Ravens Ait - a haven on the Thames?
I had a day at Ravens Ait this week which is located on an island in the Thames between Hampton Court Palace and Kingston upon Thames. A potentially delightful and peaceful location and the owners hope that the function rooms and corporate hospitality will get a large draw of customers. It is also quite quaint in that you (obviously!) need to get a boat across to the island. However things start to go downhill once you get there. The building is 1960/70s and starting to show its age. There is nothing instrinsically wrong but it feels dated and needing a little cash spending on it. Everyone was very polite and welcoming and the facilities were satisfactory; it really was quite pleasant watching boats go by, wildlife etc. Lunch was satisfactory again, but aiming for a market which I don’t think they were quite reaching. For example, the cold starters appeared to have been defrosted, except not all of them had…. Heaven knows what Gordon Ramsey would think!!
So whilst it genuinely was relaxing I can’t quite wholly recommend the venue. 5/10.