When you’re booking an all-inclusive holiday, one of the things I always want to know is what the food is actually going to be like. It’s all very well having activities, entertainment and somewhere lovely to stay, but if you’re going to be eating there for your whole break, you want to know that everyone is going to find something they like!
We recently stayed at Potters Resorts Hopton-on-Sea, and one of the biggest benefits of the break for us was having all of our meals included. So, what is the dining actually like at Potters Hopton-on-Sea, and is it family friendly?
What food is included?
One of the things I really liked about staying at Potters was knowing that we didn’t have to think about where we were going to eat.
Your break includes four meals a day, with dining in either the Garden Restaurant or Gallery Restaurant. Your first meal is dinner on arrival day and the final one is breakfast before you leave.
This might not sound like a big deal, but when you’re travelling with children, having meals included makes the whole holiday so much easier. There’s no having to get in the car to find a restaurant, no looking through menus trying to find somewhere everyone will eat and, perhaps most importantly, no worrying about how much you’re spending every time someone says they’re hungry!
What is the food like?
The food at Potters is really varied and there’s something for most tastes each day. The menus change every day, so you’re not eating exactly the same things throughout your stay. This is something I think is really important when you’re somewhere for a few nights because I definitely wouldn’t want to be eating the same dinner every evening.
There is a mixture of different dishes available, so whether you’re looking for something familiar or fancy trying something a little different, there should be plenty to choose from. For us, one of the best things about this style of dining is that you can pick and choose. You don’t have to commit to one particular meal and hope everyone likes it.
Family dining at Potters
Potters Hopton-on-Sea is normally an adults-only resort, but during the school holidays it changes and becomes a family-friendly resort. This means there are children’s activities, family entertainment and, importantly, a children’s menu.
When you’re travelling with children, having a children’s menu available can make such a difference. Even if your child is usually a reasonably good eater, there are always going to be days when they just want something familiar. I think that’s one of the things that works well about Potters. You can have a proper meal as an adult while children have options that they’re more likely to enjoy.
Breakfast
Breakfast is always an important meal on holiday for us because we tend to have busy days. With so many activities available at Potters, you want to make sure you’ve got enough food to get you through the morning! You are able to go for breakfast between 8:30 and 10am.
Having breakfast included meant we could eat before getting started with the day’s activities, without having to worry about finding somewhere open or paying extra.
For breakfast you can expect a buffet offering a traditional hot English breakfast as well as cooked to order omelettes. Your server can get you a range of other eggs and fish but you can also help yourself to pastries, cereals, fruit and breads.
Lunch
Lunch served between 12:30 and 1:30pm and is great for a way to relax after a busy morning of activities. Having lunch included means you can take a break, have something to eat and then get back to whatever you’ve planned for the afternoon. And, of course, because it’s all included, there’s no need to worry about spending money on lunch every day.
Lunch includes a set menu as well as a smaller buffet. The buffet offers jacket potatoes, some children’s items and a really good salad bar with cheese, meat and breads as well.
We ate a bit of a mixture for lunches during our break at Potters this summer and it really all depended on what was on the menu that day. Instead of larger meals like dinner, think things like Hunter’s Chicken, fish and chips or soups. The portions aren’t actually that small though so if you’ve had a large breakfast, you might not finish a plate!
Desserts are included with lunch as well and you’ll find a set menu for cold options and one special for lunch. Although there was enough choice here, I would have liked to have seen the menu changed. As someone who doesn’t like lemon, it cuts out quite a few options which makes the others repetitive.
Dinner
Dinner at Potters is served between 6:30 and 8pm. You’ll tend to find people waiting around the restaurants before this time, as many people want to end up with a good seat in the theatre for either the show or Bingo.
Just like lunch there is a different menu each day, so there’s always something new to look forward to. You tend to get the menus for each meal at breakfast so it’s good to be able to look ahead and plan your food for the day.
At dinner you’ll find a selection of starters and main courses to choose from on the menu as well as a different dessert to what’s on the cold menu. At the buffet you can get a carvery/ roast dinner where the meat tends to change each day, as well as a few other options and the children’s food. Some of the meals available at the buffet on our stay included Indian or Chinese cuisine and chilli.
Children’s food
Unfortunately, I think the children’s food is where the quality suffers a bit. Each lunch and evening there will be a few different options from things such as hot dogs, burgers, chicken nuggets and pizza as well as a variety of potato products and sides like beans or vegetable. While everything here was okay, it was pretty average and maybe not the best it could have been.
Luckily for Erin, she chose to eat from the main menu most days so this didn’t bother her too much. She did have a few bits from the children’s options, but commented on the fact that they weren’t great like everything else was. I’m sure a lot of people won’t mind this but when you’re a 5* resort, I expect the children’s options to be of a high standard too.
What about drinks?
Drinks are also included at Potters, which is another thing that makes the all-inclusive package feel like good value. You can choose from a selection of beers, wines, spirits and soft drinks, as well as hot drinks including coffees, cappuccinos, lattes and hot chocolate.
At dinner you can get wine to your table but otherwise you need to order in a different bar beforehand and take drinks through with you. This has never been an issue for us and it’s always dealt with really well, you just need to remember to add a bit of time before dinner to do this.
For families, it’s the little extras like this that can really add up if you were paying separately. A couple of coffees here, a soft drink there and drinks with your meals could easily become an additional expense during a short break. One time I added up all the drinks we had and it would have cost a small fortune so I love not having to pay for this.
Is Potters dining good for fussy eaters?
This is probably one of the questions I would have asked before booking a family break like this. Obviously, everyone is different, but I think having a choice is key. The fact that the menu changes each day means you’re not limited to exactly the same options throughout your stay, while the children’s menu gives younger guests some familiar favourites to choose from during the school holidays.
I also think buffet-style or flexible dining works particularly well with families because everyone can have something different. One person can try something new while someone else sticks to something they know they’ll enjoy.
Is all-inclusive dining at Potters worth it?
For us, having all of our food and drinks included made the break feel much more relaxing. When we go away, I don’t want to be thinking about money every time we sit down for a meal. I want to enjoy the time together, especially when it’s a family holiday. Potters takes away a lot of those decisions.
There is loads of choice and we never had the same thing twice, which was really nice. We all also had the chance to try new things without worrying about not liking something/ going hungry/ having to pay for something we didn’t like.
Overall verdict?
For me, the biggest selling point isn’t necessarily that there’s a huge choice of food. It’s the convenience. Everything is there and you don’t need to leave the resort to find dinner, you don’t need to cook, and you don’t need to keep getting your purse out every time someone wants a drink. As a family, that’s exactly what I want from an all-inclusive break.
Potters Hopton-on-Sea is particularly good for families during the school holidays because the resort changes from its usual adults-only offering into a family-friendly holiday destination, with children’s activities, entertainment and dining options alongside everything else that’s included. If you’re looking for a UK all-inclusive where you can arrive, unpack and have pretty much everything taken care of, I think Potters is definitely worth considering.
