La Fontana Italian

We have been working in the area for some time, and we normally use the Premier Inn/Travelodges near by. However, this was a last minute job and I had passed La Fontana several times. I popped in and managed to book in. What a find!! Nice friendly atmosphere, family run and a first class room! Had dinner in the restaurant, and whilst there were only a few diners early evening, the food was obviously freshly prepared and very nice. Included in the price was breakfast so I indulged in the full English before setting off again. Suffice it to say, La Fontana will now be our 'go to ' place when we are down that way!!

We hosted my mother's wake in the restaurant area and the staff were exceptional and understanding of all our requirements. The food was delicious and the venue was ideal, with ample parking and conveniently close to the crematorium. We are grateful to everyone at the restaurant for creating a truly memorable day for us.

I think the photos speak for themselves. Pale, flavourless calamari. Bruschetta made with a sprinkling of powdery, pre grated mozzarella. Veal saltimbocca that was so over cooked it was impossible to tell it was veal. Lasagne that couldn’t tell if it was supposed to be a lasagne or a cottage pie flabby, floppy pasta, seemingly a can of tinned tomatoes chucked over it, and peas in it! Pretty sure I could cook a more passable lasagne in my tumble dryer. Looking at reviews it seems like this place has had a real fall from grace since last year. Change of chef perhaps? This food is categorically not Italian food, I would think anyone who cooks authentic Italian food would be apoplectic about being served this. Our bill came to almost £70 for two courses and one drink each. I really hate leaving bad reviews, especially for independent establishments, but this was so unbelievably bad I wish I’d been told!

We stayed for one night, which was sufficient. The bathroom did not have a blind, so we had to use towels for privacy. There were dead bugs on the carpet and mold on the bathroom ceiling. Additionally, the bathroom floor was dirty. The beds had significant dips causing our feet to go numb on the hard raised seams. Despite our complaints, we were told that the hotel was aware of some of these issues. We also sent an email to the owners, but they have not responded.

Presentation is good crisp linen and all that and the service was fine but the food was pretty underwhelming. I'll never understand why the amazing variety of Italian vegetarian cookery isn't really represented in restaurants like this. The usual tired combos of slightly overcooked dried penne with pesto or cheese sauce or arrabiata and a couple of vague veggie pizzas. That's pretty much it. Where are the frittatas, crostatas and tortas? The meat mains were a bit better the Spezzatino was pretty good, but at £15.95 it really showed what atrocious value the pesto pasta was at £14.95. Desserts were fine some weren't available though. My coffee had been slopped over the handle into the saucer and just left there pooling into the sugar cubes. And it just kind of encapsulated the experience unmemorable and a bit meh. La Fontana ideally needs a decor update but more urgently that menu needs a major overhaul.