Four Seasons Chinese

I went to the Four Seasons in Bayswater to sample the roast duck that everyone seems to be raving about.

Only go to this restaurant if you are prepared to be treated like

I called the restaurant and made a reservation for 19:00. When we got there, we were made to wait at the restaurant entrace with a crowd of other waiting customers. I asked a couple of waiters about our table and they said that I had to speak to the gentleman in the kitchenette in the window of the restaurant. I said I could not speak with him because the I couldn't get past all the people waiting in the tight space in the entrance. He replied "of course you can." So I raised my voice and spoke to the guy from where I was standing, regardless of the whole restaurant being able to hear me. No definite reply. After 15 minutes of being pushed and shoved and trodden on by staff, without the faintest apology. I decided to go and wait by some empty tables out of the way. The same charming guy who trod on my feet came over and told me I couldn't stand there and tried shoving me out of the way. I firmly asked him NOT to touch me and tried to explain the logic of not wanting to be in the middle of the way (the kitchenette was at the entrace where all the people were standing). He told me I had no common sense. At that stage, after a 20 minute wait, we were shown to our table by another member of staff. Relieved, we sat down but after a minute decided that we didn't want to put up with this kind of treatment, so we left. I guess we will never know just how good the duck is, but, for the sake of my dignity, I DON'T CARE!
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Sarah B-D
Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Thursday, May 22, 2008

I was absolutely disgusted with the level of non-service at the Bayswater branch. The staff were horrendously rude, pushing past customers who were waiting to be seated. We made a reservation that wasn't honoured, and when we inquired about reservation, we were shouted at by the staff. I've been there twice and it was the same both times. When I've had the duck (takeaway) it was very good and a friend swears it's the best but it is definitely comparable to the point of no-distinction with its sister branch on Gerrard Street. Go to the Four Seasons on Gerrard Street and at least enjoy your dining experience.
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Kay
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 5
Saturday, March 08, 2008

The Roast Duck is certainly the best in London, if not even in Europe.
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 9
Monday, January 07, 2008

Went to the Four Seasons for the first time on Wednesday night for the first time - I was definitely not disappointed!!

We arrived at for our booking at 7pm and the place was packed. There was a real hustle and bustle about the place, which gave it a great atmosphere. Definitely not the place to take the Mrs for a romantic meal!!

The service was quick, friendly as it could be with the volume of trade - but that suited us fine!!

Food wise - got to try the duck, people come from everywhere to try it. My friend is from Singapore and every time he is in London we go to the Four Seasons just for the duck!!

Decor - bright lights, threadbare carpets, wobbly table - but you know what it only adds to the experience and fun!!

As we left there was a que of people waiting to get in.

This is a great place for chinese food - i will definitely be back!!!!
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RalphT - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Friday, November 09, 2007

Amazing to see how the average rating of this restaurant is so bad considering it is absolutely packed every night. Having lived in Hong Kong for 2 years, this place is very very good food and great value for money. However service is okay considering it is sooooo packed every night and one usually does have to wait for a table. Many chinese eating here so i think this is a very good sign and food is authentic compared to most Chinese restaurants in London. Specialty is Roast Duck (delicious) and we love the minced pork and aubergine dish.
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 9
Saturday, October 20, 2007

I remember going there to celebrate my friends birthday dinner last year and we were all looking forward to having some nice roasted duck as many people have been saying it is the best. My friend made a resevation and was accepted but when we got to the restaurant, there was no table. We waited for nearly 40 minutes, and still no table. So in the end we took our business elswhere. The following week I just had to try the restaurant and went during the day where its not that busy. I did order the much celebrated duck, it was not as good as I thought. My kids had chicken noodles as its their favourite at least they enjoyed it. The service is not that great, but I'm not expecting to get great service anyway so I'm not bothered. To me this restaurant reminds me of Hong Kong. Very cramped, service is not great, for food well I'm willing to give it another try.
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Marilyn
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 5
Monday, October 08, 2007

Over the past few years I've been to this restaurant about four times.; it is a popular restaurant with many Singapore / Malaysian / Chinese students. Coming from Singapore and having eaten Chinese cuisine my entire life, I honestly have to say that their roast duck is only average. Even worse, its standard had dropped over the years. It is relatively greasy which means too much fat in relation to meat. One one occasion, as I made my way to the toilet, they were bringing in their food supplies which lined the passageway. Lo and behold, I caught a glimpse of the duck. It is an average brand, all wrapped upped, nothing you can't get from sainsbury's. In top restaurants, roast duck or peking duck is done using wild duck caught only during certain timess of the year. Thus, the meat has a nice gamey texture without too much fat. If I wanted a greasy bird, I would have gone for roast goose! Overall, no point making a special trip for the duck - easily available at chinatown and certainly can't surpass a typical Singaporean hawker centre roast duck stall.

Rest of the food - a little better. The minced pork with aubergines is certainly one of the best I've eaten. Pai Gu Wang - Chinese pork ribs were good too. The worst dish I've had was the Shao Rou or Chinese roast pork. The meat for this is typically from the belly. Sometimes, the meat is called san cheng rou or three-layered meat because it's supposed to have a layer of crispy skin followed by a layer of fat, then alternating layers of meat and fat. A good cut of meat is distinguished by the clarity of these layers. Unfortunately, they served up a two layered piece of meat the last time I was there - skin and fatty meat. No distinguishable layers.

Service? Nothing to sing about. Chinese restaurants aren't known for their good service in general. Maybe it was just me, the typical student look. Plus, everyone knows about the dreadul queue and cram at the entrance

Atmosphere - close tables, dare I say cramped?

The verdict - ok for an occasional visit especially when pulled along by friends who still believe the urban myth that the Thai King only eats at this restaurant for roast duck. Might get lucky with complimentary oranges at the end ... but definitely not on a friday night

P.S. rumour has it that the head chef left for Magic Wok
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fuzwuzzle
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 3
Saturday, June 16, 2007

The food here is excellent & probably has the best roast duck in this part of London. Unfortunately this place is a victim of its own success as its popularity grew. It is quite normal to wait in the cramped front of the restaurant for 20 minutes even with a booking! Sometimes the wait is even longer than this. Also the service here is impolite & very rushed compared to other Chinese restaurants in Bayswater. I used to go here regularly but I avoid this place nowadays cause I don't fancy waiting in a crowd for that long, a shame. Good place for a pig out if you can wait, but don't bring along a date she probably won't be impressed.
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Danny Lim
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 4
Monday, December 12, 2005