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County Hotel, Samphire Restaurant, Chelmsford, Essex

County Hotel, Samphire Restaurant

4.0
4
25 Reviews
£25 and under
Contemporary British

Make a reservation

2 people
7:00 PM
Experiences are available.
  • Good for special occasions
  • Romantic
  • Good for business meals
If you are looking for a romantic dinner date, private meal for family and friends or a scrumptious Sunday roast, look no further. Awarded a red rosette for creative cuisine, and a Visit England Rose Award for Service Excellence.

Samphire Restaurant invites you to enjoy the flavours, aromas and textures inspired by our innovative Head Chef. Samphire Restaurant is open 7 days a week to residents and non-residents.

Please kindly note, we require 24 hours notice for Afternoon Tea reservations.

Order delivery or takeout

Additional information

  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Price
    £25 and under
  • Cuisines
    Contemporary British, Afternoon Tea, English
  • Hours of operation
    Breakfast Mon–Fri 7:00 am–9:30 am Sat, Sun 8:00 am–10:00 pm Afternoon Tea Daily 12:00 pm–5:00 pm Lunch Daily 12:00 pm–3:00 pm Dinner Daily 6:00 pm–10:00 pm
  • Phone number
    01245 455700
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Executive chef
    Roy Ortega
  • Catering
    Full range of catering options
  • Private party facilities
    We have a range spaces perfect for your private party.
  • Neighborhood
    Chelmsford
  • Parking details
    We have a large car park at the rear of the hotel with is complimentary for our guests.
  • Public transit
    3 minute walk from Chelmsford Train & Bus station
  • Additional
    Banquet, Bar/Lounge, Beer, Beer Garden, Cafe, Cocktails, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, High Tea, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Takeout, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine

Experiences

  • Classic Afternoon Tea

    £26.00 per person

    Prepaid

    Multiple dates available
    Why not join us for a fabulous afternoon and choose between our Traditional, Great British, Vegan and Children's Afternoon Tea. We have table sizes and rooms available for all occasions. Why not add a Bottle of 20cl Prosecco for £8.50 per person
    Classic Afternoon Tea Photo
  • Great British Afternoon Tea

    £28.00 per person

    Prepaid

    Multiple dates available
    Why not join us for a fabulous afternoon and choose between our Traditional, Great British, Vegan and Children's Afternoon Tea. We have table sizes and rooms available for all occasions. Why not add a Bottle of 20cl Prosecco for £8.50 per person
    Great British Afternoon Tea Photo

What 25 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

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

4.0
4 based on all time ratings
  • 4.2Food
  • 3.9Service
  • 3.4Ambience
  • 3.8Value

NoiseModerate

25 Reviews
  1. Carol

    London

    6 reviews

    3.0

    6 reviews

    Dined on April 7, 2024

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 2
    Enjoyable meal but slightly disappointed with our choice of dessert as this should have been warm. Staff was very attentive and friendly . Hotel exterior is in need of renovation so it looks more presentable.

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  2. Jacs100

    Essex

    156 reviews

    5.0

    156 reviews

    Dined on August 28, 2020

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 4
    Sapphire Restaurant: quiet on arrival by atmosphere livened up later, excellent service, food, wine list, value for money. Impressed!

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  3. FrancescaE

    London

    2 reviews

    5.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on May 11, 2019

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    Great time here for afternoon tea. Staff were accommodating to our particular eaters and assisted my with little sandwiches and milk for my young boy along with a colouring in pack - food was amazing! Love the cream cheese and mint sandwiches!!

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  4. IanM

    Essex

    3 reviews

    4.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on February 14, 2018

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 2
    Food was nice. Service was just poor. They tried but it was like everyone had just started and didn’t have a clue.

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  5. Jacs100

    Essex

    156 reviews

    3.0

    156 reviews

    Dined on November 1, 2017

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 1
    The food at The County Hotel is great (I had the pan fried salmon with mashed potato which was excellent) but there was absolutely no atmosphere on both occasions I have dined there recently. (Maybe it gets busier later in the evening though).

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  6. NicH

    Buckinghamshire

    3 reviews

    3.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on September 10, 2017

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 4
    Nicely refurbished restaurant, excellent menu and wonderful food. The only problem was that on a Sunday lunchtime, with only 50% occupancy the food service was so slow. We were first to arrive at 12 noon and finally paid the bill at 14:30 which even for a 3 course lunch was glacial in pace. Our frustration was mentioned a couple of times to staff but they just blamed the kitchens .

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  7. OpenTable Diner

    Essex

    3 reviews

    3.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on June 4, 2017

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 3
    Good service, very quiet, good food

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  8. Jacs100

    Essex

    156 reviews

    4.0

    156 reviews

    Dined on March 17, 2017

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 2
    Samphire at The County Hotel is a great find! Couldn't fault the service (waitress very friendly), food excellent, décor and ambience very relaxing, but there was not much atmosphere on the Friday evening when we went (only a few other guests dining). Highly recommend.

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  9. bellymo

    Essex

    5 reviews

    3.0

    5 reviews

    Dined on May 22, 2016

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 2
    4. Ambience 3
    The hotel dining room is lovely but it was empty, we did get there early for the pre-theatre menu but even so. The choice was good and everyone enjoyed there meal. Apart from the lack of atmosphere my problem was the service, the waiter lent over the ladies to give the men there meals and obviously wasnt aware of silver service. We were told that if we wanted dessert we had to order it with the rest of the order - why? who knows if they want a dessert before having the starter and main and we were the only people in the restaurant! so we just said no. Great location for the Chelmsford Civil, we left our car and just walked up. Brilliant

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  10. YumYum

    London

    3 reviews

    3.0

    3 reviews

    Dined on April 5, 2015

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 2
    My wife and I have been to the County Kitchen a few times for their Sunday Carvery. So why, you may ask have I only given the County Kitchen 3 stars and entitled my review as lacks consistency? Well the title does say it all, it isn't that the food and service and surroundings are bad its just that as a complete package it...........lacks consistency. Perhaps I should explain rather than repeating myself Our table was crammed in with others in the small conservatory/veranda area. It felt cramped as we were against a pillar and so close to at least 6 other diners that it felt uncomfortable and unwelcoming, especially as the rest of the restaurant was empty. Moving on to our food. We opted for starters, followed by the carvery. My wife's starter crab & haddock fishcake, with chive hollandaise was presented nicely and according to her "very nice but lacked flavour". Mine was pork belly terrine and chutney my comments mirror those of my wife's. Lacked seasoning and flavour, but looked nice. I echo Greg Wallace's thoughts on Masterchef the other day....."...would rather have something that tastes good rather than a dish that just looks pretty..." Now the carvery you have a choice of at 3 roast meats plus vegetables and if you feeling really hungry there isn't a limit to the number of times you can go back. But for most appetites 1 visit is enough. Being a little greedy I had a couple of slices of port (with yummily crisp crackling) and some beef. The carver described the beef as medium rare (my preference) but it was more like medium to well done so it was a bit tough and chewy (shame as it looked a fantastic joint of beef). That finally put an end to our meal, we paid our bill (£59.95 incl bottle of wine, and starters) and left. I have to say that this hasn't been our experience on other occasions, so perhaps its was just an off day. Will we go back? Probably, but we won't be rushing back. Its not a bad place, it just.....lacks consistency!

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FAQs

County Hotel, Samphire Restaurant offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at 01245 455700.

County Hotel, Samphire Restaurant is rated 4 stars by 25 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
Experiences are available.

Order delivery or takeout

Google Map for County Hotel, Samphire Restaurant

The County Hotel, Rainsford Road, Chelmsford, Essex CM1 2PZ

Additional information

  • Neighborhood
    Chelmsford
  • Hours of operation
    Breakfast Mon–Fri 7:00 am–9:30 am Sat, Sun 8:00 am–10:00 pm Afternoon Tea Daily 12:00 pm–5:00 pm Lunch Daily 12:00 pm–3:00 pm Dinner Daily 6:00 pm–10:00 pm
  • Price
    £25 and under
  • Cuisines
    Contemporary British, Afternoon Tea, English
  • Dining style
    Casual Dining
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    We have a large car park at the rear of the hotel with is complimentary for our guests.
  • Public transit
    3 minute walk from Chelmsford Train & Bus station
  • Payment options
    AMEX, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive chef
    Roy Ortega
  • Additional
    Banquet, Bar/Lounge, Beer, Beer Garden, Cafe, Cocktails, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, High Tea, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Patio/Outdoor Dining, Takeout, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine
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