My wife and I had our wedding ceremony and
reception here at the beginning of February in 2012.
The event was planned for 40 people for ceremony/dinner and another 35 for the after party.
All 3 legs went really smooth, Sadie and her
staff was very helpful, and very professional,
always there to help but not too much in your face, exactly how it should be.The ceremony was beautiful, and Sadie organised everything with the registery beforhands
so we had nothing to do apart from showing up on the day.
Dinner was nicely presented, very fresh and tasty, and the after party was absolutley mind blowing,
again Sadie and her team recommended a singer who was absolutely amazing serious X Factor material.
I can only speak about the staff and the place
in the highest standards, this is exactly what we imagined as our big day,I would do it there again anytime!

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!K&M

I had my boyfriends surprise 30the birthday here. The staff bent over backwards to ensure it was a success! We were in the private dining room upstairs and we had about 70 people in there. It would also seat around 30 people for a lovely intimate wedding meal!

Sadie was great advising me on timings and how I should run the event. Having never done a surprise party before, I needed all the help I could get! On the night, everything ran smoothly. Gavin was a great host as were all of his staff - friendly yet professional, I didn't have to worry about a thing except drinking champagne!

Although we didn't have food on the night, I have eaten at the Bickley quite a few times and the food has always been great, especially the lobster. We plan to come back very soon!

This place should really get zero stars! The reccomended white wine was awful, the table was wobbly, the medium-rare steak was burnt, the ingredients were poor quality, the decor is forced, the waiting staff aren't knowledgeable and the price tag was high. Not a fan!

I held my daughters christening for 60 people on the terrice of the Bickley and I can only explain it as outstanding from every aspect. Sarah was fantastic in directing the set up and the staff bent over backwards to make sure everything was in hand.

Daniel Webster aka very happy customer

Came for Sunday lunch and left feeling very let down.

Two traditional roast beef dinners with the trimmings and an old favourite for our toddler. The beef was wonderfully sliced by, I'm sure, an electric carving knife and the veg minimal and bland. You expect something more tasty and less grey when you pay £14 per dish.

The gem came in the shape of my son's fish fingers, chips and beans. It was shocking, at £7.50, to put a small plate of food in front of a child which I could guarantee cost less than 80p to put together. I'm serious, the fingers weren't even a supermarket leading brand and the beans were thick and gloopy. In fairness, it came with a side order of wasps, which we hadn't ordered. Sitting in the lovely restaurant garden, we were showered with them and it eventually became impossible to eat, especially as the toddler was about to eat one who seemed to be drowing in the baked bean slush.

Thankfully he wasn't stung but his old man was, paying the bill. When I paid up I was told they'd had trouble with a nest of wasps for some time but hadn't found where it was. If only they'd told us that and suggested we sit in one of the other dozen or so spare tables in the garden.

Staff, to their credit, are sweet enough.

It could be so much more but it's not.

We held our wedding reception at the Bickley in May 2011 and from start to finish had the best day ever. The whole day exceeded our expectations on every level. The decor, service, friendliness & helpfulness of the staff and the food were wonderful.
Definately recommend.

was taken here as a Fathers day treat, by my son (aged 2 1/2). My wife only booked it during the week of Fathers day, so when she was told that the Sunday was fully booked (now doubtful given other reviews and our experience…) we went on the Saturday instead. Friends had recommended the Bickley to us, (who are “Foodies”) so we had thought it would be nice…

On arrival, three people ignored us. Firstly, by the barman, then a waiter and then a waitress. It just made us feel like a nusence. What price a smile? Not a great start. After walking into the restaurant and announcing that we had booked to the waitress that had ignored us we were then shown to a table.

We ordered two Bucks Fizz’s and an Apple juice.

The Food

My son had boiled eggs and soldiers – Fine!

My Wife had the smoked cod fishcake. It was a large ball of smoked cod that was not cooked well, as it was stodgy in the middle. It seemed to us that something that big could not be cooked through properly if the outside was not to be incinerated, and so it proved. Side of Green salad.

I had the Rump Steak ‘Fillet Cut’ steak. I ordered it medium rare, but it came grey ¾ the way through and raw in the middle. It seemed to me that it was cooked when still chilled too much from the fridge, so while it felt like Medium rare, it was actually overcooked/raw. Chips were nice, but the side of beans/cabbage seemed a bit mean.

With hind site I should have complained, but as it was a treat from my Son (Wife) so I kept quiet. (Regretted later)

For Pudding I ordered the summer pudding that was also disappointing. It was tiny, dry and accompanied by clotted cream and three small dabs of fruit. It was just way to dry, as a dish with no juice. I sent it back.

My wife and son both had ice cream that was nice.

Service

While the waitress and waiter we had were pleasant enough, the manager/bloke in a suit walked around un-smilingly, ignoring everyone. I didn’t see him speak to anyone, staff or patron

We visited the restaurant for our first wedding anniversary celebration. This is an amazing venue, the decor, ambiance, music, service and food were of an exceptionally high standard. The menu is authentic, food fresh and service excellent.

Me and my husband recently visited The Bickley in Chislehurst, for a wedding reception. The whole evening was wonderful and prefect. The food was fresh and beautifully cooked, great wine, service was friendly and efficient. I will be visiting again!

Just got back from the Bickley on a Friday lunchtime... went there with my parents for a birthday get together.
Although the restaurant was not very busy the food and service more than stood up to my expectations.
The food was exciting, beautifully presented and very tasty.. the waitress was charming and couldnt do enough to make us happy.
We all had a great time and would most certainly recommend this restaurant to others.
We will return :))

I have just found out that the bickley does not give any of the waiters/waitresses service charge. so basically we as consumers are just giving them 10% extra money to make them richer. I find this totally disgusting and will be finding somewhere else to eat out.

The law really needs to be changed to stop this happening. It is criminal that they can get away with it. I for one will be boycotting the bickley and would advise anyone who reads this to do the same.

Have just been to the Bickley for Father's day lunch. Very disappointed. Was told when rang to book table at 12.30 that only 12.00 available, but clearly this was not the case as by 2.00 there were still tables available. The food was very mediocre and when a starter of smoked salmon bruschetta arrived it was on a dry crackery type of flat bread. Our waitress was ok, but we were placed at a table by the till and as the restaurant wasn't very busy the staff were crowded around close to us not doing very much, which made us feel very uncomfortable. I then noticed staff looking at us and sniggering - not great. The website menu is not the same as on a Sunday but the website does not state this. Having read the review below, I am surprised at the venom of the response from someone. Sounds to me like one of the employees! Maybe the Bickley should update its website. If it had we would have known what was on the menu, we would not have gone, therefore, would have not written this review! Obviously we cannot recommend The Bickley to any of our friends.

Went to the Bickley a couple of weeks ago and although a nice time was had by all I must confess that I found the experience a bit lacking in taste. The food, although it looked good, was lacking. The nibbles were lovely, but none of us enjoyed our main course as much as we'd expected, lack of natural flavour & seasoning being the main complaints. I had chicken, which was overcooked & a bit dry, with potatoes that lacked seasoning and crushed broad beans with pesto, apparently. Where was the pesto? So subtle that I couldn't taste it. Or someone had forgotten to add it. Another main sampled was the fish & chips, which was all a bit limp, and other mains were also deemed to be lacking in flavour amongst our group. For dessert the pineapple tarte tatin was okay, but the ice-cream, supposedly coconut and lime? Again - couldn't taste it. The caramel from the tarte tatin drowned out any flavour there. (please don't think that my palate is geared to over-flavoured, processed foods as this is definitely not the case. And I wasn't drinking alcohol that night either!)the female staff with micro-mini dresses & over-the-knee boots looked a bit like perma-tanned, overly made-up, peroxide ladies of the night. Or wag wannabees. And as the night went on the place began filling up with over-confident, loud men who obviously fancied their chances! However, congratulations to the owner for actually recognising that bringing in a professional designer and doing the place up properly is worth the effort. Although the decor will begin to look dated quite quickly, hopefully they will keep reviewing that and won't let the look go stale. The signage/graphics are stylish. Huge improvement on what the place used to be like! Unlikely I'd go back but I'd say that if you're one of the many Chislehurst residents who's idea of good taste is a 4x4 with a private number plate spelling out your name or initials, then this could be the place for you! ;)

Friends and myself went for afternoon tea yesterday, what a big disappointment,

I was told on the phone tea was £7 per person, when we arrived surprise surprise, if we wanted tea this was £2.50 extra,explanation was the cost of teas varies was each blend ordered was extra.

Muffins on the menu did not arrive, we were told the menu should have read muffins or brownees, it did not.

The very small finger sandwiches were few, we did ask for more, and received 4 more fingers, 1 small scone each, l very small brownee, and a sponge that none of us could eat.

The final straw was the 10% service charge. A very disapointing afternoon and a great embarressment to me because I chose the venue.

Krystyna Martin

Just had lunch at The Bickley which we found by accident.... and loved it!

Staff friendly and helpful (we have a 7 month old baby). Decor great - it's a great building that's been refurbished but keeps quite a Victorian feel.

Food was expensive but very good. I had the squid and duck with rice and chinese greens - the squid was perfectly cooked, the rice and greens tasted great - only disappointment was that the duck was slightly dry.

My wife had halibut with jersey new potatoes and vegetables. The potatoes were some of the best i've ever eaten.

I had lemon posset for pudding that tasted great. Beer was good too! £50 all in.

We'll be going back gain for a treat.

I went to the Bickley on Sunday for lunch. It was adequate.

My starter was bland to say the least and at £9.50 was over priced.

My pudding was almost inedible it was so sweet. But the vegetarian main course I had was good.

Although, one of my party had the roast beef and said they wouldn't have it again. Its a shame its so overpriced.

It is charging central London prices. The atmosphere was great and the decor lovely.

In the summer its probably very nice to sit outside in the garden and have a drink!

The Bickley is long established gastro pub and it shows. The cooking is very assured, the service professional and the atmosphere relaxed. There is nothing not to like. The standard of ingredients and cooking is at the better end of the gastro pub spectrum. I have been several times and have yet to be disappointed. This area has very few restaurants of any quality but this is one of them.

I go to The Bickley and the food on offer actually exceeds the title of gastro pub! For me The Bickley is not just the best pub in Chislehurst but also the best restaurant. I knew the pub where the chef won the evening standard award and was overjoyed when he popped up local! The Bickley Arms had been neglected for years and the transformation it has undergone is incredible. The Bickley is now a venue with a lot of flair and the best pub garden I've seen. Top end quality food in the restaurant plus great classics like fish & chips or an unsurpassed burger at the bar for under £8.00!! Not surprised they're building flats next door, this pub is an asset to the neighborhood!!

We were looking forward to a new 'gastro pub' opening on our doorstep, but after several visits we are still looking. The food is good enough and the decor well done but it is pricey and the title of 'gastro pub' is somewhat premature. At the end of the day it is an old pub at the bottom of Chislehurst station approach and next to a building site!