I'm feeling quite angry just from reading about your experience! I think we need to bring back that old technique of walking out.

Like you, I was irked by the change in attitude when they realised they were being reviewed. Surely every customer should get the best service and attention possible?

This is exactly why my reviews are unannounced and paid for. Restaurants need to realise that the one customer who they ignore, could be the one that has a radio show/blog/newspaper column.

Not being able to find management because they're having a good chat somewhere is really infuriating. The same applies for waiters who stand around chatting while you dislocate your eyeballs trying to get their attention.

I had a lovely dinner at Caveau at the Mill the other night, but the 5 slices of bread between 10 of us didn't go far. It took so long to get attention that when they finally brought more bread we had finished the tapas. It's a small thing and won't stop me returning, but I was so irritated it really detracted from my experience.