Hop & Spice

I recently went for Sunday Lunch at Hop and Spice and had a great time. It was Sunday roast but with a twist - and some spice!

A really different version of the classic. I would recommend this place and take your children too. I was delighted that they liked the food and didn't cause too much chaos running around the place.

Great choice of beers on the menu.
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Dominic Hennessy
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Friday, September 12, 2008

I took a trip to Hop & Spice last night and was so surprised by how bad it was that I thought I'd check out what other people thought. I am so shocked by all the good reviews that I feel compelled to write myself. It was the worst food I'd eaten in years.

No flavour, cold, watery, over cooked and tantamount to inedible.

The service was good, but lets face it, you don't go out to dinner for the service alone. Avoid like the plague!
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Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 0
Thursday, August 14, 2008

Really impressed with our first visit to Hop and Spice.

Usually when we go for a curry we stuff ourselves stupid and end up feeling too full. The portions here are just right and leave you feeling content, but not bloated.

The waiter was very helpful and even told us not to order two portions of rice as one would be enough for our chilli chicken and thali dishes. The waitress was also lovely, but a bit too eager to check our table. There's nothing wrong with empty plates being left after a meal for a few minutes.

Nice atmosphere (although not particularly busy), beers recommend depending on the dish you choose. All in all, very good. We'll be back!
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jcreedy - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Sunday, July 06, 2008

Really impressed with our first visit to Hop and Spice.

Usually when we go for a curry we stuff ourselves stupid and end up feeling too full. The portions here are just right and leave you feeling content, but not bloated.

The waiter was very helpful and even told us not to order two portions of rice as one would be enough for our chilli chicken and thali dishes. The waitress was also lovely, but a bit too eager to check our table. There's nothing wrong with empty plates being left after a meal for a few minutes.

Nice atmosphere (although not particularly busy), beers recommend depending on the dish you choose. All in all, very good. We'll be back!
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James Creedy
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, June 24, 2008

We recently had a work Christmas party here. We're a small team of six, one of which was not much of a curry fan. However, we ended up having a cracking party - I was quite surprised how well curry worked for a christmas celebration. Our curry novice friend was recommended something not too spicy (can't remember what) and they really enjoyed it. The staff were very bubbly and fun and seemed intent on making sure we had a lively party.. very useful if you've met some of my team.

I loved the feel of the place, and the music was great as well. And I was very surprised at how delicious curried venison turned out to be.

I've been back once already (luckily it's local) and the normal menu has proved to be as delicious as the christmas one.
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Hop & Spice is a revelation! I'm trully excited by this place. I eat out a lot, and I SO often make do with average food. Hence why I'm excited to have discovered this Sri Lankan gem. I went on holiday to Sri Lanka a few years ago, and the beautifully spiced curries that I had at 'Hop & Spice' brought my fond memories flooding back. I love the pick your own Thali concept (a bit like tapas), so you don't have to plough through one big dish. I had the special starter - a spicy potato cake, which was lovely. The coconut lamb was melt in the mouth delicious, and the spicy aubergine salad was beyond words - I could eat a truck load of it!! The beer selection is great, though I had the Chilean Sauvignon Blanc which was very drinkable. The Kandy Mess (a tropical spin on Eton Mess with pineapple and mango) finished the meal beautifully. Great vibe and we had wonderful service - a very rare thing in London; and at less that £20 each, the diet's going to have to start next month!!!
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Jo
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Tuesday, January 08, 2008

We have just returned from a meal st Hop and Spice. We arrived to a warm welcome and big smiles. It was fairly empty which isn't too surprising for the week after Christmas. Having ordered our drinks we started scanning through the moderate, yet very varied menu. We shared the starter, a minced lamb pancake dish, arrived quickly and was tasty.

We then proceeded to wait approximately 30 minutes for the main course, which is an empty restaurant does seem a little slow. The squid and chicken had probably been on the hob for most of that time, the chicken dry (although a nice flavour) and the squid like rubber, taken off just early enough to become luke warm before it was brought to our table. The scallops were probably perfectly good before being ruined by a sickeningly sweet sauce. We did also get a quorn dish on the house to see what we thought, they didn't ask for feedback, although they probably didn't need to as we barely touched it.

On the other hand, the fried aubergine salad was delicious as was the rice. The lamb curry type dish was also tasty.

I may have to go back sometime to see if it can live up to the rave reviews below. Maybe the head chef was on holiday this week?

To sum it up, this was definitely a below average meal. I can see this place could have potential however. At £36 (Only soft drinks) it would be good value if the food was improved.
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Will Calderwood
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 6
Thursday, January 03, 2008

Superb, I can't recommend this neighbourhood gem highly enough ! Fantastic food, service and ambience. Excellent value for money too ! I'd thoroughly recomend the Christmas menu at £25 for four courses. I'll definately be back to be back to try more Thali and very soon!
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sfb
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Monday, December 17, 2007

We must have gone on an off-night. Nothing wrong with the place, but we received a less than warm welcome and the food was one of the worst meals i've ever had. The Thali-type selection was tasteless, lukewarm, watery and a complete waste of money. I am going to have to go back though because the place is always packed, so they must be doing something right.
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al - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 1
Friday, December 14, 2007

Hop and Spice is an excellent restaurant. The food is tasty and interesting, and the ingredients clearly fresh and well prepared. The service is very firendly and welcoming without being overbearing, and the waiters are knowledgeable and helpful. Needless to say, the drink selection is also excellent. Highly recommended!
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linoprint - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Thursday, November 22, 2007