Salieri Restaurant

Dined there yesterday evening before the theatre. Had booked using their online site and received a confirming email a day later so that was very efficient. The staff were friendly without being obtrusive and we loved the decor with lots of theatrical masks on the walls. The food was great and very well presented. We both had the veal and loved it. Service was swift (without feeling rushed) and that's what you need if you're off to see a show.

My only criticism would be that the space between the seating and the table can be a bit cramped, but we didn't find that to be too big a deal.

We would certainly recommend this restaurant and we would have no hesitation about dining there again.
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Kevin & Marion
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Sunday, April 06, 2008

Dined there yesterday evening for the first time. Excellent service, food etc. We will definetely be going back. Can reccommend the Veal and the Lamb. Cooked to perfection!
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Vera Honey
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Thursday, March 20, 2008

I can't believe people have had such bad experiences here.

We were there again on Saturday , having been as often as possible over the past few years.

The waiters and owner are always friendly and polite. The decor is mad, and possibly very slightly shabby, but that is part of it's charm, it is a "theatre restaurant" afterall. You expect it to be over the top and a bit different, and it meets all expectations as far as we are concerned.

The food is fabulous, and they do the best fillet steak in London! It gets really busy when the matinee's kick out in the afternoon right into the evening, and a lot of the folk through the door are regulars too, so what does that tell you?

In fact , we love it so much, we are having our wedding reception there!

Please don't let the bad reviews put you off, try it for yourself. If you want central London restaurant that's cosy, fun and vibrant, and you enjoy being able to choose from a wide selection of well presented, really good food then this is the place for you.

There is a Pizza Hut further down the road for those of you who don't..... ;-)
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Heather Driscoll
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Tuesday, February 19, 2008

My boyfriend and I were given a free 2 course meal at salieris for a birthday present and when we found out the restaurant was French we were a little hesitant that we wouldn’t enjoy the food, however after easily finding the place in the centre of London on the strand we sat down a very very nice meal. The decor inside is a bit crazy but food and service was A class. The service was quick, (but not too quick that they just wanted you out). I had the veggie meal and my boyfriend had lamb both were fantastic, the food was piping hot and we cleared our plates. The wine was lovely. The desserts were amazing too. I would definitely go again.
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Donna Cross
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Wednesday, November 28, 2007

We booked a meal for 7 after a matinee as a treat for my mother for her 80th birthday. There seemed some slight confusion when we first arrived about our booking but when that was sorted the head waiter just pointed and told us where to sit, there was no showing us to our seats or asking if they could take our coats. This would have been ok if the seating arrangements had been geared for to seating 6, but squashing 7 on with coats it was a bit cramped. Our order for drinks was taken, but we were never asked again if we would like more drinks even though all our glasses were empty. some of our group wanted coke with no ice, but did expect the drinks to be cold - but no they were luke warm and the waitress did not seem happy when we asked for ice and we had to explain the reason why. We went for the set menu and the food when it came was adequate (but luke warm), and especially for the main course there was a long wait (my food did not arrive until about 5 minutes after everybody else's). We were not offered but did ask for pepper but gave up in the end and got it ourselves. We would have like more to drink but when we approached the 'head waiter' he said he would send someone over!!! (obviously he didn't mean that evening and we had finished our meals and still nobody - so just gave up). I appreciate that this is geared around theatregoers, but we got the impression that they were in a hurry to get rid of us so rather than a nice evening we felt pressured to leave. All in all not a great evening and all for 12 1/2% service charge - but not much service.
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Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 3
Monday, November 26, 2007

If you're reading this with a view to going to the Salieri, I've got a short statement to make "Don't!.

On first impressions, it seems like a really good restaurant, the decor is outstanding, and the vibe is upbeat, the staff greeted us warmly as we came through the door. As we were seated a meze of olives, bread and carrots were brought to the table, which was delicious and left me hungry and looking forward to what was to come.

However it all went down-hill from there.

The starters that were initially brought out were partially incorrect, so they left half of it sitting on the bar whilst the correct order was sent back down to the kitchen, cooked and brought back up.

The only other good thing about this restaurant is the calamari, which was very tasty, although I'd recommend saving some of the dip from the appetizer plate, as they do not provide one.

Breaded chicken escalope Milanese

This was an incredibly dry dish, to the extent that I couldn't eat more than a few mouthfuls. Compared to other restaurants it is atrocious, and something that I resented paying for. The spaghetti was cold by the time it reached the table, and the sauce tasted like something out of a jar. I still wonder if they buy their dishes from the ready-meal aisle!

The wait staff were in general incredibly rude apart from when you walk in the door, and when asked a question would switch into their native language to talk to other members of staff whilst still at the table.

The only reason I tried this restaurant was because it sounded good from a couple of reviews I'd read, and as I'd booked through a website, it was supposed to cost £7.95 per head for the 2 courses. However they decided that it wasn't to be, telling me that it was "tough", and that it would be "cash or card mate". I've never experienced such rude staff in my life, especially as they're the ones advertising it!

Needless to say, I gave their tip to a charity, although I'm sure if I'd given it to a homeless person they could've rustled up something with more flavour.

In short - go somewhere else.
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Joe_McElwee - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 0
Saturday, November 17, 2007

I agree with the last review that this restaurant was average, nothing terribly bad to say about it, but nothing to rave about either. We came in a group of 12--2 adults and 10 well-behaved young adults (16-19 year olds) on a package theater/dinner deal. We were seated in the most out of the way corner down in the depths below, but nobody in our group seemed to mind. The service people were very accommodating--upon my request they turned down the music, for example. (We were seated under the speakers) They also had a menu diverse enough to cover vegetarian tastes. The food was pretty good and the students gave it all thumbs up--the portions were ample, the presentation was quite nice, and it all was well seasoned, well cooked. The only comment here would be on the uneven serving--as if a couple of us had been forgotten and the others well into their plates by the time they straightened it out in the kitchen. We had some very friendly, very energetic wait people. One,however, was pretty inexperienced, knew nothing about opening wine (tried to cut the foil off the top of a twist-cap bottle!) and proceeded to fill the glasses nearly to the top! Also had a hard time pouring water into the glass and not next to it. Oh well. As mentioned before, our meal was part of a package deal and so we did not get a bill at the end except for our drinks. This, of course, did not promise the wait people much of a tip, and so we were suddenly left on our own toward the end when we made it clear we would not be having coffee or dessert to jack up the tab. Restaurants should not offer these package deals if they cannot deal with the fact that there probably won't be a huge tip in this sort of arrangement. But if they are really keen on the rewards, then some real consistent friendliness right to the 'bitter end' will pay off in the long run resulting in further reccommendations to go to the place as opposed to reccommending that the world avoid it.
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Mrs. V et al
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 7
Monday, November 12, 2007

I get very confused when there are such conflicting reviews on restaurants. I usually give the place the benefit of the doubt and try it once, but I really think I am going to change my approach, as thus far it's resulted in disappointment.

I can't say anything particularly bad about this restaurant. I wouldn't say it was horrible or that the food was not edible, like other reviewers. What I would say, however, is that at the very best it's average.

The service left a lot to be desired - we had mussels for starters and they give you hot towels to wipe your hands. The dirty towels didn't get cleared with the dishes and laid around on the table for the rest of the meal. They also cleared away the side dish (olives etc.) while there was still food on it and without asking if we were finished. The waiter was not what I would call rude, but he would not speak and merely grunted in response to all my questions. I think this was his attempt at humour, but he didn't quite pull it off and really it was just annoying.

Atmosphere is ordinary - very much like a diner or similar. A bit cheap and nasty I would say.

As for the food, the mussels were edible and the sauce was not bad (though again got cleared away before I was finished without asking). The actual mussels were overcooked though and a bit tough. Had the chicken for main - smothered in bad bad cheese and not very nice at all, though not too badly cooked. Boyfriend had the ravioli which sounded nice - lobster and salmon I think, but it just tasted like dill and cream.

Basically, the place is not totally horrible, but it's really not worth visiting. If you're thinking 'maybe I'll just try it out for myself', I wouldn't bother - you're not going to find anything exciting here and you'll probably just be disappointed you missed the opportunity to go somewhere else.
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Bridget
Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 6
Thursday, June 14, 2007

Wow mixed reviews for this restaurant. Ive eaten there 3 times now and I love it. Great food, service and atmosphere for a very reasonable price. I would recommend this restaurant to anybody and am quite surprised to read negative reviews.
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Duncan
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Sunday, June 03, 2007

We had a wonderful meal, with excellent service and a very reasonable bill at the end. I highly reccommend this restaurant. My only critisism is the toilet facilities need up- dating and the stairs need a bit of t.l.c.
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BARBARA CHETTLE
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Wednesday, April 04, 2007