Toby Carvery Barnes Park review (AD)

After a recent refurbishment of the Toby Carvery Barnes Park I was kindly invited to come along in return for an honest review*.

I decided to make it a family affair so Elsie and I met my mam, dad, brother and my nanna at the Toby Carvery Barnes Park.

It’s been absolutely donkeys since I’ve been to a Toby or had a carvery so I was really looking forward to it.

As I was getting Elsie out of the car into her pram, I saw an elderly lady being supported to her awaiting car by a member of staff who was smiling and chatting away with her. This was a great first impression.

There’s a ramp at the front entrance so Elsie and I had easy access.

We were warmly welcomed and shown to our table where the rest of the family were already seated.

The last time I was at the Barnes was about 8 years ago and it’s definitely changed for the better. The decor is much more modern, it’s more accessible and feels more spacious.

Sandra was our server and she’s worked at the restaurant for 17 years she told us.

My nanna used to be a regular but had said a couple of years ago it wasn’t as nice as it used to be so hadn’t been for quite a while – would she be impressed now?

Sandra has a brilliant rapport with the customers – she even recognised my nanna and is on first name terms with the regulars.

We ordered drinks first before perusing the menu.

This gave me the opportunity to give Elsie her bottle before we could tuck into our food.

New on the menu is Toby Tasters, including Chicken Wings, Mini Pigs in Blankets and much more which are 2 for £4.99. We didn’t have them as we knew we wanted dessert and wanted to save room but we saw others tucking in and enjoying.

We all opted for the classic carvery which is what the Toby is famous for bar my dad who instead plumped for the beef burger.

Midweek the carvery is only £6.99 or you can go king size for an additional £1.99 which is a great price point.

My dad’s burger was actually slices of roast beef in a bun with some salad and a cheese sauce. He had a jug of gravy, roast potatoes and a fluffy Yorkshire pudding too.

Sandra gave us the nod that my dad’s meal was coming so we could go and get our carvery and all eat our meals together.

The carvery was better than I remembered with more vegetable choice than my list visit.

There’s a choice of four meats – tender slices of beef, pork, turkey or glazed gammon, ruffled roasties, Yorkshire puddings and unlimited vegetables as well as the gravy and sauce station too!

Another new addition which is exclusive to Sunday’s is slow-cooked roast lamb.

My mam went for beef and gammon, my brother had beef and my nanna and I had beef and turkey.

I loaded my plate with vegetables and even tried the mac and cheese too.

Once our plates were fully loaded we carefully made our way back to the table and we started to tuck in.

The beef was really tender and the turkey moist. The vegetables were packed full of flavour and I made sure I had plenty of gravy.

I saved my Yorkshire pudding for last and it was crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside just how I like them.

Of course I had both types of potatoes, the mash was creamy and the roasties were spot on – crispy but fluffy.

You can add dessert for £1.99 with any carvery with a good selection to choose from.

My mam went for the refreshing trio of sorbets, my dad had my nanna’s – sticky toffee pudding with custard and Patrick and I opted for warm chocolate fudge cake with ice cream.

Once our desserts were polished off it was time to refill our soft drinks and let our stomachs settle.

Sandra cleared the the table and fussed over Elsie who was having a cuddle with my nanna.

The food was hearty, desserts delicious and the customer service was genuine and friendly.

My nanna was impressed and said she would be back!

We did have to make the staff aware of an issue in the ladies which was promptly sorted.

The baby changing facilities were clean and there was space for me and my mam in there with Elsie.

We had a lovely afternoon and didn’t feel rushed at all which is what you want when having a family meal.

The Toby Carvery kindly gifted us £50 towards our bill and my parents paid the outstanding £16.

Less than £70 for five adults enjoying a hearty meal with four of us having two courses and one having a pint of beer is definitely good value for money in my book.

Soft drinks are refillable and we all had more than one drink.

A huge thank you to all the staff at the Barnes and the Toby Carvery wider team for a great meal.

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Where is the Toby Carvery Barnes Park?

Durham Road, Sunderland, Tyne And Wear, SR2 7RB

Telephone:
0191 528 5644

Food Service Times

Monday – Sunday 8am – 10pm

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*Disclaimer

This review has been written with 100% honesty. 

I was not financially compensated for this post. I was given £50 towards our bill purely for review purposes. The opinions expressed in this post are completely my own based on my own experience.

If you would like your company/service featured on rachaelstray.com either in the form of review, sponsored post or an advertising slot, please feel free to contact me at rachaelstray@gmail.com

Please visit my contact/work with me page for more information.

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