Elephant Hackney — Restaurant in London

Maybe it is unfair to review a place during their soft launch. I am sure a lot of the front of house problems during our visit are teething issues that will get sorted out. Staff seemed overwhelmed by how busy it was during the discounted soft launch period. There was one waiter who was really good, and concerned about reporting problems to management or the kitchen. But most of the girls were just indifferent to the customer experience. We waited a long time standing beside the bar before anyone asked about our booking. And I am on crutches because I had a knee operation a few weeks ago. When a waitress brought my companion’s main she just plonked a wonky plate of fish served in broth on top of the empty salad bowl his starter had arrived in. She had to be called back and persuaded to take away the salad bowl his main was balancing on.

Portion sizes are a little weird. The protein based dishes seem to be very dainty, whereas as the carb heavy ones are really large. I started with the octopus skewer which consisted of two pieces of octopus, maybe 3 cm square each for £10. It was delicious and tasted of charcoal though, and came with salsa verde and grilled pepper. I ordered the sea bream crudo which never arrived. The neighbouring table had an order which looked quite small. My companion’s fish of the day of lemon sole was small too. On the other hand, the portions of pizza and pasta arriving at other tables looked enormous. I had a pizzette which was generously sized and tasty. Unfortunately I could not discern any of the mussel pesto that was listed in the menu as one of the toppings. I loved the thin but soft crust. My companion's starter of summer salad would have been good if it hadn't been so salty as to be almost inedible.

When I complained about not getting the sea bream crudo, the waitress who took my order just shrugged and said she thought I had cancelled. I complained again to the decent water who checked, noted it had arrived to the dining room but had been sent back and offered me a slice of complimentary tirami su by way of apology, seeing I hadn’t gotten much to eat. This was a very generous portion, like all of the carby dishes. It was let down by the quality of the espresso used in it's construction, which was very sour. This surprised me for a restaurant where the head chef is from Naples. I mean, the espresso could have been an Americano boiled down to espresso strength--that's how sour it was.

After I got home I notice we had been charged for two pizzettas when we only had one. So definitely check your bill...

This place has been on my radar since it opened. I saw that on the menu there is a dish called Ziti alla Genovese, so I had to come and check it out. For the uninitiated La genovese is a Neapolitan dish, a slow cooked white ragu, where there is no tomato, and the depth of flavour is given by onions and beef shin meat, the meat is covered by the onions, the onions become caramelised, the meat transforms into a sort of pulled meat, but remains juicy and tender. This very slow cooked dish is left simmering for hours, a minimum of 3-4, on a very low heat. The result is pure magic and it is typically a Sunday dish that is prepared for the family Sunday reunion. The sauce is used to cover the pasta, ziti being the best format, and the flavour is rich and deep, the meat dissolves, and the part of the meat that did not disappear in the sauce is another main course after the pasta is devoured by everybody. This version really hit the spot, took me back to Italy, and was delicious! I also had the beef tonnato as a starter( another great dish !) and to end the meal I had the “dough ball” ( in Italy we call it zeppolina or graffa) which came with a lemon custard ( not the perfect description because the cream was delicate and light, with hints of Amalfi lemon, gorgeous!) . During the first part of the meal I had a glass of Falanghina, a great white wine from Campania, and after the desert I was kindly offered a very good valpolicella, the perfect ending to a fantastic meal. Now, the service .,, I have no words to describe r how wonderful it was! From the very beginning I noticed that the 2 girls who were looking after me throughout the meal were friendly, smiling, enthusiastic, competent and had a warmth when they were interacting with me which is very rare to find nowadays. I was even introduced to the chef, a young man from the same region I’m from, Campania, and he was as delightful as the other girls! There was also another female chef that was incredibly nice. We exchanged some tips about new places to check out in Lisbon ! All in all I felt like I was not just a customer, but a friend who went for lunch in a restaurant belonging to his best friends ! I’m impressed and I can’t wait to go back and try the rest of the menu ! Thank you guys you were really...

We went to this restaurant to celebrate a friend’s engagement and it turned into one of the worst dining experiences I’ve ever had.

Shortly after we sat down, they turned on loud club-style music that made it impossible to hear each other. When I asked the manager politely if they could turn it down, her response was “absolutely not,” which I found extremely rude. Other diners also complained about the volume, but the staff dismissed everyone’s concerns. The manager said she wanted people to to “eat and enjoy the music” because apparently Hackney’s nightlife “is not where it used to be” but it completely killed the dining atmosphere; no one eating looked remotely happy.

The service was awful, we had to keep going up to the staff because they never checked on us. The food was average (the steak was nice), but the whole experience was ruined by the service and attitude. When we asked for the bill, the manager said she’d given us a 10% discount “to make up for what happened,” though there was never an apology. Then, when we asked for the service charge to be removed, she also removed the discount and made a point of telling us she had. If that’s not petty, I don’t know what is.

As someone born and raised in Hackney, I always try to support local businesses, but this was genuinely awful service. It felt like customers’ opinions didn’t matter at all. We left feeling frustrated, overstimulated, and completely disappointed. I definitely won’t be going back. Definitely not to a place where my opinion is not...