We were invited to review the restaurant at the refurbished Red Lion in Barnet, North London which is now part of the Stonehouse Pizza & Carvery chain. It isn’t far from where we live in North West London. It took about 20 minutes to get there. We decided to go for Sunday lunch because they were famous for their carvery so it made sense to go for a Sunday roast.
We have not been out for a proper family Sunday lunch for a while now so we were really looking forward to it. The restaurant is now under new management so they were very keen for feedback.
Checking their menu online ahead of our visit, I confirmed that they had lots of options for kids and a lot of great options for adults.
THE OUTSIDE
We hadn’t visited previously so I can’t compare or spot the differences, so I can only go with what I saw that day. It looks like a typical pub from the outside. I like all the details that they had such as the big red lion with the sign at the top. I also like that there were a lot of signs about the restaurant so you were sure where to find them.
They also have a car park which is very handy if you are driving. The car park was free on Sunday but you need to pay if you come any other day, so bear that in mind.
ENTRANCE AND DECORATION
This place is huge! I wasn’t expecting that. It is very open and airy which I like so you have your own space. I don’t like it when the tables are crammed next to each other and you can hardly breathe because there is no space at all. I can be a little claustrophobic so having space really appealed to me.
The bar area has its own tables and the bar itself is very long. They have a pool table and game machine as well as big screens so you can watch TV or any particular match or sporting event that is going. I thought that was cool and although it is very much a restaurant it is still very much a pub too.
The tables and seats were big and comfortable too. There are two floors and the toilets are located on the second floor, although I’m not sure if there is additional seating upstairs. The bathroom was very nice and clean.
They have incorporated a pizza oven and a salad bar. The carvery area is quite big too. I was really impressed by it. To be honest I wasn’t expecting to see the amount of food that was available. There is a little bit of everything. There was also an area with lots of different sauces as well as a dedicated area for ice cream toppings. I thought this was very cool and retro idea.
There are lots of options to choose from and you can always come back and try something different.
ORDERING OUR FOOD
You don’t order your food at your table here. Instead, you order and prepay for your food at the bar. I usually prefer to order at the table but everything was very clearly explained on a blackboard.
There were a few people around who were very keen to help answer any questions. This was good for us because we haven’t visited the pub or another Stonehouse restaurant previously. The main choices were pizza, burgers or a carvery which came with unlimited vegetables and salad. This was for all the main courses. I really like this idea as its always good to add some salads or veggies to your meal.
While we were deciding what to order, the girls were given a kids pack where they were able to draw, colour and play while we were waiting. They also got some balloons when we arrived, which kept them entertained, although what the girls loved doing most, especially Sienna, was going up and down the stairs, LOL!
THE FOOD
Our food arrived pretty quick. We ordered some starters for us all to share. We got BBQ glazed chicken wings, mini dough balls and Southern Fried Chicken strips. This was all delicious. I really liked them all which was a problem as I filled myself very quickly with the starter. The girls pretty much ate the fried chicken strips which they loved.
I also got some salad. I really enjoy salad and they have a great selection so I was very happy with my plate. I had a little bit of everything but what I really enjoyed was the beetroot. I used to have this a lot back home in Peru and haven’t had any for a while so I was craving it a little bit. I really enjoyed my salad. Bella also had some salad which she said that she enjoyed.
For the girls, we ordered Margarita pizza from the kid’s menu which is always a hit with them. They also had a carton of juice each to go with this. We were given a buzzer to let us know when the pizzas were ready so we could collect them from the pizza stand.
The pizzas are stone baked so they are extra special. Both girls were very pleased with their pizzas and ate most of it. The portions were big so we asked for a box so we could take home what was left.
I also ordered pizza but mine was a Goat’s cheese, spinach and red onion chutney pizza. I really liked this pizza. It was so tasty, thin and crispy. I really enjoyed eating it. My portion was also quite big so I took what was left home too.
Nick was the only one who ordered the carvery. He had a really good serving with a little bit of everything on his plate. The selection of food was fantastic. So much that it was hard to choose. His plate looked so nice!
DESSERTS
The dessert part was interesting because we had the option to serve our ice-creams on our own and we were free to top it up as many times as we wanted. They also had dispensers so you can choose your toppings. It was all super cute. I loved the retro decor in that area.
Our ice cream was really tasty and yummy and we all really enjoyed them!
PRICES & WHERE TO FIND OUT FOR MORE INFORMATION
I couldn’t believe how much you got considering it wasn’t that expensive. I thought it was very good value, especially for London. It was £9.99 for a carvery meal with unlimited salad and veggies and the pizzas were about £7.99 (Margarita) and £9.99 for the Goat’s Cheese, Spinach and Red Onion Chutney Pizza. The ice cream sundae dessert was £3.99.
You can also order food online to takeaway. For more information and where to find them, you can visit their website HERE.
OUR THOUGHTS
I was very impressed with this restaurant. I think the Red Lion has something for all the family. Whether you’re up for a party, watching sport or meeting friends and family for a bite to eat, this place a great option to enjoy a meal.
Do you like a good carvery? What about a nicely baked pizza? Where do you normally go for Sunday lunch? Have you visited or heard of the Red Lion in Barnet before? What about Stonehouse? Have you eaten at one if their restaurants before? If so, what did you think?
*Disclosure: we were invited to this restaurant for the purpose of this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Thanks for stopping by,
Love you all ❤️
Franca 💋
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Looks very nice place,the food looks good, especially for how much you pay.
Girls looked happy with the food.
Thank you! Yes they were very pleased with their food! We really enjoyed our meals! It was a lot of food for the price! So it is a great value! 🙂
Todo se ve delicioso, pero me encanto el plato de Nick. Provecho.
Jaja si estaba muy bueno! Todo estaba bien rico! Las pizzas buenazas tambien! 🙂
A bit far for me but a shame as I love booths! They are so comfy and private when you are having a meal. I love going to the pub for a meal out, feels like such a treat!
It sounds very reasonable considering how big the portions are!
Yes! Very reasonable! The portions were huge!
This looks like a good place to take your family