We ate at Old England recently. This is a charming old Hotel with ambience and is so elegantly furnished. The dining room is full of natural light and has a gorgeous outlook. Our meal was cooked to perfection, hot, generous servings and just delicious. Found the staff and service to be the best we have had anywhere in quite a while.
What has happened to The Old England? It doesn’t seem long ago that you could head off to this iconic Heidelberg building for a great meal with polite and prompt service but, alas, it seems those days are over. We arrived today and waited for some time at the unattended reception desk. I went to get a few dinner rolls and the normally abundant basket contained only two lonely rolls. My roast pork was average pub fare at best: the pork tasted like it had come out of a box where it had resided for some time. The ‘roast’ potatoes were undercooked, pale and soft and the crackling, while quite crisp, was lacking in any flavor. To be fair, the green vegetables were nicely cooked, firm and flavorsome. My partner’s dish, which was listed as slow cooked lamb and pasta, was an utter failure. Overcooked and stodgy, she ate a little but left most on the plate. I went to buy some drinks during the meal and was keep waiting even though I was the only person requiring ...read more
I first discovered this place when my aunties brought us here for dinner, and since they have been around Melbourne all their lives I certainly trust their taste in restaurants. However the thing that I really like about this place is the building in which it is located it looks like one of those old English manors, thus the name. However, my recent journey here impressed me even more because the bartender at the E-bar (which is sort of like a front bar with a more trendy feel about it) actually came out to remove a single empty glass from the table at which I was sitting, despite the fact that it was only one glass. Oh, and I must also admit that when I did have a meal here I was pretty impressed with the food, and it is certainly a place I would visit again the next time I'm passing through Heidelberg.
