The Brickhouse

My partner and I booked a dinner through mycitydeal and thought we got a really decent deal. But the place turned out to be a bit of a let down.

The food was very average. My partner's soup was lukewarm. My duck salad was not bad. The gurnard was way too salty and didn't go well with the lentils. Desserts OK. To sum up there's not much that can be said about the food.

We got a complementary bottle of wine with our booking and the wine wasn't bad at all. We were very pleased with it.

Maybe because it was a Tuesday night, the atmosphere was a little dull. Not many tables and the host of the show had to try very hard to cheer up the audience. She's lovely though. The show's OK but please don't expect a west-end standard cabaret show. A previous reviewer said it's like a bunch of amateurs, I think it's a bit harsh, but I wouldn't pay much to see a show like that. Service was OK.

Although we had a pre-paid voucher, the 12.5% service charge was calculated from the full bill. So basically when you buy online you pay something like £36 (for example) for a meal that's worth £90. You think you get a good deal but then they add 12.5% on the £90 original bill. Pretty tactical!

I wouldn't go back to this place.
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Jingo - View all reviews by this user
4 Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 4
Thursday, January 27, 2011

Brick Lane has it all, really. I just wish I didn't live so far away. The unusual shape of this venue lends itself to amazing performance, especially those that involve someone dangling and dancing in mid-air. I also like that you can start and end your whole evening here - cocktail, dinner, show, boogie, then home Jeeves.
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Leigh
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Very cool venue with interesting layout - the bed bar is definitely worth a visit - had a great work night out!
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7 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 7
Friday, January 21, 2011

Had a very pleasant evening and we were treated to an excellent show of circus and burlesque with food to match. We opted for a slightly more expensive 6 course menu and it was cooked to perfection - wasn't too keen on the palate cleanser that was a bit hit and miss but 5 out of 6 isn't too bad! Would recommend for the more adventurous diner.
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Brent
8 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 7
Friday, January 21, 2011

Cabaret was a bit in your face but nonetheless captivating and there was enough variety to make up for acts that were not to your taste. Food was good too, definitely worth the price for four courses and entertainment. After the show the venue becomes a great place to party and that we definitely did! Great night out overall!
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Teri
8 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Friday, January 21, 2011

Went to the Brickhouse with my girlfriend and several friends. The food was terrible and I have tasted better in a workman's cafe. The soup was like greasy dishwater and was cold and when I told the waitress she glared at me, she then put her hand over it to test the temperature and took it away and brought the same one back after a microwave, without a word or apology. The staff spent most of the time chatting amongst themselves and looking at various items of clothes that one of the waitresses had bought and did not bother attending to the guests. We would have got drunk if we could have attracted the waitresses attention to try and get some Christmas cheer but we were thwarted at every turn by the off-hand service and rudeness of the staff and the fact that we could not order anything that the staff would remember without constant prompting.

The main courses were small, dry and mediocre at best. The bread was stale. The desserts were like shop bought ones. the cheese was awful.

As for the entertainment, the compere was rude and offensive rather than funny. I felt really sorry for the very very low rent burlesque dancer. She must have just come in that day and was asked to prance around for £5. We had two 10-15 minute slots of what can very loosely be called entertainment and that was it.

The staff have not been taught manners and a few P and Qs, a smile and apologies for the wrong order and the coldness of the food would have sufficed but this was not to be. Undoubtably the worst place for service in London. You need to be really really drunk to actually like this place or be there on the off nights when the staff may want to make an effort. I have spoken to friends about this place and 9 out of 10 people have had very negative things to say about this place, which is very bad odds for a good night out in London. We all agree that we will never again venture to this place and it has lost all the goodwill of the people who live in Brick Lane and Columbia Road. I initially thought that it was good to have a cabaret place on my doorstep, but in reality the venue is a waste of space under the current management with the existing staff.

I have been to much better burlesque clubs in London and trading standards should prosecute for misrepresentation, this is neither a club, restaurant or cabaret.

This is not a very professional outfit, just a bunch of amateurs poncing around trying to act cool and not making a very good show of it. Even a clip joint in Soho would not make you feel so ripped off as you leave the place, unsatisfied and hungry and angry that we wasted precious hours of our life and face such abuse. At least the bowling alley is close by to have some decent food to eat.

When in Brick Lane, walk on by.
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Albert Ross - View all reviews by this user
0 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 0
Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Great venue, quite a spectacular interior which added to a great atmosphere even on a Wednesday. Tasty food will definitely recommend to my friends for a night out.
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David Haslam
8 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 7
Friday, September 24, 2010

Went there last night for my son's 21st birthday as a group of eight people. We found the staff very helpful and friendly. The food was tasty (except for the soup which desperately needed seasoning) - a bit more choice would have been good (and perhaps a bit more food). The entertainment was pretty awful really. And it was expensive. Having said all that, we did all have a good evening, but perhaps that was due to liberal amounts of alcohol!
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bernie
7 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 5
Saturday, September 18, 2010

I must congratulate The Brickhouse on giving me and my friends a really great night out! Great service, good quality food in particular the delicious fresh sea trout dish. The studio 64 entertainment was some of the best I've seen there yet and a big improvement on previous shows I have seen!
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Jane
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 8
Wednesday, August 18, 2010

DONT GO HERE!!!!

This place is truly awful. The food is expensive and rubbish. I have eaten better in Wetherspoons. The starter and pudding were OK, my main course was some kind of bitter raw artichoke.

The staff were very rude, slow, clueless, constantly ignored us when we asked for drinks etc and got our bill wrong no less than four times and took an hour to bring the manager to sort it out, so we missed our last train home and didn't even apologize!!!

We tried to book as part of 'mycitydeal' but the restaurant changed the rules at the last minute and decided we couldn't go on a Friday even though it clearly stated that we could on the voucher. To top this off the woman on the phone was rude, arrogant and obviously didn't care less.

The entertainment was rubbish - seems like one woman does 90% of it and she's not even that good. The others looked like they were dragged off the street. Not funny, not cool, just embarassing.
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Hazel
2 Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 0
Tuesday, August 17, 2010