St Leonard's - West Malling

James H.

Sunday lunch. A table for four adults.
Main courses : Our friends ordered the beef
which arrived four slices, acceptably sized.
My partner and I both ordered the pork belly.
When the plates were placed before us, we were taken-aback as to how little pork there was in this dish, and that had been decided as being a reasonable amount.
Two ‘fingers’ of meat each, we approximate as being about 3cm x 10cm x 1cm.
Beef being a more expensive meat than pork, we couldn’t understand why we were given so little, and certainly not an amount which lived up to expectation, nor considered your money’s worth, no matter how nice a plate may look.
On top of that, we were genuinely astounded at the bowl of vegetables (swede and kale) which
was placed on the table for us to somehow share.
There was so little of it, you would have thought it were intended for two. I checked with the waitress to see if there was another one coming, but she said ‘no. That is the amount for four people.
We said to the waitress who went off, but no one returned to address this.
(We think that speaking to the chef was mentioned, particularly with the lack of meat).
We waited, said to another member of staff, and after nothing had happened, I stopped the man who looked as if he were the manager.
We explained our dissatisfaction and he arranged for more vegetables to turn up, which was good, only that he didn’t address the lack of pork.
For what we had, the food was enjoyable and skilfully cooked, but having to raise these issues with more than one member of staff, with one issue being overlooked or ignored,
although we paid the added 12 1/2% tip,
we still don’t feel that we are totally satisfied
with the service or value for money.

Carlee H.

Another stunning meal at St Leonard’s! I come here every time they change the menu and it just keeps getting better. The food is seasonal, beautifully presented, and tastes amazing. They also have a really good wine selection and elegant cocktails. I’d recommend the Bloody Mary or the chocolate and hazelnut martini (this is really nice for dessert too). 10/10, definitely recommend.

Carney J. T.

Well, this was a great surprise. I'd been working in West Malling all day filming, and my mother in law booked us in for dinner. She is rather discerning, and this was to be her third visit in a couple of weeks, so I had high hopes. We had the taster menu. See the attached pics and what a wonderful gastronomic journey it was. The kitchen team has obviously honed this menu to a level of layered brilliant flavour bombs. We loved this meal and every course was interesting and delicious. We had a nice, well priced Malbec, and I'll be back it it was a great meal. The staff and venue were attentive and yet relaxed. Thanks very much, and keep up the great work!

Thomas G.

We had a family meal at St. Leonard's at lunchtime on a Saturday. Interior is stunning, quite modern yet plenty of character.
The food was flavourful and garnished beautifully, all 4 of us were so impressed. Staff were really polite and professional so service was excellent. Overall we had a brilliant experience and have already decided to come back in April for my birthday.

I was unsure on parking as I' m not from the area, but there is a fairly spacious Paid carpark (RingGo) a 2 minute walk away.

Soph 8.

What has happened St Leonards?
Came for Sunday lunch yesterday, and felt that the service hasn’t been up to scratch the last few visits and a mixture of quality dishes.
We had an unsatisfactory visit 5 weeks ago, and another at the start of July, and put it down to one offs as have visited every month or so for the last year or two and it’s been faultless, but this Sunday wasn’t much better.
Yesterday, the beef was fatty, pork was very tough and overcooked, and the vegetables were cold. We asked for more gravy twice and this never arrived. When asked at the end of our meal whether we had enjoyed the food, we said the meat was quite fatty and we did ask for more gravy, and the “head” waitress as she had referred herself as to another table, said sorry in the most uninterested tone with a stone cold face and left. Whilst we didn’t expect any further interaction regarding this, we did feel the apology felt insincere and rude, and made us feel uncomfortable.
The service was slow, we waited over 40 minutes for our mains, and had to ask for further drinks, which didn’t bother us, but the service hasn’t felt as attentive as it used to be, considering there’s a large service charge added to the bill.
It’s a real shame, as this has always been one of our favourite restaurants locally, but it seems to be a trend now and it feels like we are unlucky every time. Last time, we were given a different wine to what we ordered, a cheaper and newer wine, and no apology, service has been slower and the meat just hasn’t tasted the amazing quality it used to be. A smile from the staff wouldn’t also go a miss considering a few of the waitresses always look unhappy, and unapproachable.
For now, we will step away and hope to return in the new year, which hopefully, the wonderful restaurant we love so much will be the same again.

Julia L.

This place really deserves a full 5star rating. From interior, to staff to their dishes, and even the fragrance in their toilets - it's all perfection.
Had their £29 3-course set menu and it was a beautiful mix of vegetarian / meat / fish dishes. Their a la carte is beautifully designed with locally sourced produce, the pork belly and the steak were ace!
We can't wait to come try their infamous Sunday lunch!
Also we were way late and stayed over their closing hour and yet they were more than happy to accommodate us!
Thumbs up will make this my local weekend spot!

Paul E.

Fantastic!!
My wife and I had a rare date night without the children. We have wanted to try St Leonard’s since moving to West Malling a few months ago.
We decided to have a cocktail before we headed to our table and it was the best margarita we have had in a very long time.
We went for the tasting menu , each dish was really tasty and well presented. The monkfish was my favourite.
Wine was very reasonably priced and the service was on point.
We will be back again very soon!!

Angela E.

Absolutely fantastic! We used the private dining room at the St Leonard's for a birthday celebration. The room is beautifully decorated and very spacious (there was 10 of us). The service was brilliant, nothing was too much trouble and the team were super attentive. The food was amazing, as always. Thoroughly recommend the St Leonard's and will definitely be using the private dining room again.