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Colson’s Bar & Grill - Colson's, Exeter, Devon

Colson's

3.3
3.3
160 Reviews
£41 and over
Contemporary British

Make a reservation

2 people
7:00 PM
Booked 2 times today
Experiences are available.
  • Good for special occasions
  • Good for business meals
  • Charming
Colson’s Bar & Grill will provide a unique take on contemporary British cuisine.

Warmhearted & friendly service.

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Elegant
  • Price
    £41 and over
  • Cuisines
    Contemporary British
  • Hours of operation
    Breakfast Mon–Fri 6:30 am–10:30 am Sat, Sun 7:00 am–11:00 am Lunch Daily 12:00 pm–3:00 pm Dinner Daily 6:00 pm–9:30 pm
  • Phone number
    01392 301801
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Executive chef
    James Peck
  • Neighborhood
    Exeter
  • Parking details
    None
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Beer, Chef's Table, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Gluten-free Options, High Tea, Outdoor Smoking Area, Vegan, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine

Experiences

  • Afternoon Tea

    £29.95 per person

    Multiple dates available
    Enjoy a homemade afternoon tea in the old Colson's store. Served between 12:00 - 4.30 pm each day. £29.95 or £34.95 with champagne. Full payment is required to confirm the booking, a member of the team will be in touch to arrange this.
    Afternoon Tea Photo
  • À La Carte Lunch Menu

    Multiple dates available
    Our food starts with our producers: We use only ethical, sustainable producers from as local an area as possible. We know the fishermen, the foragers and the farmers. We cook simply with care and love and never try too hard with our ingredients, letting them shine. Hospitality is at the heart of what we do, with charming, knowledgeable staff who will look after you like you are family. We offer an A la Carte menu, that is continually changing, guided by the seasons

What 160 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

Reviews can only be made by diners who have eaten at this restaurant

3.3
3.3 based on recent ratings
  • 3.6Food
  • 3.3Service
  • 3.3Ambience
  • 3.1Value

NoiseEnergetic

Review summary

AI-generated from verified diner reviews
Colson's offers a charming location, promising a mix of "good food" and a welcoming atmosphere. While the service has room for improvement, enthusiastic staff and delightful breakfast experiences stand out. With new ownership, improvements in service and menu availability are anticipated, ensuring a more consistent dining experience.

160 Reviews
  1. Alison

    Berkshire

    1 review

    4.0

    1 review

    Dined on December 5, 2024

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 3
    Excellent meal although there were a few items not available from the menu. A bit drafty from the automatic entrance doors

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  2. Nanji

    Devon

    4 reviews

    1.0

    4 reviews

    Dined on November 30, 2024

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 4
    I have never experienced such awful service at a hotel. We waited for ages to be offered drinks. The food was okay nothing to rave about. The service is awful it ruined my friends 60th birthday celebration. I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone

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  3. Mark

    London

    1 review

    1.0

    1 review

    Dined on November 30, 2024

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 1
    Food was ok (with one exception) but the service was appalling.

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  4. Graham

    Oxford

    4 reviews

    4.0

    4 reviews

    Dined on November 28, 2024

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 4
    Bulk standard Afternoon Tea - no tea refills offered or additional sandwiches. Think the majority of the food was bought in. This was the most unusual cheese and pickle sandwich I have every had…more pickle than chey

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  5. ian norman

    Devon

    1 review

    1.0

    1 review

    Dined on November 28, 2024

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 2
    Very poor. The sandwiches were stale, the scones hard and several of the jam pots had already been opened and partly used. At over £30 per head it was worse than a tesco's meal deal. Would not return again under any circumstances.

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  6. Julie

    Devon

    3 reviews

    2.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on November 10, 2024

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 3
    We visited on 10 November as a party of 4. Firstly the waitress had the wines written on a scrappy piece of paper and didn’t know what the soup of the day was !! Surely if you only have limited wines it wouldn’t take much to print on a piece of paper and be able to give to customers to peruse? To also not be aware of the soup of the day!! We had a voucher which included a glass of fizz, i gave the waitress the codes for both vouchers, it took until she started to clear our starter dishes that we had to ask for our fizz. The timing between courses was approximately 30/40 minutes, there was one table of a single person having a cream tea, and one other couple having hot food, I dread to think how long food would take if you were busy, because you certainly had enough staff floating around. When it came to paying the bill which I may add was brought without delay, I again had to show the codes for the vouchers. We re-booked as we had received similar service last year and thought we would give it another go, I sincerely hope that the new owners improve on the training of staff and the chef improves their timings. I would add that the food was very good, but people do always talk about their bad experiences and this was the second same experience with this restaurant. We felt quite embarrassed as we were taking my sister and brother in law out to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary, and to spend 3 hours (14.00-16.50) for a lunch is incredible. I await your response Kind regards Julie Coles

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  7. Matthew

    VIP

    London

    6 reviews

    2.0

    6 reviews

    Dined on October 25, 2024

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 1
    Food was good but the service was terrible. Almost all of the wine on the list was unavailable and a number of items ordered didn’t arrive. Staff seemed to disappear and congregate behind the bar on phones rather than serving guests. What a shame. It’s a good location but I hadn’t realised that it was actually a hotel restaurant when I booked. It wasn’t actually that busy (maybe 40%~50%) for a Friday night, but a complete lack of leadership meant that the staff simply couldn’t cope. I was appreciative of discounts off the bill. But it would have been much better to have had the evening that we had hoped for. I understand new owners have just taken over, so hope that this will be high on their priority list, as the venue location and food standard is good.

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  8. Andrew

    Devon

    1 review

    4.0

    1 review

    Dined on October 15, 2024

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Hotel Indigo Exeter has a restaurant, called Coulson food and service you could not fault. A good place for good food and a catch up.

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  9. Wallace

    Devon

    24 reviews

    2.0

    24 reviews

    Dined on October 13, 2024

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 1
    Ok expensive and would not rush back…..lacked atmosphere and service.

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  10. Robert

    VIP

    London

    7 reviews

    1.0

    7 reviews

    Dined on September 14, 2024

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 1
    Ambience of an airport lounge. 1/3 of the menu was unavailable. 20% of the red wine unavailable and what remained was mediocre. The waitresses were enthusiastic and meant well, but clearly college kids doing a side hustle rather than professional waiting staff. Steak was poorly cooked: medium rare filet cooked all the way through without a pink middle anywhere to be seen. Redeemed only by its nice location.

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FAQs

Colson's is rated 3.3 stars by 160 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Make a reservation

2 people
7:00 PM
Booked 2 times today
Experiences are available.
Google Map for Colson's

3 Catherine St, Exeter, Devon EX1 1EU

Additional information

  • Neighborhood
    Exeter
  • Hours of operation
    Breakfast Mon–Fri 6:30 am–10:30 am Sat, Sun 7:00 am–11:00 am Lunch Daily 12:00 pm–3:00 pm Dinner Daily 6:00 pm–9:30 pm
  • Price
    £41 and over
  • Cuisines
    Contemporary British
  • Dining style
    Casual Elegant
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    None
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive chef
    James Peck
  • Additional
    Bar/Lounge, Beer, Chef's Table, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Gluten-free Options, High Tea, Outdoor Smoking Area, Vegan, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine
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  • Terms of Use
  • Cookies and Interest-Based Ads
  • Cookie Preferences
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