Wahaca

Are you people insane? This place is terrible! The salsa is watery and tasteless and comes from a bottle. The whole place is just a tourist trap and as for the queue - that because there is no where to wait and it is a brilliant location for tourists! Seriously dont do it to yourself. The food and restaurant are both tasteless.
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Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Friday, April 11, 2008

I'm a strict vegetarian and dined here with a friend recently. Contrary to the previous veggie's experience, I was very pleased with the service - the waiter was knowledgeable about the food and gave good advice as to what was vegetarian and what wasn't.

I can't comment on the authenticity of the food, but I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed my meal from beginning to end. It was my turn to foot the bill, and I felt guilty that I'd only had to pay (exactly) £50 for the pair of us - including wine. We've often paid double that for a far inferior meal at other restaurants.

I'm not so sure about the atmosphere. It was a little like a cattle market and if I'd not enjoyed the food so much, I might have thought I was eating in a transport cafe. But I don't mind transport cafes that much anyway, so it didn't spoil the evening.

One serious gripe - I really don't like the lack of a table booking system. We were lucky in that I misjudged my journey and arrived half-an-hour early, and I was able to put my name on the list so the table was ready when my friend arrived - otherwise we would both have been standing around for thirty minutes instead of just me.
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 10
Friday, April 11, 2008

Really great fun and great value place for a meal with a bunch of friends. Buzzing atmosphere and very acceptable food will do it every time. Fine dining it ain't - but doesn't try to be - although it's claim to be authentic is debatable. Authentic Tex-Mex with a few more interesting dishes thrown in for good measure would be closer to the mark.

The old favourites all represented and all well executed. Loved the pork scratchings with guacamole as a snack-with-a-difference.

Go after a few drinks in a group and avoid if on a date/ with picky parents/ are a veggie and you should love it.
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Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Friday, April 04, 2008

My girlfriend and myself were really looking forward to going to this place, as when we'd passed by it previously, it looked like a fun place with good food. However...

As a vegetarian, I don't eat meat (funny that!). Yet this was something that the kitchen and staff at Wahaca seemed to have particular difficulty understanding, as they not only served me a main meal that I hadn't ordered, but also one that contained pork! Since this was presented in a burrito, I didn't realise until I had eaten some of it, which was a surprise.

This was bad enough; but amazingly, even after I had told them and agreed to wait a little longer for what I had actually ordered, they AGAIN gave me a meal that contained meat! - This time, though, it was chicken... Perhaps they were working their way down from larger to smaller farmyard animals, and they would - had I not left - eventually worked their way down the food chain and served me some vegetables!

This rather unique gastronomic experience was made even more interesting by the audible bad feeling that was taking place between a member of the kitchen and the waiting staff.

The vegetarian options weren't even that great in the first place, but I decided to stay and give it a try... What a mistake that was!
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Matthew
Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 1
Saturday, March 29, 2008

oh yum! yum! yummy!!!!

Don't go here expecting cheesy fatty huge portions of microwaved tacos!! This is the most authentic mexican food i have eaten outside mexico. It tastes fresh and is totally fulfilling and you can order a size that suits your waistline.

They have all these little dishes and the spiciest ones are labelled which makes taking children affordable and enjoyable. We had a beef salad (you could also have salmon ceviche) served in a bread basket which is the best salad i have ever eaten. Our friends ordered a selection of smaller dishes (tacos, tostados, enchiladas etc) which looked gorgeous. They use black beans and brown rice which is blitzed with beautiful herbs and spices. The flavours of lime, tomatoes and avocados with chilli were followed by a naughty dessert of small deep friend sugary pastries? donuts? which were dipped into a small pot of chocolate. For our friends who didn't order dessert, a lovely little piece of chilli chocolate accompanied their coffees. Such a lovely touch and when we asked what it tasted like, the waitress brought a piece for us too. I thoroughly enjoyed my mint tea which was a glass filled with fresh mint and steaming hot water. mmm..delicious.

The service was great (apart from hearing the boss interviewing a disgruntled employee at a nearby table, which made a lot of diners look around uncomfortably). Our waitress explained the food very carefully and had tasted most of it herself which was really helpful. You do have to be prepared for dishes to come out when they are ready as opposed to altogether so it does make sense to share dishes. The atmosphere is warm, relaxed and inviting and i noticed there were several people eating alone and some large tables of work colleagues having small dishes and cocktails mixed in with some pre theatre diners and families with children (a perfect alternative to wagamamas)

no wonder there are queues, if you are on your way somewhere and want a quick bite then i suggest you get there 45-60 minutes before you normally would in case of being disappointed with a queue. However it moves quickly and the staff are fully in control even allowing people to go away and come back.

All in all great food. Well done Thomasina Miers...what a gem of a restaurant and perfectly fitting for the new generation of relaxed dining, reasonable prices and healthy tasty food with an emphasis on fresh, simple locally sourced sustainable products
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Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Friday, March 28, 2008

Frankly disappointing. I was excited to discover Wahaca and by the promise of real, authentic Mexican street food. But that's the problem, Wahaca promotes itself quite emphatically as the real thing but it doesn't deliver. It looks like the real thing but it is flavourless.

I am astonished to read all these positive reviews but I can only guess that most people just bought the 'real' statement and convinced themselves that they were enjoying what people in Mexico enjoy on a daily basis - but they just weren't.

The ingredients are not authentic and if they can't get even the guacamole right (no coriander, no lime, but some other ingredient that shouldn't be there: yellow pepper? something else?) then it says a lot about the rest. The coleslaw that comes with the £19.50 tray for 2 is unknown in Mexico and is simply horrendous anyway. The tacos lacked any flavour too and maybe the only thing that had a taste was the corn mushroom quesadillas.

I loved the feel of the place, the decor, but that's just not good enough.

There are a couple of REAL Mexican places in London (I guess I cannot name them here) but Wahaca is definitely not one of them, and the way in which it bigs itself up as such an authentic place is quite deceiving and will make anyone who has ever enjoyed their real Mexican food in Mexico quite angry to have been lied to in such a way.
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Frederic - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 3
Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Absolutely fantastic. Best food I have eaten in all of London!
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Betty in London
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Sunday, March 09, 2008

Food was excellent, fresh and interesting and quite a fun place to go if you want something quick, but not be pushed out the door. However our lunch was spilt by the inconsistent service - overbearing and a bit intrusive when you had food and absent when you wanted something. If they get this right it will be a knock-out.
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Frances Clarke
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 7
Sunday, March 02, 2008

Really pleased with how this place lived up to the reports - good food, fresh flavours, friendly staff and a good set of teqilas! Would recommend to all, and it won't be long before a second visit.
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Sunday, March 02, 2008

I've been to Wahaca a few times and love the place for the surroundings , the atmosphere and definitely the food. I have had to wait an inordinate amount of time to eat once but was told how long it would be so popped out for a beer in a local pub and returned for my table. It's definitely worth turning up early though as the place fills up quickly, both at lunch and dinner.

Not sure why people are questioning the authenticity of the food for. I was recommended the place by a Mexican who claimed it was the best Mexican food they'd had since leaving Mexico.
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Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Wednesday, February 27, 2008