The Blackbird Inn

We are frequent visitors but today we were met with extremely poor service. Having a 4 year old becoming tired whilst waiting for over an hour for our main course to arrive is unacceptable. There appeared to be heated discussions amongst the staff with regard to our table, lame apologies but the manager did not appear overly concerned . We are now on the lookout for an alternative Sunday lunch restaurant.

As usual the restaurant gives us more than expected. So glad to see the blackbird back up there as one of ponetelands best pubs and restaurants.

The service and food were excellent. Our table was reserved with our name and we were quickly served with some drinks. We had no starters but the main course was delicious. Dessert was of the highest quality.

Very pleasant relaxed atmosphere. Attentive service. Decent food as well. The menu has a good choice, and is not overly expensive. Would return and dine again.

Disappointing, the fish was not up to the usual standard - thin and dry. One fish replaced by gougons that were acceptable. Customer service not what would be expected - should have discounted one meal.

We booked for a family Sunday lunch. Having been to the restaraunt for a la cartel before and it was fantastic. However we waited for about an hour for our main courses to arrive and when they did the beef was very very tough. So much so that one of the group was unable to eat it. The vegetarian option of nut cutlet was dry and tasted terrible again a big disappointment. We were so upset as we had brought the family as a treat and were let down by the food

Excellent- superb food and attentive service made for a very enjoyable evening, also a good selection of Gins and a good wine list we had the old vine Zinfandel

Food very good but service very slow - nearly an hour to get mains & a further 30 mins for desserts. Service good waitresses very attentive

We almost always have the haddock with chunky chips, both of which are excellent. The staff are always friendly and the waiting time is acceptable.

Delicious Fab time Burnt fish cake :( but acknowledged by kitchen and free desert given Shame as rest 5/5 really lovely place and great service - good choice of drinks and nice food

The usual great food every time we visit. The staff are always courteous and helpful. The only problem is the proximity to the bar, which is usually quite noisy.

You can't really go wrong with the food, it's all tasty and well presented. The menu should satisfy everyone and the staff are always attentive.

Good service and food. First time we had been and would definitely return. Waitress was very helpful, service efficient and most importantly Sunday lunch was delicious.

Good food /good staff/ enjoyed our Sunday lunch experience and would definitely go again Also sky tv if you are interested in sport with your food

Attentive, polite staff. Good food and drinks menu. Made to feel very welcome. Family friendly early Friday evening. Popular with locals popping in for a pint after dog walk and also groups celebrating an occasion.

Had a really lovely night. The staff were friendly and helpful. The food was lovely and the function room was amazing!.Thank you Blackbird for making my birthday night special.

My three sisters and I came to the Blackbird on recommendation. We have never had such a bad meal. The prawn cocktail was almost all lettuce and at £6.95 was very poor. Three of us had the burger they were so hard and overlooked we could not cut them, the only redeeming factor was the chips. We left a tip for the young waitress Who was very pleasant. We will not be eating again at the Blackbird and could not recommend it to anyone. Mrs Elsie Clark

Lovely food served by lovely efficient and attentive staff. The Minstrel's Gallery is a particularly nice comfortable room, although the stairs could be tricky for people with limited mobility.

excellent food, very good service in a nice setting. the pub was very busy and added to the atmosphere as the rugby was on at the same time.

Today myself, husband and daughter visited the blackbird for Sunday lunch. Firstly all the staff were extremely polite and friendly. We were given a table with high stools and after seeing it might not be suitable for my daughter they moved us to a table near the fireplace. The service was great, very efficient. The food was delicious, myself and husband had a roast dinner and my daughter had chicken nuggets. I would definitely return and would recommend to others.

Restaurant was busy when we arrived which meant we were a bit delayed in sitting down. Food was outstanding and service really good. Overall a great experience

A very disappointing start to the evening when we were brusquely ushered downstairs despite being booked upstairs! Downstairs is too crowded and the tables so close together I could not physically get both legs under the table. A much more caring waitress spotted our plight and offered us a table upstairs. This is a proper dining room and a delightful space which was not being used, however there was a lovely log fire burning and we were given a table in front of it. Excellent. The waitresses and service were fantastic as was the food. What a wasted room this is, they cram people in downstairs probaby unlikely to return (for that reason) when they could have a superb dining experience upstairs. I really can't understand the management's reasoning! Full marks to the waitress who saved our evening, turning it from a potential disaster to a thoroughly enjoyable occasion. Not so many marks though to the gentleman who showed us to our table when we arrived.

Our reserved table in the bar was well positioned for the needs of the children and adults in the party. The staff were very helpful and served us all at the table without questioning. The food was lovely and everything was eaten readily. We were made to feel very welcome and nothing seemed any bother to the staff. A really nice friendly visit with lovely staff and surroundings. Thank you.

Tuesday evening with my wife, very relaxing meal in the restaurant, great food and a fantastic head waiter. Would recommend Great choice of wines, beers and especially Gin, bit of a bad head Wednesday Morning

The usual good food and service, quieter than on previous occasions. First occasion to have the hamburger - good but not as good as the haddock.

Very nice meal, good service. Busy for a thursday evening so a lovely atmosphere if a little noisy. Excellent value for money. Worth a visit.

Service was slow but in their defence it was a Monday night and reasonably busy (Newcastle match on TV). The Food was good and we enjoyed our evening.

Surroundings fab, atmosphere great, menus varied Allowed to mix and match from menus no problem...food was really good. Service was good...m y friend and I have nothing bad to say about our night. Lovely to see Blackbird 'buzzing' again.

Hard to see how the haddock or the steak and ale pie could be improved. Excellent food. Noise still a slight problem.

Lovely food, atmosphere and staff. Will be going back soon

Great care has been taken to create a relaxed and inviting atmosphere. The Food was excellent value and quality. Would recommend. Thank you Sue and Stuart and all your staff. Regards

From ordering food it took 40 minutes for it to be served. Food was nice but then had to wait another 20 minutes for plates to be taken away and to ask for dessert menu. No serving staff in the restaurant downstairs at all for over 15 minutes to ask for the bill so had to get the attention of a bar maid working on the bar in order for us to pay our bill and leave.

The decor is gorgeous. Warm and comfortable atmosphere. The staff were lovely and provided great service. To top it off the Sunday lunch was delicious. Will definitely be back!

always a great experience at the BlackBird Ponteland, my favourite local Ponteland pub. Great beers and good food with excellent service! Serve local ales and all the usual ones with a few extra! Great Gin selection and staff are great.

Great food and friendly staff. Had a lovely Sunday lunch with in-laws and children. Good choice for both adults and children alike. Would thoroughly recommend.

Amazing service amazing food! Could not fault at all. We went for Valentine's Day and the set menu was beautiful and definitely worth the price! The waitress was excellent. Best steak I've had and will definitely be returning

It was the first time we have visited the Blackbird since its refurbishment. I remember it from previous years as an olde world type pub with small linking rooms. The refurbishment has opened up the inside. While loosing some of its old world charm it is more fit for purpose now as a gastro pub. We had a Sunday lunch menu, which was all that was offered on a Sunday. It was a very limited choice for mains but all that was ordered was good. A good choice of vegetables was provided making the main choice quite substantial. There was a better choice for starters and desserts. All six of us thoroughly enjoyed our meal, my favourite being the homemade panettone pudding which was yummy. The waiting staff work very hard and were friendly making the whole experience an enjoyable trip out. Will definitely be back, very impressed. Look forward to trying the everyday menus. Thanks.

Fabulous Sunday lunch with great service from Fran. There was a bit of a delay between our first course and our main course but at the end of our meal the manager came over to apologise for our delay and gave us a discount. We were very impressed by the quality of the food and the excellent service we will definitely be returning.

Good service, good food, nice environment. Will deffinatly be back. I would recommend dinning in the upstairs gallery if you wAnt to have a romantic meal for 2,

Delicious food as usual and a very busy nice atmosphere. Unfortunately today the service was very slow we waited quite a while for our two courses so a 5 mark instead of 6. But will certainly be back again.

Good food,efficient & welcoming staff. Critique ! The car park requires a higher level of illumination. We will certainly return to this restaurant in the near future.

A building with enormous character and history provides excellent surroundings and excellent food. Yorkshire puddings are spectacular for the Sunday roast. Have always enjoyed my visits.

What can I say. It was the best meal I've had in a long time. Would to recommend everyone. Staff friendly and very helpful. Thankyou

it is always busy at the blackbird, everybody enyoying themselves including us. The food is always worth the wait as it is freshly made, the fish and chips is always a hit.

Lovely food, service and atmosphere. The staff were brilliant and made us feel very welcome. The food was delicious and the chicken dish with mushrooms was sublime.

Had the haddock which was excellent. Service was equally good. The only downside was the noise from the adjacent bar, which was open to the restaurant area.

The food was very good quality. The service was quick and efficient and the waitress provided a very friendly and polite service. Prices were on the expensive side but for the food quality were reasonable.

The usual good food and good service but much quieter than previously, probably due to the fact that the Christmas/new year season is over.

Tasty and well presented food without being spectacular. At £20 for 2 courses we thought it was a little on the expensive side especially as we both left still feeling slightly hungry. Service was slow which was perhaps understandable as both the pub and restaurant were full with diners.

Visited on Thursday night -pub and restaurant extremely busy but with good atmosphere. Service friendly if a little slow but this was due to them being so busy. 4 of us wanted to order the fish cakes but unfortunately these were finished -disappointing . We ordered the burgers which were delicious although none of us liked the oddly shaped wooden plates -made the food difficult to eat. Overall though a very pleasant night and will return.