Pearl Liang

We went on Valentine's Day and were impressed with the service although the place itself was hard to find. An unexpected surprise at the end of the meal was that we had been charged an 'extra £26'! What was this 'extra' we had ate?

This was due to a minimum charge of £38 per person excl. drinks being applied which someone should have explained.
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chris perera
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 4
Sunday, February 17, 2008

We tried this restaurant last Sunday, because we couldn't get a table at our regular place and Pearl Liang is quite close to us. As you enter you can't help but be impressed by the opulent and fashionable interior.

Things started to change as we sat down. We first noticed that all our glasses had grubby little finger prints on them, quite an unsavoury start.

The chairs are quite low in proportion to the height of the table, not so comfortable.

The food was OK, quite tasty, but nothing to go crazy about.

The service was apalling. We had to remind them on three ocassions about starters they had forgotten. We had to ask three times for them to bring out some tea... it just goes on. It can make a meal quite painful when you have to persist like this.

The restaurant is a severe case of stye over substance. I would rather go to China Town any day.
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Sarah B
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 3
Wednesday, February 13, 2008

I dined here to celebrate Chinese New Year and I am sad to report that it wasn't such a happy new year experience. Coming from Chinese heritage myself, and knowing what some of the Chinatown restaurants can be like, I am used to the often brusque (yet always efficient) demeanour of some staff in Chinese restaurants. But this place gave me one of the worst dining experiences I have had in London.

I have given them one star for food because I was actually a fan of this restaurant when I came for Sunday Dim Sum. Since my dinner experience last week though, I will never return.

Half the table had finished their starters when the other half just received them. We waited 40 minutes for half the table's mains AFTER we had complained that we had waited for 15 minutes already. They missed one of the starters, and of the 4 different people who served us during the night, one had the gall to say, "Well what do you want me to do about it?" after we had complained of our late meals.

Whilst we received a 15% discount and a voucher for another 15% discount (not that we took it, as we never want to return), I certainly don't think this makes up for the defensive behaviour of the staff. I have contacted the restaurant via their website asking for a manager to discuss the matter with me and have had no response.
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Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Tuesday, February 12, 2008

I recently started working in Paddington and my colleagues highly recommended Pearl Liang for its dim sum. I went twice last week - once in a team lunch and another with 3 friends. The dim sum is quite good. I particularly loved the radish cake and honey roasted pork puff. However, the service at the restaurant is appalling. It's very difficult to signal to any of the staff when you need something and I find the staff inefficient. For example, they will serve us new dishes but then failed to clear the empty dish plates on the table! This happened a few times involving different staff members. Also, when they cleared our utensils for dessert, the staff member disappeared midway and when the desserts came, we had to ask them for utensils! It's a shame really, as I would not be inclined to revisit the restaurant because of the service. It could be that it's because it's Chinese New Year season so it's especially busy, but I've since spoken to a few of my colleagues and they said that it's just as bad if you go off peak! In conclusion - good food, poor service.
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naiseey
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 6
Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Popped in last week to sample their Dim Sum on a recommendation from a client. It came as a surprised that it was nearer for us than Royal China Bayswater and Baker Street (our usual Dim Sum venue) yet we never knew of its existence. Wasn't too hard to find, didn't book on a Saturday around 1pm and secured a table, though it got very busy after 2pm. We were later informed that told that Sunday you must book in advance. Restaurant décor is modern east meets west, very HK inspired. not bad, makes a change from your typical Chinese restaurant get up. I liked the big abacus wall mountings and the huge chinese oil painting on the wall.

There has been mention of the bad service in previous reviews, I must say my initial experience was not good. We walked in, it wasn't busy, waited for someone to seat us, 2 waitresses who were drying chopsticks and chatting looked up and then completely blanked us! I had to resort to raising my voice and being aggressive before one of them skulked over. Then they tried to seat us at a bad seat, before I insisted on the couch seat. Probably our bad luck that day or maybe a case of snobby staff who don't have time for oriental customers.

Dim sum was good, tried a nice King Crab dumpling. A bigger range than Royal China, similar quality and taste too, price was slightly cheaper. Some unsual items but still can't beat Alisan in Wembly for the range, quality or presentation. Service was ok after that, if a bit curt. Will come back to try dinner. All in all a good (and quieter) alternative to Royal China.
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Kai
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 7
Friday, December 07, 2007

We were invited to dinner at Pearl Liang last week by some good friends. The food is FANTASTIC with very nice friendly staff. This is simply the best Chinese restaurant in London. The downside is that the restaurant can be hard to find frist time round but the food more than makes up for this!! We are going again tomorrow and can't wait to savour their wonderful Lobster dish!
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JR
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 8
Thursday, November 01, 2007

I went to Pearl Liang, with some friends on my birthday and I must say it was my best birthday to date.

The food was superb especially the prawn dumplings and the singapore noodles.

The service was excellent, the staff were attentive and very friendly.

The decor was beautiful and the whole ambience of the place made my birthday very special.

I will definetly recommend it to my friends and family.
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Nancy
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Wednesday, August 29, 2007

We went for Yum Cha for lunch on a rainy Sunday afternoon. Within seconds of walking in the door with fish in the pond a funky bright room and our spirits instantly rose! Add to that one of the best meals I've had in a long time and really courteous and efficient staff and you've got yourself a winning restaurant. I loved in particular the soup dumplings, pork buns, fried Doug and the most delicious egg tarts I've ever eaten. The only thing I might add was it was a bt difficult to find and could do with better signage to find it. Obviously not a problem for those in the know as the restuarant was full of lots of happy diners while we were there. Will definitely be coming back and have already started recommending it to friends.
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Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Monday, August 20, 2007

We try their recommendation, Lobster with ginger, and dim sum which is the best we had so far. Very friendly service and the lay out of the restaurant is so confortable to make us stay a bit longer than usual. £60 reasonable cheap for this enjoyment. Can't expect more!
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mk - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Wednesday, April 25, 2007

We visited this restaurant on April 13 and were intrigued by the impressive decor. However, nothing else was worthwhile. Service was poor, despite the restaurant not being very full. We waited ages to be offered a first drink. When the food came, starters and mains all landed in between each other . As for the food, forget it - was badly cooked, portions were small and we didn't finish it. Some people seem to be impressed with this restaurant - as a regular visitor to Royal China and quite a few other Chinese restaurants around London, we think none of them have anything to worry about (except from people who don't know Chinese food). To top it all, it was pricey. For the first time we can remember, we decided to make use of the word "optional" in the service charge that was automatically added to the bill.
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Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 4
Sunday, April 15, 2007