Bengal Tiger (Carter Lane)

Quite possibly the WORST restaurant experience I have ever had to sit through. Terrible to the point that I can actually create a list of the problems with the service.

(1) Called in with a reservation, but was made to wait at the bar as they had not bothered to actually reserve a table.

(2) Despite having actually made a reservation, was still seated AFTER another group that came in after us that was also made to wait at the bar...apparently the concept of a queue is beyond the staff...

(3) Papadum took 15 minutes to arrive, despite being an appetizer that is typically served immediately after patrons are seated. Now, being able to cook it myself and knowing that it takes <1 minute to make, I can only imagine how many times the order was miscommunicated, as I had to repeat it to 3 different staff.

(4) Waiters managed to get my order wrong and served me the same menu item - chicken tikka - for my dinner portion as I had eaten for the appetizer. After explaining my reasoning for not wanting to eat the same meal twice despite their insistence on accepting it, they relented and I had the joy of waiting another 20 minutes for my meal to finally arrive.

(5) Asked for the bill as soon as the meal was finished so we could put the experience behind us. For whatever reasons, the waiting staff would not come up to pick up our bill for the visa payment, and after waiting for several minutes we just paid cash and left.

All in all, there are many better alternatives that can result in an actual enjoyable experience where the food tastes better, the staff and management actually care about service, and you don't have to guess 'how they going to mess up next' during the meal. I mentioned the poor service to a staff member, which fell on deaf ears. Apparently improving service is not one of the goals Bengal Tiger strives for
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SR
Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 1
Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Ambience was good. Service was good. Food was hopeless!!!!
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Siva
Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 2
Sunday, September 07, 2008

Really good Indian restaurant, nice atmosphere, reasonably priced and teh best Balti I have ever tasted. Service is efficient and professional
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Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 8
Thursday, March 13, 2008

Looking at some of the earlier reviews I can only suggest that this place it simply getting better...

Tucked away on the narrow network of cobbled streets adjacent to Ludgate Hill I think the Bengal Tiger is a gem of an Indian Restaurant. At first impressions, seems like a slightly above average restaurant - the neat decor and nice bar all contribute to a sense of pleasant calm. What marks it out from the crowd is the simply the food. Good ingredients and, essentially,

the ability to combine 'heat' with real flavour. The curried lamb shank is delicious, and the chicken joyupuri (served on open mango) is appropriately fruity and spicy hot. Its' alway refreshing when the flavours aren't disguised by over-spicing.

Another good example is the king prawn puree - juicy prawns you can taste and a firm puree (not one of those horribly greasy, shiny ones. I think the prices are very reasonable - certainly for the quality of the food. The lamb shank (house speciality) is about £12 and probably most expensive on the menu and starters range from £4 to £8. The service is subtley attentive. All in all it's a great find and worth dropping in if you're in the area - or even if you're not.
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Sean Robinson
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Saturday, March 10, 2007

The food is really tasty but the service is a bit moody. When we said we wanted to order from their lunchtime express menu you could tell they weren't interested. And the portions on this menu were tiny, it was insulting. I finished mine in about 1 1/2 minutes. If your restaurant is quiet at lunch-time and you think about promoting a cheaper menu, either do it and commit to it, or don't bother. They have just lost the goodwill of 8 people. If they'd made the portions 50% bigger and charged an extra quid or so, no-one would mind, and i'm sure their costs would not increase dramatically.
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Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 3
Friday, November 17, 2006

Four of us went there yesterday for a late evening meal and the food was really good. I thought it was good value for money considering the quality of the food, everything was tasty and the menu is very interesting. The service was good (not super fast, but satisfactory), nice atmosphere, and nicer-than-usual food presentation.
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Jo
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Thursday, October 26, 2006