Spending Quality Time With Toby

I think all parents can relate when I say, there simply aren’t enough hours in the day. Most of the time I struggle to juggle four children, a job, the housework, the homework, not to mention over-seeing various renovations we are doing within our home, none of which have been as straight forward as we had hoped. Our week days pass in a crazy blur of work and school and, by the time the weekend comes around, all of those other jobs have mounted up until eventually they feel completely over whelming.

When we were offered the chance for some quality time together as a family at Toby Carvery, whilst we allowed Toby to take care of one of the many, many jobs on our to do list, we jumped at the chance. With our bathroom renovations, one of the main items on our list was to find someone to come and get rid of all of the bathroom waste and packaging from our new furniture which had been sitting in our front garden for the last few weeks. I can’t tell you how much it depressed me to come home each day and see it all sat there, and yet somehow there just never seemed to be the time to get it organised.

So last week we were booked into our local Toby Carvery and, whilst we enjoyed a family meal and some quality time together as a family, Toby arranged for our front garden to be completely cleaned up and all of the rubbish removed.

Our nearest Toby Carvery is in Bolton and is actually located in the most beautiful, historical old manor which is just bursting with character.

Our table had been booked on line and yet, although we had received confirmation, unfortunately when we arrived there was no sign of our booking, or our table.

Thankfully the manager was quick to resolve the issue and after a short wait found us a table which was in the main dining hall. With high ceilings, impressive chandeliers and beautiful stained glass, it was a really lovely venue to enjoy some family time together.

We were served immediately by the waitress who also brought over colouring pages and crayons for the children, something which is a real must when trying to keep three hungry children entertained.

I was excited to look at the menu, new for September 2018, and see what there was on offer. As well as Toby’s famous carvery, there are a selection of starters as well as alternative meals for those who prefer something a little different.

Also new for September is the addition of Roast Lamb to the Sunday menu, joining Roast Gammon, Roast Turkey, Beef with a Beef Dripping Glaze, and Roast Pork with an Apple & Sage Glaze. Lamb is definitely my favourite meat so I was really looking forward to trying it.

For Harry and Megan, who are the fussiest eaters I’ve ever met, we were pleased to see a selection of dishes they liked on the children’s menu. The children’s menu comes with a choice of sides from baked beans, veggie sticks, corn on the cob and garlic bread. Megan chose spaghetti bolognese and garlic bread which came quite quickly and she was more than happy with it.

Harry chose chicken nuggets with a side order of garlic bread and although it looked great, I was a little surprised that the chicken nuggets didn’t come with any accompaniments. I think it would have been nice to have chips or some form of potato along side it to make it feel more like a meal rather than just a snack.

Once the children had their meals, Gaz, Eva and I made our way up to the carvery table to choose our own meals. I was so looking forward to trying the lamb and have to admit I was a little disappointed that instead of carving from the lovely fresh leg of lamb infront of me, I was given the very leftovers from the previous leg. We were also told there had been a delay with the gammon and so unfortunately missed out on that too. That said, there was a huge range of potatoes – mash, roast, dauphinoise – as well as broccoli, cabbage, peas and cauliflower cheese.

Eva was pleased to see sausages as an option and of course, Toby’s famous Yorkshire puddings!

Gaz opted for the larger plate which, for an extra £1.79, gave you an extra Yorkshire pudding and more meat. When he brought it back to the table I have to be honest, I wished I had gone for the same!

For anyone who hasn’t been to Toby Carvery before, I can’t even begin to tell you how good the roast potatoes are! The best thing about the carvery is that, whilst you can’t ask for more meat, you are allowed to help yourself to as many potatoes or vegetables as you like, as many times as you like!

After filling up on roast potatoes neither Gaz or I could fit in another mouthful for dessert and yet the children were desperate to try one. They all opted for the Create Your Own Sundae which is vanilla ice cream with a selection of sweets and sauces to decorate it!

The children loved creating their own sundaes although struggled to finish them. It’s a good job that I was there to help them out…..!!

It was so lovely to spend some time together as a family as, although we enjoy a Sunday dinner together quite often, it’s never the same when you’ve had to cook a meal and then clean up afterwards!

It was also nice to switch off from everything else and just enjoy those quality moments. I think we really needed that after a rough few weeks with the children all quite unwell.

After our meal the manager allowed us to have a peek upstairs at the function room and the impressive staircase and landing. I honestly don’t think I have ever seen a Toby Carvery in a building as grand as this!

The children loved discovering two thrones at the top of the stairs and of course it was the perfect place to pose for a photograph!

As we arrived home I can’t tell you how relieved I was to discover that, whilst we had been enjoying our meal, someone had been to clear the front of our garden. We are so thankful to Toby for helping us tick off a huge item on our to do list, which would have taken up so much of our quality time, and instead gave us a lovely afternoon together as a family.

 

** We were invited to Toby Carvery as part of the Quality Time With Toby campaign. All words and opinions are our own **