The Waterfront Public House in East Staffordshire

After going to our usual eateries at Barton Marina and all full, we tried “The Waterfront” it’s been a while. We were so lucky one table left. Found the bar staff so welcoming and extremely helpful. A really buzz and Twixmas vibe. So quick and efficient service. Thank you, we did not go hungry.

A reasonable priced christmas dinner for a works night out. Turkey tasted like it had been sat under the hot plates for ever. Vegetables hard and cold. Roast potatos and the pigs in blankets very pale and like they had been microwaved no way had those potatoes and pigs in blankets seen the inside of the oven.

Excellent clean facility with great staff and beautiful food. The atmosphere was wonderful and the view across the Marina was breathtaking

Poor quality food, tasteless, waitress rude, charged my family and other families a higher price for the refreshments than that displayed on the breakfast menu given to us, so beware of this scam. Refreshments are also in small cups not worth the price. They will state prices have gone up and they will not honour the prices displayed in the breakfast menu as they state the new prices are displayed elsewhere. Crap customer service. They obviously can't be bothered to up date their breakfast menu or even tell you on ordering refreshments of incorrect pricing, just shabby and unprofessional.

Atmosphere was great but the turkey dinner was all under cooked no crispy roast potatoes and pale sausage very disappointing

We choose this venue for our work Christmas party this year and we will most certainly be returning! The Crow's Nest was beautifully decorated for Christmas. The size of the room meant it had a wonderful party atmosphere without feeling overcrowded. The food was excellent - far exceeded our expectations! The staff were efficient and friendly, with food and drink being served quickly. The DJ was excellent and had everyone on the dance floor all night! Debbie, who handled our booking and organised the whole event, was warm and welcoming. All the servers were excellent, particularly Antoine and Amelia. We've been to several venues over the years for our Christmas parties but the Crow's Nest is by far the best and we couldn't recommend it enough. Already looking forwards to next year! 🎄

Food was alright but nothing special and service was horrendous. Ordered food that didn't come. When we informed them that food didn't come when asked for, the wrong food was delivered to us twice, communication between staff is entirely broken down. We didn't have an enjoyable experience at all and won't be coming back.

Great breakfast 2 for 1 very good nice coffee . Great restaurant relaxed atmosphere great tables and chairs . Views good . Outside nice even in winter . Young gentlemen was so polite and efficient with his role .

First time having a meal here and food was lovely, service very good. A little noisy but there was a Christmas party/works do sat not far from us, didn't spoil our night though 😊

The staff and service are very good. I enjoyed the food immensely and I would recommend stopping here if you are spending any time at the Barton Marina. My only issue is with the presentation of the food. I ordered fish and chips, which is their signature dish, and it deserves to be on a pedestal. I don't think they should be presenting it as if it were some kind of art installation. The fish was served on a plate, with a separate basket for the chips and the mushy peas were served in a small ramekin on their own. I understand the separate ramekin for the tartare sauce, but the chips and peas should be on the plate with the fish. Apart from that, the food was ace!

Great atmosphere, reasonably priced and good location too. Like to visit this place often and enjoy their reasonably priced ale too!

Excellent night out with friends, excellent food, excellent service. Good selection of drinks, shame was my turn to drive.

Good food and wide range of drinks.great location too.

I would put Zero stars but that isn't an option. Don't visit I've just gone here with my sister and 4 week old niece and turned away and said can sit in a freezing cold hut outside if we wanted service but the waitress wasnt sure how long it would take to heat up. Absolutely disgusting behaviour children under 5s are not allowed inside...

Lovely meal and atmosphere. We did wait in a queue to be served.

I love the Waterfront! The food is nice, a bit pricy! Staff are fantastic and service really good! Ample parking!

A fantastic place to visit, absolutely loved it. The food wasn't much to be desired, but the event held there made everything so much worthwhile.

Menu basic but set in a nice location.

Treated my aunt to a quality break between Yorkshire and Shropshire Food was excellent Service was excellent and the atmosphere was relaxing 😌

Had my wedding reception here 14 years ago. Unfortunately no longer married. Came here a couple of weeks ago for a Sunday roast. Although slightly expensive for the amount of food received it is very very tasty. Would definitely go again. Staff were very friendly. My suggestion would be to book in advance. Thankfully we booked for 12.15pm and within half an hour the restaurant was full. Wouldn't have got a seat without booking. We are always looking for a new place for a family meal on special occasions and this may well be the next place.

Watch out for hidden up-selling! I no longer recommend or endorse The Waterfront for dining, for several reasons noted further below. Casual drinks ordered directly from the bar and enjoyed outside of the restaurant are beyond the scope of this review. ---- Date of visit: 13 September 2024 Purpose: Birthday meal in the main restaurant (4-persons) TL;DR: An expensive, premium vodka brand was added to our dining bill by default, without being given a choice of brands, unlike the wine/other drinks at the time of table-service order. The three double Black Cow vodka measures (total 150ml) came to £22 on its own. For context, a 70cl bottle of Black Cow vodka retails at £29.50 (15x doubles @ 50ml each). Total restaurant bill for 4-persons was £153 including the meals. This issue was addressed at the time, directly with the staff member, and with the duty manager, who advised that the staff member was known to be great at up-selling, but agreed they should have asked which vodka brand was preferred. We followed up the next day with an email to The Waterfront, yet no response had been received by 24 Sep*. I will not name any staff in this review; however, I will strongly recommend that you ask for the drink options from your table server if none are given at the time. ---- Review: A long-standing relationship between us and The Waterfront has sadly been ruined by a seasoned member of staff who up-sold a drinks order. Being sat down at our reserved table on time, the four of us were there to celebrate my birthday. The Waterfront venue was chosen as it holds special meaning, I won’t go in to here. As an all-adult family, we don’t often come here, but as a couple, we are [were!]. A lot. It wasn’t busy, and after a few minutes a drinks order was taken; The usual medley of wine, soft drinks and a spirited drink. The double vodka and diet cola drink did not arrive with the others, so after a few more minutes watching staff zipping by with drinks for other patrons, we asked our server if it was on its way. They returned after checking and apologised as it hadn’t been put through. At the original time of order, we were given a choice of wine, but not the vodka. A choice still wasn’t offered with this follow up request, but we naively weren’t expecting to pay for a premium branded spirit that was going to be used with a mixer either. The food arrived, looked lovely and well-presented, however it was noted that the portion sizes seemed to have been dramatically reduced in size over the past 6 months, especially as some dishes were repeat offenders on our table. Two double chocolate brownies with honeycomb ice cream (£7.25 each at the time of visit) were ordered for dessert, but when they arrived the whole table was taken aback. Simply the smallest slice of chocolate brownie, accompanied by a small ball of ice cream. It was at the point of receiving the table bill, it was realised the up-sell of three double Black Cow vodka measures (total 150ml) came to £22 on its own. This issue was addressed at the time, directly with the staff member, and with the duty manager. Total restaurant bill for 4-persons was £153. The food is well seasoned, vibrant, and presented well. However, it’s certainly not value for money in today's high expectations of any respectable hospitality establishment, so simply not worth the pretentious prices The Waterfront are charging. Of course, all of this is subjective, but it’s very much objective for us, and why we will no longer dine at The Waterfront, or endorse it as a great value for money eatery. The atmosphere and location are great, but for us it will be just for drinks outside of the restaurant area now, thanks to one member of staff that chose to up-sell drinks without our knowledge. *Update 26-09-2024: The Waterfront Team requested 24 hours to fully respond to me directly (25-09), then simply thanked me for my feedback. A subsequent call to the duty manager thereafter didn’t highlight if the staff have been made aware our next steps could be to Trading Standards if this has not been addressed.

Food is usually lovely, but last time I went the breakfast was mediocre at best. Rather disappointing

We have left 1 star rating as we are unable to leave none . We went to the waterfront this morning for breakfast as we do regularly, the quality has been hit or miss throughout we have never complained because it is reflected in the price . Today we requested a breeze hut as we had our dog with us , we were told to go into hut 1 . As we proceeded to go to hut 1 a member of staff moved us to hut 2 , I mentioned twice to let staff inside know as our order was for hut 1 and she assured me she would do so . After a very lengthy wait our drinks and food had gone to hut 1 ????? No heartfelt apology was made to us despite the staff member by her own admission said she hadn’t told staff about the move of huts . We were on a time restriction due to a hospital appointment in Leicester, so couldn’t wait any longer . Another lengthy wait at the till for a refund because she couldn’t operate the till . Attitude of staff the really DIDNT CARE ! Won’t be returning

Popped here after pumpkin picking nearby, I found this place on my GF app. Was busy when we arrived around 3pm on a Sunday afternoon during October half term. Didn't have a table booked, but was seated straight away by a friendly member of staff. Our drinks & food order were taken straight away,didn't wait long at all for food,considering how busy they were. I ordered GF fish & chips with tartar sauce & side salad, hands down the BEST batter I've ever tasted being GF 👌🏻 even my husband didn't believe it was GF fish. Thank you for catering for people with intolerances. Saw quite a few people order the Sunday roast & omg they looked yummy! Just wish the Yorkshire pudding had of been vegan too as I'd have chosen that. Restaurant had a cosy,chilled vibe & toilets were very clean. Would definitely recommend & return if in the area.

Evening wedding reception, fantastic food and great bar service

A very pleasant experience. Not having a reservation was not a problem and we were seated promptly. The service was superb as was the food. I had a pan fried seabass which was delicious. Would highly recommend.

Don't visit. Prices are crazy and staff are rude. It's £10 for a glass of wine... You'd have to be crazy to book a wedding or function here with the staff. It's also the only place where babies are banned, truly crazy in today's world.

Just had an amazing afternoon at **The Waterfront** at Barton Marina! From the moment we walked in, the ambiance was perfect—a lovely combination of cozy and stylish, with stunning views of the marina. The food was top-notch, but what really made our experience stand out was the exceptional customer service. A big shout-out to **Tash, the assistant manager**, who went above and beyond to ensure everything was perfect. Her warm and friendly demeanor, along with her attention to detail, really elevated our night. She made us feel like valued guests from start to finish. Highly recommend The Waterfront for anyone looking for a great meal, excellent service, and a beautiful setting. Can’t wait to go back! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Came for a wedding it was amazing, lovely food definitely be going back

Full English breakfast on offer at buy one get one free. The meal was freshly cooked and very tasty and plenty full

This is the 2nd time I've been here and the food was lovely can't fault it and thank you to the chef for making my carbonara as it wasn't on the menu as that is what I had last time from the specials, it was delicious and the caramel apple crumble was to die for, and the Elvis tribute in the crows nest was fantastic, great service from all the staff, I am looking forward to my next visit in November for the drag bingo x

Only went in for a drink but seemed ok.

Was invited to a wedding here, lovely room upstairs with a balcony. Downstairs was spacious with a large bar and plenty of selections. Outside was very beautiful with seating looking over the marina. Shops and places to eat are behind the "waterfront", plenty of parking and well lit up at night. Very nice place.

I no longer recommend or endorse The Waterfront for dining, for several reasons noted further below and on the full Google review. Casual drinks ordered directly from the bar and enjoyed outside of the restaurant are beyond the scope of this review. ---- Date of visit: 13 September 2024 Purpose: Birthday meal in the main restaurant (4-persons) Food was well seasoned and presented when it eventually arrived, however was not very good value for money given the portion sizes, so objectively pretentiously priced. An expensive, premium vodka brand was added to our dining bill by default when asking for double vodka and diet colas (x3), without being given a choice of brands, unlike the wine/other drinks at the time of table-service order. This issue was addressed at the time, directly with the staff member by the table, and discreetly elsewhere with the duty manager. We followed up the next day with an extensive email to The Waterfront, yet to date (24 Sept), no response has been received, so this review is being written without knowing if this issue has been officially addressed. [Edit: Response received after the Google review dated 26-09-2024 was published: The Waterfront Team requested 24 hours to fully respond directly (25-09). A reply was then sent to my original email on 26-09 simply thanking me for my feedback. A subsequent phone call to the duty manager thereafter didn’t highlight if the staff have been made aware our next steps would be to Trading Standards if this has not been addressed. [Our full review is available on Google for The Waterfront, Barton Marina.]

Very expensive and poor food, next to no beef in the beef stroganoff! Cold plates. Massive profiteering, go somewhere else.

The venue is nice and has great views, especially the summer. The staff are always welcoming and friendly. First time having lunch here, as we always had drinks. Baked Camembert for starters. Mains we had Sunday Roast and the Steak and Ale Pie was delicious and cooked perfectly, highly recommended.

This is a great place to go. Lovely warm atmosphere with log fire. Great menu for when we were there (lunch time) good selection of drinks. Staff were very helpful and friendly. Toilets were impeccably clean (I didn't go in the ladies)

Another Brilliant night at The Waterfront & Crows Nest. We booked a table for 3 of us prior to the Elvis Show which was upstairs in the Crows Nest. Food & Service was brilliant, a big Thank You to the chef as my friend wanted the Carbonara that was on the specials the last time we were here in July, but not on the Menu today, Hannah (FOH Manager) asked the chef and he was very accommodating and made the Carbonara, which looked delish, and my friend thoroughly enjoyed it. I had the Chicken Alfredo which was also lovely, and my husband had the fish and chips which he thoroughly enjoyed. We had the Apple Crumble and Cointreau Bread & Butter Pudding which was also delish, The show upstairs was fantastic Adam Carter who was the Elvis Tribute was brilliant and was thoroughly enjoyable. Thank you to all the staff at both the Waterfront & Crows Nest the service was fab. Looking forward to returning in November.

Vi er 4 venner som leier kanalbåt en uke i september hvert år, og alltid fra samme firma i Barton Marina. Det betyr at vi også besøker The Waterfront årlig. Atmosfæren i restauranten er svært hyggelig. Maten er førsteklasses, og betjeningen både vennlig og professjonell. Vi kommer tilbake i 2025!

We had a meal here on Saturday afternoon before going to the red carpet theatre. We sat in the conservatory with lovely views out over the water. It was waitress service and the food was decent. I had risotto, my partner had fish and chips, he had a very big portion ! Would definitely recommend.

Quantity of the food was huge. It was tasty and heavy. Service was little slow, but may be it was busy hours.

The food here is amazing. It is freshly cooked with a good choice for all tastes. All the staff are really friendly and our server Hannah, was particularly helpful and gave us great service. Highly recommend for quality food in a relaxing setting

Well worth a visit, we booked for Sunday lunch and wasn't disapointed great food, and choice's It was busy but the food was served promptly. Staff were very friendly and worked hard. We will be back soon.👍

Great location. Friendly and helpful staff, good selection of drinks, and great food.

Six of us visited at lunchtime today - our meals were delicious and staff were excellent. We all had a great time - thank you!

Lovely on the waterside or indoors.

Excellent service received here last night, they went to so much trouble with my fiancé to make his birthday truly special and special it certainly was as I proposed to him, he said he'll remember it forever, food, atmosphere, service is 10/10 Hannah was our server but more like a friend as she made us feel so relaxed and welcome all the staff were genuinely lovely people. Fab place

Second visit recently for Sunday lunch which again was very acceptable particularley with a 30% discount making the whole experience very cost effective.With the large amount of diners booking for a noon time slot prompted me to wonder whether the Beef had been pre-sliced well in advance as it did not appear to be from a joint cooked on the spot,but still very palatable.Being residential this a good hopping off base for the Peak district including Alton Towers as the bed rates are very competitive especially for children

Another disappointing visit breakfast undercooked sent it back there was burned pieces in the scrambled egg Breakfast arrived back bacon still raw almost everything just microwaved Not difficult to get right first time Staff management inexperienced and rude

Amazing food & very friendly staff who were very accommodating when I customised the salmon! It was a lovely afternoon out & very picturesque being literally on the waterfront!

Fantastic food and fantastic service, all the staff were really welcoming and friendly. Some of the best food we’ve had in a while.

Lovely place, great food and great staff.

Lovely pub in a beautiful setting. Staff friendly and a very reasonable £10 for two pints of Madri.

Not a big choice on the breakfast menu and coffee was served cold. Location good and staff friendly.

We've had a few visits here in the last few months. Each time we have had a really good experience. The staff are friendly and helpful, the food was nice and the white wine was nicely chilled 👌. What more can you ask for?

Wedding day had a wonderful time Congratulations to the Bride and Groom X

Service slow , roast beef very average and chocolate brownie was undercooked and they forgot the icecream , not worth the money we spent.

Lovely views over the marina with fishing lodges at the back of you want to take a walk. Food and service have always been excellent when we've visited.

Breakfast advertised until 11:30. We were surprised that they could not offer us this when we went at 11:00 so why advertise. Very unhappy.

Would not go here again if you paid me. Refused entry to a 9 week old baby that just wanted somewhere to sit and be fed. And me a drink Was one of the hottest days of the year 30° and was told to leave. I appreciate since 2014 you've banned children because they are lound run around and cause a mess. But my 9 week old can hardly lift his own head let alone create you problems. Shameful that you did this. Luckily barton marina has some other lovely places that allow a baby to be fed id recommend going to one of those rather than the waterfront

Really nice service and good portions of lovely food (I had the sea bass which was excellent) . Our table was in the Quarterdeck area with a great outlook over the marina.

Breakfast was really nice, especially compared to the marina cafe across the road. Music was way too loud though for breakfast time and sounded like it was just someones Spotify playlist rather than restaurant background music.

Absolutely stunning space with food and drinks available and then you can take a leisurely stroll around.

Very nice to go, friendly staff, good food , good price. Access very good & parking good.

Went out to Barton marina on a lovely day to enjoy a lunch and drinks upon sitting outside and going into to order food I was told by multiple members of staff that they are not serving food outside. Despite this we decided to have a drink and call it a day. While drinking our drinks for the 30 minutes we were there multiple tables had food coming out to them! Disgusting liars do not come here

Tables in need of cleaning. Management would not let a child taste an ice cream flavour prior to ordering….”stock management…”Not feeling loved here.

Good English breakfast. With the 2x1 offer is such a great deal! I have to mention the coffee, overpriced like in most places in UK but here at least you pay for quality. Best expresso I've had in the last few weeks.

Excellent food and fantastic service all of the team we interacted with were a credit to the Waterfront. There was a delay in recieving our desserts for which we recieved many apologies and they were worth waiting for. Nothing was too much trouble and the two coeliac's in our party had plenty of options from the menu. 5 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟

Another fantastic visit to The Waterfront! A quick stop for lunch and we were not disappointed. Abbie was lovely and looked after us perfectly. I will forever keep recommending this place to friends and family.

This pub is ideally situated overlooking the marina. From the moment we arrived the staff were friendly and helpful. The order arrived quickly and was spot on, despite making a few dietary requirements changes. We were looked after throughout the meal, with staff checking to make sure everything was ok, The manager is really approachable, and you can see the rest of the staff respect and support her.

Overall it was good, but it shared a common issue with many others. Despite informing them we would only be there for an hour, we were seated at a table with a view obstructed by a wall. To make matters worse, all ten tables with better views were empty throughout our visit, labeled as ‘reserved’.

breakfast was awful , sausages uncooked /smelt old out of date , hair in food , felt inconveniencing them complaining , however place has a lovely ambience .

Very lovely venue and location however breakfast was terrible, out of date undercooked sausages soggy bas smelling bacon watered down beans and hair in the fried egg. Eventually recooked bacon but sausages still off. Refund on 1 of 4 full breakfasts only offered. Coffee expensive and served cold. Much better spend £60 odd at Mcdonalds next time.

Great place for a beer with friends ( or without) have a bar area, restaurant is separate. Food is good quality pub food in the bar, a tad on the dear side but not enough to moan about. Good decor, very friendly and efficient staff, can get busy at peak times. Give real ales on the bar mainly Sharpe's brewery. Good selection of wines and spirits. Thoroughly recommended.

Had a lovely lunch. Beautiful food Excellent service, marvelous atmosphere. Definitely going back again.

Little pricey but lovely nonetheless

family visit had a great time drink and food was excellent best fish chips had for ages staff friendly hard working love this pub wish it was my local

Poor service and very overpriced less than average food

Once again, lovely staff, very welcoming and very helpful. Food, as always, is lush. Love spending time with my other half here.

Had a lovely meal there. Staff were really good and made everyone with allergies feel safe. I had the beef stroganoff gluten-free for my main and it was really nice. I had the baked cheesecake for dessert, which I really enjoyed. There's lots of gluten free options and there's options for every taste.

Absolutely appalling customer service. We had a table booked for Sunday because staff want to watch the football they canceled our reservation. How can a business survive picking and choosing when they want custom!

Menu is very misleading..i ordered leg of lamb( which is clearly printed on menu) for a Sunday Dinner...Only 2 slices of lamb appeared on plate Very dissatisfied!menu needs correcting.

Went last night with a group of 5 friends meal And service was fantastic we all had a brilliant evening every dish that was served was beautifully presented and extremely tasty We followed our meal with an evening of laughs at the Drag Bingo which all of us enjoyed and can’t wait for the next Drag Bingo night later in the year Definitely the right decision to go for dinner before the event in the crow’s nest upstairs Would recommend Waterfront and Crow’s Next to All my friends and colleagues

Dropped in for a drink. Not tried the food. But was very relaxed.

sat in the conservatory on Saturday only to be told we had to move as we were not eating. How miserable, this is how to run a business NOT, absolutely pathetic

Went for a catchup with friends and waited over an hour for our main course and the two salads which were ordered came about 5 minutes after our mains!! I had crispy beef which was a joke, I couldn’t even cut it, it was rick hard. All the waiter said was, that’s how we cook it, no apology and never came back. Very rude and shall not be returning. However, the waitress’s were very good.

Lovely restaurant with a sun room overlooking the canal and many colourful barges. Food was delicious with very nice ambience. Outside were little boutiques situated along the canalside. Will definitely return to this surprise venue, near Barton-under-Needwood.

We ate here twice this week. Food was OK.

Lovely pub and great food at reasonable prices, lovely views onto the marina aswell 🙂

Good food well presented very enjoyable

Such a lovely place, enough space for disabled customers

Location is very good. You can sit in the deck and watch the marina and life goes by. There is a big function room with a bar upstairs. The view again over the marina is beautiful. It has A-V equipment. Food is good. There are vegetarian options. Service is very good

Lovely place to sit and eat looking over the marina. Had a really nice meal, staff really professional and attentive.

Lovely meal after visit to the cinema. My friend had fish & chips & I had salmon, both meals were served quickly & hot. The waitresses were lovely so thanks to all. We'll be back.

Fantastic venue for the concert in the crows nest. Thank you. We had a brilliant time. We also enjoyed a meal in your restaurant.

Very professional and friendly, great views...

My wife had a pizza today. It was rank. It was part cooked the base was soft, cheese has a weird texture. Clearly cooking a pre made pizza was too difficult for the chef. I told her never to send food back as you never know what they will do with it. She likes it there and won’t put her off but she’ll avoid the pizza in future

Been to this pub quite often ,fish and chips ,their signature dish always been happy,today was obviously different supplier for fish and maybe cheaper chef ,sent it back and second portion still way off what it was few couple of weeks ago,will not be going back,refund not offered,very poor,not worth a fiver now

Service slow, took 45 mins for meal to arrive and was cold when served , ordered a second drink which never materialised, disappointed

Regularly visit here to enjoy either a pint and a snack or to dine. Food is very good and great, busy, atmosphere