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Waters Edge

 

It is important to read this page in full, but in so doing please be aware that it was written in the main, in about 2001. The present manager (3/2006) has written to me at length regarding the comments on this page and, with her permission, and only very slightly edited (for the sake of continuity between two messages) her letter is reproduced below - however, in May 2006 I paid a return visit to the pub, and my review of this visit, and the manager's response to it, may be found here

But. whilst the comments are kept on here (for now), the manager in question has gone and the pub changed hands in 2007

Having read the views of many people that have visited the Waters Edge in the past I am deeply saddened that for many this has not always been a positive experience in terms of both food quality and service.  Having recently taken on the Waters Edge both myself as the Deputy General Manager and Ms Donna Howard, the General Manager would very much like to reassure our guests that we have been working very hard with our team to make some radical improvements to our business to ensure The Waters Edge once again becomes a great place to visit and dine at.  We as a management team have been working with our parent company to improve both the exterior and the interior and now have in place improved outside lighting and signage, a tidier and more functional outside seating area, a newly refurbished area inside the restaurant which will become a function facility not to mention a newly overhauled and better operating kitchen facility.  For many, our toilet facilities were an issue so these too have been addressed with new drainage systems in place to cope with the busy periods our restaurant attracts.   

The team here have been instrumental in the changes and have been undergoing a major training programme to improve the service levels to all our guests.  I am sure that this will be apparent on your next visit to us.   

We have also been working hard with the local community trying to re-establish relationships with local groups and bodies such as the Lido Railway and Ruislip Chamber of Commerce which we have intentions of being a major part of.   

We have plans during the Summer Period to turn our outside seating area into very much a haven of activity with live music whether classical, jazz or more up to date bands, bouncy castles for the kids and bar-be-cues for all to enjoy.  We understand that a lot of damage has been done in the PAST at The Waters Edge but would like to invite all in the community to visit us over the coming months and please provide any feedback you feel may be useful to us in driving the business forward for all.  We would like to thank all our guests who have already done this and look forward to seeing you all again soon.  Particular thanks go to Jerry from The Ideas Bank who has introduced us to The Chamber of Commerce, To all the fantastic guys at The Lido Railway – you know who you are, Matt, Stan, Kush etc etc and to Sean our Lido Ranger and Stuart at the local council who continues to be a great support in building a positive relationship for the future. 

It is with much hope and a great deal of determination that both myself and my colleague – Ms Donna Howard, look forward to seeing The Waters Edge being as popular a venue for the local community to eat, drink and have fun in as it should always have been.  We understand the issues of the past, however, we cannot take those back – only build on the future and it is a shame that people will read this site and feel that a visit to the lido will not be an enjoyable experience.  I myself was attracted to the challenge of this site purely because of the location and because it has been such a wasted opportunity for so long.  Yes, it has been poorly run etc etc, however I am confident that this business is going to prove all to all visitors of the Lido, a wonderful experience and an enjoyable day out.  With plans for outdoor BBQ’s, music, events and a colourful, carnival atmosphere I very much hope that the editors of this website and all our guests take the opportunity to visit us again and enjoy something that was in effect taken away from them.  Perhaps I’ll see you this Sunday evening for our regular Jazz Evening.  It is with hope.

Kindest Regards

Fiona Cook

Deputy General Manager – The Waters Edge 

P:S: - you may note that the only comment valid on this website is one that came in during our operation of the business – it’s a good one from what we feel are respected members of the community. 

Continuing below is the Ruislip Online page as it was

Situated at the end of Reservoir Road, just inside the confines of, and facing on to, Ruislip Lido this pub is beautifully situated. Sadly that is where what is good about it ends. 

The building itself was put up to replace the old art deco cafe that was visited by arsonists one night in the 80's. I am sure that there were restrictions placed on whoever designed it as to exactly what they could build as I suspect what was burnt down was listed, and what went up had to be in a similar theme, but this pub is a planning disaster!

Looking at the picture above you can see that it paints a very welcoming exterior to the road. It is actually difficult to see just how you get in it for a start. It improves at the other side and from a distance looks reasonable from the lake side. Inside however it is dark, drab and boring.

The side facing the lake (note lack of windows, and bushes in the way of the few that exist!)

To be fair it majors on food and really tries to be a restaurant, but a pub it also is, so I continue...

It was such an opportunity, it was so wasted. I don't know by whom and I doubt if they would stand up and account for their actions even if you accused them. This was more than an opportunity wasted, it was a chance for Ruislip to be really put on the map. A chance to do (and build)  something that people would really remember. Much as I am a fan of art deco and wish the idiots had not set fire to what stood here the replacement should have been something different, something with flair, something bold and ultra modern, something with, dare one actually say it, WINDOWS! But I have the benefit of hindsight....

This pub is like a round of golf, it ruins a good walk.

Where it is, by road

Leave Ruislip towards Rickmansworth along Bury Street. Look out for the petrol station on the left and then a car showrooms on the right (that was a petrol station). Turn here down Reservoir Road and the Waters Edge may be found on the right at the end. There is a huge (council owned) car park on the left which is free and also used by visitors to the Lido, so you do not have to visit the pub to park in here. There are also local signs for Ruislip Lido.

Info

Telephone Number - 01895 625 241

Web links that may interest you

Every thing you could ever wish to know about Ruislip Lido

Ruislip Lido's Railway

Real ale

No

Access via public transport

Not too bad. Get the. H13 from Ruislip tube to the stop for Ruislip Lido and you are there.

Pub Crawl Potential

Not bad, come out of the pub turn left, walk to the end and just up the hill on the other side of the road is the Six Bells. Or turn left at the main road and then right up Breakspear road to The Woodman. A final option is to turn left at the main road and walk about 1/2 mile to The Plough. Total walk between pubs a little over one mile and from all except The Woodman the H13 stops close by.

Ruislip Online review - see 2006 review below

The worst pint of keg bitter I have ever had, in the darkest and worst designed pub I have ever been in, in the most beautiful setting I can remember other than on the Thames. Some building work is planned in the near future, perhaps they will add windows....

Visitors views (click to submit)

(Note review as at 19/1/2006 which is further down the page is a good review of this pub)

"We were disappointed recently when visiting on a hot day.  We decided to buy ice creams and drinks and sit at one of the outdoor tables.  It appeared that the dirty dishes on our table and all of those surrounding had been sitting out there for quite a while.  Then, after 20 minutes our refreshments still had not arrived.  I went to see what the problem was, and I found three waitresses behind the counter eating the strawberries that were supposed to have ended up in my husband's £2.99 dessert.  No apologies were made, so I stood and watched as they continued to prepare what was left of our food.  I was then asked to take it out myself."

Chris P


 

The most miserable bar staff in the history of man. Every time you approach the bar it is as if they are doing you a huge favour by serving you. 

James


.........my sister Avril won a competition to name the restaurant years ago and the prize was a meal on the opening night in the restaurant. Unfortunately, she was on holiday and they wouldn't honour the meal on a different date.  Mean lot!

Eve

My wife and I have just taken a trip from Letchworth to the Water’s Edge in order to visit my son who has recently transferred there as a Duty Manager from the White Hart at Colchester .  

Although a dismal Saturday in January and with the light rapidly fading, it was apparent that the roadside view of the building is, at best, depressing. However, once inside we found the staff pleasant and amenable and the food acceptable; at least Kitchen Pre-Pack keeps things consistent.  

With a new management team, and my experiences of them (all from the White Hart, Colchester ), I am sure that this pub will become better and better. But, please, give them a chance to make the changes.

 Ian F


We visited the above pub on 12 February 2005 for my daughter's Birthday, the idea was that my grandchildren were able to  go into the play area.
 
When we actually found the entrance to the pub,  as you cannot see them from the roadway, the foot paths are not lit up.
 
On entering the pub via the bar, it was quite plain to see that the bar staff had not cleared up after the lunchtime sessions ashtrays were full and table needed a good wipe down. My husband who is in a wheel chair needed to use the disable facilities.  He could not open the doors by himself
as they were too stiff,  on entering the toilet the bin was full and someone had left a child's nappy on top of  the bin?  Are these toilets not checked throughout the day.
 
I visited the play area, in this area was 7 tables which had not been cleared away which  had wasted food on them and glasses.  In the area that we sat for our meal also 5 table's which had not been cleared. WHAT DO THE STAFF DO? When they needed glasses for the bar they collected the  the empty ones from the tables, but did not clear the tables completely, just the glasses they needed to serve the drinks?
 
We had booked a table, ordered our first two courses and waited.   The starters arrived, very pleasant.  Then we had to wait for our main course, and we waited, when it did arrive we had to send two of the meals back as one was not cooked, and the other was cold.  When the main course came we had not any cutlery and to look around for it ourselves.
 
Then we ordered our sweets. We had to wait quite a time, but they never cleared the table so we still had the  main course plates on the table. When we left to go home more tables with food left on them.
 
We will not visit again for another three years perhaps they will improve I doubt it? 13.2.05
 

Carole P


I have to concur with the terrible reviews of somewhere in such a lovely setting.  I have eaten here twice in summer 2005 & both times have been equally bad.  The place is always dirty with overflowing glasses & plates on tables, orders take forever  - not a problem if its good quality, home cooked food instead of being reconstituted microwave muck!

Clearly the unmotivated staff don’t receive any investment in their training etc - definitely would not recommend this place!

Alison


Having just read the comments about the pub at Ruislip Lido, I have to say I totally agree with all the negative comments.
I thought I was being stuck up or actually just spoilt, having moved to Florida a few years ago.
I visited home (ruislip) back in 2003 and was very excited about seeing the Lido. I had spent many a happy summer there with my mum and friends and couldn't wait to go back.
The Lido itself was lovely, a beautiful spring day, walked all around showed my children where I had spent a lot of my childhood.
Well then of course everyone was hungry. So we decided to stop in the pub for a bite to eat.  I was so shocked and taken aback.
All of the tables were covered in dirty plates and glasses and judging by the flies had been there a while. Finally found someone to clear the table we sat at, waited an eternity for cold, undercooked food served by a girl who didn't understand English. Most of the order was wrong and at the end of the meal we were grossly overcharged.
All of the staff I encountered were rude and unhelpful.
To top it all off my children then 5 and 9 wanted to play in the pub garden. BIG MISTAKE. There was vomit everywhere, the place stunk like a public bathroom and had broken glass strewn everywhere.
I will go back to the Lido, but not to the Pub. It is a disgrace to such a beautiful setting. I was totally embarrassed to take my American husband there. What an impression he got !!!!
What ever happened to customer service ?? Give me Florida any day


The comments from hereon have been made after the new (2006) manager had taken over

Last night (around 15/1/06 ROL) I organized a Christmas meal for 50 people from the Ruislip Lido Railway, and against the moans and groans we held it in the Waters Edge Public House. 

I can tell you (and so can the other 50 attendee’s) that the pub is now fantastic the food is good, service is fantastic and the facilities are so nice. 

You should really go down and have a look – it is so nice now. 

There are two ladies running the place “Donna and Fiona”, who are lovely and want to do everything they can to get people coming back to the pub.
 


I recently (April visited this year) when working in the area and found a great improvement in The Water's Edge from my last visit about 5 years ago. There was a willingness to please and excellent service. I look forward to going back in the summer and enjoying the great views from the outside area.

 
Johnny

I went there recently and have to say that I found the staff very warm and friendly. I enjoyed a nice meal in beautiful surroundings, I don't think you can ask for more than that. Well done the Waters Edge.
 
Harry

I just wanted to say that we had a very enjoyable meal at the Water's Edge pub.  The staff were friendly, efficient, & attentive.  Such a great location - really looking forward to making use of the outside space in the sunshine. 

Justine


Today my wife and I and our two year old grandson visited Ruislip Lido, we enjoyed it very much and our grandson had a great time on the "beach". At lunchtime we went to the Waters Edge pub and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. It was very clean and tidy and the menu was both extensive and very good value. We were fortunate to meet Donna who deserves all the plaudits for her efforts as do the rest of the staff. We will certainly recommend Waters Edge to our friends.Thanks for a lovely lunchtime, Tom, Thelma and Scott.


I visited the waters edge on Monday 29th May, where they were holding a jazz night. What a great time me and my friends had. Great staff, so happy and polite. The food was excellent and was served in no time at all (considering how busy it was). I was even fortunate enough to meet the manager Donna Howard, what a great person.

We will certainly be visiting the waters edge again soon, we had a fantastic night.


Ruislip Online Review

Having had a number of favourable e-mails about the Waters Edge I decided on 30th May to make a return visit and, for the first time, to actually eat there. I went at 6pm on the day England had a football match on, and immediately after a Bank Holiday Monday, it was therefore very quiet!!

Access from the road is no better, if new signs have been put up there is not one that I could see that says "ENTRANCE" and most people, myself included, seem to have forged their own path across a grassed (now worn) area.

Nobody was sitting outside (too cold) and the patio area was clean and tidy.

What followed next was quite a most bizarre experience at an almost empty bar.

There were three ladies being served by a young man and I was "next". At the far end of the bar, a young lady looked to be making coffee, for diners I assume. The three ladies ordered their drinks and the young man seemed to be having a problem with, I think, a cordial that needed to be added. After much looking for it he finally produced a "something and blackcurrant" at which point one of the young ladies must have said something like "Actually I wanted……" (something else). The young man smiled and headed down the bar, to all intents and purposes to get whatever she wanted, never to be seen again! Not a word, just gone. A few minutes later a different young man appeared and asked them if they were being served. They responded with the answer "Well actually we do not know!!" and at which point he said "OK lets start again", and seemed to serve them without a problem. I was still waiting and eventually a lady appeared from the back and served me. I think I must have waited a full seven minutes to be served at an almost empty bar!! Not a great start.

Meanwhile my wife and two of my children had found a table looking out over the picture that is the very beautiful view of the Lido, shame the window was so small…..

Food ordering is simple, go to the bar with your order and table number, pay there and then and they bring it to you. This was achieved without problem or delay. My children ordered two things from the children’s dedicated menu, I had liver and bacon and my wife went mad and had surf and turf, (steak and prawns). The meals arrived very promptly and WITH cutlery, wrapped in a somewhat soggy tissue.

My meal arrived in two dishes, the liver separate to the vegetables and in my opinion this is never a good sign (!) but, to be fair the Liver and Bacon was very good. It is a shame the same cannot be said of the mash, where first my children complained to me about it and I, who had not said anything about it to this point, had to agree. My younger daughter, aged seven, was the first to complain. Not a bad judge. It tasted and felt a bit like it had been reheated several times and as such had become rather compacted. Difficult to get the peas wrong, so I guess they were OK. My wife described her meal as "Very average". BUT, on the plus side, it was only £26.00 ish for four of us. The table was cleared very quickly after we had finished.

I decided to have a "Bread and Butter Pudding" for dessert and it was not bad at all, very hot in the middle suggesting it had been heated in a microwave, but I found it most enjoyable.

So to sum up. Clean and tidy, not the mess I had seen previously. But equally this was a very quiet night (!). The staff were very nice, even the lad who cleared off seemed charming before he went AWOL. This is NOT in my opinion a restaurant and as "pub grub" goes it was OK, but not as good as others I had been to, falling short by a fair bit actually. I am sure the staff are trying very hard and it is not their fault the building is terrible, but a few more notices and signs would not go amiss……..

Philip, Ruislip Online

And an answer from Fiona, the manager

I am really pleased you decided to visit us and I want to thank you for coming down to us.  There are actually new 'Entrance' signs up on the paths leading to the entrance - the worn down grass verge you speak of does not lead to an entrance - only the rear patio area and as such we have not put signs up to advertise it as an entrance.  I'm sorry it took you so long to be served at the bar - I can assure you that i have addressed this with the team to make them aware that waits at the bar are not acceptable especially at quiet times.  On the other hand I am pleased you found all the team friendly and the service good.  Of course you are correct in that we do, of course like every Brewers Fayre, use microwaves in the production and preparation of a lot of our dishes however this should not have an impact on the food quality and so it appears we have fallen short on the mashed potato - this is a product that all Brewers Fayres are struggling with in it's production and our food development team are currently working on a solution to improve it so that our teams in house can provide a better meal. 
 
We are not pretending to be a Michelin star restaurant and we are indeed a pub restaurant - we promote 'pub food'.  I am proud that for the most part any issues of waits, dirty areas, poor environment and toilets and unfriendly staff are the things we have turned around.  As for the building - I am afraid I am not in a position to tear it down and start again - and I would suggest that this won't happen for a long time.  To be honest this is never something I have heard anyone else bring up as a complaint.  I cannot change the location of the windows and so I will as ever continue to make an effect and improvements on those things I can change and your feedback along with those of our other guests helps us to do this so we are always grateful for any comments. 

Having looked at the web site before visiting this venue on Tuesday I was not sure what to expect.
However my sister , mother and myself were pleasantly surprised and were very well looked after at the pub.
 Service was good, and there were lots of staff who were all very pleasant, especially Theo.
The food was fine and good value . We enjoyed sitting in the window overlooking the lake on a very hot day where the air conditioning was much appreciated.
Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves in and outside the pub, the whole atmosphere was relaxed and friendly.
Many thanks Amanda T...... July 2006
We went to the Waters Edge with friends we were visiting in S. Ruislip. The building whilst not an architectural gem is adequate and the surroundings are clean and tidy. The restaurant was clean, well lit and ventilated, and the tables well spaced. We could find no fault with the windows.       Ordering food and drink was a slow business.    There was no "real " ale only gassy keg beer, and the barman had to be prompted to top up the pints when some of the froth had subsided.
 
Our main courses were served fairly promptly.There were no complaints about the mashed potato, so the problem there must have been solved. The lasagne which was ordered without chips but with salad appeared only to be served with a salad garnish.The Caramel Apple Betty dessert was served half hot and half cold, we really don't know how that that was done!.Apart from these minor criticisms the food was well presented, good value and was up to the standard of this type of restaurant.
 
The big problem was the time taken to serve our desserts, we waited at least 45 minutes, making several requests for them to be served, and they were finally served only after us getting somewhat abusive. The service to adjacent tables was much worse and diners waited very long times for their main course to be served. One couple waited so long for the accompaniments to their main course that the main course became cold and inedible and had to be replaced. At the ordering point customers had lost patience waiting for their desserts and demanded a refund. The serving staff were friendly, helpful and polite in spite of having to put up with so many complaints from the customers and we felt quite sorry for them. We asked one staff member what was going wrong, and the reply was under staffing,  and not being allowed to work extra hours. The restaurant was fairly busy but not crowded, we dread to think what might have happened in the kitchen if it had been really busy - a complete meltdown perhaps. The cause of the problems would appear to be increasing profits by cutting labour costs.    

If management continues in this way then they will not only lose customers, but also all their hard working staff.        We will not return to this restaurant or be able to recommend it.

 
Michael & friends.     Oxfordshire    Saturday lunchtime 30th September 2006.

Just to say that we had a great experience today at the Pub. Service was excellent. Although they were busy, all staff were friendly and accommodating. We are vegetarian and this is always a challenge in pubs but the food was okay, albeit 2 options, and 1 for children. It is amazing that a baked potato is not always available! Anyway we were happy and most crucially the children and grandparents were happy too. Alex S 15th July 2007

I have been to the Waters Edge pre and post refurbishment. The food needed a lift pre-conversion but the service was good, food average, nice setting.

I have returned to the Waters Edge today (8th May 2008) – and I can honestly say that it has gone downhill. Firstly, the bar staff do not appear experienced and do not know how serve people in the order in which they arrive at the bar – this is a major problem when there it is not that busy. Secondly, the queue to get served for food was far from good ( toned down for publication). It took over 45 minutes standing in line to get served! While waiting I asked the Manager to come out and see for himself, all I received was excuses! The place is staffed by very inexperienced staff and a lack of any management. Details will be put down on paper and forwarded to the manager directly and the owner of the pub!!!

I am sure on a wet, windy day with just two people entering this establishment – service will be improved. I will not be returning to Waters Edge. The food when it finally was served, was at best described as extremely average. Although it is clear I had a less than satisfactory experience – I would seriously recommend taking a picnic and enjoying the lakes and amusements but do not go to the Waters Edge.

Nick (May 08)




 

The comments below are from the original page written in 2001

Anything special? 

The attractions around this pub are just to long to list here. If you have never been to Ruislip go to this pub NOW (perhaps at a time when it is closed) and take in the beauty all around it, remembering that the Lido was built as a feeder for the Grand Union canal. This is the nearest you will get to the seaside in London.

When this is the view from your pub's garden I guess you don't have to try that hard to get customers...

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