wagamama bracknell — Restaurant in England

I have been in this country for 13 years and we have always skipped dining in Wagamama just because it does not look like an authentic Japanese restaurant. We gave in because we wanted to try something new and give it a chance. Our second time dining here and on a less busy time so we got to sit in a booth but on peak hours a couple will most likely be seated on one of these long stretch tables which in my opinion is very intimidating for my personal space especially when I’m eating. The Bracknell branch is clean and you can see the kitchen as well. There are outdoor seats but they do not have heating for alfresco dining during winter.

The ambiance of all Wagamamas aim to be like a Japanese street shop although does not reflect the prices. Small side dishes ranging from £3.50-£6.75, Main Dishes £7.75-£13.95. These are the same prices you would get on an authentic Japanese restaurant with better ambiance and service. The staff are nice, friendly, and presentable but gives the vibe of a fast food style restaurant, and they don’t introduce themselves. They serve the food in no particular order, they don’t even arrive all together. Our first dining experience was on a Saturday night and my husband had nearly finished his ramen before I got my main dish and one of our side dishes arrived after we both finished our main dish.

The food is average. The taste and plating of the food is very heavily westernised and would please the palate of people not used to authentic Japanese food. The noodles they use for all ramens are just standard noodles, you don’t get to choose from soba or udon. Although, you can customise your stock/soup to spicy, light, or rich. I was particularly disappointed with the chicken karaage which is totally not what karaage is supposed to be, it seemed like they just fried the chicken as it is, no batter, no ginger. The teriyaki sauce they use for their donburi does not taste like Japanese teriyaki. The best dish I had and is highly recommended is the Squid Balls, it’s their version of Takoyaki and I could come back just for that, but I wish they served it with good amounts of proper Japanese Kewpie Mayonnaise.

Wagamama has seemed to become the lunch-break go to for most people and we only dine here when we have a lazy night of cooking. The food and ambiance dictate these but unfortunately the prices do not. I would not be able to afford to have lunch every work day when a meal would cost me £15-£25 per person; and if I were to spend this much, I would go somewhere nicer.

Wagamama has been in the UK for a long time and it has survived because the high street people of the UK are not really fuzzy about ethnic food. Rice and noodles are all the same to them. But for ethnic people like us, we taste all the differences; and my verdict is Wagamama is really not an authentic Japanese restaurant as I initially...

Wagamama Bracknell are always very accommodating when it comes to families with small children. They offer high chairs, crayons and a kids colouring menu.

The staff are most friendly and helpful, and the service is relatively quick so it’s great for when you’re really hungry and just need to pop in for a quick bite.

We love the bench style seating and the slightly dim hanging lights, it gives the restaurant a nice urban feel.

The menu is great, they continue to add new dishes. There’s a wide range of flavours and types of dishes; from rice dishes to noodles, soups, bowls, salads. The starters and sides are all very tasty too.

The kids menu is amazing, there’s quite a bit of variety and good portions. And it’s not your typical kids chicken nuggets and chips, they have noodles with tofu and veg (for example), it’s great.

It’s nice to see the chefs right in front of the seating area cooking all of the food fresh. It looks like there are good kitchen practices, cleanliness, and hygiene (one of the reasons why we love this restaurant).

On this particular visit there was an issue with one of the dishes ordered but the waitress was extremely understanding and quick to get it rectified, and even took this item off the bill despite us saying not to. And she offered a sincere apology for the inconvenience and impacts it caused to our lunching experience which was really nice to hear.

We love coming to Wagamama in The Lexicon, it’s a great pit stop when doing the...

I took my grandchildren to this restaurant as I have done many times We sat in the outside area which is grubby and sticky tables not pleasant at all Our food was delivered which was good but half way through eating my granddaughter found a long hair in her food When the manager appeared she accused us of this happening before and the hair was blonde she said no chefs had blonde hair well there was a blonde woman cooking She was rude and very unpleasant As I said to her I have come here to eat and enjoy my food and this was not the first time this has happened my son found a hair in his food I know many people don’t complain but you should because this is unacceptable Hair in the food The restaurant standard has slipped not the staff all very pleasant apart from the manager she was very rude and try to blame her customers as I said to her twice this has happened so clearly your standards are dropping seemed to me that she is not managing the restaurant very well and maybe she needs to accept criticism and do something about it rather than insulting...