Duck Bay Marina - Alexandria

I dont really know how to rate this visit in all honesty. It was the venue of choice by my bf for his birthday and after checking the menu online I decided to email ahead to find out what gf options there were as it was not clear from the menu. I got a lovely email back explaining that almost ALL of the menu could be adapted for gf so I was very pleased. In arrival we were seated quickly and although we didnt have a window seat we still had a lovely view iver the loch. After our drinks order was taken I asked one of the food servers what items could be adapted for me and he went away to discuss with the chef. A good start I thought but I was really dissapointed to be told that the chef could do me a gf batter for this fish and chips but in his words it was rotten or the chilli was gf and one of the thai curries. No to those of you not on a gf diet this may seem like a good choice however these dishes are 99% gf anyway so i was confused as to what items were being adapted I went with the thai curry and skipped the nann bread and had chips instead. The food was really nice and we were served relatively quickly. However ... around 30 minutes after leaving the dreaded gluten belly hit and instead of enjoying a wander around the sea life centre i spent the 1st part of the visit in the loo. Very dissappointed and dont think I will be back ...

I had such high hopes for Duck Bay Marina but, ended up leaving completely underwhelmed after my recent girls lunch there... I'll start with the positives though, the setting, it's a short drive out of Balloch and sits right on the bonnie banks of Loch Lomond. The views are stunning there's no denying and it has plenty of outdoor seating which is great! Then there's the menu...it's huge...which is good as you know you'll not be stuck for choice, however, I often find this a bad thing as too much choice usually results in below average food as the chefs struggle to cope with the variety on offer. In the end I opted for the mac cheese, a classic, you can't go wrong with that, right? Wrong! Yes it was a decent size portion and served with garlic bread but under the vaguely crispy top was a very liquid sauce which without the garlic bread to mop it up, I would've needed a spoon for. The pasta was also slightly over for my liking but appreciate everyone is different on that one. After a short break we decided to have a sundae each, my sweet tooth taking over I had the tablet variety! It arrived with umbrella (urgh , wafer (double urgh, they're so tasteless I never see the point in them and doily (a recurring theme throughout the meal doily's may have been a thing in the 90's but their only purpose in life now should be to make paper snowflakes, not to line plates... . I counted 4 squares of tablet, 2 scoops of ice cream and a dod of almost butter like cream with some toffee sauce and was charged £6.95! £4.95 maybe, but £7!? Daylight robbery! Meal aside, staff were all pleasant, but never the same waiter twice, and it was constantly stowed; sadly I think that was more down to location than quality of food on offer. I think there is plenty potential but needs dragging into the 21st century first...

Avoid this place. Came here for a wedding. The scenery is gorgeous and the wedding reception was nice. However, the hotel staff is not what you'd expect. I'm a value buyer, £135 for a small room, maybe ok. And room was clean. But why only two stars? General thing: no Wifi even it is advertised. I need that for work, yes even weekends. The last snafu was when we were checking out. They don't have credit card machines on all bars, you sign the bill. They tried to charge me £100 on a night I didn't even visit the restaurant. Everybody makes mistakes, so I explained that I hadn't been there. And the woman at reception didn't believe me! Art that point I lost my cool and wanted to see the manager. The bill was corrected, naturally. If to have a good experience stay somewhere else.

This isn 't a review on the food as i haven 't eaten here in a very long time and quite frankly I forgot what I even had obviously not memorable) However I 'm reviewing the service and the tea I ordered Walked in and went to the bar while a young lad stood around looking awkward and ignoring me for a while, I finally got him to move and serve me, ordered a tea to sit outside with and was given some uht milk pots ..... Charged £2.50 and I wanted to pay by card, he started talking to another team member and I stood with the machine in my hand across the bar waiting on him taking it, I even said here you go twice at which I was ignored for his chat Then I make my own tea £2.50 remember) and the uht had horrible little white bits floating in it I sat and admired the view which I admit is the reason I stopped here Will I use the hotel again for food or drink on a stop Nah I don 't think I will

The meal was ok, but I may had been expecting more. The appetizers were strong and that probably may up for a lackluster dinner. We had the haggis, scallops and black pudding and tempura. All three were good with the black pudding standing just above the rest. I would highly recommend this dish. For dinner, I had the steak and sausage pie. Good fluffy pastry with large helpings of meat. The brown gravy was decent, but not great. My wife had the duck, which was good with the Diane sauce to go with it. Those that had the salmon at the table were ok with it. Another said she loved chicken curry and the chicken stroganoff also got strong reviews. The wait staff however wasn't the fastest. We had to wait 20 minutes to get our bill. We never had he same person twice at our table.