Comptoir Libanais — Restaurant in London

I was there yesterday. We had to go inside to ask if we can sit outside, even they could see we were awaiting in front of the doors. The waiter who come to serve us as a speed of a turtle. Did not know what aperol spritz is. We made our order and waited. Next thing- the food plates come, but now cutlery, no serviettes, no drinks. We waited again and our food was getting cold. When he brought our food I asked about our drinks and he just told me he was alone there. Then he disappeared. As the food was getting cold, I went inside and asked for these things- they could see I was not happy. They brought the cutlery with no apology. After some time we had our drinks. Then we had to wait for ages for them to clean the plates. 5 of them inside, us and another table outside- not busy, and absolutely no awareness to take care of their customers. There were talking inside!My friend got up and went to the door to call them because I wanted to order deserts . She was getting upset because they saw her and I just ignored her. I was getting upset because this was the worst service I even had in my life. The waiter finally come to see it and then my friend asked what kind of service was this, his reply was :” What’s wrong with the service?” I was furious and told him ( because he did not serve us but his attitude was the same- he did not care) I asked for the desert menu but then I changed my mind . I did not want to spend one more minute there with these useless people. I asked for the bill and the fist time in my life I asked for service charge to be removed. I told him they should think about their service. He just looked at me without one but if care or apology . If this stars and -10 this is what I would give to these useless people . However, that all comes from the management- they decide who to employ, train them and to make sure they maintain the standards. I love this chain in restaurants and I go often to Sloane Square and South Kensington. Westfield too. I reviewed the one in Chelsea too. Here- I will NEVER visit again, avoid this place at all costs and there any many restaurants close by. We went to Feya after this and their service was wonderful . That will be another review for them- very positive one. P.S.I see the management is keen to reply to these reviews that they are ‘disappointed’ when the reviews are negative, but obviously they are not doing anything about it. Go to other branches and learn how to...

The standout of our visit to Comptoir Libanais was undoubtedly the service. From start to finish, we were looked after by three different staff members, and every single one was excellently attentive, friendly, and genuinely helpful. The staff are a real credit to the restaurant and easily the highlight of our experience.

Unfortunately, the meal itself let the experience down. We started with the Mezze Platter for two, which included hommos, baba ghanuj, tabbouleh, falafel, labné, cheese samboussek, flatbread & pickles. While the cheese samboussek was a highlight, being gooey, crisp, and delicious, there was only one samboussek and one falafel per person, and no flatbread was served despite it being listed on the menu. That left us with three dips and nothing to dip with, which was disappointing. The tabbouleh was fresh and packed with flavour, and we’d recommend that on its own.

For mains, I had the Halloumi Open Wrap Platter, which unfortunately again didn’t hit the mark. The halloumi lacked flavour, and the portion was small, with most of the plate made up of a simple salad. My friend went for the Chicken Rice Bowl which fared much better, well seasoned and a decent portion.

The atmosphere was vibrant and busy, and we were tucked away in a cosy corner which made for a pleasant enough setting.

Where the experience really faltered was the value for money. For two courses and a drink, we were looking at £40+ per head, which felt steep for the portion sizes and quality we received. There are certainly better-value Middle Eastern options nearby.

Overall, while the staff and setting were great, the food was underwhelming, and the price point felt...

The location is good. The halloumi steak was excellent. Don’t bother getting the insanely overpriced pickles and olives. The salmon, was only ok, and a bit dry. The aubergine tagine was also only ok (the couscous was nicely done). I have no idea what the chicken taouk was like, because it took so long to get to us that our kids had pretty much passed out and it remained mostly uneaten.

The service was easily one of the slowest I have ever experienced in London. It took well over an hour to get our 3 starters (2 halloumi steaks, and 1 baba ganoush) and 4 main dishes out. By the time that the last dish came out, the kitchen was closing, and it was like they just abandoned us, and we waited, and waited, and waited … and waited for them to take our dessert order (even though we kept asking to order) … and then waited some more for them to finally just throw some baklava on a plate for us (why did it take so long just to place 3 pieces of baklava on a plate??).

We were seated at around 8-8:30pm, so not a crazy time for dinner. And by the time our food arrived, there was only a couple of other tables still occupied (who were there before us). So, not sure why the service was so so so slow. They also only cleared away our dishes once in between courses, and then, bizarrely, only a few of the dishes, so we just ended up stacking our own dishes and moving them to their sideboard.

In short, it was ok food-wise. But definitely not worth the high bill. Maybe if you were just going for drinks and mezze … and not actually hungry. But order mains and dessert at your peril. And it’s a hard hard hard no for kids (unless you feed them...