The Diner (Islington)

what a disappointment!!

Only 2 staff on that evening. We asked for american waffles and were served what I can only describe as a plate of food a 5 year old could have made, also the waffles were belgian, the chef used jam from a tin, (you could see the tin lines) and squirty cream from a tin which had all gone foamy and horrid.

We will never be coming back, overpriced, understaffed and horrid fake food
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jenny o''kane
1 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 0
Saturday, September 24, 2011

My boyfriend and I took a leap of faith and visited The Diner in Islington for the second time. The first visit had left us feeling slightly sick, but having had mixed experiences in other local restaurants we decided to push on and do it all again. .....why I now ask myself?

I'm not exactly sure how a burger joint could get burgers so wrong. Our burgers were a healthy size and were nicely presented in a diner style basket, this though is where the niceties end. The burger was dry and tasteless and certainly not even nearly seasoned, the meat was an unappetising grey colour and had non of the flame grilled flavor I expect from an American diner - dry, dead and precooked is not a taste I care to pay for. The bread roll was slightly stale and the tomato was tasteless soggy and translucent. We ordered chili chips and those horrible cheap catering chips were served to us covered in thick flavorless cheese and a big mushy cardboard mess they happily call chili.

The diner serves food that leaves you feeling nauseous, the ingredients are low quality and the food is obviously left standing a round getting all old and stale
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Lindy
3 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 0
Monday, May 17, 2010

The diner looks quite attractive from outside with it's American 1950' style decor. Service was not great it took a whille before we were served at a half empty resturant. We ordered the cheese burger accompanied with tamato, red onions gherkins, lettuce and sauce, and also the spicy chicken bourrito will salsa. When the food came it looked suprisingly appetising I bit into my burger and it wasn't too bad, could have done with more seaoning. However the buritto was appaling it was served with no salsa dip and the waitress said it would cost more to order gaucamole! It arrived and you could tell it was from a jar the salsa was just cut up tamatoe which was very dry. Biting into the chicken buritto was dissapointing no seasoning and had a rubbery texture. Won't be eating here again!
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Jenifer hudson
2 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 2
Sunday, April 11, 2010

Stay away - expensive, poor stroppy service and some of the worst food I have eaten in years. Very upset that restaurants like this are able to stay open. Please, if you have a choice, go somewhere else. It really is that bad.
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2 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 1
Monday, March 01, 2010

In my quest to find the “best” burger in London, Dr G and I went to The Diner on Essex Road, Islington. It was well after 10pm and only a day before New Year ’s Eve when we visited, but this newly opened American style diner was reasonably busy.

The decor recreates an American 1950s diner, with booths of red leatherette chairs and long formica tables.

The menu looked impressive with a long list of all day breakfast items, costing between £6 and £8.50, like blueberry or banana pancakes, huevos rancheros, and eggs Benedict among others.

Drink choices were also extensive – The Diner sells beer by the bottle or on draught with a pint of lager costing as little as £3.20. Milkshakes are priced at £4.20 while “hardshakes” (alcoholic milkshakes) cost £7.

I ordered a “Creamy Nut Hardshake” (hazelnut and pistachio ice-creams with Baileys) @ £7. This took a little while to arrive but was well worth the wait as it was indeed very creamy, nutty and surprisingly alcoholic.

Soon enough the rest of our order arrived. I went for the “Californian Burger” (Monterey Jack cheese and Guacamole) @ £6.20. All burgers are served with tomato, lettuce, red onions, gherkins and relish.

It looked well presented and the 7 oz patty was quite chunky. As I bit into the burger my heart sank – the bread was not only cold but it was hard and stale; the meat was completely tasteless and overcooked (I had ordered it medium) and the guacamole tasted straight out of a jar.

Dr G had ordered the “Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich” (Swiss cheese and grilled onions) @ £7. Again this was disappointing – stale and chewy bread, gristly meat making the sandwich virtually inedible.

To accompany our sandwiches, we also made the mistake of ordering a portion of Diner’s “Chilli Cheese Fries” (topped with cheese and hot chilli beef) @ £3.50. The fries were not only cold but were also hard, undercooked and greasy. I really cannot find anything positive to say about these fries and the greasy, synthetic orange cheese smothered over the most undistinguished chilli beef.

Verdict – one of the worst burgers I have ever eaten, stale bread, and under-cooked, greasy fries. Good “hardshakes” were the only redeeming feature. There are many better options for a burger in Islington and London. Stay away!
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The London Foodie - View all reviews by this user
5 Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 5
Thursday, January 07, 2010

I have to say, sadly, I agree with the other negative reviews of this place. The food was cold when it arrived and the portions are very small-so nothing American about that! The menu is good though and if they iron out what I hope are just early-day glitches it could be an ok (if overpriced) addition to Islington's food scene. Trouble is, with so much great competition, can it really compete?
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helen
4 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 3
Sunday, August 30, 2009

awful food, awful service, awful experience. do not go here. overpriced as well. awful.
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Buster Rowlands
0 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Saturday, August 22, 2009

I went here a couple of weeks ago and thought that it was absolutely atrocious! This restaurant does look cool from the outside but my entire experience there was awful. As I have lived in the USA for a couple of years, I was expecting a proper American-style service and food but this was not the case.

As other reviewers have mentioned, the staff are all 'too cool for school', slow, unfriendly and unattentive. My girlfriend could have easily walked out at any time, as the waitress took that long to bring the bill. We were also charged automatic gratuity which was a joke. If the restaurant is marketed as an American-style diner, it should have American-style service. For example; friendly staff, checking if we need anything, politeness, bringing glasses of water automatically, etc. Basically, they should just hire Americans.

Whilst there is a good selection of food on offer, when it was brought out it was not authentic. I had a Philly Cheese Steak but in reality it was just a steak sandwich. None of the ingredients were right, especially the bread, and it was bitterly disappointing. It was also expensive for what it was. Again, if they want to be an American diner, they must have authentic food and prices.

Overall, this is one of the restaurants I have been to in London. If you want a proper American eating experience, go to Ed's Diner instead!
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Mark Simpson
1 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 1
Friday, August 14, 2009

i took my children here on 22 july and we thought the food was very nice but very small portions and unfortunately it is over priced and although there is a childrens main menu there are no childrens desserts or milkshakes
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7 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 2
Wednesday, July 22, 2009

We popped in on a Friday night after Sadlers Wells. Interior is pretty good but for a diner as my friend pointed out a bit more chrome would be nice. The music was dire, I mean slit your wrists. We don't need the obscure Nirvana at full blast, we love Kurt Cobain but the man was clinically depressed come on its Friday! The staff couldn't even make their mind up about what to play, they would forward on the music every couple of minutes and I aint talking mixing here, I mean pressing the forward button.

Back to the staff, these kids thought they were too cool for school never mind to wait on tables in a diner on Essex Road. There is a lot on the menu and a big up for the Dixie beer I ordered, great if a little over priced. Now quickly on to the food because I could write so many wrong things about this place but I have got a life to live. All our burgers / burritos and fries arrived in pathetic little baskets. My mushroom burger was dry and full of water. My friends with the burritos tackled theirs with a knife and fork, not easy in a basket. Everyone agreed the food was pretty bad, might as well go to a fast food chain and pay half as much (if you can put your morals aside!).

So the food was bad, service slow, staff slower and unfriendly (they think that's cool). Well that was it for us. We laughed knowing we don't need to come back here and that the place will close down soon cause us Islingtonites have sense and won't go back there.

We paid (it took a while for our waitress to get with it but she managed to add the two figure total with a calculator whilst doing some sort of cool hair throwing dance). She was short 23p she said, my friend pointed out we had paid service charge and we really shouldn't have bothered.

Oh dear, farewell diner, looks alright inside, everything else sucks! Don't even go there.
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Michele Buchanan
0 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Saturday, May 16, 2009