Balthazar — Restaurant in London

It’s not our first time at Balthazar, but it will probably be our last. We had a lovely dinner here over summer. Unfortunately, this occasion was the worst standard of a meal I’ve had in London and as you can see from my account here I dine out often in London. It was around 11am on a Saturday and we had pre-booked a table.

Firstly, our server was friendly at the start, but we never saw him again. Unfortunately, the first mistake was made. The waiter ordered us a regular eggs Benedict (that we didn’t order). We ordered an avocado Benedict, a full English breakfast and an order of pancakes. The avocado eggs Benedict , the regular eggs Benedict, and the pancakes arrived. We sent away the regular eggs Benedict because we didn’t order it, but they couldn’t quite work out what happened to the full English breakfast, so they took the regular eggs Benedict back, apologised and told us the full English was being made. It was a mistake. Completely happens. I get that.

However, from there on, just more issues. My avocado eggs Benedict was tepid, and with a cold untoasted muffin. That immediately became soggy with the egg and sauce on top of it. Photos attached. When I enquired if this was meant to be toasted I was told, it is ‘lightly toasted’ and the gentleman didn’t seem to care and walked away. They did not offer to rectify this. I looked over at the table right next to us- the gentleman was eating his Eggs Benedict and both muffins had a lovely toasted ring around the top of the muffins. I ate the eggs and avocado off the muffins and enjoyed some of the pancakes whilst my partner waited for his meal to be made.

His meal did finally arrive but without his toast. It was never brought despite being asked for. To note- his bacon was overly salty but he said overall the meal was ok but nothing special. We both agree the pancakes were fantastic as well as the cappuccinos. Those alone were to a high standard.

We did speak to section manager who was helpful and apologetic and removed the pancakes and coffees off of our bill. Which was greatly appreciated. Just as we thought, fine, rectified, as much as it could be. Until we noticed the eggs Benedict (that we never ordered) was on our bill, so we had to wave down the manager and reengage. Just really awkward for not only us, but the people around us trying to enjoy their meals.

All in all we spent more time engaging management instead of enjoying our brunch. Overall, poor dining experience. Yes, there was a discount, but it doesn’t fix the whole experience. We still paid 40£ for a below average meal. We wouldn’t return. They also didn’t ask us if we wanted to pay service. We really shouldn’t have but we did.

Decor/ambiance: It’s a gorgeous restaurant with a lovely atmosphere as you can see from photos. I’d love to give 5 stars for the restaurants decor and light Christmas decorations- (1 Christmas tree and front door decs) However, you cannot appreciate that when you’re eating...

We love Balthazar and usually choose this restaurant when we are in the Covent Garden area. We booked for 6.15pm but arrived about 20 mins earlier than expected. The receptionist was lovely and told us it wasn't a problem as our table was ready for us.

Our waiter was wonderful. When looking at menus online we noticed they had a children eat free offer currently on for the summer hols which we thought great! We had just spent a fortune at the theatre and every little helps so we enquired about it as we weren't given the menu. The waiter didn't seem to know anything about it but asked a male senior staff (grey uniform) who confirmed that they had the offer on. 2 free children meals for 2 paying adult meals. We ordered a whole lobster, a steak and frites and a mussels and frites to share with a side tomato salad and a side macaroni cheese. Our children had 2 x spaghetti and a burger (we had to pay for one of the children's meal). Husband had a caraf of wine and we had a number of soft drinks. When it came to desserts, we asked a senior female staff (in grey uniform) if the children have desserts included in the menu. She gave us a miserable look and said no, you have to order from the proper dessert menu. ... I was sure i had seen some desserts on the online children eat free menu (which hadn't been given to us) ..so i decided to check it again on my phone, as I thought I was seeing things!! Sure enough it was there online as part of the offer. My husband enquired again but this time with our lovely waiter and he said he wasn't sure but would find out. He went to ask a male senior staff and I saw them checking and our waiter came back to apologise for the misunderstanding and the dessert was indeed included with the free children's meal. We ordered 2 ice creams and a coffee.

If it wasn't for our lovely waiter, I honestly wouldn't want to go back to Balthazar no matter how good the food was. The female senior staff was just so miserable. Not a single smile when dealing with us. Didn't ask us how our meal was when she was taking away our plates just asked if we had finished. She really looked like we were an inconvenience to her and she looked like she did not want to be there. I don't know if she had personal problems but if you are working, you should be professional at all times. if you can't do your job well, then have the day off!! As a family we work hard to have a nice meal out together. A nice meal with good service especially at those prices is not too much to ask for is it?

I wish I took down our waiter's name. If it wasn't for him, the star rating would be lower. He made our evening. He is a real credit to your restaurant. Treat him well as he is a real treasure. That female senior member of staff could learn a thing or 2 from our waiter in red. All other staff was good also..all very polite but our waiter just went above and beyond. Great...

My wife booked us brunch here for us to grab a bite to eat before heading to the theatre on my birthday. I doubt that we would return. The live band that was playing when we came in was good, but very loud - made it very difficult to hold a conversation.

We had 3 courses, and 5 different servers. I was disappointed that the starters were delivered to the table while my wife was in the toilet - I dont think that food should be served unless the whole party is at the table, otherwise it just sits there getting cold.

As we were being taken to our seat we were informed that we only had the table for 75 minutes. Would have been nice to have been made aware of this time limit at booking, as this set the tone for a rushed dining experience.

Here is my thoughts on each course:

Starter - Sauteed King Prawns While the prawns were cooked well and the sauce was tasty enough, there was no hint of chilli. Also, this would benefit will with being served with a slice of bread, or even a spoon. There was so much sauce left over at the end of the dish that I couldn't eat. Bit of a shame. Also came out suspiciously fast.

Main - Balthazar Hamburger with fries I'm fairly certain that these are frozen/prepared off site. We wasn't asked what temperature we wanted our burgers and they came well done. Very dense and rubbery, with poor quality meat. The bun is huge and plenty of fillings, but so many better burgers in the area at the same or cheaper price. The fries were hot, tasty and crispy, well seasoned and a good portion. These were the best aspect of the hot meal.

Dessert - Raspberry Souffle Amazing! SO tasty! Highly recommend this. 15 minute wait for this but well worth it.

Birthday profiterole This was not ordered and served as a surprise. Very nice, chocolate sauce was rich and complimented the cream and pastry very well.

Drinks: Provence Martini - very nice. A lovely martini and would order again. Berry Sour - Fruity, smooth and delicious. Very nice. St Germain Des-Pres - Also very nice. Not too strong.

One of the servers unfortunately forgot one of our drinks so we had to re-order (we was told that the order was put in but the bar hadnt made it).

Overall, it was a shame that we were not served by one person. The food didnt feel fresh or made to order and was just plonked on the table regardless of whether we were sat or not. Most of the staff were friendly and smiling, but it was clear that they were all very busy as they all seemed rushed. Nobody asked at any point how our food was, or if we had enjoyed our meal.

I probably wouldn't return and don't necessary recommend it for a relaxed enjoyable meal. Probably good if you are in a...