Crab Lab — Restaurant in London

Here is my extremely honest review, no sugarcoating and no biased opinion. This was my birthday dinner.

We were told to sit outside even though it was empty inside and wanted to sit on a table of our choice, which was completely fine considering, we were the first people to arrive. As time went on, more people started to arrive and they were able to sit inside on the seats we wanted. I tried to ask the man who worked there a simple question but was cut off in a slightly degrading way. the question was, since we arrived first shouldn’t we be able to sit inside? We were told we would have to be squished between people who arrived much later than us. We got a decent table at the end and everything calmed down which was great to see.

We are constantly reminded that if the chef doesn’t arrive on time, the store will close and we have to go, which was a bit unprofessional, it could have been said nicely.

Again i try to stay positive, the chef arrives and we were served first and give food first which was amazing, thank you for that. The lady who served us was EXTREMELY kind and lovely, she made my dinner a nice experience with her wonderful energy.

The food arrived, we were not able to order any dips which was very disappointing as seafood boil is great with it, first bite was extremely bland, the colour was red, but the flavour was not there. it tasted as if it was boiled in butter with a bit of red powder. In terms of food combined with the price, i was extremely disappointed but very hungry. I think if this place wants to excel, don’t be so straight forward with customers, Try to get things done / dips before customers come so time management and quality is better. Definitely needs a lot more seasoning and additional bottled sauces on the table for everyone’s liking.

I didn't severely hate it but i would not come again, this isn't an entitled opinion, this was what i experienced and doesn’t relate to anyone else, the seafood was definitely fresh and tasted great but for that price and no flavour at all, dont let the redness fool you. i could have made it myself at home or gone elsewhere. If you want the price to be worth it, you would need to maintain the restaurant a bit better and portray a much less stressful environment, as it spreads onto other people.

Thank you for the experience. What i have said, is exactly how things have happened, i don't often write reviews unless i love it, nor do i make things up. If the chef comes when opening, the dips cant be made, it should be made obvious on...

I visited Crab Lab on Friday with 2 friends and unfortunately did not have a good experience.

When we arrived around 6:30 PM, the waiter (an older man, perhaps in his late 50s) seemed surprised that we didn’t have a booking. He told us all indoor tables were reserved, even though most restaurants typically keep a few tables for walk-ins. He asked us to wait outside while he tried to “find” a table for us.

After 50 minutes of waiting outside, we assumed he had forgotten about us, so my friend went inside to remind him. He suddenly “found” a table indoors—despite the fact that no one had left, meaning it must have been available the entire time.

When it came time to order, he told us we couldn’t order what we wanted because it was “too time-consuming,” and that he needed the table back by 8:30 PM. This was odd, as there were larger tables that could easily have been turned over before ours. He insisted we order the Seafood Mukbang (serves 3–4), claiming it was quicker, even though that wasn’t what we originally wanted. He could've told us this when he sat us at the table, but decided to tell us after we spent roughly 10 mins browsing the menu to decide what we want.

He said the food would take 25 minutes, so we would have about 35 minutes to eat before he wanted the table back. We also ordered chips and asked for them first as we were hungry. However, the food took 50 minutes to arrive, with no apology, and we had to remind him about the chips—he’d even forgotten which ones we ordered.

At one point, we asked if we could swap our order with takeaway customers so we can move to a nearby empty table, and order what we wanted, but he cut us off mid-sentence, told us we 'weren’t making sense,' and he'd have to 'ignore us', and walked away.

The food itself was excellent—flavourful, well-seasoned, and clearly fresh. But the service was rude, dismissive, and disorganised, which completely ruined the experience.

One of his employees, perhaps a teenage boy, was however very helpful and seemed apologetic for his colleague.

If you want to enjoy their food, I’d recommend ordering takeaway instead—it’s not worth sitting in for the service and being disrespected time...

I visited Crab Lab with friends for the first time, and unfortunately, our experience was very disappointing due to the service. We didn’t have a booking, which I understand can be tricky, but the attitude of the staff made the situation unnecessarily uncomfortable.

From the start, the man serving us (an older gentleman, likely in his fifties) was rude and dismissive. We were told we could only sit outside in the cold while waiting, and when I asked politely about booking times to gauge the wait, he became defensive and aggressive. After nearly an hour outside, a table that had been empty the whole time was offered to us—but only after our third friend spoke to him.

Once seated, he refused to let us order what we wanted, insisting we get a platter for 3–4 people because it would be quicker, and repeatedly reminding us he needed the table back by 8:30. He was unaccommodating when we asked if substitutions were possible and spoke to us in a rude, sarcastic manner. He also said that hes being nice by even giving us a table (even though the table was free the whole time he had us sat outside waiting)

Our food took nearly an hour to arrive, even though he had promised 20–30 minutes, and the chips we ordered had to be reminded multiple times. At the end of the meal, he commented sarcastically about our eating time.

The experience felt aggressive, arrogant, and at times, uncomfortable in a way that felt inappropriate and dismissive.

The food itself was actually really good, and we would have enjoyed the experience if not for his attitude. Unfortunately, his poor customer service made our first visit unpleasant. I hope Crab Lab ensures a better approach to hospitality for future customers, because the potential for a great...