Ferme de la Rançonnière - Hôtel & Restaurant

I wish I could say that I enjoyed my stay at La Ferme de la Rançonnière, which was supposed to be the highlight of our family trip to France. However, an encounter with a nasty restaurant manager (Mr. Manager) at dinner forced us to pack our bags and leave in a hurry the next day. I first encountered Mr. Manager when he was shouting at another hotel guest and his child, who dared to ask whether any tables were available at the restaurant that night. Mr. Manager berated the guest for not making a reservation ahead of time and blamed him for not thinking ahead. My experience with Mr. Manager was no better and, in fact, much worse as it ended with him in my face and menacingly touching my arm. It would be bad enough if he were only terrible at serving tables (which he was) since inexplicably as the restaurant manager he didn’t know anything about the menu nor could he accurately convey our drink order to the bar. After ordering a whiskey sour cocktail, I was surprised to find a shot of whiskey slung at me as if I were a cowboy in a Western saloon and being told that a whiskey sour is just whiskey. After the bartender kindly brought the correct drink to the table herself, Mr. Manager continue his combative argument with me about the composition of the drink to the bewilderment of my family and other diners. We then waited for a long time to get our meals ordered only for Mr. Manager to bizarrely take away my husband’s butter knife as he was still buttering his bread roll with it (which another server had delivered to our table since our guy was busy scowling in the corner instead of actually doing his job). Why the butter knife was confiscated from my husband half way through bread service regrettably still remains a mystery. After Mr. Manager disappeared in the middle of dinner, we sought help from another server, who could not have been more pleasant. Mr. Manager’s rude and confrontational behavior caused us to leave the restaurant early after scarfing down our meals in a hurry since we felt our presence there was a personal affront to him. After dinner, I informed the hotel receptionist that I wanted to speak to the hotel owner about this alarming behavior by a senior member of the hotel staff. The receptionist was sympathetic to my story and said I would not be charged for dinner (I got the impression that this wasn’t the first time there was an issue with this particular employee), but he also made things worse by walking back to the restaurant to inform Mr. Manager of my report. I was trying to calm my nerves at the bar with a cocktail that the skillful and kind bartender made me - she witnessed the unacceptable behavior at dinner service and had taken pity on me. After my first sip, however, Mr. Manager emerged from the shadows and got in my face while menacingly touching my arm and spewing words at me in an incomprehensible language (likely only spoken by French bullies). I told him that I was not going to rehash what happened and that he sho

This was our 5th stay here. One of the reasons was to visit the new British D-Day Memorial at Ver-sur-Mer which is very close. Its a delightful fortified farm with some additions. Check in was fine and the man gave us advice of how to pay the new online tolls on the A13, which we did with ease. Most of the rooms are within the old farm and have rugged stone walls but all that you need it terms of a good hotel room. There are different types of room and if advance booking (recommended), you choose the type that suites. There have been a few changes since out last stay but nothing which was an issue at at all. Breakfast is now served in a building within the courtyard on the north side, opposite what was the old farmhouse and now part of the hotel reception. Breakfast is a "continental" buffet and plenty of choice. Staff there were very welcoming and friendly. We stayed for 3 nights and had lunch out so on return in the afternoon it was not quite first stop the bar but near to it. The bar is now in a newer building on the north east end where I think there are some more rooms. This was were breakfast was served in the past. Outside the bar are table and chairs which in the summer and good weather, which he had, makes for a pleasant hour or so. The evening meal is in a large room near to the bar entrance on the east side of the courtyard. From what I observed if you are part of a coach tour group you seem to get your evening meal in the "breakfast room". The menu had what I would call a reasonable choice (as opposed to extensive) but perfect for a few days stay. There is a English menu so my French Food Dictionary was made redundant. The food was very good and we had three enjoyable evenings there. I will make some comments on some issues, but not enough to change my rating. On our last morning we wanted to get away reasonably early so went to the reception to pay before breakfast. However the reception was not open, due to what we were told was the person arriving late, and this delayed matters. On the third night the restaurant service was not as sharp as it had been in previous nights. I know fully well a French Evening meal is an event, so time was not the issue. It was we had to ask for aperitives, they were not offered as in the last two nights. Then we had to ask for bread, which I have never experienced in a French Restaurant. Minor things for consideration which did not spoil our enjoyment of this wonderful place

Stayed here 1 night on a WWII tour. the property is beautiful, and it really takes you back in time. No air-conditioning so we had to open the windows (no screens) to get some cooler air into the room to sleep at night. Breakfast was a buffet-style, and was ok. Dinner was in the same room and was ok. I'm sure the food could have been better depending on what was ordered, but our salmon and chicken options were not that great (although desert was very good). The bar is small, and doesn't stock a lot of options we would typically see in America, but the service and setting there was very nice. The outside sitting areas were very pretty, and several of us took advantage of that area in the evening, and in the morning.

We booked a superior after looking at the website they were fantastic. We arrived and had a very small from not at all like any of the rooms on the web site. We complained only too receive another one again not like the website. It wasn't a cheap hotel and we thought it was a perfect way too end our holiday.. I would NOT recommend this hotel too anybody.