Hakkasan

For sure Hakkasan is losing its quality, 50% of the food we had was just decent, the cocktails we had were bad and i found the bartenders slow and unprofessional, next time i wont wait 20 min at the bar to get a drink.

next time i ll try some other chinese.
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7 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 6
Tuesday, December 14, 2010

This place was disappointing. I have visited many Michelin starred venues and this one should have theirs removed. They charge extortionate prices for mediocre food. I could have had a better meal in china town.

The décor is nice but don’t be fooled into going here… the staff are rude and they do not explain things on the menu. You almost feel rushed.

I had the veg dim sum platter to start - ping pong can do a better job and then the 4 veg stir-fry which was 4 veg with a packet sauce stuck on top.

For dessert the apple pie was burnt and dry…could have just had cardboard to eat instead.

Don't bother wasting your time and money......
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2 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 1
Thursday, October 21, 2010

Went to Hakkasan tonight with high expectations, sad to report they were not met barring the starters we ordered.

The atmosphere of the venue is pretentious, canteen-like furnitures in fancy surroundings. I felt I walked into a bar instead of a restaurant.

We had starters of dumpling platter (which were the most beautiful plate of dumplings I've ever seen, and delicious to boot) and fried soft shell crab (a tad too salty, but okay otherwise).

Service was rather slow- one of the mains came approximately 15 minutes after the plates for starters were cleaned. During which time, our waitstaff came by ONCE to apologise that our mains were taking too long.

For main, we had Chilean sea bass with Chinese celery and king crab claw in garlic sauce. The sea bass was served a good 8-10 minutes before the crab claws came, strange considering the reputation of the venue. I would have expected both the main dishes to come at the same time for a place like Hakkasan. Sea bass was mediocre, flavour was not plentiful as Chinese food normally is. It was served over a bed of un-crispy noodle with almost no sauce. Crab claws were not as fresh as I expected considering the dish cost £38 for a small plate of food.

All in all, I would recommend sticking to Chinatown for authentic Chinese food. Hakkasan is all style but no substance. Dinner for two came to £121, inclusive of VAT and services- totally not worth it.
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5 Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 4
Sunday, September 05, 2010

Went here on a Tuesday night for a 6.30pm sitting. Always read this site before I viist a restaurant and having done so I was most looking forward to the food whilst was a little apprehensive about the reported surly staff.

I have to say from beginning to end the staff could not have been more charming, helpful and were there when you wanted them to be. Although I would agree that the plate taking was a little hasty.

The food was wonderful really wonderful - I would recommend the lamb starter as this was the best dish but everything was very tasty, very hot (heat wise) and beautifully presented.

We had a cocktail which was also very good and bypassed wine so cannot comment on that.

Dessert was OK but nothing special - wish we had ordered 3 dishes for the main and not bothered with dessert but as the mains and starters were so good I will be back and will not make the same mistake again!! Also wished had not bothered with a vegetable side order again instead would have gone for an additional main dish.

One thing I found strange was that the rice is served by the waitress in one bowl so the flavours of the mains you have get somewhat mixed (even when you sample them individually). Not sure what is the correct way but I would prefer to take a little rice with each dish in order to appreciate each flavour.

I really enjoyed the vibe in this restaurant, we had an early sitting but it was buzzy and the tables are well spaced in order to promote intimacy but not so far away to prevent nosing at other people esp. what they are eating!!

The meal for two was £120 inc. service - as you can tell from the review we did not go mad but felt that we got good service and excellent food and therefore it was worth it.

Can't wait to go again but will need a special occasion to do so.
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Clare - View all reviews by this user
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Amazing place! Expensive but you get what you pay for!
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jelly46 - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 7
Monday, August 09, 2010

AMAZING EXPERIENCE. Pricey, yes, but Hakkasan is the best restaurant I have ever been to. For a special occasion, I think definitely worth saving up your pennies and having a treat. Staff were polite, efficient and the service was very quick. I never felt like I had to wait to get another drink or call someone over - attentive without being in-your-face. The cocktails were the best I have ever had - Jasmine Palm being my favourite but equally loved the rose petal martini despite this not being my usual type of thing - credit to the cocktail maker genius who infuses things and mixes them up to make a taste explosion in your mouth. Food was fabulous - I'm vegetarian and have never had such a wide and delicious choice of options in a Chinese restaurant. The 'lily bulbs' in my dish were DELICIOUS. Finally when I decided to try and squeeze in dessert, it came in a perfectly sized portion so I did not feel over-stuffed and was again the most amazing mix of tastes. The presentation of food and drink was the best I have seen - beautiful glasses and crockery and lots of thought put into each dish. MUST GO AGAIN.
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10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, May 11, 2010

very disappointed it was so over priced a lime and soda water £3 then later i had a vodka added at a cost of £8.50 . staff were rude . We felt it was a hang out for money show offs . food was not great had much better for a lot less cash my advice dont bother.
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1 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Sunday, April 25, 2010

Way too expensive, the service is trying to make you eat as fast as you can, and at the end you pay 13% service. The music is awful and too loud, it is difficult to talk, and in a restaurant of this category, completely out of place.

I had been told it was a wonderful restaurant but I was disappointed. I have been in many good restaurants, in different countries and this one does not deserve the Michelin star it has. Really, too expensive for the food you get, it is not that special.
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4 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 3
Wednesday, April 14, 2010

We were on a short visit to London and were invited by my brother-in-law to this as he claimsto an exclusive restaurant and had to book a table of 4 well in advance. In actual fact he had booked it on a Saturday night at 08.30 pm, but since we had driven down to Salisbury that day and got stuck in traffic, requested them to postpone our booking till about 11.00 pm. They were very accommodating and booked us for the late evening. We reached there short before 11.00 pm and were offered to give up our coats, which we gladly deposited with the lady. Then they requested us to go to the bar and would said that someone will come to get us as soon as the table was free. We squeezed our way as close as we could get to the bar and ordered cocktails. I ordered what seemed funny but genuine at the same time a cocktail called the " Chinese Mule". If you love real exotic taste and your taste buds are not averse to Coriander and Ginger, then this is the drink I would strongly recommend. It was delicious and you will not believe it but I had two of the same, which I very seldom do. After a while a nice young hostess appeared and informed us that our table was now ready and if we would like to follow her, please. We did and as soon as we made ourselves comfortable in our seats a young and energetic waitress was there with the menu cards. We ordered our food and drinks and it was delicious. I am not sure what we had ordered as this was taken over by my brother-in-law, but we thoroughly enjoyed the food and had a grand evening.
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Che Parekh
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Thursday, February 18, 2010

We had a family dinner here at 6pm on Saturday 6/2 which was my bday! There was 11 of us which included 3 children under the age of 10, we booked the table and requested the Ling Ling lounge as its more accomodating for children. Upon booking they said we would need to take the set menu but we refused as everyone has there own preferences(including the kids!), so they offered to email us the a la carte menu so we could email our order to them.

We arrived 10 mins late but the starters arrived as soon as they had given us our water. We had prawn toast, soup and dim sum platter for starters, 1 Chilean sea bass in honey, 1 Dover sole, 1 Poussin clay pot, 1 Satay chicken and 3 Pi Pa duck's, rice and vegetables. Everything was perfectly cooked, delicious and finished, which was a relief as we where worried we had over ordered.

For desserts the kids had ice cream and i was given a surpise slice of the chocolate tart with a candle and in white chocolate Happy Birthday piped on the plate, which was a very nice ending. We ate within our alloted time of 2 hours, I think the pre ordereing helped, the service was great no complaints.

The meal came to £485 including service charge and we all felt it was well worth the money, its not something we usually do. But i hope to find another reason to go back soon!
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Ritus
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Monday, February 08, 2010