The Park Bar Restaurant

We had booked for dinner in the Ballantyne Bar on a Thursday evening. It was not busy, only two other tables occupied, and there was a real lack of atmosphere. The very young waiter didn 't provide much of a welcome and just pointed us in the direction of our table. When he brought our wine he just placed it on the table and didn 't show us the label or offer to pour. Despite the place not being busy we had to wait 45 minutes for our food to arrive. The burgers which we had ordered were supposed to come with our own hand cut triple cooked chips , but instead came with wedges. When we queried this the waiter simply said that was how they did chips! My wife queried the quality and eventually the chef came to our table, he was very defensive and didn 't seem interested in our concerns. They then had the cheek to add a service charge to the bill! The staff seemed immature and inexperienced; it really needed a manager with a bit of experience on hand to run things properly. We had been thinking of returning to try the hotel 's Tryst Restaurant, but after this disappointment I doubt that we will bother.

We booked the tryst tasting menu on a friday night. We were very impressed with the quality, variation, level of service and price. The menu varied from fish to venison to partridge, caviar, cheeses and apple terrine. The pumpkin sorbet was a particular favourite of mine. Service was excellent with a dedicated waitress for the room. Each dish was paired with wine and a detailed explanation was given. It is clear a lot of thought has gone into the planning of the menu. It should be advertised more. Great value for money too.

This was our first experience of a tasting menu and we were very impressed. Amazing value for menu. Food of this quality is a city would cost twice as much if not more. Excellent varied menu. It is hard to say what our favourite dish was mackerel with variations of turnip, venison, partridge with Asian influence and broth and a blue cheese beetroot and pear dish which was unexpectedly delicious. My advice would be try everything. The venue is intimate with good ambience. There were 10 guests and 1 dedicated waitress for the meal. Each dish was paired with a wine, detailed explanations were given of the food and drinks for each course and the chef meets everyone at the end. Apparently the menu changes seasonally so we will be back.

Park Hotel. This would have been 5 stars but for the decidedly average 'superior ' bedroom we were offered, and the decidedly average breakfasts. We refused the room (dingy, windows screwed shut; we need fresh air) and were given another, far, far better one. Plenty room for us to lounge about, room for our ebikes, excellent bed, lovely bathroom, welcoming G T...so on. And the 6 course Tryst meal was magnificent. Relaxing, good wines, just superb food every course. But the breakfasts did not live up to the billing of the Park Hotel. The sausages and bacon were obviously cooked at the beginning of service, and were hard and dry. Poached eggs the 1st morning were overcooked. We mentioned this, and the eggs were good the next day. Not so the sausage and bacon. Poor. The staff at the Park Hotel, esp the receptionist, were very good. But it is not possible to contact the hotel directly to discuss the finer details of booking. The Hydro 's call centre is impersonal and does not offer good customer service. Poor

We were starving found this lovely place! My coffee was excellent! Our food was ok but nicely plated served.