Pied a Terre

Over-rated food and poor service. First time I went I was impressed, but last few times have been disappointing. You can spend hundreds here and not have a pleasant evening.
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2 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 2
Tuesday, March 16, 2010

I had dined here with friends previously about 2-3 years ago and all 4 of us had the most amazing tasting menu meal. The four of us were all real foodies and loved dining out at some of the best restaurants globally. After our visit we marked Pied a Terre as one of the best restaurants in London, maybe a close 2nd to Petrus.

Just recently my partner wanted to celebrate her promotion and treat us to a meal so I suggested we go to Pied as it was so fantastic before.

The tasting menu again sounded delicious plus it is usually the best dishes a restaurant has to offer. Unfortunately huge disappointment came from the first course. There was no wow factor as you normally get in top class establishments, there wasn't even an mmmm, the dish was just bland, lacked huge amounts of flavour and seasoning. In fact I actually had to ask for salt and pepper which I have never had to ask for at any top restaurant. Even with the additional seasoning every course was the same, my partner thought exactly the same. Strangely when I looked around the room you could sense that the room was full of disappointment rather than delight which you usually get from a Michelin star restaurant.

The dessert and cheese I have to say was pretty delicious but that couldn't make up for all the other courses. We did mention that the food was not that great after we paid and we wrote to David Moore to express our view point but he put it down to the menu not being to our taste which I find a little insulting considering I had the same tasting menu previously and found it delicious.

Mt partner mentioned our comments to someone from her work and the person’s friend whom was also a regular and lover of Pied had the same comments as we did.

It is a real shame as I used to recommend this restaurant to anyone that was interested in food but now it will be the opposite and sadly it has ruined the first experience.
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Foodie - View all reviews by this user
4 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 0
Sunday, November 15, 2009

Very good food, served generously, in an atmosphere more relaxed than most upscale places. The room is not much of a wow though, and whilst all the food was of a high standard, it lacked a wow factor. Not bad value for food of this kind though. Service on my last visit was a bit disjointed and not as good as it should be.
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7 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 7
Sunday, November 15, 2009

Behind an almost hidden entrance on Charlotte Street lies a culinary treat. This is one of the best restaurants I have been to in London and a good place for a romantic meal or celebration.

The food is modern french to a very high standard set in a small but beautiful dining room. The service is also very good. You can't go wrong.
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GP
8 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Monday, November 02, 2009

A culinary heaven disguises in the form of ordinary-looking tiny restaurant. The ambience was simple, minimal but intimate. In contrast, the food was elegantly presented and very sophisticated. The canape was a good start and promising sign of the meal. The starter, foie gras served with walnut and carrot, was sublime. The star of the meal was the main course, braised lamb's neck fillet, lamb's tongue, sweetbreads and potato puree. The meat was well seasoned and tender. The puree was smooth and silky. Mango veloute with coconut and chilli mousse & Thai basil was light and refreshing. The dessert, chocolate mousse with pecan ice cream, was astonishing although sour fruits, e.g. raspberries, should be added to give the dish more dimensions and depth. The cheese plate contained fantastic selections of high-quality and well-balanced cheese.The big surprise were complimentary massive array of petit fours, including chocolate truffle, caneles and tuiles. The food was executed with perfection and definitely deserved 2-michelin stars.

The service was friendly, impeccable and professional. The wine list was extensive and impressive. The sommelier was extremely knowledgeable and informative.

A 5-course lunch with a glass of champagne, red Bordeaux and dessert wine along with coffee and service costs 75 pounds. It might not sound cheap but worth every single penny for an exceptional dining experience.
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9 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Went there for 5-course lunch. The food was exceptionally great and elegantly presented. The service was faultless. Wine list was impressive. An impressive culinary moment!
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10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Wednesday, October 28, 2009

We went on a Friday for lunch in august and tried the menu du jour.

The service was outstanding,and the young French sommelier very knowledgeable about the many wines on the list.

The food was perfectly executed,especially the difficult monkfish dish,where this can turn into a chewying gum nightmare so easily.For mains we had a choice of the monkfish or veal(which was also v.good).Starters include a chicken boudin which was just a tad dry-perhaps more sauce?Cheese was perfect as was the plum dessert.The restaurant also included some excellent taster size portions before the first course,a pre-dessert,and a "wall" of wonderful petit-fours with the coffee.

With a top wine(priced about 3.5 times retail) the bill was £175 for 2 -remember we ordered the menu du jour at £24.50 pp(plus another £7.50pp for the cheese or dessert course).

We enjoyed this experience very much and the staff are all to be commended.
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C.Elder
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, September 01, 2009

went for the du jour menu for lunch (24.50) yesterday, simply amazing. Started out with nice canapes of foie sandwich, watermelon and feta, fried gnocchi. then had tuna tartare which was nice and refreshing, good size. main was slow cooked lamb cooked perfectly! and dessert i had the yogurt and vanilla mousse, but it was 7.50 more. But in total it was 32 pounds for four nice courses. i don't think any other 2 star restaurant has that in london. would definitely be going back
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10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Friday, August 21, 2009

The food is simply outstanding. I went with my wife from Greece on her birthday, a beautiful and intimate place. The stuff was very attending and at the same time very discrete. A better job could be done with the amuse in order to reach the level of the food. We ordered scallops and oysters for appetizer and they were just excellent. The main course was outstanding, turbot, complimented with calamari staffed with crab. The deserts were also very nice. The atmosphere was great. I would suggest this restaurant to anyone how would like to taste extraordinary food and feel a lot of chef’s love packed in each dish. Congratulations
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DIMITRIS KARAGIANNIS - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Sunday, June 14, 2009

Took my other half to Pied A Terre for his belated B'day celebration last Saturday. We went for the Menu Degustation which was nice. The evening was enjoyable up to the dessert. When we finished eating our dessert, the waiter asked us whether we wouldn't mind if they served coffee and petits fours in their bar area so that they could use the table for other customers. I was surprised by the request since I made sure that I could have the table for the whole evening when I booked the restaurant (as I knew about their 2.5hours table turnaround policy for their standard A la Carte menu). However, I let my other half decide what he wanted since it was his special evening. He said to the waiter that he didn't mind so the waiter took us to the bar area for coffee & petits fours. The bar area was empty and not convivial at all. There was a waiter who was cleaning the glasses behind the bar and funny enough he wasn't the one in charge of preparing the coffee. We waited 50 minutes for the coffee to arrive! In fact, my other half was getting annoyed and was about to go to the restaurant area to let the waiter know his dissatisfaction. The waiter behind the bar saw that and offered to go downstairs to tell our waiter about the coffee! When our waiter came with the coffee, my other half told him how dissatisfied he was about being booted in the bar area and then had to wait for 50 minutes to get the coffee. Our waiter was apologetic however I still find this situation very unacceptable for a 2 starred Michelin restaurant. When we left the restaurant, we passed by the table where we had dinner earlier on and to our astonishment, not only they didn’t have new customers at that table but also the table wasn’t dressed! This meant that we could have had our coffee at our table all along!

This whole experience about having to wait 50 minutes to have coffee & petits fours served at the bar area was a real put off. Even worse when we found out that we could have had our coffee at our table where the atmosphere was much more convivial than the bar area.

Comparing to our 1st visit at Pied A Terre 18 months ago, it seems that the restaurant has become greedy and wants to maximise the number of services they can squeeze in one evening. It is very disappointing and unacceptable for a Michelin starred restaurant as the bill does not come cheap.
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Kim
6 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 5
Tuesday, May 19, 2009