Grato — Restaurant in London

I had a difficult experience with Grato restaurant, both while I was there and after my visit. I have waited on writing this review so I could fully digest the unacceptable way I have been treated by this establishment. On arrival, having just come through the front door, we were very quickly approached by a waiter. The waiter tried to take our jackets without asking before we had got them off and were shown to our table at the same time (by the waiter pointing at it, he didn’t actually take us to the table). My partner and I felt attacked immediately and not able to catch our breath when we had just walked in. Our jackets were taken without being able to take our stuff out of them, and we had no idea where our jackets were being taken. When we walked to the table, we were told about the days menu before we had even sat down. We were not offered water until long after we sat down. We were given no time to consider the menu, 3 different waiters came up to us to take our order in the space of 2 minutes. The waiters came constantly from behind my partner, very close to her face to ask if we were ready. They continued getting in her personal space all evening, and they came to the table constantly. We did order. The bruschetta, the sea bass and the rigatoni and water. The bruschetta was good (but arrived questionably quickly), the sea bass and rigatoni lacked a little in taste and the serving was below par for the type of restaurant Grato presents itself as. The 2 mains were served while my partner was in the bathroom, which is also unprofessional. The service was the biggest problem with our dining experience. Apart from coming to our table constantly (asking if we wanted to order drinks), we felt we were being pushed to finish our meal as quickly as possible. My partner’s plate was taken before she had finished eating which is unacceptable. We had only been in the restaurant for 40 minutes when the waiter took my partners unfinished main dish. We sat at our table unsatisfied with our experience. The waiters continued to come, asking if we wanted desert or something to drink. We sat there almost out of defiance so we could actually swallow the last bite of our food and try to understand what the hell was happening. We left after 1 hour. My partner wrote a review of the restaurant the following day, and that is when our bad dining experience becomes a tale of harassment. The co-owner of the restaurant attempted to ring me the following evening on my private number. When booking the restaurant, one must give the names of all those who will be attending. The restaurant illegally used that information to contact me on another platform Why couldn't they leave a comment on the actual review? I did not answer the phone call. The following day, the co-owner wrote a private message to me, naming my partner by her full name which I found very creepy. In the message they wrote among other things the following- “We are baffled as to trying to figure out what went wrong (...). I remember the staff were attentive with your table though the lady seemed very upset from the moment she walked in and continued to be upset. We couldn’t help but observe and so did some other guests dining there.” This is harassment. I hope the top half of this review explains what went wrong. ‘The lady’ was not in fact upset the minute she walked through the doors of the café, she perhaps displayed displeasure at the service but mostly she and I sat and talked in Danish about how nice our trip to my hometown had been. To say that other guests noticed us and insinuate that we are the problem is petty and laughable. If I am contacted again in any way other than as a comment to this review by the restaurant, I will consider it harassment that needs to be reported. This has been a awful experience that I felt was necessary to share. It is crossing the line for decent behaviour and professional service. I am shocked that this has happened. I hope that this review is read and taken into consideration by the staff at Grato so that this never...

A week ago, on a fine British spring evening, my wife, with young family in tow visited Kensington West London looking for somewhere special to have an early supper. It was our eldest’s 18th. A good friend local to the area, who’s taste we emphatically trust, suggested we try a fabulous little Italian restaurant Grato tucked neatly away at the back of Kensington Square just off of the High St. We were actually all quite hungry when we arrived. A number of diners, obviously onto something, were already seated at two or three pavement tables enjoying themselves, laughing, chatting and sipping from beautiful wine glasses. We waited for only a few moments before a smiling member of staff warmly greeted us at the door. Dressed head to toe in relaxed black; our maitre de could’ve easily stepped off of the pages of an Armani fashion shoot. “Good evening” in an irresistible Italian accent as he waved us to a table for five close to the bar. Our lovely waiter, or maître d, actually turned out to be the owner, Pietro. We ordered a couple of Negroni’s, a timeless, elegant classic served in sophisticated thick glass over rock ice. The perfect heavenly balance of bitterness, sweetness and herbal complexity that immediately transported my wife and I to the vibrant streets of Italy. Pietro suggested Grato’s freshly squeezed lemonade with mint for our three boys’ and with each sip, one by one they ‘squealed’ with delight. We could’ve easily sunk another one [or two] of Gratos Negroni’s, however, I think the owner noticed our boy’s were hungry and he returned with menus. We asked Pietro what he could recommend and he asked “do you like meat or fish?” We all stated our preferences and he replied, “I’ll choose for you" relieving us of our menus.

The small plates came one after the other, like a musical procession. Beautifully arranged Bruschetta, crushed vine tomatos, basil, garlic, and extra virgin olive oil on toasted sourdough. Buratta di Puglia, a mozzarella ball with a creamy centre delivering a luxurious, smooth buttery consistency unlike any other. Warm, shelled sea fresh Mediterranean prawns gently resting atop a delicately marinated shredded courgette with explode in your mouth, sweet, almost candy like, incredibly juicy cherry tomatoes and a balanced drizzle of nutty first pressed olive oil. Absolutely to die for! A waiter brought two glasses of Trainara Etna Bianco Sicilia 2021. “What a touch”. Pale yellow, aromatic with hints of lemongrass. The kids were treated to lemonade top up’s.

Four piping hot plates of the Classic Bolognese San Marzano arrived. An unbelievably rich, meaty beef and pork ragu topped with pecorino, and basil. The boy’s were in heaven. My wife had a beautiful arranged plate of handmade seafood Tagliolini with Brixham Crab, garlic, parsley, fresh chilli and Amalfi lemon zest. Each time I approached with my fork, she told me that it’s too good to share.

All in all, a supremely effortless performance by a skilful, amazingly attentive staff. Fantastic food in a delightful very laid back vibey atmosphere. Would...

Good food with a side helping of stress. I so want to like this little, informal, indie Italian. The food is authentic and would be a solid 4-stars - it could rise higher if you choose well. The place itself is cute, modern and buzzy. And the staff seem like really nice people making a huge effort. So, why the 3-stars? This was not a relaxing experience. By the time we arrived (8.15pm), they were just about to turn the first wave of tables. A couple of tables were finishing up and there were a couple of groups ahead of us sitting on stools studying the menus. No problem - standard stuff in a little bistro - wait a few minutes for a table and then we’re set for a lovely, relaxing dinner.

Except it was anything but relaxed. The staff - who seemed genuinely lovely - were on edge to the point of being slightly frantic. They darted about the tiny space, multi-tasking, firing questions at the diners and seemingly trying to get things done as quickly as possible. Instead of just assuring us our designated table would be a few minutes, we were given regular updates to tell us that first one, then its other occupant was using the toilet prior to departure. Too much information. In between toilet bulletins, we were - briefly - ushered to stools and given menus that, moments later, were unceremoniously whipped away from us as we were swept to the now vacant table. OK - now we can relax.

Not really. Like a tag team, each of the three members of staff asked about our allergies, two of them tried to take our drinks order, two tried to persuade me to share my wife’s starter, and two to share her dessert (I only wanted a main course). Every interaction was short and sharp, like they were late for something. Meanwhile they buzzed about the tiny space making us all feel on edge or that we needed to hurry up. I’m certain that wasn’t their intention, they were just seemed stressed out.

I’ve worked in busy restaurants. It can be stressful. But I was trained to breathe, slow down, smile, and not to rush about the floor. The kitchen may be melting down but the diners have come for a relaxing time. Again, the staff seemed really nice. If only they were calmer, less manic, toned down the efficiency drive and instead took a few moments to play the role of welcoming host, we would all have had a...