Double Knot - Islington — Restaurant in London

EVERYONE SHOULD PAY ATTENTION TO THIS BEFORE GOING Kindly pass this message to the owner or manager, as I want to bring to your attention that my last two visits to your restaurant were both unpleasant experiences. The first incident occurred in January when I visited with a group. We were an hour late, which I acknowledge was our fault. Upon arrival, we were informed that we couldn’t place an order as our table had to be given to the next reservation. Understanding the situation, we opted for takeaway instead. However, we were made to wait AN ENTIRE HOUR standing by the entrance, which could not close properly, on a freezing -2°C day in London. What made this even more frustrating was that the table we were supposed to vacate remained empty the entire time. While I accept some responsibility for being late, the lack of accommodation in this situation was disappointing.

THE SECOND TIME VISITING IS EVEN WORST. On Sunday, February 16, I visited your restaurant for a Valentine’s Day dinner with my boyfriend. We had a reservation for 6:30 PM and arrived precisely on time, yet we were told to wait outside in the cold for 30 minutes before finally being seated at 7:00 PM.

When speaking to a staff member whom I believe to be the manager, I explained that I create food content and would love to film and promote your restaurant, despite my previous unpleasant experience. I kindly requested to sit either at the counter or near the neon signs, as those spots had better lighting for filming. However, I was told the restaurant was fully booked, and those seats were reserved for other guests. This made little sense, as both the table assigned to us and the one I requested were tables for two, and the tables did not have assigned names. Additionally, throughout our entire meal, the counter seats remained empty, as well as the second-closest table to the neon sign. A bit of flexibility in seating arrangements would have made a significant difference. Given how popular Double Knot is, improving seating flexibility could increase customer satisfaction and, ultimately, business growth.

Unfortunately, the poor service didn’t stop there. Our order was not taken until 7:15 PM—45 minutes after our original reservation time—despite other tables that arrived after us having their orders taken first. We even had to go up to the counter to order drinks because no one approached us. The same manager who had dismissed our seating request ignored us again, making us the last table to place an order. Our food finally arrived at 7:35 PM.

To make matters worse, after only 30 minutes of dining, we were abruptly told that we had to leave to make space for the next guests. This was despite the fact that:

We had arrived on time yet were seated late. Our order was taken significantly later than other guests who arrived after us. Other tables that had arrived late and had their orders taken first were not asked to leave.

This forced us to cancel our dessert order, which only added to the disappointment. The double standard in treatment was frustrating and completely unfair.

Despite these experiences, I still took the time to create and share content about Double Knot on my Instagram, yet it went completely unacknowledged—unliked, unreposted—while other creators' content was shared. I cannot help but wonder if my second experience was influenced by bias from the first visit, as the way we were treated felt personal and unjustified.

It is truly a shame, as I genuinely enjoy the food at Double Knot, and as someone who's Chinese, I go out of my way to support food of other cultures. However, this experience left me feeling disrespected and extremely disappointed. I strongly urge Double Knot to reevaluate its management, improve customer service, and implement greater flexibility in seating arrangements.

I sincerely hope you take this feedback seriously, as I would love to see the restaurant...

The food at this restaurant is undeniably delicious. The jerk salmon was flavourful, and the loaded patty was also enjoyable—once it was properly heated. However, the service left much to be desired. It felt disorganised, and our food arrived in a scattered and inconsistent manner.

Our experience started with a jerk salmon served on a bed of salad alongside a basket of plantain. However, key components of the meal—coleslaw, salad, rice, and peas—were missing. When we inquired about this, the waiter appeared confused and had to check with the kitchen. After a few minutes, she returned to inform us that she had mistakenly entered the salmon as a standalone dish rather than a full meal. As it was her first day, mistakes were understandable, but it did raise a question from a management POV: why was a brand-new staff member handling orders instead of focusing on learning the menu by running food?

What happened next was even more perplexing. Instead of simply bringing out the missing sides, the waiter took the salmon away entirely. We then had to wait an additional ten minutes for the kitchen to "convert" the dish into a meal, which seemed like an unnecessary delay.

Meanwhile, my own order—a loaded patty and jerk fries—was another lesson in patience. By the time my loaded patty arrived, my dining companion was nearly finished with their meal. To make matters worse, the patty was cold in the center, requiring me to ask for it to be reheated. The response from the staff was far from apologetic—just a curt "yeah" before the patty was taken back. It was later returned by a different waiter who had no idea where it was supposed to go, nearly delivering it to another table before I had to flag it down myself.

The jerk fries took even longer. After waiting 45 minutes, I asked a waiter about them and was told, "We've got a lot of orders in the kitchen, it should be a few more minutes." This was especially frustrating, as we were one of the first tables to order, yet guests who arrived later were served in a timely and organised manner. When the fries finally arrived, a waiter simply dropped them on our table, while simultaneously delivering another portion to a different table—further emphasising the chaotic service. We didn't receive our completed order until 5:55: we ordered 1 main meal, 1 loaded patty and 1 loaded fries. No one did a check back. Due to timing, we felt it was necessary to take the jerk fries home as I had read of instances where people were being asked to vacate their table even though food had arrived late.

It became clear that the restaurant was struggling to balance both dine-in and takeout orders efficiently. While we waited indefinitely for our food, we watched takeout orders being carried out promptly. Additionally, other tables seemed to receive all their food at once, whereas ours was served in disjointed increments. In one case, a group of four—including two guests who arrived 25 minutes late—managed to receive their meals together within 30 minutes.

Overall, while the food was excellent, the service needs improvement. The management should reconsider how orders are processed, especially in balancing the demands of takeout and dine-in customers. Optimising the two kitchens for greater efficiency would go a long way in creating a smoother dining experience. Check backs are...

Entrance - It’s a hidden gem in Angel, you wouldn’t notice it straight away, but when you do, you’ll see it.

Food - I ordered Jerk chicken with rice and peas with a side of mac and cheese and when I tell you, this was the first time in my 30+ years of life thwt I’ve gone to a Caribbean restaurant and not been disappointed by anything. It was the nicest Caribbean food I’ve had in a long time. Very tasty and you could tell it was cooked from fresh.

My partner ordered jerk prawns and curry goat loaded mac and cheese. He really enjoyed the prawns but when the waitress took our order she put down loaded fries so he received the wrong order. We made them aware straight away & the chef Ali profusely apologised for this and ensured my partner got the correct meal. It then took another 15 mins for the right order to come and by then my partner was too annoyed and lost his appetite so he couldn’t finish it as he wanted to enjoy it with his jerk wings.

Besides all of the above though he did try both dishes and said they were really good it’s just a shame the order was registered wrong - the waitress should’ve confirmed back everything we ordered instead of walking away so quickly.

Drinks - We ordered rum punch, had 2 cocktails each and they were so good! I’m a drinker and the first glass had me feeling merry so they are clearly generous with the rum. Very nice drinks.

Decor - The layout of the restaurant is interesting and the decor is unique - I liked it. It doesn’t look like every other restaurant, that’s what makes it so unique. The tables upstairs are a bit close together but other than that, good.

Atmosphere - It was a Friday night so busy as you can imagine. The music was very loud and they play bashment music, you can hardly hear yourself talk - most probably why the order was taken wrong. I think they should play more lovers rock reggae and less shenseea- it felt like I was eating in a rave.

Cleanliness - Clean, no issues there. Any time a table was finished, they would clean it straight away.

Cost - £97.50 for jerk chicken, mac and cheese, 4 rum punch cocktails, jerk prawns and loaded curry goat mac and cheese.

Customer service - Special mention to Ali the chef, he was honestly the nicest person in there. When he realised my partners order was taken wrong, he was so apologetic. He kept going to check when the right order was finished and constantly reassured us. Himself and the lady that worked alongside him were very good cooks as the food was cooked to perfection.

My only critique is the lady that took our order, I didn’t catch her name but she looked French, she should’ve confirmed back what we asked for then no orders would’ve got wrong. She didn’t apologise either.

Overall - 9/10 - My experience was different to my partners, besides everything that happened with him, I had a good time and would definitely return however my partner said he would not return due to his experience which is a shame.

Thank you...