Maxine's Bar Restaurant Hastings

Initial service, when we arrived, was good and waiter friendly and helpful. Food average, scones hard and overcooked, no one checks whether we were okay or needed a top-up of tea. We asked for a box to take some Macaroons home, after a look from the waitress behind the bar, a cardboard pot and tinfoil to put them in, was handed over to us and I had to sign a disclaimer about the removal of food from premises! For the first time, I never left a tip for the service. Visit to disappointment like a birthday contract for my mother in law. It was very quiet there...

My experience at this restaurant was absolutely appalling, to the point where I would rate it a 0. Despite booking in advance and calling twice before arriving, including on the day of the booking, the staff seemed unaware of our reservation for afternoon tea. The table was not prepared and we were seated at small tables until we had to bring another one over ourselves, even though there were only 2 other people in the same area. After finally being served some drinks, a server dropped a tray of knives and forks near a 2-month-old baby. To make matters worse, we waited 40 minutes for our pre-booked afternoon tea only to find out it hadn't been prepared at all. The server at the bar disappeared to the extent that two other customers had to go find him to get their coffee. The final straw was when our afternoon tea was served with sandwiches on old, stale bread. I am thoroughly disappointed with the service and food at this establishment and will be advising others to avoid it. No attempts at making amends were made, and I will be lodging a formal complaint with Bannatyne's head office. This level of service is completely unacceptable for a supposedly high-quality restaurant.

The staff at the restaurant were professional and friendly without being overbearing. The location was picturesque. Overall, the food was alright, but it seemed like the cakes may have been leftovers from the weekend. The lemon cake was flavorful but dense, and the pastry was soggy. The scones were also heavy and overly spiced, not light and fluffy as they should be. On a positive note, the bread was fresh and the sandwiches were generously filled. Given the price of £40 for two people, we expected better quality.

Very disappointed as for afternoon tea booked and expected table on arrival in the bar asked whether we drink menu when we said that we booked afternoon tea said to sit on high chairs and table that was not suitable as we, where 2 older people sat so at the table that are not big enough for afternoon tea, so had to table on the side to ban things quite a while for food that did not ask twice the best sandwich from

The food was good but service a bit slow to start with.There was a smell of manner from the Stables nearby.