All reader reviews by Omar

Frontline

Frontline is a very unique restaurant. The ambience has a photo-journalist feel and the photos they have mounted on the wall sparks interesting dinner conversation. Having dinner here also gives you entry to the club upstairs for specified documentary screenings. Very cool.

The wine list is amazing. In a city where everyone tries to gouge you with 3x mark-ups on their wine, Frontline is refreshing to have some top class wines at only small mark-ups. The list is also experimental with several tasty representations of some up and coming wine regions. Whoever put the list together has a passion for wine and it shows.

The food was a bit mixed though. I had a lamb curry special that was very delicious, but the monk-fish starter had no flavor. One member of our table had an excellent lamb kebab, really great, but the salmon was too bland. This restaurant could be really fantastic if the chef blind-tasted some of his dishes and worked on the critical ones to give them more flavor or replace it with another dish. That being said, because I think of wine as food, I ended up rating the food highly.

The service tries hard but you may be kept waiting from time to time. They are super nice though. As long as you are not pressed for time and order something from the great wine list, you won't notice.

The best way to enjoy Frontline is to use this site and others to find out which dishes are really good. Then go with a group of friends to have great conversation, over some awesome wines with an ambience that is relevant for our times. Order only the good food items on the menu and go again and again.

Did I mention they have a great wine list?

Sunday, August 10, 2008
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9

Bombay Palace

The area between Marylebone and Bayswater is lacking in terms of quality restaurants, so I was hoping that Bombay Palace would be something good. Unfortunately, the experience was quite poor because of the service. Considering the non-optional 15% service charge on the bill, this doesn't seem so fair. Anecdotes include telling your father who can't eat very spicy foods that something is not too spicy and then getting too spicy. Another one is having you wait 35 minutes before you get any food. Ordering dessert and being forgotten for a half hour. Telling someone to distribute the lamb chops to the table, see him stack it on your plate instead and then have him argue at you for not telling him.

I noticed the manager taking better care of customers that seem to be more regulars. My advice is to tell the front door person that you just moved into the building next door and are testing the place. This way the manager might give you more attention and allow for a more attentive experience.

The ambience lacks soul striving to look upscale but instead looking antiseptic. Save the toilet for the home else be prepared to hold your nose. The place is very child friendly although if you are looking for a meal that is more quiet, then I would avoid.

The restaurant does better on the food, although Noor Jahan down the road is much better. The lamb chops and the rasmalai we ordered were fantastic. The makhni paneer was Ok. The masala sauce on the prawns was not good.

Overall, if you want the best Palace experience, the best bet would be to get their delivery menu and order in.

Saturday, August 09, 2008
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 2