El Faro

Please phone before coming to this restaurant as I am not sure that it is even open anymore. We have tried to visit twice recently at a time when it should be open according to their website, only to find it dark and onbiously closed. We are only local so it is not a big deal, except that we were looking forward to some nice tapas.
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Sarah - View all reviews by this user
3 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 10
Tuesday, April 05, 2011

This is a great restaurant to visit if you are ever in London. I am currently on an extend assignment here in Canary Wharf and I frequent El Faro about once or twice a week. The food is delicious and the service is top notch. This was the second restaurant I visited since arriving in London and the manager was very helpful with any questions I had regarding the food, places to visit, how to use the tube . The rest of the staff is also very friendly and would converse with me as I usually dine by myself. I have sampled most of the menu and my favorite dish has got to be the lamb. The ambiance is very nice and romantic with views of the water. It is a great place to take a date.
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Hoang
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 8
Thursday, November 18, 2010

We went to El Faro on Saturday night for dinner, 4 of us. The food was amazing and so was the wine. All recommended by the manager. We had tapas to start with all delicious, the we had suckling pig, fillet steak and the T-bone steak. OMG, it was so good. Meat medium rare to perfection. Nicely presented on the plates. And the wine to go with was very very nice. They know what they are doing at El Faro! We will be back, very soon..
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Wilks
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, November 16, 2010

I couldn’t agree more with some of the comments already provided and I felt that I had to share my experience too. When I went there for the first time, I was rather disappointed with the service. The waitress was clumsy, dropping cutlery on the ground and forgetting to bring some items that were requested. It was also difficult to get the attention of the waiters as they walked past without noticing that I was calling them. Having said that, the suckling pig was delicious and I thought I’d give this restaurant another try.

When I went there for the second time, I asked the waiter at the door whether the restaurant was still serving the Sunday roast. He shrugged his shoulders and muttered something like ‘...not aware of the food, need to check in kitchen’. I also asked him if I could use one of these discount cards that featured this restaurant and he referred my query to the manager. The manager was very patronising and told me that I needed to call and mention that card if I wanted to use it. He then threw the terms and conditions of that discount card in my face. Based on my experience, adherence to the terms and conditions is at the discretion of the manager – it is certainly not the discount card company that ultimately makes the decision of any discounts. Anyway, I was not bothered about the discount but rather, about how the manager addressed the situation and about how rude he was. To be honest, I don’t remember what I ate there as I was in such a bad mood after that. Certainly won’t be going there again!
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S.N
2 Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 0
Wednesday, October 20, 2010

I have just moved to Crossharbour and I was excited about the idea of chilling out at a nice Spanish restaurant close to my place. I was unfortunately disappointed with my experience there. I don't think I've ever been to a restaurant with such bad customer service. I went there on a Sunday afternoon with my wife and asked for a table by the glass doors as it was sunny but was denied by the waiter even though the restaurant was practically empty.

The menu was quite interesting and there was a good variety of dishes offered. When we were ready to order, I tried to get the attention of the waiters but either they were blind or they seemed to purposely ignore us. I had to get up and tell a waiter that we were ready to order. I have to point out that the restaurant was not busy and the waiters were just standing by the door. When a waiter finally arrived, I had a few questions about some of the dishes and he didn’t seem to have a clue about what the restaurant was serving. I got impatient and asked if I could speak to someone who could answer my questions and he called the manager. What a mistake that was!! The manager was not only rude but he answered my questions like I was a complete ignorant. I asked how long the suckling pig would take and when I said that 45 minutes was a bit long, he said in a very harsh way that I should have called if I didn’t want to wait. I asked whether he had any suggestion for an alternative and he said that different people have different tastes and I should have whatever I like. I also made a comment about the fact that I didn’t get the attention of the waiters and the manager was extremely condescending, saying that maybe I didn’t call the waiters properly.

The food was ok, not bad as we finished everything but not mind-blowing. The patatas bravas were like roast potatoes with a drizzle of tomato sauce and aioli, not the typical dish that I had when I was in Barcelona. The calamari was nice and the roast lamb was tender but lacked flavour. We wanted to get out of this place as soon as possible so we skipped dessert. In terms of the atmosphere, it was not as vibrant as you would expect from a typical Spanish restaurant. Apart from the loud music that was playing in the background, the surroundings looked really dull.

What a disappointing experience and horrible staff. I am never going back to this place again.
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FoodLover33
1 Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 0
Monday, October 18, 2010

I went to El Faro for a special occasion, after reading very good reviews about this spanish restaurant. I had suckling pig for starter and it was really good. My girlfriend decided to go for a traditional starter which is Tortilla, and it was quite basic (I mean nothing different than an omelette that I cook on sunday at 3pm with a big hangover).

Then, we decided to get the Lobster dish, very expensive so big expectations (it is for 2 people, so 17£ by 2). Well, here comes the lobster !!!! Lalalalalala!!!!!! Nice paella... Indeed, it was actually a paella with a lobster on top. I am not going to say that it was not good, I did finish my plate, but it was definitely not fine food. Just a heavy meal which could be worth its value if it was half the price.

The service was ok. The waitress is smily, which is important, but a bit clumsy when it comes to serve delicately a dish on the table. There is also no effort regarding the design / decoration. It is basic even if this place benefits from a great view and lovely terrace with trees by the thames.... COME ON GUYS ! Take care of the details !

Anyway, I had a basic meal, from my point of view over priced, with a correct service (but none of them went the extra mile) in a not-sexy place (even if it could be... huge potential regarding the location).

To sum up, I won't go back there, and I won't advice any of my friends to go there.... Too bad I know... I was so excited about getting there... but I was upset at the end.

Do you want to try an amazing spanish restaurant for the same price ???? Then try Viajante (East London), amazing, surprising, great service.... a real delight !
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Adrien
4 Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 3
Wednesday, September 22, 2010

I read the reviews on this restaurant prior to going to the restaurant itself so I was pretty excited.

I ended up going to the restaurant with my six friends and I hate to say this but I will never go back there again.

The service was quite appalling - we had some vouchers that we wanted to use from MyCityDeal and the restaurant manager did not let us use it on the Sunday Brunch as it was not on the menu that he had offered us. Needless to say there was nothing on the voucher to say that we could not use it.

The manager (and owner - so he tells us anyway) was speaking to my group of friends in a very intimidating and derogatory manner that I will never ever go back there again.

Food was OK - although nothing too mind blowing for the price we had paid. The suckling pig is definitely a must try if you are going to bother to head that way. The sunday roast looked good although we were not allowed to have it.. Servings are on the tiny side.

Atmosphere wasn't that fantastic... I think the rudeness from the service received just killed the ambience and mood.

Considering its location (quite far from Central London), one would have thought that the manager/owner would have been a tad nicer in order to get new customers coming in or even generate word of mouth. Unfortunately the word of mouth he is going to get from me and my friends are - NO GO! Dont bother travelling all the way there unless you are keen for some pricey suckling pig topped with rude service.

... Frankly, not a smart move for a small restaurant like this.
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marisa anna
3 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 3
Sunday, September 05, 2010

I booked to come here for my boyfriend's birthday. It was Monday late lunch so was not busy. The location was lovely. We sat outside and although not sunny, I wasn't cold because, as a previous reviewer said, the trees provide shelter from the wind. It was peacefully quiet and we watched the ducks play and the sailng club boats in the distance.

Now to the food. Very good. Padron pimientos nice and salty, Calamari very nice so we ordered two, Strange chorizo tempura was good, Tortilla was lovely and fluffy. The pan catalana was tasty but the bread too thin so it went soggy a bit quick. The food was fresh and obviously cooked to order.

The service was really nice. We ordered our tapas in 3 stages and they seemed to know exactly when to collect our plates for the next round of ordering. The waitress was very pleasant and accomodating. We will definitely go back.
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Sarah
9 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Wednesday, July 28, 2010

I have been here twice. The first was for a wedding when my friends had the place booked out and it was excellent, catering fabulously for the 60 or 70 of us. The second time was for a celebratory lunch this week and it lived up to my high expectations. We ate from the £15 lunch menu (3 tapas plus a drink) and every dish was spot on. We had patatas bravas (big portion, roast-style potatoes not fried), tempora chorizo (great idea!), gambas (big, juicy, spicy), pulpo on potato, boquerones (14, yes 14, fat little sardines) and albondigas (definitely home-made). We added croquetas, which were made with black pudding - inspired! - and drank the Rias Baixas Albarino which was excellent at £23.

All-in-all, the experience couldn't be faulted. The service was spot on and the location on the terrace was fabulous (although if I could nit-pick I would rather be right on the dock rather than 10m away with folks sat on benches eating their sandwiches right below the table), with sun and a little shade from the trees (if a bit windy). Definitely be back soon!
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Marcus Holden - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Thursday, July 22, 2010

An excellent local restaurant. We had lunch at the weekend and ordered from the special lunch menu - 3 tapas and a glass of wine/beer/soft drink for £14.99. It was great value. We chose 6 different tapas and all but one (the chorizo in tempura) was delicious. You could tell each one was freshly made with care. I loved the prawns and also the patatas bravas. Will definitely be back.
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Emily
8 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 9
Monday, July 19, 2010