Côte Soho — Restaurant in London

I am very sorry to be writing this, I did try to speak to someone at head office because I did not want to write this, I was informed I would be called back but that was 2 weeks ago. We booked this venue for our Christmas party at 7pm unaware that it closed at 10:00pm (really Soho) and was the first time we had all been together since the start of Covid and were a party of 30.

On the night, we all did lateral flow tests to make sure we were all well. I will start on the positive which was the food was as always in Cote was excellent that was the only good point then it went downhill.

The staff were so rude we were shouted at for not paying attention when the food came out I did offer to tell them who people were and where they were sitting but this offer was refused. Some people had their food nearly thrown at them; they sent food back to the kitchen as well. People who had starters were told they were not on the list for main course, when they said they were it was thrown at them and told to find their name which they did. There was one short dark haired girl that tried her best to be professional and pleasant but she was they only one but the rest of them were awful. There was a downstairs that was empty; they could have put us down there. It was also very hot and no ventilation we had to ask to put the air con on, in my email I did say I hope you put us away from other diners; I would not like to sit next to a Christmas party.

I was given last orders on drinks around 10:00pm and we ordered three bottles of wine and some prosecco no sooner had they bought it out they were telling us to leave. There was one woman who was a manager who cleared tables with full drinks on and the rest of the staff stood near the coat racks with their arms crossed with faces like thunder. There were full bottles of open wine and when asked for a cork they said they had none they had all been disposed of.

The icing on the cake was a female colleague came up to me and said she had asked if they would charge her phone as it was dead and they refused. I told her to ask the woman behind the bar which she did and she plugged it in but forgot to turn on the power. This person had at least a one-hour travel ahead with no phone late at night, in the wake of recent events why would you refuse anyone this.

We were generally unaware that they closed at 10:00pm we were out by 10:45 pm and for this we are very sorry that anyone had to stay late because of us. However, I feel their behavior was unprofessional and not a true reflection of staff at every other Cote we have been to, as a group and we have...

Response to Owner Reply I'm afraid that your response feels disingenuous as you have not responded to my very specific issue. The Issue: We were given the fixed price menus for a booking that falls after 7pm, and we were not told that we can't use it after a certain time aka 'our booking time?!?!' Both the main menu and the fixed price menu did not specify an end time, and then to have received a curt, unapologetic statement upon ordering that we couldn't use that list, when we should have been allowed to use it, given that this was a mistake on the restaurant's part was not only foolish and rude, but in all likelihood we might have spent more money on three courses and more drink. I don't see what purpose it would be to write any further via your email, but if you would genuinely like to discuss this with me then you are welcome to write back and we could arrange to talk on a call. This is such a shame as, up until now, I have always enjoyed coming to any Côte and have held the standard of both service and food in great esteem. Yours sincerely, Shana NS

I love Côte, especially Soho, but my friends and I had a bad experience there on Monday eve just gone. We had a 7pm booking and I'd got there early. The menus were laid out and additional ones for the special 2 or 3 course meal on Monday to Friday. My friends arrived and after catching up we tried to order from the specials menu and we were told, rather abruptly that that deal finished at 7pm. However, we had a 7pm booking, those were given to us and at no point did anybody tell us that we had to order by 7pm. At further examination I looked at the mention of this on the menu, where it tells you that the deal is from Monday to Friday and there's no written time limit. Given all this, I felt that we should have still been given the deal as it was a mistake made by the restaurant. When I pointed this out the server was just as abrupt and said that she couldn't do anything about that, it had just finished. Needless to say we weren't impressed and my friend said that she would have walked out if it wasn't for having ordered the drinks already. We did stick to the budget, but I only had hor d'oeuvres and a dessert. It was a real shame as I had recommended we go there as I usually love Côte and I have never been disappointed by the restaurant... until now :( (I would have given 1 for the service, but all of the rest of the...

WHERE DO I START? The cordial smiles of every single member of Staff from the luminous Larissa - Manager, to the athletic hardworking waiters: - balancing trays of charcuterie expertly up and down the stairs. And then; - Everyone is way too beautiful for a restaurant : I feel like I’ve walked onto a ‘Love Island’ set with their clothes on. And the waiters, most of them looking like Catwalk models without the egos - are smiling and humble. Then there is Manager Robert, who goes out of his way to accommodate, usually with a witty gag under his breath. Nothing is too hard or much for him, and he frequently carries my bag over to the table. Nadeem, another manager is always gracious and welcoming, with a smile that lights the place up.There are no sideways glances if your budget is low. No judgments. Everyone is equal here, and you find yourself asking: “Is that a French thing”?

The food. Well what I have tasted is excellent. It is wholesome, tasty, nutritious delicious french food. The French onion soup layered with sumptuous cheese cradling flavoursome onions is A1, the pumpkin soup my friend said was excellent. The fixed menu: tender steak frites was fantastic value. A La Cart the Duck L’’Orange and Boeuf Bourgignon are incredible. Pudding-wise the Crème Caramel has been a huge attraction, with customers travelling miles across London to savour it. I’m in Paris in London. Its busy. It’s bustling. Its brilliant. The food is ace. The feel-good factor is even acer. I can never leave this restaurant without a smile on my face. Great food. Superb service. Egalite. Lookers. Atmosphere, and love of simple filling delicious French nosh - or as the French say ‘Bouffe’ . What’s...