LM in the East. — Restaurant in Gauteng

I can’t help but wonder when last the owners or staff sat down to enjoy one of their own pizzas — because if they had, I suspect they might have been as disappointed as I was today.

My family has been eating at LM for over 25 years. Their pizzas used to be truly exceptional — the kind I’d look forward to every time I visited from the Cape. Sadly, that wasn’t the case this time.

I ordered a Quattro Stagioni, and unfortunately, it fell well below the standard I’ve come to expect: • The salami and ham tasted more like cheap polony than quality cured meat. • The base was dry and cardboard-like. • The tomato sauce was bland. • The garlic I ordered on the side was not fresh, chopped garlic in olive oil — a simple touch that always elevates a pizza.

If it weren’t for the mushroom, olives, and green peppers — the only ingredients carrying any flavour — the overall taste would have been no better than a mass-produced frozen pizza.

My brother was just as disappointed with him pizza.

I’m sharing this feedback because I’d love to see LM in the East return to its former glory. If it means raising prices to restore the mind-blowing quality you were once known for, I believe many loyal customers like myself would support it.

On a positive note, the new restaurant décor is beautiful, and the staff are polite. That said, they didn’t seem particularly enthusiastic — perhaps a little inspiration and energy (think: the warm, lively service at Plato) could make a big difference.

I hope you take this as it’s intended — from a loyal customer who genuinely wants to see LM in the East back at the top...

We had an early dinner here on a Friday afternoon so the restaurant was not busy. We loved the organic and authentic atmosphere of a local community restaurant with a clearly defined Portuguese offering. As we settled down, our waiter brought us complimentary little starters of chicken livers. Not only was this a very thoughtful gesture, but the gravy was outstanding, making us feel that we had come to a place with personal attention and customer care.

The service was fine and efficient, apart from a mistake on the bill.

The baby chicken was good but not sensational. The hero of this dish was the Porro potatoes which we found to be really interesting and truly delicious.

But the hero of the dinner for us was the Trinchado! This is by far one of the best dishes we have enjoyed in years. The richness of the gravy and the tenderness of the beef was just next level. Served with mash, this was a true winner and we would come back again and again for this dish if we lived in the area.

Well done to LM in the East! We would highly recommend this restaurant if you are looking for an alternative to the large and predictable mall-based...

I read about this restaurant about 8 months ago and the reviews were great. So finally got a change to dine here.

The place looks like a typical style restaurant in LM. The seating looked cramp and almost got the feeling well all dining together as one big happy group.

The smoking section is the bar and smoke goes thru the entire restaurant...not good!

Our waiter was excellent. He had a great attitude and really had a good rapport with all the patrons.

I had a oyster starter...nothing special.

My partner has the scallops servers with brown bakery bread...the scollops were chewy and tasteless. The sauce it’s served with was a kind of water and basil mixed in oil...

For the mains I had a sole and prawn...the ocean basket restaurant would have done a far better version of this meal ( and I passionately dislike Ocean Basket).

My partner had the prawn and something that look like calamari but tasted horribly different.

The prawns were average.

Not a place I would recommend not visit again based on...