Elite Pubs Reviews 46

Visited the Dirty Habit tonight for the first time since it re-opened. The food was good. The service was very poor.

The Never Say Never Hildenborough. Visited today to see what its like, very imprested with the revamp a lot better decor. Nice welcome and good to see Jo the waitress still working there excellent service from her. Food very nice apart from the Fries which were overcooked

Went to The Wishful Thinker. This was last minute lunch idea. Served by Gareth, very friendly and service was great. I had mentioned it was my birthday. We chose not to have a desert but Gareth surprises me with a scoop of ice cream and a birthday message on the plate. I was very impressed and would definitely return. Food was good and hot and a fair price. Thanks Gareth you made my day.

A group of us came out for the wife's birthday, luckily we reserved a table as it was packed, so expecting good things. Not sure if the waiting staff were just really busy or understaffed but it took an age to get served, but to their credit, the staff were excellent. The food on the the other hand.....was really not very good. We have eaten at other Elite Pubs (Potting Shed, Farmhouse) and the food there is way better. £30 for a TBone that wasn't great. We agreed as a party the food was edible but forgettable and overpriced. Better places elsewhere in Maidstone to go for the same price point.

We were a party of 10 people who visited The Potting Shed at Langley. Kent. The quality of food and service was very good. One suggestion i would make is the mash potato portion that went with the steak and ale pie was far too small. Otherwise all good. Im not a fan of enforced service charge. Worth a visit.

We have visited a few Elite pubs and tried the new Never Say Never in Tonbridge on Sunday. The food was very tasty - as good a Sunday roast as you can get really - but I have two major gripes. 1) A roast costing £20+ should come with plenty of veg - it didn't. You should not feel the need to order additional sides. 2) adding 12.5% service charge to the bill is absolutely ridiculous, even if it is discretionary. They know most people won't reduce this tip (we did). The punters should be free to decide to add a tip at the point of paying. If the service is good, people will tip accordingly.

We visited the new Never say Never for my daughter’s birthday this week, on one of their preview evenings. Can’t fault it. Service was top notch as was the food, they’ve revamped it all which was much needed and it looks great. Also lovely to see old faces who used to work there when it was the Beefeater. Will be back again soon.

This used to be the Hilden Manor Beefeater which had got a bit tired. The restaurant is now called The Never Say Never. It has been completely refurbished. I like the decor and it is a lot more light. The toilets are fresh. Our server was Mel who was very friendly. She came to see us and took our order in a timely manner. She checked for allergies. There was a bit of a delay between starters and mains but this was not an issue as it allowed us to have family chat. I had French onion soup to start which was hot a very tasty. I also tried some the garlic flat bread which was too much for my wife to eat on her own. I had the flat iron steak with skin on chips and pepper sauce. The steak was cooked perfectly for me, medium rare. The pepper sauce was one of the best I have had at a restaurant. For desert I had the chocolate fudge cake, one of their small deserts which was great because it did not overwhelm the main meal. Mel came back regularly to check that each course was okay. I spoke to Lexi who took our payment and she was pleased to take our feedback. The only minor points that we had to raise we’re around our table which was in a booth which would have been better for four people, our party was five. There was a bit of a delay between starters and mains but this was only a small point the restaurant officially opens on Friday 30th so this week is going to bring up some teething issues that I am sure will bed in. The food is reasonably priced. I
will certainly be going there again.

A lovely evening on the first preview day at The Never Say Never in Tonbridge - although it will always be The Hilden Manor to us locals!
The decor has been refreshed and the new seating arrangement is much improved. Not too keen on the bathroom decor, it doesn't really match the calmness of the restaurant but each to their own. The staff were in bright yellow which is an odd colour but they did stand out!
Food was delicious, and our server, SHA 😉 was very attentive and helpful. It was nice to see some old faces, it's always been lovely to see Jo!
Not everything went smoothly but it was all sorted out quickly for us.
We'll be back soon! 😁

Good service and good food at a decent price. Good menu. But how can a pub have no beer except Guiness? Many lagers available but all beers were zero alcohol. A pub with no beer is not really a pub...apart from that, a very enjoyable meal.

Faultless Christmas Day meal! Wonderful service, wonderful food and drink. We thoroughly enjoyed our lunch at The Potting Shed. We rolled home very full and happy.

We visited The Potting Shed on the 23rd November 2025 for family birthday dinner. There were 24 of us.
Our food was amazing and served in perfect time. Everything was like clockwork but felt relaxed. So made it very enjoyable.
We would especially like to thank Stacey who went above and beyond. From the moment we walked in to set the room up to when we left she was attentive, fun, kind and polite. Everyone said how fab she was.
Again, thank you for making it such a lovely day 💝

We have visited Elite pubs when there were few, and our favourite was the Great House.
Though we do not visit them as much, we have noticed a decline in standards.
Just recently I had Pork Schnitzel which was large, but obviously not prepared properly and was inedible, and no sauce.My wife’s Salmon dish was poorly presented, potatoes too hard, and vegetables not tasty .
Rather a shame as Staff as usual welcoming and helpful.
Had the misfortune to have Lamb Roast at Wishful Thinker- worst attempt at a Roast Dinner ever.
Generally I think Elite food standards have declined since they introduced Pizza Ovens.

Had a booking for 7.30 went at 7pm for a drink, it was very busy and had a great buzz to the place. We were served quickly once seated by Archie F and drinks order taken. Menus food arrived hot and very tasty. On the whole a great experience and Archie F was very friendly and nothing was too much trouble for him considering he was very busy with other customers. The place was really busy and the school holidays had started it being a Saturday night too it was a really lovely evening.

Potting Shed Kentish Village of Langley Maidstone.

Excellent service from Kata T who was friendly and helpful. I asked that the music directly above our table to be turned down and it was turned off which was much appreciated. The food could not have been better with regards to the quality and the amount. For the main I had steak, fries, mushroom, tomatoes, and a pepperoni sauce. For pudding, rhubarb, and apple crumble with ice cream. There was no hurry to finish our meal it was very relaxed. I love the decor.

The Elite group are horrible to their staff, I've seen it, and I know that they underpay. As a customer, the food and ambience have got worse over the years. I used to love The Great House. It was ruined. Such a pity.

Friendly, attentive service and a fantastic effort from Sue on her first day!

Food was excellent although not a lot can go wrong with Fish and Chips. Issue came when we tried to pay pur 140+ bill. This place refuses to accept legal tender when it comes to £50 notes. Point blank refused even when I gave advice as to how to test for forged ones. No signs anywhere notifying of £50 refusal. Fortunately wife had a just about in date card in her phone case otherwise we would have walked and sent money via bacs at a later date. Establishments that refuse legal tender should have licences etc revoked until they conform. We aren't all fraudsters and con men !

The Great House in Hawkhurst
Worst roast I’ve had in years
Couldn’t differentiate between the beef and lamb
Vegetables also hard to fathom
Might as well go to a Toby Carvery as probably better

I write this review in the hope that the management up their game as in many other respects, this is a good family pub. I went to The Lazy Fox yesterday with family including my grandson who accidentally upset a whole glass of cola. There was no suggestion of help from the staff to clean up or replace place settings, just a sympathetic smile. When it was suggested they leave us for a couple of minutes to decide we were forgotten about for 15 minutes until we managed to get someone’s attention. Now to my biggest gripe, the food. I’ve been going to The Lazy Fox and it’s sister pubs for many years, trying different dishes and sadly come to realise that the only safe option is pizza cooked in their own wood fired oven. Stray away from pizza and I’m consistently disappointed. Last nights red curry was an over cooked mush that both myself and my daughter left. Please Elite Pubs, you provide a welcoming family environment but you need to improve your food and service.