| Quality of service | 3.7/10   |
|---|---|
| Quality of food | 6.1/10 |
| Value for Money | 5.6/10 |
| Reviewer Rating | 4.6/10 |
| Overall Rating | 4.8/10 |
By JuliaD on 4th Feb 2007
| Food Type | Modern European |
|---|---|
| Average cost per head | £10 - £25 |
| How often do you eat here? | Once or twice a year |
| Atmosphere | Lively |
| Quality of service | 4/10 |
| Quality of food | 8/10 |
| Value for money | 7/10 |
| Overall value | 4/10 |
 JuliaD's recommendation | |
The food is excellent! It was well presented and good value for money.
There is a good range of wines available.
Great location, although if you don't know it's there, it is difficult to spot from outside.
Noisy - whilst the modern decor is very subtle and well done, there are no soft furnishings or fabrics to absorb the noise. Don't go with anyone who is hard of hearing.
Staff - the 'waiting' staff were all friendly, attentive and well mannered, but the two gentleman who were managing the bookings and seating could do with a lesson in how to communicate with customers without appearing to be rude.
Coats policy - there is a policy to remove outdoor coats, and I can understand totally that it is not practical or safe to have coats hanging on the back of chairs. The storage for coats however, is a large 'pigeon -hole' (for your table) into which coats are bundled in a large ball. Don't take anything which is liable to get crushed or need ironing afterwards.
Toilets - these are downstairs, therefore you have to fight your way through the people coming in and out, and those putting coats on and off to get there. The ladies is quite small, and there are no mirrors for touching up hair and make-up, which aren't above hand-basins. It can therefore be a bit crowded when people are trying to wash their hands as well.
We were shown promptly to our table, but we were not asked for our choices for about 20 minutes. Any upmarket restaurant (which this is obviously trying to be) would suggest or offer drinks whilst looking at the menu, but this was not done. The wine eventually arrived, but it was placed on the table without a word - at an average of £15 a bottle, I would have expected to be offered a taste by the waitress prior to pouring.
My husband was asked rather abruptly to move his chair in so that the waitress could get past. This he did without any comment, but can I suggest that maybe they have too many tables in the allocated space? On a previous visit in a larger party of 14, we were told that we were sitting at 2 separate tables. We were OK about that, but one was on the mezzanine floor and one on the ground!
Don't get me wrong, we really enjoyed our meal, but having looked at many similar comments on this restaurant, why has no-one from The Outsider done anything or commented back on their behalf?
Important, please be aware that:
| Helpful | Unhelpful | Agree | Disagree |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Total Respect: +1
taylor9991
on 4th Feb 2007