To think it's just weird that a pub restaurant is refusing to share costs or a sample menu?

[Allthefoodandwine]

www.facebook.com/share/p/9W3kBjFV2aQqjXTy/?mibextid=WC7FNe

Is it just me who thinks this is really bizarre?

New managers of a local pub, who despite being repeatedly asked for a menu, even a sample menu with an idea of costs, are refusing to share ANY information.

We visited there regularly when the previous managers had it, and we would like to go again.

But AIBU to want to see the kind or food they are serving & an idea of cost?

@TinkerTiger yep, I have.
On their previous posts.

What is you got there and it was this?

Mystery menu

Starters - Packet of Wotsits

Main Jam sandwich with a pot noodle on the side.

Dessert - Screwball ice cream.

Beverage - Tizer.

£94

@DrJoanAllenby brilliant 😂

No prices, no contract 🤷‍♀️

I’d only pay what I thought it was worth and I’m not sure they’d have a leg to stand on legally if I refused to pay the full bill.

Mystery pricing when you’re at the point of ordering would be illegal.
https://www.southwark.gov.uk/assets/attach/2498/Price-indications-for-food-and-drink-2012-.pdf
But they don’t have to put it on social media.

I would need to have an idea of price range (or an alternative venue in case I had to walk out!) before I booked but I’d be okay occasionally with a mystery menu.

Just think of it like a job where they don't advertise the salary.

Maybe they should give a guide price, so no one books this event and realises they can’t afford it only once seated. But the whole point is that it’s a mystery event… people like that. I love the dine in the dark restaurant in London; always used to go for the mystery menu and the food is service in pitch black darkness, so you don’t know what you’ve been served until you put it in your mouth and try and figure it out for yourself. It’s amazing.

But I'd want to know how much it would be for either two or three courses. I agree, the curiosity should just be about the menu, though for us we couldn't do it due to allergies.

@Itslegitimatesalvage that sounds fab!

What is this?

Indeed. It obviously works for them if they were packed out on mother's day. It's like going for a tasting menu when you get whatever is good at the market, cooked the way the chef wants to cook it. They do usually tell you the price though.

If you're not a fussy eater then it's quite fun to be surprised.

The Facebook post writer does, however, need to learn to use the apostrophe correctly.

What happens if there’s nothing on the menu you like or can eat.
Being a veggie a bit of an issue as I can’t stand
blue cheese
goats cheese
mushroom stroganoff
All pub classics for a vegetarian

I thought you had to by law show prices and also allergy advice ?

Those rave reviews are probably written by relatives of the landlord/chef.

They say "our Chefs will prepare a selection of Starter’s, Mains and Desserts which will be priced individually and competitively", so I assume you will be handed a menu with prices when you sit down. If the Starter's are £35 each and the Mains are £85 then presumably a lot of people will walk away and the place will have wasted a reservation. It all seems like a bit of a gimmick, but they're a restaurant, not a social service, so if they think this will pull more people in than scare them away, good luck to them.

What happens if there’s nothing on the menu you like or can eat.
Being a veggie a bit of an issue as I can’t stand

But if you are fussy, or have to eat gluten free, or halal, or kosher or something, you don't book a "mystery menu" and go somewhere else, don't you?

Is this the Griffins Head in Chillenden, near Canterbury
Another one that’s dropped their Vegetarian options if it is, and only has two to chose from on the mains. Couldn’t risk a menu of curiosity there I’m afraid.

Sounds like load of hipster wankiness. Do they also serve meals up on half a roof tile or some similar nonsense?

It's a surprise menu!

I would expect some sort of guide eg. 3 courses for £80

Lots of places do it, it’s your choice if it is an adventure you would like to take.

Presumably you get the allergens when you're there?

Presumably if they are providing a selection. Then a selection for all! ?

Although I wouldn’t hold my breath….. so no I wouldn’t risk it

But if as @Minymile has suggested it’s the one near Canterbury I wouldn’t bother anyway.

Looks like this is just a Saturday night one off anyway. So not an everyday thing.

I think it’s fair enough to want a price range - they could easily say the cheapest starter/main/dessert combination would be £40 the most expensive £75 to let people know if it’s within budget. But I like the idea of a mystery, that’s the selling point. If you want to examine the menu first it’s not the place for you, they don’t have to cater to everyone.

It can still be a menu of curiosity for a fixed price or at least an indication, and whether wine is extra.

I want to be surprised by the food but don't want to be too surprised by the bill.

Plus, it's a village pub. Fuck off with being poncey and mysterious about pricing. It's either dishonest or disorganised.