Cinnamon Chessington — Restaurant in London

We visited the restaurant on Saturday evening after a long day of rides at Chessington World of Adventures.

There was a man—possibly the owner or manager, as he was the only one not wearing the black uniform—who seemed to be overseeing the place. The restaurant was nearly empty, with just one other family.

When we mentioned we didn’t have a reservation, they seated us at a table closest to the toilet, despite plenty of other empty tables being available. When I expressed discomfort about sitting near the restroom, they kindly offered us a seat at the front, which I appreciated.

The food was decent—prepared with effort and acceptable in taste. It was also suitable for children, which we were thankful for.

However, the service, particularly from the person I assume was the owner, left much to be desired. At one point, when my spouse and daughter went to wash their hands, the owner stood behind them, watching closely in an unsettling way until they finished. He then immediately wiped the sink. While I understand the importance of cleanliness, the manner in which it was done felt intrusive and quite creepy.

Another moment that stood out was when, presumably because we had a child, they placed extra coverings on the seats—as if they expected a mess. While I dismissed it as a precaution, it still felt presumptive, especially since our child is usually very tidy.

The most uncomfortable part of the evening occurred while we were eating. Less than an arm’s length away, the owner began loudly scolding a waiter—confronting him for not covering bar duties and focusing only on table service. He even went so far as to threaten a pay cut (yes, we could hear the entire conversation). It was deeply unpleasant. We felt genuinely sorry for the poor employee and extremely awkward as diners. My spouse and I just looked at each other, tense and eager to leave.

As for the food—it was average, perhaps okay at best. Edible and sufficient, but not memorable.

Would we return? Unfortunately, no. The atmosphere and treatment, especially toward staff, made it an experience we wouldn’t want to repeat.

I truly feel sorry for that employee—and for any others in that establishment—who have to endure such public...

I am not a fan of Anglo-Indian food or of Indian restaurants. The last two times I was coerced into such an establishment, the poppadoms were stale and the staff exchanged unpleasant looks about our polite table of women. This said, Cinammon has changed my mind. The staff were pleasant and attentive (but not overly so) from the moment our group of eleven ladies stepped through the door. The menu featured the expected usual dishes but lots of other recipes I had not seen before which pleased me greatly as I hate nothing more than feeling bored when I look at a menu. The atmosphere at Cinammon is pleasant and the toilet was clean. The food was nice and I felt like they deserved a write-up and people's business because they clearly care about what they do and that means a lot in an industry where more often than not it seems people just want to rinse every penny possible out of their customers due to ever-increasing overheads and barely provide any level of customer service. I didn't take photos during the meal I am afraid because I had organised for a group of ladies to go and meet like-minded good souls and I felt it to be intrusive and rude to be focused on promotional activities during the meal. Below are a few photos I took at the end of the meal. We drank quite a lot as is customary in the Uk when celebrating life with friends so you could probably keep the price per person down bt not doing that 😁 So I leave you with this comment only: Cinammon is worthy of your business because it is a pretty restaurant with a more diverse offering and staff who care....

We’ve been regular customers at Cinnamon in Chessington since it opened, and have enjoyed many visits, including small family gatherings. However, our recent experience was deeply upsetting and has changed our view completely.

During our visit, a young child from our group was quietly walking around and waving at others she wasn’t causing any disruption. The owner approached us and, rather than addressing the situation politely, made an incredibly inappropriate and racist remark, saying we were “disturbing the white crowd” and demanded that the child to be removed or we leave. This was shocking, offensive, and entirely unacceptable. A simple, respectful request would have been more than enough.

In addition to this, the service has been consistently poor even though food was nice. The front-of-house staff frequently get orders wrong, and the owner has had to come over and apologise each time.

What makes this even more disheartening is that we are from the same community as the owner. We expected to be treated with dignity and respect, especially as loyal customers for years. Sadly, after this experience, we will not be returning and neither will our friends or family.

On a positive note, we visited Tamil square Restaurant nearby afterward, and the contrast was night and day. The staff were warm, welcoming, and accommodating, and the food was excellent. We will happily support businesses like theirs that truly value all...