the porter basement

Took my husband here for his 60th birthday with eight friends. From the moment we arrived to our leaving we were made to feel welcomed and special. Having pre ordered our starters and mains plus giving our names the waiter (Angus) he was able to place our meals in front of us without having to keep asking who had ordered what. A simple thing but it meant the flow of conversation with friends went uninterrupted. The quality of food was outstanding. I had the crab starter which was so delicious I can't wait to go back and have it again. The duck breast was the best I've ever eaten. All of us agreed that our meals were so delicious we could lick our plates !! We will be going back. Thank you

Came here with 3 others on Saturday night we were seated upstairs where the bar used to be and the atmosphere was lovely. I had the dressed crab which came highly recommended and was superb, the ewes cheese starter was also fantastic. All 4 mains of steak, duck, lamb and vegetable with puff pastry were delicious. We ordered cheeses board which is probably the best I've ever had and one of the party had the deconstructed lemon meringue pie which was divine I would recommend 100%

I was only able to book a table at 6.00pm for Saturday night, although on arrival the restaurant was empty. The menu was rather uninspiring and it was with some trepidation we proceeded to order. However, the food was fabulous! The four of us had a sharing platter to start with, 2 of us had the venison burger, another the butternut squash and goats cheese salad and I can't remember the other one. We had puddings and cheese, loads of cheese, all very tasty, the de constructed lemon meringue pie was just divine. By that time the restaurant was full and we could understand why. Slightly small tables but otherwise perfect.

Had warm welcome from the staff had a fab meal the 5 of us and afters it was stunning can.nt wait to go again to there thank you very much

I went with my husband and started with cocktails downstairs which were delicious and we were very comfortable too. We then went upstairs for dinner and were blown away by the service (intelligent, attentive and friendly) and the quality of the food (amazing). My husband had sausages and I had a chicken salad which were both wonderful. The bread that we nibbled on at first was unbelievable and we were even able to taste different wine on offer before settling for our favourite. Really good value too, couldn't recommend it more highly. We live in Bath and eat out a lot, this is a real gem.

Very interesting and unusual decor. It was dead when we visited which was around 9.30 on a Tuesday evening, we were the only patrons but you could tell there was a nice atmosphere. Good selection of wines and cocktails although we did not order any. We ordered two beers which the bar man overcharged us for as we could clearly see the correct price of the drinks on the drinks menu. I am guessing this was a mistake and we did not mention it so as not to cause a fuss. Only other negative comment was that the music did not extend into the coved sections of the bar very well which was where we chose to sit and it was quite quiet.

Me and my boyfriend shared a deli board which I would just like to add was amazing and HUGE! My boyfriend was happy as they sold ales. When we first arrived if it was peak lunch hour and very busy so we decided to wait in the bar upstairs. The barman was really helpful and funny. I had a french martini cocktail and my boyfriend was amused trying the different ales (typical man) we went back downstairs about 30 minutes later, we got chatting to a couple at the bar…The deli board (see picture) couldn't recommend it more. Lovely food. Would go again if in bath.

Went here for a light lunch on a business trip to Bath. Food excellent - we had the set £15 lunch menu which had limited choice but was terrific and two glasses of wine.Great cooking and good value.

I recently celebrated my 40th birthday with a private dine for 21, upstairs in the Library, followed by cocktails and dancing in the Basement Bar. I can thoroughly recommend The Porter on all aspects of the evening, it really is a special place for a special occasion!Beginning with the initial full tour of the beautiful Georgian building and lots of time to sit and nut out all the details over a coffee, I can only commend Hector, the General Manager, on his customer service. I didn't even bother going to look at the other venue options after our meeting, as I was so impressed with Hector and the Porter. Sachi, the Events Manager was very patient and was able to deal with my questions and changes along the way, I appreciated the flexibility shown.The chefs created some incredible food! Everyone was raving about the beautiful flavours and presentation, they also catered brilliantly for our vegetarian and gluten-free guests. A really thoughtful surprise were the complimentary mouche bouche for those who hadn't ordered a starter, what a lovely touch! The Library looked absolutely gorgeous with a twinkling Christmas tree, huge candelabras and background music, it was a lovely atmospheric room. The wines were also very good, again lots of comments from guests!Angus and Sarah were our fabulous wait staff, they took brilliant care of my friends and family, it was obvious that nothing was too much trouble, they both did a wonderful job of keeping us fed and watered and keeping things moving. Angus organised for plates to be brought downstairs for the birthday cake, along with the extra bottles of wine that we hadn't got through. Again, nothing was too much trouble!It was brilliant to see Hector there to meet us on arrival, check everything was ok, provide a Porter music mix as I'd forgotten my ipod, and just be there to ensure things ran smoothly. Great to see a General Manager working on a Saturday night, we appreciated it! After our lovely meal we moved down to the Basement Bar, it looked absolutely gorgeous with twinkly candles and Christmas decorations, an alpine ski lodge in the centre of Bath, just beautiful. We had the Den as a base for our guests, with nibbles out and welcome drink tokens ready.The DJ, (don't know his name sorry!), provided some of the funniest moments of the night with a classic mix of dance music and cheese, just brilliant, he must have known there were a bunch of 40 year olds in the room! It's a real skill to get a whole group up on the dance-floor, everyone was loving it!If you are looking for a party venue, or just a lovely meal, or a good dance, then The Porter is perfect. We will definitely be back again, is it too early to start planning my 41st?! Congratulations to Hector and all the wonderful Porter staff on creating such a fabulous venue, and making my 40th one to remember! xx

I mainly visited the bar upstairs which is really nice. They have great selection of beers and ciders on draught and the mixed drinks and cocktails all very well made by the amazing bar staff. The bar staff seem to be very friendly and eager to help. We had some sandwiches and a venison burger in the room next to the bar. Both were excellent, especially the venison burger.We also visited the bar downstairs later in the evening. We were lucky enough to get a booth which I would say is essential unless you like dancing. Again, the drinks were well made and staff helpful.Will definitely return.

Behind the scenes there may be room for improvement, their reservation systems didn't work for us - but the food and service (Kelly) was excellent. The menu has a good variety and the puddings are beautifully presented.Not cheap but not extortionate either.

After having lunch in Clayton's Kitchen with a friend we decided to visit the lounge bar for a few drinks, the selection was great and we loved the atmosphere. We were served throughout the afternoon by Ben, Jonny and Kev who were all fantastic and we will definitely be back.

My wife and a friend spent a couple of days in Bath, staying at the Halcyon Hotel which was part of the same "family" as The Porter. I believe that it has now changed hands.They lunched at The Porter for the first time and we're not disappointed. The quality of the food was excellent as was the service offered by the staff. First class all round.They are already planning a return visit to try one of The Porters serviced apartments which they viewed, and with which they were very impressed.

We started the night in the upstairs bar and enjoyed some very tasty cocktails made efficiently by the bar man Ben. we weren't sure what to order and he gave some great recommendations based on our individual tastes. In a city where people just throw drinks in front of you it was lovely to get some really attentive service. Then we moved on to the basement bar and the bar man Joe was just as friendly and attentive to our needs, recommending different shots to us and althoug it was incredibly busy we didn't feel rushed . We all felt very spoilt and it wasn't even a special occassion!

I took my parents for a meal at the Porter in Bath last weekend and had a fantastic evening, I couldn't recommend it enough! The food was delicious and the staff were all lovely and extremely helpful. Our waitress Kelly made out evening with her fun personality and excellent recommendations. We ate on the ground floor in Clayton's Kitchen which was really well designed. It's bare brick walls and rustic furniture make for a really relaxed atmosphere - it's almost unrecognisable from the Porter Pub that was there before. I will definitely be going back when I'm next in Bath!