Stanza Restaurant & Late Night Bar

We went for a pre-theatre meal. On first impressions, Stanza is stylishly decorated and warm although very quiet when we went on a Wednesday night. After going for a drink at the bar before being seated, after ordering we waited for 30 mins to get our starter. While the food was perfectly acceptable, we then waited another 30 mins for our main. My fish pie was nothing special by any stretch nor was my companion impressed with his own. Our waitress, although perfectly warm and delightfully friendly, got very confused over whether we had just come in or were leaving and we were hard pressed to get the attention of any other staff despite the fact it was not busy. Due to our waiting times, we skipped dessert altogether. A rather dissapointing experience.
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Chris
Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 5
Friday, November 30, 2007

I ate here recently with some colleagues and we enjoyed a pleasant evening. The restaurant is smart and comfortable and was a good venue for a group meal. I chose the terrine for my starter which was really good, particularly because of the accompanying onion marmalade. The portion was a good size too. To follow this, I opted for the fish pie, which was hearty and enjoyable. However, I was a bit disappointed by the selection of vegetables which could be ordered to accompany (at additional cost), as I felt there could have been more variety. Although I liked my fish pie, I later wished I'd had something more adventurous as a main course - I am not really in agreement with Gordon's Ramsay's philosophy that every menu needs a comfort option. However, nothing on the menu had really stood out to me.

I had a discount card which gave our party 50% of the total cost of the food, which really made it worthwhile. However, I'm not sure that I would have felt I'd enjoyed such good value if I'd paid full price: Stanza has ambitions to be a higher-end restaurant, but not really the exciting vision to match.

Service was generally good, as it was so warm, friendly and informative. The only slight problems were with starter dishes being cleared before everyone had finished, and with staff being slow to notice that wine glasses needed topping up, leaving us to do it ourselves.

On balance, Stanza is a good option for meals as part of a group - although I didn't drink in it, there's a well-regarded bar attached. However, I would probably go elsewhere for really special occasions.
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dawnage - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 7
Thursday, November 01, 2007

Four of us ate at the Stanza yesterday evening 8.9.07. £113 for two starters, four mains, two desserts, two glasses house red, two bottles sparkling water. The food was outstanding, not large portions which would not contribute much to your 5 a day but flavours beautifully balanced. Nice airy place to be on the first floor overlooking Shaftesbury Avenue, cool decor and music which we enjoyed until about 8.0- when it filled up and the music was lost in the buzz of conversation. The service was slightly too much, waiters filling up your glass which you might not have wanted. Always irritating when a 12 1/2% service charge is added automatically to the bill at the end. But we had a great evening. The only downer was to find an attendant in the ladies loo, turning on the tap for me, squirting soap onto my hands and passing me a paper towel. She did a great job but it felt like a return to the old colonial days (not that I was ever part of them)

I would certainly go again.
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coralie thomson
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 8
Sunday, September 09, 2007

This new restaurant really pushes all the right buttons. A group of us went for dinner last night and were extremely impressed. The decor is really cool, the staff are friendly and helpful, and best of all the food was sublime! Highly recommend the crayfish cocktail and the belly of pork. There is also a really funky bar that serves great cocktails with great music. Will definitely visit again soon, both for dinner and to hang out at the bar.
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PRADAGIRL - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Wednesday, June 27, 2007