. we can always tell that the vegetables are really fresh it makes a change to go to a carvery and get a completely fresh dinner with no problems the potatoes were the most crispy potatoes i have ever had and OMY the Yorkshire pudding are to die for you need another plate just for them they are huge you could even use them to plate up your food. it is so value for money £8:50 for adults and £5:50 for children including a drink and dessert . all i can say is its amazing.

Date visited: sun 20th december

Review by paul roberts on 16th January, 2010

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I have been going to henrys for over several years and have seen several changes due to staff and customer requirements. Staff I am afraid in the catering game seem to come and go no matter what the mangers seem to do. This has reflected on the business but it has maintained a loyal customer base due to its evolvement as a pub , restauarnt and function rooms. As a pub we all know that so many have gone by the wayside due to no avail of the owner , henrys has kept changing for better or worse to keep a business going . They offer live entertainment every saturady and sunday lunch which is free entry. Sunday carvery which is always packed and in the summer they run a bbq as well. The food is all locally sourced and they now own a butchers c johnson and son in upminster where all there meat comes from. They have also corned a niche market locally for parties suiting most ages which I can say if your there on saturday the place is buzzing with all the functions going on. I have regularly eaten since going there they now more then ever seem to have got it right , they have downsized the restauarnt at weekends and kept the food right and priced accordingly. I have supported henrys and will continue to do so. Many Business in this game have failed , well its still there and better then ever. long live henrys

Date visited: Weekly almost

Review by chirs C on 6th December, 2009

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Initial impact on arrival not good - smell of yesterday's vegetables. Made worse by their inability to serve a pint and a half of pump-drawn beer that wasn't flat or cloudy. They seemed puzzled that I wasn't reassured by their promise that the new barrel had only gone on yesterday. Still, the menu looked promising. To describe the service as informal is accurate; the style of those serving had an easy familiarity and lacked pretention. However, it aslo lacked any sign of training. I cannot blame the staff for this, they were pleasant and helpful -once prompted by us. Now to the food: We all chose the chicken liver pate as a starter - an undemanding dish. The pate itself was OK but who can spoil that dish? To say that the trimings were lackluster is to flatter. Less than one round per person of something resembling, but not quite qualifying as bread, compounded by a green deposite of ,presumably, iceberg lettuce of dubious vintage to judge by its mottled brown edging, this failed to distract us from the thin tissue napkins and generally pinch-penny style. Our request for more toast was greeted with a no-trouble approach and clearly, no trouble had been taken to bring out on a saucer a further dollop of cold, soggy formely-employed toast. The waitresse's smile seemed genuine and I believe that she thought that she had done her job well - where is the guiding and supporting hand of an experienced manger? The carvery met the requirements of the Trades Description Act. There was meat and it was carved and served along with accoutrements evocative of the 'traditional roast'. Evocation is one thing, substance another. The meats were all cooked to well-done or beyond; juices had ceased their flow some hours ago. "We have to serve it like that" was the response to a request for anything less heavily cooked. The vegetables may well have been adequate before being kept on hot plates for some considerable time without cover. However, they did achieve the puzzling combination of being overcooked, dry yet cold. One of our party had the lamb shank which he described as being delicious. Overall, a stunning setting that ought to work well but needs some management that understands the catering business. Until the time that your reservation call is greeted with professionalism, look elsewhere; this performance will not be hard to better.

Date visited: 6/12/09

Review by barbara on 14th July, 2009

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we have never been to this pub but today decided to pop in and have a look.We liked what we saw and decided to have lunch.The bar staff were very friendly and smiling.the lunch we had was the baguets served with chips and salad.Well it was hot and very enjoyable and such a large serving.We were very impressed with the whole setting service and food.Will be going again soon.

Date visited: 14/7/2009

Review by Sarah Hall on 18th March, 2009

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This 'restaurant' was very diappointing. We were warned that the kitchen was running behind shedule and agreed to a slight wait, however we did not think it would be an hour and a half wait for 2 burgers. Also 2 parties which arrived after us were served before us. We were not given any updates on when the meal was coming and had to ask about it. When the meal did arrive (2 burgers) there was a chunk of paper in one of the meals - presumably from the wrapping of the burger but who knows. We asked for our money back and left. Some of the staff were doing their best but the rest of them just couldn't care less.

Date visited: 14 March 2009

Review by Sue McManus on 12th May, 2008

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What a disgrace, bad service, bad food, nothing at all to say good about this. I think it is a case of take the money up front and don't worry about customer satisfaction. Would never go again. The manager is trying to have too many irons in the fire at one time, with a bar, restaurant, B-B-Q and function rooms to run at the same time it just doesn't work.

Date visited: 11th May 2008

Review by mrs gilmore on 8th July, 2007

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i would just like to thank the friendly helpful staff at Henry's. We went there to clebrate my mother's 60th Birthday. We had a wonderful meal, where the food delicious. 4 of us had steaks that were enourmous ...great value for money. The restaurant itself has a lovely feel to it, very oldey worldly ! with its wooden beams. The garden outside was beautiful, with its pond full of ducks, also peacocks wander freely and there was a play area for the children to play on. All in All a Great Evening !

Date visited: jnue 2007

Review by John Mulhall on 29th April, 2007

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I have to agree entirely with Kelvins review, the service in this place is dreadful.After booking a table for four we arrived to find staff had no record of our booking though as it turned out we were unlucky enough to get seated.We then proceeded to wait for what seemed a lifetime, there was no offer of drinks and we felt as though we were being ignored, eventually one of our party summoned a member of staff to take our order only to find that most of the starters had been used. The drinks eventually arrived but the waitress had to go back to the bar as she forgot one of us. The wine was duly delivered and plonked on the table without being opened or tasted. The food was overpriced and poor, my friends steak which was ordered medium rare turned out to be almost raw and my duck was chewy and overcooked. To finish with we again had to wait and wait to get staff attention in order to pay the bill, there were no apologies from staff and to add insult to injury the bill came to £110 !!!! To sum it up this place should be avoided at all costs, Vicky Pollard and her friends are well and truly alive and working at Henry's. Oh and there still isn't any soap in the loo, the management of this place should be ashamed of themselves.

Date visited: 28/04/07

Review by Kelvin Moon on 16th April, 2007

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Avoid this place at all costs. Service was unbelievably slow. So slow in fact that we got tired of waiting and after 40 minutes wrote the order out ourselves. When service did arrive it was shoddy and lacked charm. The wine we ordered was just plonked on the table but not even opened. Food when it eventually arrived was luke warm and tasteless and the meal for one of our party was missing. We summoned the owner and the excuse given was that the chef was new as they had leant their chef to another restaurant!!. No soap in the gents toilets. (Your guess is as good as mine as to what the kitchen staff did after visiting.) When we asked the owner about this he blamed the cleaners and said he would sort it out tomorrow. This was at 4pm in the afernoon!! We paid only for drinks and walked out. We will not be visiting again.

Date visited: 15 April 2007

Review by Paul Roberts on 22nd November, 2005

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Where to begin , a twelth century building that serves fresh food in Thurrock .....there is a god!!!!!!!. Henrys is one of those places you expect to only find is Hampshire / surrey etc. The food is cooked freshly on a daily basis and you have to try their desserts ( all home made ), they are to die for. The menu`s consist of all manner of foods globally but their staple is modern english cuisine which consits of barnsley lamb chops and sauteed new potatoes, calfs liver and dry cure bacon , sea bass fillets and roast chillis ......these are but a few to mention. This as well as regular dose of jazz and various entertainment ......things just got better in Thurrock. Well done Henrys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Date visited: OCTOBER 2005

Review by Andy on 12th October, 2005

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Very plesant set-up, nicely decorated and laid out. Fine selection of food only let down by very slow service. Still deciding whether to give them a second chance. Mind you the kebab van on the way out of Aveley does fine food if still hungry afterwards.

Date visited: May 2005

Review by Salome Whitnall on 14th April, 2005

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Henry's is one of those true treasures in life, hard to come by, but once discovered harder to keep quiet about. The atmosphere is warm, welcoming and easy, in fact, it makes it hard to believe that the food and service would be so good in a place on the outskirts of Aveley. The nooks and crannies of this old farm house makes a little bit of privacy possible and unlike other family friendly establishments, this gastro pub and it's clietele does not offend the anti-kiddie types. The Wednesday Jazz nights offers a great combination of ambience and gastronomic pleasure. Even just a drink or too on a lazy Sunday afternoon is well worth it.

Date visited: 9 April 2005 (and 3 times before)

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