Haandi

HORRIBLE EXPERIENCE! Service was most awful!

Firstly we were seated at a dirty table, the waiter was quickly throwing two serviettes he took from another table on our plates and left leaving the menus on the side of our table. He came back quickly for our food order but was very uninterested and unfriendly. We also didn't receive the beverage menu from him... we actually had to ask the one other waiter for it, he brought it but slammed it on the table! After we finally ordered our drinks we waited for about 40 minutes without being served any drinks or food!

Best of all the two waiters didn't serve other tables as well, most diners were waiting to be attended cos they had finished their meals and clearly wanted to pay, new diners were seated at dirty tables like us!

At some point we stopped one of the waiters and asked for our drinks, the only answer we got was a very rude "Did you order any???". We got up cancelled all our orders and left the restaurant instantly & very angry!!! They lost our order worth about £120 and us as customers cos we will definitely never go again!

DO NOT GO THERE!!! It will ruin your evening!

We know from a few previous visits that the food is quite good there but the horrible service does not make up for it at all!
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Jane - View all reviews by this user
3 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 4
Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Absolutely the worst service I have ever received in a restaraunt in my life. Arrived and we were seated quickly and placed our order in a reasonable amount of time. Appetizer showed up after waiting 20 to 30 minutes and after being there for 1.5 hours we never did receive our dinner. We ended up getting up and leaving without ever receiving our food.
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1 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 0
Thursday, February 24, 2011

Having been recommended by Andy Hayler we came here last Saturday but with some trepidation , some reviewers have mentioned poor service, one extraordinarily bland food.

We entered from cheval place , through the pleasant bar the romm is quite small overlooking the kitchen- I suppose you might call the decor colonial in a way but low lighting , very relaxing -far away from the nondescript room at Colony restaurant,

Food well spiced , subtle ,excellent bombay potatoes, goan fish curry. burra chicken tikka lamb, rogan josh.

All in all a very enjoyable meal we left content and happy-the staff were very friendly and humorous - a standing joke was my having the potatoes the goan fish curry and the lamb roganjosh- they could nt believe I could put it all away- neither could I.
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alan fowle
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Monday, August 23, 2010

One word "Fabulous".

The staff is just top-notch with a really good attitude. The Food is par-excellence at all times.

Haandi (Knightsbridge Location) was first recommended by my Boss at work. He has been going there since they first started and being a foodie himself, he has allways enjoyed a really good Indian meal.

I Have been there with my family n friends quite a few times with no complaints at all.

The best part of this place is their Live kitchen counter whereby there is a glass partition where they kitchen is, within the main area. This allows everyone to view their excellent chefs how they cook, which is a delight to vew.

I would truely recommend this restaurant with extra credit to the food that they have.
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Nipun Mistry
9 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Friday, July 02, 2010

I find some of the other reviews here completely inexplicable. Half the time, they're competitors just trying to siphon off customers, though perhaps they had some legitimate grievances. I've been here around 8 times in the last 6 months, and the consistency has been fairly high.

Firstly, regarding the service - whilst I've heard that there is one slightly surly staff member who can be a bit difficult (and I daresay, perhaps he is the source of grievances in these reviews), the others are fantastic. Of particular note is the exceedingly friendly Kenyan chap who normally serves me - always cheery, efficient and attentive. As with many restaurants, I reckon it's a case of you get what you put in - be polite and friendly, and you'll usually receive that in return. Either way, the service has never been anything other than solid at worst and excellent at best.

Wine and beer list is well thought-out with some interesting selections including a red sourced from India which was definitely worth a try. Usual Indian beers available, plus Tusker, which is a very light and refreshing African offering.

On to the food. One word - sublime. I've bought, variously from my South Asian friends, Tamils, Kenyans, Punjabis and Gujuratis, all of whom have had nothing but praise for the standard and authenticity of the cooking. Tandoori is perfectly cooked - succulent and well spiced. Poppadums and assorted chutneys are excellent, the mint sauce being one of the best I've had the pleasure of trying - not too confected or overly-minted, just right. Curries are superb - wonderful heat from the vindaloo, good quality meats used throughout and clearly not just a case of chucking in a bit of tandoori chicken in to a heated sauce. Dhaba chicken and black lentils are exceptionally good and an absolute must. Rice is spot-on with the correct texture and level of moisture. Naan breads are very good - properly cooked with ghee. Their version of peshwari, with a sweetened tomato top (and no sultanas/raisins) is a departure from the bog standard naan and is definitely worth a try, as is the wonderfully flavoursome garlic naan.

Desserts are fairly good - nothing major to write home about, but solid and well-executed, if not as rapture-inducing as the starters and mains.

All in all, arguably one of the best.
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Gareth Rees
8 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Sunday, May 30, 2010

I am a British Indian, so really know my Indian food well, and love visiting Indian restaurants in London.

I would NEVER go back to Haandi, Knightsbridge again after my experiences there, and would advise anyone reading this review to not bother wasting their time or money on this place. I see from the other reviews here that others have also had terrible experiences at this restaurant so please judge for yourself...

I have actually been a regular at Haandi's since it first opened, when it was truly a great restaurant in terms of food, ambiance and service. However, the past 3-4 visits have been so consistently bad, that I have decided not to give it another chance, as clearly the staffing/service issues have not been ironed out, and the proprietor is beyond caring, with the complaints he receives.

On a positive, the food is satisfactory. It is prepared in an authentic Punjabi 'home' style, and the portions are good. However, the staff, service and atmosphere are a total let-down.

After spending alot of money on a complete renovation a few years back, it appears that the heating/cooling system is just non-existent. If you visit the restaurant in the summer, you will be eating your spicy food in temperatures hotter than outside, because their air conditioning system is, to use their words, "broken". This has remained like this for 2 years now.

If you visit in the winter like I did this weekend when it was snowing outside, you will need to keep your coat and scarf on (as did all the other diners that were there), because their heating is "broken" . It was so cold that the leaves on the plants were swaying from the draught coming from outside! When I and other diners complained, the staff got into an argument with each other and then blamed the owner for "not listening" to them!

Service is very slow, and for a very expensive Knightsbridge restaurant, you do not get the 12.5% service that is added onto your bill! In fact, there is no offer of coffee/desserts, but the bill was brought to us (in a half empty restaurant, with no other diners waiting for our table!)

I have tried complaining to the owner directly, but have received no response. Clearly Haandi's extortionate prices are covering their costs, and they have no need to retain or bring in new clients in this economic downturn where so many restaurants are closing down!
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1 Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Sunday, January 10, 2010

I had read good reviews on Andy Hayler's website and other websites and we were very excited to finally trying this resturant since we love Indian food and have gone to India couple times. We were so disappointed. I think it is one of the worst Indian restaurants in London and so expensive taking into account the quality of food, you might as well go to any Indian restaurant in Brick Lane and save the money. Poor service and the food tasted anything but Indian, really bland, no taste... When reading these positive reviews I can't help thinking we chose the wrong dishes, otherwise I don't understand...
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Irene
2 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 1
Sunday, January 03, 2010