Peking Inn — Restaurant in England

Good then bad and unlikely to go back.

We just ate here for the first time having just moved to the area. I rarely write reviews these days unless it was particularly good or bad. This experience was fine until the end, then bad such that it left a bad taste in my mouth that warranted a negative review. Whether it puts you off is up to you.

The welcome was warm and friendly and the waiting staff were attentive. The food arrived in a timely manner and was the sort of reasonable provincial Chinese food that I would offer a 4 star review up for. It wasn’t amazing but it was ok. The restaurant was about half full on a Friday night. It was a solid four star performance.

I’m half Malaysian Chinese and always like a decent Chinese restaurant near at hand. I think we would have happily come back here except for the management’s attitude when it came to the bill.

We had a quarter duck portion of crispy aromatic duck with pancakes. There were 6 pancakes between 4 people and enough food for 10 pancakes. So we asked for more pancakes. They came quickly. When the bill arrived a portion of pancakes for £1.50 was added. I also had some chopped chillies with the main course that to be fair the manager insinuated I was ordering in addition to the food though I don’t think I grasped it would cost £1.50.

On paying I mentioned I thought the charge for the pancakes in particular was cynical to the waiter but actually paid the bill in full and the already added 12.5% service. On bringing our coats we spoke to the manager about it and was politely told it was ‘restaurant policy’. He said ‘any order that goes to the kitchen has to be charged like if you go to the supermarket’. They clearly do not think they are doing anything wrong. And they are technically not I guess though enough pancakes to wrap the duck in seems to be implied in the dish to me.

But essentially the policy is to try and get a sneaky bit of extra from customers. I always wonder how restaurants treat the rest of their business when it can’t be seen (staff, food in the kitchen etc) when they treat guests with such cynical contempt to their face.

The cost aside from that was fine and the experience otherwise good (4 stars) and I have marked them down purely for the billing policy.

We will be living here maybe five years or so I guess that is a minimum of one meal a month we would have visited, often with friends or family like today. That is approximately 250 meals at £30 per head for 4-8 people they will miss out on.

I’ll be interested to see if the...

I have never faced with such humiliation and rudeness befor. We ( me and my son)  arrived to Cookham for 3 days as guests of Odney Club. One evening I decided to have dinner at this restaurant. My choice based on reviews and the variety of the menu. When we entered the restaurant, we were met by one of the staff. He immediately informed us that everything was fully booked and there were no seats. I asked if I could book a table for the next day. He took his notebook and began to write down my name. I pronounced it letter by letter, but he made mistakes and wrote my name incorrectly. It seemed, that he didn't understand me well, or had difficulty writing letters. Then he asked for my phone number. I began to pronounce, but I had a feeling that he did not understand me well again. I asked why he did not write down the number, but he had a misunderstanding and asked for the first digits several times. I asked him to write down digit by digit. He started arguing with me, expressing his doubts that I know my phone number well enough. In the end of the day he crossed out my name in his notebook and told us that he will not to make reservation for us. I asked to call the administrator. He replied that he is the administrator. I asked to call the boss, he replied that he is the boss. Thus, he threw me and my son out the door, depriving us of the opportunity to have dinner and refusing to register my reservation for the next day.

I have never left negative reviews before. But today I could not ignore the discrimination and humiliation towards myself and my son...

The Peking Inn is a real gem in Cookham — consistently excellent food, warm and attentive service, and a welcoming atmosphere that makes every visit special. The crispy duck is outstanding, mains are full of flavour, and portions are generous. Staff go above and beyond to make you feel at home, whether it’s a casual dinner or a celebration. The Peking Inn also handles dietary preferences impressively. Gluten-free options are well catered for, and they are flexible about accommodating requests — a real plus in this kind of cuisine. Value is very respectable. Yes, it’s not the cheapest Chinese in town — but you get what you pay for: fresh produce, strong flavours, generous portions, and a welcoming dining experience. If there’s any slight niggle, it would be the lack of their own parking (as is often the case on Cookham High Street) and occasionally that booking ahead is essential, especially on weekend evenings. Nothing major — just the kind of things any popular place has to contend with A local favourite and easily one of the best places for Chinese cuisine...