Smiths Restaurant Ongar

Lovely night for my sisters 30th. Really amazing food, a beautiful restaurant and our waitress Nicole made our evening really special.

The best services going, fantastic fresh fish and a great atmosphere

Food was amazing! But poor service considering the cost.

Food and service were up to the usual high standards.

Excellent fish and a good wine list sensibly priced with only 100% mark up which is sensible

This was my first visit but hope it won't be my last. My party of five people all thought the food was superb.

The food was excellent as always.The bill was incorrect and the waitress called the manager.She needs to be taught how accept a legitimate complaint and not make the customer feel uncomfortable in a crowded restaurant with other diners listening in.She treated our complaint with complete indifference and her attitude was very poor.The bill was incorrect by £12 which was corrected.

Very good as always, lovely birthday lunch with my hubby.
Food was amazing , definitely book again, thank you

Lovely service lovely food cant wait to book again

We have been visiting Smiths for over 20 years but hadn’t been for a while & glad to see it still does not disappoint! Beautifully cooked fish & excellent service! Thanks

Lovely evening. Fabulous food and exceptional service. Bit noisy due to 2 large parties.

The noise level detracts from the good food and service . In fact the noise level puts me off taking friends there, which is a shame.

Food high standard service just right 2 course menu good value

We had a lovely lunch. We were shown to our table by a friendly receptionist. The waiting staff were attentive and the food was superb. A very good selection too.

Lovely atmosphere/service and food..

BUT ..

VERY POOR FOR WHEELCHAIR DISABILITY USERS
NO DISABLED TOILET FACILITIES MAKING FUNCTION VERY DIFFERCULT TO COMPLETE

Excellent food and outstanding service from highly obliging staff made 50th birthday lunch extra special.

We had a great evening celebrating a birthday and the food was top class! The only thing that let it down was the waiter that served us who was arrogant and lacked manners! However that’s not enough to stop us from coming back because all the other staff were great.

Went on a Wednesday 29 January night to celebrate my husband's birthday. Lovely fish beautifully cooked. Everything was piping hot and appetizing - unlike some restaurants that serve cold chips and lukewarm vegetables. Compliments to the team on the day.

This was our first visit and we were not disappointed. We were celebrating our 15th Wedding anniversary and Smiths had been recommended by a friend. We had a wonderful time, the food was excellent and service was wonderful. Will definitely be returning.

The set lunch menu has very extensive with great choices. The food arrived in good time and was all very well presented as well as tasted great. Only down side was as it’s so popular and busy it can be quite loud and hard to hear conversation across the table. Enjoyable birthday lunch.

Simply amazing !! Just a bit noisy with larger tables

We went to Smith's for an anniversary of 30 years to the day when I met my wife. The first impression as soon as you enter this restaurant is class and we were quickly acknowledged with coats taken from us and shown directly to our seats.
Menu's were soon given and drinks ordered.
The menu is very good, with something to attract meat eaters too as Smith's specialises in fish.
But if it is fish you desire, then this is the right place to come to......
Service was outstanding and our orders were soon taken.
I had the South Coast Scallops wrapped in Pancetta with a Parmesan and balsamic rocket salad.
My wife had the Crispy sesame beef with teriyaki and plum glaze with an Asian Apple salad.
Both starters were delicious and beautifully presented.
My scallops were perfectly cooked and the best scallop dish I have ever had......
The wine was poured for us without intrusion, and our mains followed.
My Monkfish Mauniere at first sight lacked any presentation. It looked disappointing. Maybe needed a garnish. BUT once I tasted the dish, WOW. Four nuggets of perfectly cooked fish with amazing flavour because of the Mauniere method of cooking, perfectly seasoned, really made up for the lack of presentation.
My wife had the Guernsey Skate which she really enjoyed.
We waited for the dessert menu, and were in no hurry to leave this lovely restaurant. The ambience was just right, and the tables are spread apart so you can enjoy your own space.
But the desserts did arrive and again the food didn't disappoint.
Vanilla Bean Creme Brulee was very indulgent with a perfect crunch to the topping, and served in an open larger dish than the traditional small Brulee pot which meant more of that lovely crunchy caramelised sugar on top. Very nice.
My wife enjoyed the lemon Bakewell tart and wanted more, but didn't have any room for it!!....
The bottom note is that this is an amazing restaurant if you want a good relaxed dining experience with amazing food and fantastic service.

This was my first time at Smiths and the food was unreal! Service was great it was such so lovely, I have already booked to go again next month

This was our second visit recently with different friends and the experience was fantastic on both occasions. The food was wonderful and the service excellent. It did become a little noisy towards the end of our meal due to a large party who were enjoying themselves but this did not distract from our overall enjoyment.

Wonderful food and great attentive service although I would have much preferred a longer gap between starter and main. Great portion size! A little too noisy for a quiet conversation.

Good quality food and friendly service. Set 3 course lunch menu had a good choice and portions were good. One of us had two courses, the other 3, bottle of house white. No coffee or water. With service £88. Our table for 2 was a bit tucked away. The lighting was s little bit dreary and it was extremely noisy.

Grey Skate, very very rude manager.

Perfect fish

Pleasant surroundings, Good food well presented on a busy Friday lunch service

We’ve not been for a very long time but went for a double birthday celebration. Food was excellent, service was excellent & ambiance was lovely. Thank you

Excellent food and amazing service. If you want a great meal out you can’t go wrong in going to Smiths

My favourite restaurant , food always perfect with a good choice from their lunch menu

Always a great atmosphere in this great fish restaurant. Staff all do a great job and work really hard..

We enjoyed our meals, although my sirloin was slightly overcooked, and the overall experience. The portion sizes were impressive .
One negative is that my wine order did not seem to get to the bar so I was a third of a way through my meal when I decided I needed to chase it up.

Fabulous night. Brilliant food. Excellent service

Excellent food and lovely restaurant in lovely location. Only downside was the level of noise from a party table.

Always seem to end up here on Friday for last minute lunch, others appear to book well in advance and are dressed for the occasion!

I always have the cod meunière. Husband had skate but said was slightly over this time.

Service always impeccable and despite a 40 minute drive for us, we will continue to randomly stop by for a lunch when in the area.

Can’t fault a well-oiled machine!

Lovely food and fantastic service, staff were very friendly and we had a wonderful time, would definitely go to this restaurant again

Smith’s is a stylish restaurant with a comfortable ambience and reasonably busy even on a wet Tuesday evening. The set menu looked good value but we were tempted onto the a la carte (by our own choice) which is significantly more expensive. Service was prompt and polite and drinks arrived quickly. There was a bit of a delay in taking the order but not excessive and service was smooth through to the end of the main course. The calamari and the fish soup were both excellent as were the turbot and sole both served au meunière and the Sancerre was clean and fresh and glasses were topped up regularly but not overzealously.
Unfortunately after the main course the dessert and coffee menus appeared and then it seemed that we had been forgotten. Originally we had planned to have coffee but after at least 15 minutes of watching staff tidying the restaurant we lost interest and just had the bill which did come very quickly. Not a big deal and wouldn’t stop us returning but their loss in terms of a missed sale.

Food was lovely. Staff were very efficient and friendly. Will be back.