Jimmy's O2 — Restaurant in London

Typical buffet with a strong lean towards traditional Indian food. Not sure what made me visit a buffet, I think I was convinced by my kids who like the experience of serving themselves and eating different foods. Buffets are definitely NOT my choice of dining experiences. Average in my experience, I would definitely NOT highly rate, however it is a budget eatery and would be deemed reasonable for the price you pay, especially if you don't know what you want to eat. I will NOT be returning again, as the experience of other patrons acting like they have never eaten food before is a total put off, why do people pile their plates up so high? I couldn't understand this, do they not understand the concept of going up as many times as you want? People where literally shoveling food into their mouths as quickly as they could, I can't say I have seen anything that compares to this previously. Everything feels sticky to touch, tables and chairs, just feels dirty, even though I saw staff cleaning tables as soon as people left, maybe a deep clean is in need with a steam cleaning device every single night!? It's a difficult one as at the end of the day it is budget buffet, and that in itself comes with its own challenges, however that is no reason to let standards slip, owners need to take some pride. I feel this particular establishment has attracted either seriously overweight people, food bargain hunters or students, definitely attracts people that just want to stuff anything in their mouth without considering what they are putting in their mouth, and people that just want to eat as much as they can as quickly as they can. I think the staff are doing the best they can, and the food was prepared well enough to eat. The fresh made food stands were reasonable, and the saving grace was you could see the food being prepared. A little slow to top food up in my opinion, and I don't think the self serve food stands were kept clean enough for my liking, and while I was there, I didn't see the serving utensils being wiped, cleaned or replaced once... 😳 Even the water jugs had sticky handles, clearly from other customers who handled them with dirty hands. The staff service for drinks was prompt and efficient, and extremely friendly, however I suppose that is where the venue makes money, wasn't impressed with the quality of drinks, my Pepsi Max tasted totally watered down. Profits are obviously more important than quality. Sad to say, but way too many corners have been cut, so it makes me wonder what other corners are being cut in the kitchen?

Men's toilets need a permanent attendant, they was very dirty, however I think that is a reflection of the patrons rather then the owners, however that is definitely something that requires urgent attention, made me feel like I was visiting a third world country, and really put me off from returning, I mean worst toilet hygiene I think I have ever seen in an eating establishment, had I gone toilet before eating, I would have probably left immediately.

I also feel hand basins like in other similar style restaurants need to be made available on the eating floor, hand hygiene is important, and suitable provisions should be available. However that said, no one seemed to care which is a definite reflection of the other patrons. A rather negative experience, hence a 2 star rating. This place needs a visit from the food health inspector, they need some stricter controls in place. This experience has put me off visiting a...

I am a professional chef and food blogger dedicated to promoting inclusive dining experiences, with a particular focus on ensuring that diverse families and individuals with disabilities are properly accommodated. I had an exhausting journey of over three hours via public transport to reach Jimmy’s O2 Arena only to be met with one of the most disheartening dining experiences I’ve ever encountered.

Although the restaurant's entrance is on the ground floor It features stairs and only a small, standard elevator that leads to the dining area, which is actually located on the first floor. It’s clear that accessibility was not a priority when building this site. The setup feels like an afterthought, offering little consideration for individuals with mobility challenges.

Upon arrival my family and I were seated in a large dining room where the staff watched over customers while clearing plates and offering assistance. Despite it being a Monday with the buffet open all day, the price of £22 per person for below average food drinks not included. Soft drinks starting at an outrageous £2.50 for a small glass.

I have no issue paying for a meal provided the quality justifies the cost. Unfortunately, that was not the case here. The food was, quite frankly, dreadful. We tried nearly every dish and none of them met even basic expectations for taste or texture.

Everything was either bland, overcooked, underseasoned or completely inedible. The steaks were charred beyond recognition and impossible to chew, while the rest of the food lacked flavour. When I voiced my concerns to the manager, I was brushed off and patronisingly told to “try the pasta” which turned out to be plain, watery and just as tasteless. The lack of professionalism and empathy was astonishing.

The dessert station was appalling, with poor quality ice cream. Additionally there were shop bought cakes that were hard and clearly not fresh. The white chocolate fountain was unhygienic. We could barely eat and what we did manage to try was left unfinished not out of fussiness, but because it was simply awful.

We barely ate much and to make matters worse, we received judgmental glares from the staff as if it was our fault for not finishing our plates. It was a deeply uncomfortable and frustrating experience, unlike anything we've encountered before.

The toilet situation only added to the ordeal. They are located up two very long, steep flights of stairs, making them completely inaccessible for anyone with mobility issues. While there is a disabled toilet near the entrance, it’s tucked away and only available upon request a process that is both inconvenient and needlessly awkward.

Cleanliness was another major issue. The hygiene of the food stations was unacceptable. The area felt disorganised, the chefs weren’t wearing gloves, and overall sanitation standards were clearly lacking. Once drinks are added to the bill, the total cost can easily exceed £30 per person an outrageous price for such a poor-quality, poorly managed experience.

Customers are entitled to express their views, and in this case, I can confidently say that Jimmy’s O2 Arena was an extreme disappointment. I strongly urge others, especially those with accessibility needs or dietary considerations, to do thorough research before visiting. This restaurant fell short in every area accessibility, food quality, hygiene,...

We had Visited this restaurant as a family for my wife's little brothers birthday meal which included a mixture of adults and children in our group but from start to finish it was absolutely HORRENDOUS. Where to start from i do not know but i will get straight to it, first of all theres a entrance downstairs which is completely isolated from everything and has a young girl standing behind a desk with a moody face that failed to say hello or welcome and just said upstairs and pointed to the stairs which I'm pretty sure we could have gathered our selfs and when we went upstairs we found ourselves with a another young lady behind another desk to point at the door 🤔 Once we got in it was MANIC kids darting across the buffet area not sure who worked there or eating there we just had to blend in the crowd to get a seat at the back of the restaurant if i dare call it that , once we were seated and wasn't advised what so ever we just thought well maybe we get up now and don't wait for a waiter because we was seated for 15 minutes without a soul to be seen serving. Once we finally got a waiter and ordered drinks we went to the buffet area and EVERYTHING was spilt on the worktops and floor nothing left in the food trays and queues for every food station including the section where the chefs cook for you and as you can see in my pictures did NOT look like the most hygienically secured place , but most confusing was they couldn't keep up with plates and had non for 10 minutes before we could even get a plate to then wait around for food which is the most unorganised country categorising buffet i have ever come across because nothing was in the correct place. After world war 3 to get your food and take a seat you then have to deal with groups of youngsters with there hoods up roaming around throwing food at each other and im pretty sure these were not paying customers but made me and the other adults feel very uncomfortable while trying to eat look after your belonging and watch out for the kids let alone the fear of sending one to the toilets alone. So my conclusion is that this place does NOT deserve to even be in the same vicinity of the 02 let alone inside it as this to me should not even carry the name they have chosen and if this is a chain i am guessing this is there flagship store and if it is gold help the customers at other branches as this particular one is a stomach churning place. They need SECURITY ASAP They need managers to actually MANAGE They need Cleaners to CLEAN They need Chefs that can cook for the amount of seating they are offering Its an absolute joke and worst money i have ever spent and i am a regular at quite a few buffet restaurants in...