Crawley
Thyme Restaurant Bar

Thyme Restaurant Bar

Longbridge Way, RH6 0PH, Crawley, United Kingdom

Steak • Pizza • Coffee • Seafood


"Remember you will be here for a flight it the food. The purpose of this place is to provide a reasonable fill for a large number of travellers and the odd visitor, who will have no expectation of any form of culinary excellence. What it does it manages reasonably well but there are plenty of areas of concern. You will probably be spending the night at the hotel and won’t be looking for any other overpriced offering elsewhere. When you book you will be offered a ‘meal deal’ great for those with late check ins but the fact is most people are checked in by 7am when service starts. The offer is useless to this large group. For those just wanting an evening meal one has to phone to book not easy in this automated utopia, and put up with the prices which, thought low for the South East, are steep for those from Up North: our bill for 2 courses and 2 rounds of drinks was almost £80 with not only solicitation for a tip but also a charity to whom I do not want to give money. Ugh!I have a particular loathing for Companies that expect me to donate my hard earned cash to their pet charity, especially when, for personal reasons, it is one I would never donate to. The menu is riddled with management speak ‘our take on’i is everywhere as are unnecessary hyperboles that I find off putting. Just write the menu in simple English without the horrid exaggerations. Starters are very limited. For my wife soup was her only choice. My bog standard prawn cocktail was £7 . Portions OK but don’t even dream of asking for anything that is not strictly within the menu. Steaks followed hard to get that wrong but needless to say the chips were frozen and clearly a budget brand. Cooked to our taste. Neither my wife nor I could find any temptation in the dessert menu so we passed. Service appeared manic externally but when it came to our own table was slow albeit friendly. Trying to order a round of drinks was far from easy. Just remember you are being fed as part of a crowd. You are here either for or after a flight in all probability. If you remember this I am nit aware of anywhere preferable in the Gatwick complex but that is not saying much."

The Downsman

The Downsman

Wakehurst Drive, Crawley, United Kingdom, RH10 6

Sushi • Curry • Asiatic • Chicken


"Been to this pub many times as the Indian food is usually great but unfortunately last night could be our last night!! They have introduced a new menu which started last night and none of the staff seem to know what’s going on! They were actually printing off A4 copies of the menu as customers asked to see a menu!The evening started with me asking the barman for a pint of Kingfisher (Indian beer) and he asked if I wanted a single or a double!! After clarifying that I wanted a pint of beer not a spirit, I then asked him for a pint of coke and a half pint of lager. This little teaser had him totally flummoxed! He asked if I meant half pint coke and a half pint of lager? NO says I, I want a pint of coke with ice and a half pint of lager! It took him a good 30 seconds to figure out it was two separate drinks and he was thinking where could he find a big enough glass to mix a pint of coke with half of lager .The evening continued along the same vein when we tried to order food. The order was written down three times before he got it right.The food turned up after 30 minutes but was immediately sent back as it was all cold .When the meals arrived the second time, they were all hot and very tasty. This was surprising given the Fawlty Towers experience we’d just had at the bar.So the management have clearly screwed up with the introduction of their new menu. There has obviously been no planning and no staff training. We saw several customers complaining directly to the manager. We will wait a few months for this place to either settle down or go out of business before we would consider trying it again."

Da Nico Italian

Da Nico Italian

7 High St, Crawley, Crawley, RH101BH, United Kingdom

Cafés • Pizza • Seafood • European


"Warm welcome at the door to a bright and trim restaurant that has a natural ambience of busy but personal. From the moment of sitting you are made to feel like you 're the only table that matters, this was a nice touch. Of the 4 of us, 3 were drinking alcohol, we simply asked for the House White which was fit for purpose. I 'd heard the starters were quite large so we opted for 3 of the 'Nibbles ' options, these were only plenty big enough to suit us. Do try the deep fried rice balls, they are lovely. We had mains of Pizza, Spaghetti frutti di mare, Fillet Steak and Pollo Funghi. Steak was ordered Rare, it arrived, Rare. As the most expensive dish, this was the most important. They were keen to check it was OK very soon after first cut. The ongoing service was excellent, attentive and polite. Conversation was made but not in an intrusive way and we were never interrupted if in conversation with each other. That is the sign of a good host. Everything was clean, and heavy cloth napkins are a very nice touch. Water is already on the table and refilled without asking. I was not drinking alcohol, so had the Bud Blue zero. I 'd have maybe liked one or two more options on that particular point but it certainly didn 't spoli anything. We sat for nearly 2 hours, taking it at our pace and the bill for 4 adults was £162. We feel that was very reasonable as the food was fresh and of superb quality. The sauce for the Chicken was divine, with mushroom that actually had a stronger taste. We opted for the Peppercorn sauce with the Steak which was also fantasic. The Potato and Veg sides served with the main were plentful and hot. We will be going back."