Kolae — Restaurant in London

This meal was such a mixed bag. On the one hand, the food was delicious, the service (while we were eating at least!) was excellent, the restaurant is beautiful, and the atmosphere was great.

However, there was completely unnecessary friction introduced at the end of an otherwise excellent meal, because this restaurant was unable to deal with a gift voucher that wasn't the exact amount of food and drink that we consumed during the meal.

We received a voucher of £125 as a gift, and our meal for two people cost us £95. When we sat at our table, we alerted our server to the fact that we'd be redeeming a gift voucher for the meal. She said that would be fine. After we finished eating, we asked for the bill and said we'd be redeeming the aforementioned gift voucher. At this point, the server brought in her supervisor to deal with it, and things started going south.

The supervisor took a photograph of the voucher and went away. Then he came back and said they cannot give us the balance (£30ish) back, and would we like to order anything else - after we had finished eating a lot of food including dessert. We refused and asked for the balance, either in the form of another voucher or cash. He asked if we could order some wine instead. We refused and asked for the balance, either in the form of another voucher or cash. He then said he will see what he can do and went away.

He came back to our table after another 10 mins and said that he cannot generate a voucher for us and we have to use the £125 to pay for a meal that costs £95. We refused and asked to speak to a manager. He went away.

Then the manager, Damien, came to our table and repeated what the previous guy said and asked us if we were sure we wouldn't just accept a bottle of wine for the remainder. We refused and asked for the balance, either in the form of another voucher or cash. We also explained that we really enjoyed our meal and we'd like to come back with more family, and also use up the rest of the voucher (and provide them with return customers). He said he understands and went away again, and finally came back with a hand written card explaining the balance of the gift card to be redeemed at a later point and included his name on the card. We thanked him for his help in resolving the issue. Phew!

However, this is in my opinion a huge flaw in their voucher system and it was somewhat lazy customer service to keep asking us to accept the option that would be easy for them rather than us. If this restaurant only honoured vouchers that used the full amount on the voucher, then that should have been made clear at the point of purchase, as well as at the point of arriving, before we ordered food, and on the voucher terms and conditions. It introduces unnecessary friction to the customer journey. Kudos to Damien for finally finally resolving this but I also suspect it's because we stuck to our guns and insisted over the course of the 20 mins or so that it took to resolve this completely unnecessary issue.

To summarise, decent food, somewhat pricey, excellent service as long as you don't use a pesky...

A Culinary Journey Through Southern Thailand at Kolae

Nestled amidst the vibrant energy of Borough Market, Kolae offers a unique escape into the heart of southern Thai cuisine. While car parking might be tricky in the immediate area, there are limited car parking bays adjacent to the restaurant. Getting there via public transport is a breeze – London Bridge station is a short walk away. Approximately 7/9 minutes walk. (of course depending on your pace)

Spread over three floors, Kolae caters to different moods. The ground floor buzzes with a lively bar scene and table service, while the first floor provides a quieter haven for a more intimate dining experience. For larger groups or special occasions, the second floor boasts a private dining room.

From the moment we stepped in, Raminta, our host, ensured everything was beautiful and comfortable. Her attentiveness and warm personality truly set the tone for the evening.

Now, onto the star of the show – the food! The Kolae Chicken Satay on Bamboo Skewer was an absolute revelation. The chicken, perfectly marinated and grilled, exploded with flavor in every bite. (Recommended to get your own one). But the real surprise came with the Mussels Skewer. This unassuming dish turned out to be the highlight of our smaller plates selection – the mussels were plump, juicy, and bathed in a fragrant sauce that left us wanting more.

For the main course, the Chicken Pepper Curry was a fiery delight. The deep peppery sauce packed a punch, sure to satisfy even the most heat-loving palates. However, a slight disappointment arose when we inquired about adding the Kolae Tiger Prawns to our feast. Unfortunately, dishes on the "For The Whole Table" menu are pre-fixed and cannot be customized. This felt like a missed opportunity, as some diners might be happy to pay extra for these premium ingredients, boosting the restaurant's sales potential.

Despite this minor setback, the overall experience at Kolae was exceptional. The ambience was warm and inviting, with a soothingly lit space that allowed the conversation to flow freely. The exposed brick walls lent a rustic charm, creating a more relaxed feel than a typical fine-dining establishment.

If you're looking for a delicious adventure through southern Thai flavors, Kolae is a must-visit. Just be prepared to embrace the menu as it is, and get ready to be surprised by some truly...

The food was incredible, and it was a rare treat for my partner and me to enjoy the set menu at leisure while our baby slept in his pram for the duration of our long lunch. However, there were a few issues with service that weren’t great and left a bad taste in our mouth (despite the food being amazing!):

I had emailed in advance to please ask for a table that would be suitable for a pram and two adults, and got a friendly reply back the day before our booking saying that we would be given a suitable table on the ground floor. However, when we arrived, we were told that our table was upstairs (with several flights of stairs and no lift), despite me letting the host know that I had emailed in advance and had been told we could have a table on the ground floor. Normally we wouldn’t mind carrying a pram up the stairs, but there were a lot of stairs and my son was sleeping in the pram, so we didn’t want to risk waking him. Regardless, given that I had an email confirming that we had a table on the ground floor, I wish we didn’t then have to wait for another staff member to get involved before we were finally given a table on the ground floor. An apology or some acknowledgement of the oversight on their part would have also been nice, but that was not offered. It didn’t feel like a warm or hospitable start to our meal.

It was very frustrating that our server kept removing or trying to remove plates and bowls of food before we were done with them. This happened several times. I’d perhaps understand this behaviour if we were overstaying our reservation period and they wanted to move us along, but this was not the case as we left before our reservation period was over. In one instance, my partner was using a spoon to serve himself food out of a bowl, when the server swooped in and tried to take the bowl away. We then had to ask her to stop, which she did, but again; no apology was offered. This is appalling service, as I thought it was understood that plates/bowls of food should not be taken away when we’re in the middle of eating food in them. Or if there is any question of whether we are done, the server could have asked us before trying to take the food away.

As I said earlier, the food is fantastic – it reminds us of food we had in Southern Thailand earlier this year. It’s just a shame that the service...