The Talbot - Darlington

Heard lots of glowing comments about this establishment and delighted to have the chance to patronise. Set in a nice village. Good menu for Sunday lunch all starters were good and the tomato soup was spicy as listed very nice. The waiting staff were all friendly one main course was wrong but one of the party felt able to accept that as opposed to waiting for a replacement. It happens and communication can break down anywhere plus the place was very busy. No harm done. The wine was lovely nice glassware. A great time and I d recommend.

Dreadful service waited 1and half hours for our meal not so much as an apology place has gone drastically downhill won’t be going again

Booked a table for Sunday lunch upon arrival we were shown upstairs which was a bit gritty compared to downstairs but this place had come as highly recommended. Before we were seated one of our party did ask if all choices of meat were available to which she was told yes and then asked what drinks we would like the waitress didn’t know what lager was available and had to go ask which fair enough she may have been new. Waited approx 20mins for drinks to be served then to be asked if we would like to order food but told that there is no lamb or pork and only 1 beef dinner left chicken and gammon or we can order pie. If we had been told this before being seated and served drinks we would not have stayed as we were very disappointed with the choice. The lady serving our party said it was because we had booked that day so why take the booking? When the food was served it was ok not what we would have chosen which made our visit a very disappointing one. Very bad management will not go back.

The food was excellent and very well presented. The menu had a great selection. However, the wait time was too long. The staff were friendly and professional. I would definitely recommend this restaurant. The use of a mobile phone by another guest was a bit annoying. I will definitely come back.

Our friends brought us to this restaurant and made a reservation for us. They are regulars here and we were warmly welcomed and sat at a round table towards the back of the restaurant. Our orders were taken quickly, but since the food is made fresh, it took some time to be served. I had the king prawn tagliatelle, which was delicious once I removed the red peppers. My husband ordered the chicken with Diane sauce and chips, one friend had the pan fried hake, and the other had the lamb chops. We all enjoyed our meals and even had room for dessert. Two of us had the sticky toffee pudding, while the other two had fruit salad. The white wine we ordered was also delicious. Unfortunately, our evening was slightly dampened by a nearby guest who was loudly conducting a FaceTime call during their meal. It was very disrespectful and disturbing.