Review by moira on 12th June, 2009

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Is The Cobbles resting on its laurels? Having visited the Cobbles Inn in Kelso on a number of previous occasions and being fully aware of its high reputation for quality local produce, varied menu and friendly service it was the obvious choice for a special meal out for my partner and myself. We both selected Thai fish cakes followed by sirloin steak. While the starters were very good and my partner's steak cooked as he requested, my medium rare steak was tough and contained rather more fat and gristle than I would have expected in any quality establishment. As a result a fair amount of the steak was inedible and had to be cut off. Although I pointed this out to the waitress who said she would pass it on to the chef, she did not come back to me and the bill did not reflect that part of the meal was inedible. When I asked about this she stated that she had raised it with the chef and the manager and they decided that the steak was fine though neither they nor the waitress saw fit to come back to me to acknowledge that I had expressed dissatisfaction. My advice would be if you are prepared to take a chance by all means go along and hopefully you will be lucky but if like me you have any cause to complain be prepared to be treated in a disappointingly off hand and defensive manner. I for one would rather not take this chance again. I do not like to complain and rarely do so but if I do I do not expect to be embarrassed and dismissed in this way. There are enough very good restaurants in Scottish Borders where customer care is taken a little more seriously.

Date visited: 12th June 2009

Review by L Anderson on 8th August, 2008

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WE had a hugely disappointing meal at Cobbles Inn last night. It was even more disappointing since we had been recommended to eat there and had read the article prasing the food and its freshness etc in the Southern Reporter. We did not complain at the time because we had visitors and it would have been awkward. An almost-hour long wait for food which was very much sub-standard. The steak we asked for "well done" was pink. The sea bass was small bits of fish which could have been anything. The corn fed chicken dish very mediocre and the vegetables were cold and tastleless. I have tasted better pub suppers. The service was indifferent. We were left unattended for a long while at the bar on announcing our arrival. The kitchen door upstairs (glass) could do with a clean. We will not be returning -unless as the other lady who gave a similarly unfavourable report said "this was very much an off day"

Date visited: 01/08/08

Review by kate on 20th September, 2007

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I have just come across this lady's review and thought I'd make a comment about it. Although I live in Edinburgh, my husband and I visit Kelso quite frequently because we've got good friends you live there. The Cobbles is our favorite place to eat in Kelso; the food is of a high standard and good value for money, the staff are very friendly and helpful and the service is of a reasonable speed. Also, I know for a fact that the kitchen is upstairs so don't know what she is talking about there. Clearly this lady and her partner struck the place on a bad day. So don't be put off by her review because its a nice place with great food and excellent service!

Review by Mary on 25th August, 2007

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My partner and I had lunch here today. Sadly, the staff have a lot to learn about service as well as providing good food. We witnessed many situations where a waitress was unhelpful and generally the staff seemed to spend endless trips back and forth to tables empty-handed. Service was slow and many apologies were given to customers waiting. After my partner ordered the 7oz burger, we overheard a customer commenting that his burger was 'a bit bland' when asked if he enjoyed his meal when settling his bill. The waitress's response was to inform the chef and to apologise for the customer not enjoying it but no mention of any discount. Needless to say my partner's burger was also bland and wasn't accompanied by coleslaw or salad as had been the case with the other customer. My steak pie had obviously been a frozen portion of stew resulting in a lump of shredded beef with the taste washed out of it in a watery gravy and an individual piece of pastry placed on top. The soup of the day managed to change from carrot and orange - which was actually quite pleasant - to spinach and watercress on the same day which we found rather amusing! Our table looked straight into the kitchen where many orders were heated up in the microwave. Unfortunately, this also included the home-made Polish apple pie ordered by my parter resulting in a soggy gungy dessert. My cheesecake was lovely but was more akin to being plain rather than lemon and ginger. We were charged £37 for the experience and won't be returning so be warned!

Date visited: 25.08.07