Big Easy

I first came to this restaurant in 1997 and loved it. Ever since it has become progressively worse. For example, today, two of our orders were incorrect, and when I finally got my 'tiger shrimp skewer' it arrived with 6 small prawns glued to two wooden skewers so you could not even remove them from the skewers. They came on a plate with what can only be described as a bag of tortilla chips. £14.95!!! The skewered prawn caesar salad comes with 3 prawns. The whole bill came to £87 including an added 12.5% service and upon payment they ask you if you would like to add a gratuity. Bluebird is just up the road and for the same price you will get decent service and decent wine; the prawns may have some flavour too!
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JC - View all reviews by this user
5 Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 2
Sunday, January 16, 2011

Im a head chef in a well known restaurant and i was reading the reviews majority of them bad and a few amazing so i was curious to go and check in what foot stand this place and why is so busy.....believe or not was a waste of time and i understand the complaints,,, a rude hostess,a very good offer in cocktails on happy hours,the service poor and slow and a steak that suppose to be medium and arrive well done and for my surprise when i ask to talk with the manager he was rude and without knowing nothing about food times and if the fries come burn and not cook inside they suppose to lower the frier temperature ....just avoid,waste of money,no customer service but save the bartenders
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cris
2 Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 0
Wednesday, December 08, 2010

actually i dined a lot of times in big e when Steve Fish was a manager the food was great the service was great, with Angela as great was and with Paolo managing the place was great too....sudently in last 6 months they change the staff and chefs and the quality went downhill, the best ribs in town now they are tasteless, the voodoo wings to spicy and the service? just for forget....was my favourite place but this last two visits just turn me off
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alvaro pereira
3 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 2
Tuesday, December 07, 2010

Loved it...so used to ging to stuck up restaurants and quite settings, here you can just let your hair down and relax...music is great (live singing could be better lol, but its not X-factor is it)

Food was great, Sirloin was fantastic, crab-claws had more meat then i could ever imagine, and the wine list was so amazing and ridiculously cheap i almost felt bad for paying what i did. Dom Perignon £89!!! enough said.

Its simply a fun place to go, great for kids....(free carrot sticks all through there meal) and hits buttons for all ages...just wish it was bigger!!! dont change !
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M C
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Friday, December 03, 2010

Loved it!!

Authentic american classic, have been coming for years, (12 in fact) and its always as expected. portions are large, fresh lobsters, load music. Reminds me of home.

Never write reviews, but this place doesnt ever get mentioned in a positive way, like most reviewers, people are always quick to hit a place that lets em down, but never if it picks them up!

Recognise it for what it is....its not a romantic destination or a quite restaurant, it's loud, fun and an old-timer that is still packed. Can everyone else be wrong after 20yrs!!!

give it a chance
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J DeBruce
10 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Thursday, November 18, 2010

Believe the reviews, I have been going here for over 10 years and it has gone down hill dramatically in the last 6 months.

The food was horrendous; everything was overcooked bar the tortillas for the fajitas, which came out doughy and raw.

The cost has also rocketed, tiny pitchers of Margaritas were £32.50 a pop and as we managed to go through 6 without making the food any more edible or the service any less annoying were also clearly non-alcoholic as well!

The 2 hour turnaround time would be fine if the service was up to scratch, but as you will be waiting ages for your over cooked food there is no way you'll have time for coffee and pudding - but judging by the other 2 courses this might be a blessing.

The quality of food is a similar quality to a bad Wetherspoons and the price is akin to The Gaucho Grill - sort it out.
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Will Fletcher-Roberts
2 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 1
Monday, October 25, 2010

This is one of the worst restaurants I have ever been to. It is unfathomable why it's so busy.

We ended up getting charged £45 a head for a set meal consisting of a starter platter that looked and tasted like it was cooked the weekend before and a main course platter which, whilst plentiful was curiously smothered in BBQ sauce yet somehow utterly tasteless (the chicken). The Ribs were OK, but not worth £25 set menu charge (forced on us because we were a big party).

Beyond the food, the drinks were an absolute disgrace: bottles of beer were charged at over £4 and a rum and coke cost £6.50. What was worse was the waiter serving us got really ratty when we couldn't hear him mumbling what drink he was holding. The waitresses were nice enough though.

As for atmosphere and general restaurant feel - we were herded in and crammed onto a tiny table (which was wobbling like it was a plastic garden table) and rushed out because they had another booking in after us (which we weren't told when we booked). Drinks took an age to be served (but it was busy). Food came out quick, but probably because the kitchen was too embarrassed to let it stay in front of them any longer.

Big Easy is hard work.
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1 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 0
Saturday, October 02, 2010

Absolutely terrible! Do not go!

At approximately £7.50 for a tiny margahrita, I think it's just a complete rip off, at least if it was a full size glass i could understand.

The food was atrocious, and as we were a table of more than 10, we were forced into the set menu, which is not only completely overpriced but also you do not get what is stated on the set menu. At the very least I think they could have provided the side orders of coleslaw and fries. Also make sure to check the bill as they overcharged us on the per person meal the BBQ and seafood mix is meant to be £25.95 but we were charged £32.95 each.

Its a pity as the atmosphere, vibe and idea of the restaurant is great, if only they could get their act together it would be fantastic.

Unfortunately there are so many people that do still go, causing the management to not even bother to listen to anyones complaints as they feel they dont need you anyway.
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3 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 0
Friday, September 03, 2010

Looked forward to a ribs and steak meal.. Was offered a deal with something called 'Voodoo wings'

OMG.. One of the most ridiculous dishes. Consisted of a bowl of chicken wings which were totally inedible. The burger wasn't bad but the ribs are a waste of time. coupled with being packed in like sardines. I would not go back or recommend this place.
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2 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 2
Thursday, August 26, 2010

Awful, awful, awful. Went here last friday with a group of 4 friends. We were told there would be a 45 min wait, but as it was clearly pretty busy, we didn't mind waiting. Shortly after we were seated though was when things really started to go bad. We ordered one jug of margherita, and it arrived promptly without fuss. We ordered our food, and it took a long while to arrive. Finally a couple of us received our food, but two of our party had ordered some fajitas, which didn't arrive. I waited, watching my food in front of me go cold. I waited some more. We mentioned to our waiter that the fajitas were still missing. Eventually, the fajita meat grills arrived, but without any actual corn fajita pancakes to roll them in, nor with any salsa, sourcream, or guacamole. So my friends were left staring at a plate of grilled meat. We waited, and waited, and waited some more. Eventually we made some further noises, this time to a different waitress, as the other waiter seemed to no longer be around. She said she'd sort it out. By this time, we'd finished off the jug of margherita and ordered a second. When it arrived, it was frozen solid. Honestly, we couldn't get it out of the jug, even if we turned the jug upside-down. We pointed it out to the waitress, and she recommended maybe we leave it a while to melt. We waited (the fajita accompaniments eventually arrived), and after little improvement, asked them to replace it. The waitress then suggested 'maybe you've had a little too many margheritas this evening, no?'. I don't mind being accused of excessive drinking when I am excessively drunk, but I was completely sober, and this was sheer effrontery. Eventually they agreed to change it, and took it back. Then the manager came back explaining the margheritas were served frozen. We understood this, but having already had a perfect jug of margherita earlier on, explained that we were unable to pour the one we had sent back. He brought out a glass with margherita in it to demonstrate how it should look - it was a decent margerita, chilled with crushed ice, but not frozen. Following the demonstration, he asked us if we would like a jug just like that, and we agreed. When the jug arrived, it was frozen solid - again, impossible to pour into the glasses provided. We left it a while to see if it would improve, and then I tried pouring it again. Nothing came out, so I tried almost upending the jug over my glass, at which point the ice broke free, and a jug of ice descended on the table, leaving a jug-shaped pile of ice around my glass in the centre of the table. We showed the manager, who didn't even hesitate to say I lacked coordination and I must've drunk too much that evening.

So after having been served pretty average food at different times by up to an hour, having been served an undrinkable drink, and having been insulted, I doubt I'll be heading back.
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Cameron
0 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 0
Monday, August 02, 2010