Esq Bar and Grill — Restaurant in London

I wouldn’t recommend Esq Bar and Grill to ANYONE after the appalling experience we had celebrating my friend’s 22nd birthday. From start to finish, the service was disastrous.

We booked a large table for bottomless brunch over a month in advance for 4 pm on Saturday, 18th January. Despite arriving early, we found the venue closed with shutters down. Staff opened at 4 pm, without greeting us or preparing our table.

Once seated, we were rushed to order drinks, even though part of our group hadn’t arrived. Our polite request to wait was ignored, and we were told we wouldn’t get drinks after 6 pm. Service was painfully slow, with just one untrained bartender making drinks one at a time. I waited over 30 minutes for my first drink, and this inefficiency continued all evening. Drinks only arrived when we repeatedly chased staff, and some of us had just 2-3 drinks by the end of our booking.

Food service was equally dismal. Many dishes arrived cold and extremely late—mine came at 5:50, just 10 minutes before our booking ended. Others didn’t receive food until after 6 pm. To make matters worse, the food seemed reheated, which is unsafe and unacceptable.

When I raised these issues with staff, Toyosi and Gislaney were understanding and professional, but the so-called “manager,” who was also the DJ, refused to address our concerns promptly as when the girls tried to get him, he stood there making faces and shaking his head. After waiting an hour for him, he arrived defensive and dismissive, claiming we “didn’t know how to run a business” and were trying to “punish” him over money. Despite explaining the service failures and even pointing out they tried to make us pay before clearing plates and glasses and then brought the birthday cake to a dirty table, he showed no accountability or willingness to resolve the situation and tried to insist that we were going to pay him the full amount. Lol.

Despite acknowledging the bartender’s struggle working alone, she interrupted to argue that I was exaggerating, instead of focusing on making drinks that I knew people in the restaurant were waiting for, and to prove our point, I referenced our bill and calculated that each guest only had 2.7 drinks despite paying for bottomless brunch. The manager refused to take accountability, dismissing my concerns and claiming I didn’t understand how businesses work—despite my experience in a venue specialising in bottomless brunch. Lmao

The conversation dragged on for over an hour. He patronized us, laughed in our faces, and even mocked me by asking if I’d had “more than two drinks” because I was “talking too much.” After a heated argument, we finally managed to have the bill reduced, but the unprofessionalism and disrespect left a very lasting impression.

I will never see this place again and neither should you.

P.s, don’t order the double rum chapman as a brunch drink. We witnessed them diluting their jug with just juices every time the...

I booked a table for 19:30, arrived at 19:34, we got seated but we didn't get a menu. 5-ish minutes later, we asked for the menu. Although we were given menus we had to wait again for about 5 minutes while other tables got served. I joked about being the "forgotten" even though it didn't leave a good first impression. Finally our orders get taken. We asked for the Seafood platter with plantain and Lamb Suya. For drinks we wanted Rum chapman and diet coke, but we were told they didn't have diet coke, so we settled for just the rum chapman. Shortly after a waiter walked up to us with a bottle of water and a portion of plantain. We had to explain that it wasn't our order. Turned out to be for the next table. The waiter went into a long speech about how she got told to bring the items in our direction but wasn't told what table to bring it to. Our drinks arrived and we started to sip and chat. a little time passed, and we noticed tables getting served, so I wondered if they had again forgotten about us. The waiter who took our order served a table and amazingly they had diet coke. after serving them, he walked over to our table and put a bottle of diet coke on the table and attempted to open the bottle. We stopped him and pointed to our drinks reminding him we already got drinks. He just mumbled "okay". No apologies or explanation. The service at this place just doesn't serve! After waiting for almost an hour, it became clear that they had either forgotten to place our order or the ingredients were being purchased from the market at that moment, so we decided to leave. I went to the bar and explained that we had been sat for near an hour and had not gotten our food. The waiter with the explaining capacity from previous interaction came and started trying to explain that she was overwhelmed and she had a set of tables to serve and she was being pulled from every corner. then she tried to call my friend "Mummy" I almost died of laughter even though my stomach was grumbling and I just wanted to eat. The waiter who took our order eventually came out and faffed on the computer screen for a bit, talked to the chef in the kitchen then asked if we could wait for an additional 10 minutes, and offered a discount on the food. I declined and asked to just pay for my drinks. He offered the drinks for free, so we left. There was no apologies for wasting our time. So we left and made the 1.5 hour journey back home to our neck of the woods in Surrey. Even though I believe this may have been an isolated incident I will not be returning, or recommending this place to any friends in and...

Extremely Disappointed with Deceitful Menu

I had the unfortunate experience of dining here tonight and I feel compelled to share my feedback regarding the food and the overall experience. I hope that by doing so, other potential customers can make informed decisions before visiting this establishment.

First and foremost, the menu presented a whole giant crocker fish, which was a major draw for me and my husband. However, to our dismay, we were served a medium-sized fish instead. This discrepancy between the menu description and the actual dish was highly misleading and left us feeling deceived.

Furthermore, the quality of the food was far from satisfactory. One side of the fish had nothing to eat, which was an unexpected disappointment. Additionally, the fish was fried to such a degree that it was incredibly dry, rendering it practically inedible. The lack of flavor and the unpleasant texture made for an utterly unappetizing experience.

To address our concerns, we approached the manager, hoping for a resolution or at least some genuine care and understanding. Unfortunately, the manager's response was nothing short of disappointing. He merely apologised and quickly left, showing no genuine concern for our disappointed experience. This lack of empathy and failure to address our concerns left us feeling even more frustrated and disheartened.

It is evident that the decline in quality and customer service at has had a significant impact on its popularity. The emptiness inside the restaurant speaks volumes about the declining reputation it has earned. It is disheartening to witness how ESQ has fallen from its former glory.

I strongly urge the management to take immediate action to rectify these issues. Honest representation of menu items and ensuring the quality of the food should be top priorities. Furthermore, sincere and attentive customer service is vital in order to regain the trust and loyalty of customers.

In conclusion, my experience was extremely disappointing. The deceitful presentation on the menu, the subpar food quality, and the lack of genuine care from the manager all contributed to an awful dining experience. I advise potential customers to approach this restaurant with caution, as it has clearly lost its former charm and fails to meet expectations. IT IS MEANT TO BE MY BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION

Thank you for taking the time to read my feedback. I hope that it serves as a constructive criticism for the improvement...