Wahaca (Westfield)

I'm really confused by the good reviews here. We went as a group of 5 and we ordered loads of different dishes off the menu.

All the food was mediocre at best but mostly just nasty. The mole sauce I had was just bitter and unpleasant, the beef in the other dishes tasted awful, the fish goujons were ok but in a tortilla they were just dry and plain.

None of the flavours go together! The spicy coleslaw smelt and tasted bad but we asked the waiter to have a sniff and apparently it always smells like that.

The service was quite friendly but not very good. When we ordered I asked for cutlery as mine was dirty with pieces of food stuck on it. It still hadn't come by the time we finished eating the starter despite being reminded.

The waiter was also keen on recommending expensive tequilas but failed to actually bring any on time.

I don't think it was an off night for them because people around us seemed to be alright... but I really don't know how. I usually like most food and am not picky but literally nobody out of us 5 liked any of the dishes. The salad that's served in a bowl made of tortilla chip was edible but not great. Oh and the guacamole was ok. Still, the other 15 dishes sucked, and none of us will be going back.
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Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 0
Friday, December 18, 2009

Had a great time there last night. Real buzz about the place. I'd actually tried it before but went with a group of four this time and the second visit lived up to the first!

Great value, hustly bustly atmosphere, friendly team and interesting cuisine. Still a queue out the door when we left and we weren't surprised about that. Love it.
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- View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Saturday, December 12, 2009

Very bad experience. Cold and mediocre food. Awful service.

Quite expensive. No atmosphere at all. Definitely not recommended.
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Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Tuesday, December 08, 2009

I was one of the 30 lucky Qypers, mostly food bloggers, who were invited to taste Wahaca’s new autumn menu at their Westfield branch.

We had a useful introduction by Tommi and Mark of the dishes that we would be tasting, and the three types of tequilas to accompany them. We started the evening with a lovely dish of “Smoked Herring Tostada” (£3.75) - shredded smoked herring in a Veracruzan sauce (made mainly of olive oil, capers, tomatoes, chillies and various herbs) on tortillas. I enjoyed this and felt that the fish and slightly tart sauce married well.

To follow, we had what I think was one of the best dishes of the evening – “Black Bean and Chicken Soup” (£6.75). Served with shredded chicken, diced avocado, feta cheese, cream, ancho chillies and totopo (a type of corn tortilla), these were topped by a creamy and rich soup of black beans. The contrasting combination of flavours and textures was a revelation despite the odd appearence, with the ancho chillies giving a spicy but sweet, almost chocolatey quality to the dish.

The “Huitlacoche Quesadillas” (£3.75) with corn, mushroom and cheese, were also good. Huitlacoche is a fungus that grows on the ears of corn, it has a very pungent earthy flavour reminiscent of mushroom and corn. I could easily have a few of those with some cold beer.

Their “Winter Fuerza Salad” (£6.90) was next, a combination of roasted butternut squash, spelt, diced orange, ancho chillies, feta, avocado, and other ingredients. This was a hearty salad, combining two of my favourite salad ingredients – butternut squash & feta. I will certainly try this again.

To accompany the salad, we also had “Pork Pibil” (£3.75), a traditional Mexican slow roasted pork dish from Yucatan Peninsula, marinated in a lime based sauce and slow roasted in banana leaves. This was one of the highlights of the evening, the meat was succulent, sweet and tender.

Wahaca’s “Vegetable Pipian” (£7.75) was our next course. Pipian is a traditional “mole” type sauce used to accompany poultry. It is popular in the North East region of Mexico, consisting mostly of ground nuts, garlic, onions, chillies, and chocolate. Wahaca’s vegetarian take was intriguing and bursting with flavours of fresh herbs and ground green pumpkin seeds. The addition of rice and mushrooms was a good alternative to the usual chicken. I loved the richness of this sauce soaked up by the fluffy rice and meaty mushrooms. This was a truly warming winter dish I look forward to trying again.

This was followed by “Baja-California Fish Tacos” (£7.75), crispy fried fish goujons with chipotle mayonnaise in a delicious tomato salsa served on large tacos. This was an easy going dish that anyone would struggle to fault but not particularly memorable in comparison to some of the other dishes.

The enchilada with “mole” (£8.75) was creamy and rich, and partnered well with the tender pieces of shredded chicken, rice and other ingredients. This was a meaty alternative to the earlier Vegetable Pipian; a sophisticated sauce with hints of chocolate, chillies, onions, and garlic.

Next on the list was the “Fish a la Veracruzana” (£9.95), a parcel of Pollock fillet slow cooked in a Veracruzan sauce (made mainly of olive oil, capers, tomatoes, chillies and various herbs) and served with coriander rice. The accompanying fresh salsa was a nice addition to the green rice and fish.

The last of our main courses was the “Vegetable Burrito” (£6), made of toasted flour tortillas filled with coriander rice, and served with corn chips and tomato salsa.

For dessert we had a platter of hot, crispy “Churros y Chocolate” (£3.40). I remember having similar ones in Madrid, although there the hot chocolate was much denser. I found Wahaca’s particularly good and preferred the less glutinous texture of the rich hot chocolate. This was the perfect ending to a wonderful Mexican meal.

We also tasted three of their finest tequilas – a Blanco, a Reposado and an Añejo (aged version). They had distinct characteristics and were smooth and partnered well with the evening’s dishes.

It was a great event for which I would like to thank the organiser Chris from Qype, and Tommi, Mark & Cecilia for their kindness and hospitality. It was also a great pleasure to meet people whose blogs I had been inspired by: Su-Lin of Tamarind & Thyme and Mel and Kelsie from Travels with my Fork.

Verdict – Inspiring Mexican Street Food to share at reasonable prices. The management have a genuine understanding and passion for Mexican food which is reflected in the delicious dishes on offer. Highly recommended.
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The London Foodie - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 7
Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Long live Wahaca. Went to Westfield branch last night after already being familiar with the drill at Covent Garden and was seriously impressed.

They have a site on the "Southern Terrace" at the bohemoth shopping centre at Westfield and as the name suggests you get a south facing terrace full of various high st eateries. Well, last night they were all dead apart from our new Mexican friends. Got there to see a medium sized queue but was cheerily told we'd only be looking at about a 7 (precise?) minute wait for a table. Were seated within 5 and the rest is history. Great Mole Enchilada and chatty but super efficient service from our waiter that you just don't see often enough in the UK.

I could go on and on, but won't. This is a good a proper mexican as you'll get. Go visit. I will.
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Thursday, September 17, 2009

I was very excited to visit Wahaca; after hearing glowing reports of the food and the general dining experience, and given my general love of Mexican and Spanish, it had to be a hit.

I can't speak for other Wahacas, but sadly the Westfield Wahaca restaurant was very poor. The food was mediocre at best. If there were any culinary points to make about the food, good or bad, I might write them here, however the fare was average to stodgy. My experience of Mexican food in London has been very good, and the style of eating and tastes always make me smile. This restaurant made me depressed. The wine was way overpriced, and all-in-all the meal was a let-down.

Furthermore, the service at this restaurant was haphazard and careless. I felt like a table number, not a person. Orders were missed and had to be repeated 20 minutes later, and the food was plonked in front of us. They even took a plate away before we had both finished. Sadly this happened so quickly it wasn't even possible to say "excuse me, we haven't all finished". Major faux pas.

I don't recommend this restaurant. It failed on so many counts, there's no way it could have just been a bad night.
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Mat S
Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 2
Saturday, August 29, 2009

Love Wahaca! Best Mojito I have had in a long time. My husband and I had the 'Wahaca selection' which is a set selection of some of the most popular plates. The food was brilliant & as it was our first time it was a great introduction to their different types of food. Service was a bit slow so it is probably not the best place to go if you are in a hurry, but definitely worth a try! Can't wait to go back!
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Eloise
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Saturday, August 08, 2009

Wahaca's food is great and I have eaten at the Covent Garden restaurant a number of times. Covent Garden's service is also great, even when they are incredibly busy. However my dining experience at Wahaca Westfield left me irritated and agitated. Firstly, they had run out of 3 of the 4 beers on the menu on a Monday night, the only beer remaining was a dark beer. Secondly, I object to continually being called 'mate' all night by the waiter, whose standard response to anything I said was 'wicked' - I am not a teenager and neither was she. In addition, it took an inordinately long time to take our order, one dish was never delivered but was included in our bill, even after we pointed out it hadn't been delivered, and our churros was cooked to within an inch of its life rendering it rock solid and inedible. The waiter had trouble deleting the undelivered menu item from our bill, and took about 10 minutes to sort it out. I won't be back there in a hurry, even though the food is still great (apart from the churros!)
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 7
Tuesday, July 07, 2009

There being a distinct lack of decent Mexican food in London, I was desperate to try Wahaca which I'd heard from many a friend was a delight and so went along with my brother and friend last weekend to try it out.

It wasn't very busy but service and attention to detail by the waiting staff was very poor (by the time our first dish had arrived we still hadn't received pur drinks and I had to get up and request cutlery!) Our waiter was nice if not a little pushy and was certainly not shy about making recommendations even though we hadn't asked him to.

Between us, we ordered two chicken burritos and a chicken enchilada all of which we agreed were bland and unsatisfying. A common theme between our dishes is that they were generously filled with rice and little else. I must admit feeling very cheated upon unraveling my burrito only to discover that the chicken filling was playing hide and seek with me. I never found it.

We ordered tortilla chips which were nice but honestly difficult to really mess up (good guacamole but a tasteless tomato salsa).

Conclusion: bland, poorly managed and typical of many London fast food restaurants guilty of vandalising a perfectly good cuisine. Won't be returning.
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Maz
Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 3
Monday, July 06, 2009

We had wanted to visit the Covent Garden branch for ages but didn't have the patience to stand in the queues so were excited to be able to get a table without waiting on an early midweek evening. The restaurant is on the outside terrace at the Westfield Mall. Cool interior and nice ambience.

The menu looks interesting with a mix of smaller dishes and more substantial dishes. We went for the more substantial since we were hungry.

We ordered the chicken enchiladas and steak burrito with chips guacamole and salsa to start. Guacamole was OK but a bit off green colour. I was hoping for some nice fresh pico di gallo with fresh zippy flavours but the two salsas we got were a bit dull. A chipotle one and a tomatillo, I think.

My chicken enchiladas came quite quickly which was good. The chicken filling was OK but the tomato sauce on top was a bit soupy in both taste and appearance. The green rice with fresh coriander that sounded so fresh and interesting on the menu appeared to be 'easy cook' rice that was definitely undercooked and rather dry and hard with green flecks but no taste of fresh coriander. Overall nothing special and not very substantial either.

My partner's steak burrito was OK but a bit strange. The flavours didn't seem to be Mexican at all somehow. Also the same dry, hard rice inside.

Overall we were a bit underwhelmed and felt it wasn't particularly good value for the money.

Having lived in the States for 10 years I have been spoilt by the huge range of Tex mex and Mexican offerings over there, not all great but many are really excellent and great value for money with fresh, zesty flavours that you expect in Mexican food so it can't be that hard to do.
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Steve B - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 4
Friday, June 12, 2009