The Crown Rivers

Had a burger (£11.90) here and it was plain awful. The beef was McDonalds quality — two small pucks of lukewarm mystery meat.
Wife had a mozzarella pesto panini that also wasn’t very good.
Keep looking, there are better places to eat in the airport.

Overpriced, slow service (20 minutes to get a beer). Only breakfast menu until noon. I’ll look for something else in the terminal.
I’ll avoid this place next time I’m stuck here.

I expect a markup at the airport, but £10 is a little steep for a sad benny.
My Eggs Benedict arrived as two eggs poached medium on toast with a bland piece of ham in between. As I picked at it, I wondered if the hollandaise was actually just mayonnaise with a squirt of lemon.
There was a 20 minute line during the noon hour to get in, which may be why my expectations started out higher. The staff was friendly but just didn’t make up for overpriced cafeteria food. I ended up happily spending more for better food and a cooler atmosphere at Plane Food afterwards.

So so so hungry when we landed at Heathrow, I could have eaten my foot if not fed ASAP… So once we entered Terminal 5, the first restaurant we saw, we agreed to eat at.
I was very very underwhelmed by this restaurant. The chicken and salmon I ordered were extremely bland and the salad was, well… A side salad. Nothing crazy. I was trying to fill up so as to not be hungry on my 13 hour flight, alas, with the lack of fat involved in this meal (I should have asked for some avocado), I was actually still hungry once I gobbled up everything on my plate…
My fiancé ordered the double chicken California Burger and he didn’t complain (he was equally as hungry)… So that’s a good sign. He even was generous enough to give me a ½ of one of his chicken burgers (which were just grilled chicken breast) and I have to say, it tasted far more flavorful than the sliced grilled chicken I ordered for myself. Thanks fiancé for wanting to make me and my hangry happy!
It seems like others seemed to enjoy their food, so maybe I just ordered something boring… But whatever, people with food allergies should also have the option of eating tasty foods… Right?!
PS: I had gluten-​free meals given to me on the airplane… And they were tastier than the food I got at this restaurant!!! SHOCKING, I know!

My original layover was supposed to be longer, but luckily it got shorted to just 3 hours. Since I had time to kill, my buddy and I decided to knock back a few pints.
The Crown Rivers has a sit down restaurant section and a predominantly standing room bar section. The beer is modestly priced and they have a great selection of craft beer. They pride themselves in serving English microbrews, but they also serve a few american craft beers along side the likes of Heineken, Guinness, and Coors Light.
Service was polite and the staff were knowledgable. Maybe next time I’ll try the food.

For airport food this place has a lot of character and decent food. As was expected the prices were high, it’s an airport in London after all.
Had the standard breakfast and it was decent. Nothing spectacular nor was it disappointing. Perhaps my expectations were low for the airport.
I wish there was more to write, but it doesn’t warrant a lot of comment. Amongst the airport, not too bad.

Pire burger de toute ma vie, service à la va-​vite. J’aurais dû regarder les avis avant…

I really enjoyed my breakfast here. This was my first time and likely only in the foreseeable future in England, as I had a layover in Heathrow. I wanted to have a «proper» English breakfast, so I chose here after talking to some of the airport employees. I was given a menu and seated, and soon after a waiter came to take my order. I opted for the big breakfast, which has 2 of everything, whereas the regular has 1 of each item. The food came quick, and I had plenty of time to enjoy my breakfast and juice (don’t judge). It was all tasty, though I didn’t finish the beans and bread because I was full, and they were the last items to get my attention likely because they’re not typical breakfast fare for me. The mushroom and tomato (juicy) were good. I also really enjoyed the eggs, sausage, and bacon. This is a solid choice for breakfast if in Heathrow. Because my curiosity to try elsewhere would get the best of me were I to find myself here again, I feel 3 stars is appropriate. A 4^th star would mean that I’m stuck on this place and won’t try anywhere else, which though tasty, isn’t the case.

I just payed over $ 17 USD for one of the worst burgers in my life.
Burger was dry. Over cooked. Tasted like it had been prepared earlier then microwaved.
The bacon on it was also processed and microwaved.
Terminal 5 is one of the most crowded terminals I’ve seen in a long time, and I flown regularly out of Newark and JFK.
There’s are five places to eat in Terminal 5.
The all had long lines to be seated.
Except for the Crown Rivers.
Now I know why.

I am a big fan of the Wetherspoon chain, simply because they deliver on quality, price and service.
It is appreciated that the airport outlets are priced a little differently, but that aside everything else remains the same.
When I arrived at The Crown Rivers, it was incredibly busy, but I was still seated and served promptly, with food arriving shortly afterwards.
There is a separate bar and food area, depending on if you just want a drink or a meal.
Good location and easy to find.

Didn’t eat any food here; but great beer selection on tap! Excellent prices; you walk up to the bar, get a draft beer; and help yourself to a seat. Very easy. Seating area is nice and open with a view out of the taxiway.

I don’t understand why this place was so crowded, maybe just location — service was OK, I would give that 3 stars, the food was 2 stars (I had the veggie burger) and the drink they made was a 1 star at best. Maybe an OK place to grab a beer if they aren’t too crowded while you wait for boarding call — they are conveniently located right by the British Airways gates, but convenience alone doesn’t get you many stars.

Arrived around 13:30 on a Saturday and flights were clearing out so got a full service table (otherwise you order at the bar), had good service and timely attention.
Great beer selection, and had a Winsor & Eaton ale.
Ordered a Doom Beef and Ale Pie with mashed potatoes and greens. Yummy gravy came on the side, that you pour into the pie. (See uploaded picture)
Great pub food. Yummy, but rather bland as pub food usually is.
You can sit right by the big departures screen and monitor your flight, with no stress and have a pint or two. :-)

Ordered a large breakfast and substituted the 2 sausages for 2 poached eggs. Instead got a plate of 3 fat white slugs. :(

I could have sworn I had reviewed this place already… Note: I never ate here, or even sat down, so have no idea what that is like. The reason I give this place four stars is that they always have a nice variety of real ales on tap. Wetherspoon is a big chain, and I’m not really a fan of big chains, but I have to admit that for a big chain, they have taken a real interest in serving and promoting interesting beers, specifically real ales. It’s great that before my flight at Heathrow I can down an interesting pint or two, and this is the place to do it.

Remember this immortal quote from Dante’s Inferno: «Abandon all hope ye who have entered here.» You’ve been warned.
Slow, disorganized service.
Food was ok (bangers and mash).
Long wait to get served.
Longer wait for food. Bangers and mash were ok. Potatoes looked like they came from a powder.
Tea arrived lukewarm and late. Sugar packets sodden. Replacement tea arrived without sugar, which arrived separately. No spoon. Check came fast, though. They probably wanted the table.
Beer was decent but limited selection from name breweries. No treasures here.

Standard for a wether spoons. Not badly priced for an airport and you know what you’re getting. Staff are quite friendly and beer is beer right?!

Appalling service. We sat for over 10 minutes and no one came near us despite us trying to attract their attention. Other diners gave up waiting or just helped themselves to napkins etc. we just wanted a drink :(Turns out you have to order at the bar but there is nothing to tell you that. The smoothie comes out of a can! Avoid, avoid.

The Crown Rivers made my foodie dream of eating fish & chips in England a reality — yes, I’m one of *those* people — when I had a layover. Granted, it’s still airport food, but I didn’t care and gave it a go anyway.
A plate of fish & chips costs under £10. The fish is a good piece of hand-​battered, fried cod that ‘s accompanied by chips and a side of peas. With a few squirts of lemon and a couple of vinegar packets I poured over the fish, I thought it was going to taste wonderful. Unfortunately, it didn’t come close to what I had hoped. Everything about the meal was bland. After a few bites in, the novelty of eating fish & chips in England began to wane.
Such a disappointment, but that’s not to say that I wouldn’t give it another go when I return to England, but it would of course have to be elsewhere other than Crown Rivers at Terminal 5.

Maybe I just didnt order the right thing. I had a chicken skewers with a mediocre sauce and dry rice. It wasn’t dreadful but I really forced my self to eat as much as I ate. Service was fine, although we had to ask three times for one thing… to someone who wasn’t our waiter. 3 stars because the lamb +sauce was delicious and mashed potatoes as well.

Not bad for an airport bar/​restaurant. Been here several times on layovers between SFO /​LHR /​HYD and the food has never disappointed. I usually don’t like to drink alcohol when flying, but there’s no shortage of that if you want to get some.
A few things to note:
— Breakfast is served all day. This is great since my body has no concept of time when flying overseas and breakfast is always a nice option. May I suggest getting their eggs benedict? Great hollandaise sauce and the egg is cooked nicely with a runny yolk.
— Order at the bar, give them you’re table number, and you’re set!
— Takes International credit cards