Lantern — Restaurant in London

To be upfront, my review is from the beginning of the year. It's just that upon recently passing the restaurant, I felt the need to express my horrible experience.

I called in to ask if they cooked cantonese style duck. I know it's not on the menu, but there are hardly any halal chinese restaurants nearby and so I thought it's worth a try. I was advised yes, so I ordered it over the phone, clarifying again that its cantonese roasted duck and collected it. Unfortunately, coming home, we had guests, and so we had checked the food an or so later. Then, noticing the whole duck was actually 2 quarters. I called up, and to their credit, they said they could collect it back of us and give us a refund or give us £30 off the next order. Considering I paid approximately £45-50 and thought it's too late to order anything else and with my wife pregnant, I took the latter option.

Then, after 2 months, I returned to take them up on the offer promised, and this is where everything went horrible. The lady staff member from Nepal was lovely. However, when the owner/chef came and noticed I was also South asian he had an attitude, saying no, he can't remember this. I asked to look on the system for notes. He proceeded to mention although the system is down this was never told to him, I told him the name of the floor manager I spoke to and he said well he's not here and why have I come back after 2 months! I was confused at this line of questioning and explained in a raised tone that my wife had given birth, and so we had other priorities other than your restaurant. He then angrily mentioned that well the dish was cantonese duck, and I disputed this, saying you cooked Beijing duck and hence why your manager had agreed on an offer. He called the manager, they confirmed a mistake was made with each other but not to me directly, and said yes maybe I misunderstood the menu but they were OK to give 30% off from which I explained the duck cost me double the price of what I got and then you give me 30% puts me at a loss! How does that make sense? As we were going back and forth he then proceeded to note that he's a chef and knows better as he owns 3 restaurants about what a cantonese roast duck is, I then had to note my wife is of chinese descent hence why we have come back as we know its not.

He then proceeded to ask me to show him what cantonese duck is, and then, upon a simple Google search, it showed clearly a massive difference from the Beijing duck they cook. The waitress also agreed with me , so the owner started to shout at her to go away downstairs. I replied not to take his anger out on her. It's not fair.

Eventually, another gentleman Altaf came up hearing the ruckus. He took over, was understanding, and calmed the situation down. Eventually, after explaining everything to Altaf, he noted and justbsuggested the best possible options also apologised for the chefs behaviour as I noted this might be due to the fact we are both from the same country and had it been someone foreign he wouldn't have had spoken with such disrespect. Altaf specified that the plum sauce had wine in it and hence why they can't do roast duck cantonese style. But they can try to do something similar if I'd be OK and we remained with the 30% off. I was forced to accept or lose out more as they had already overcharged me double on a prior offer this was it's less financially. Thereafter, i was offered starters and asked not to write a review, which I refused as I just wanted what was owed and to leave.

Lastly, the cantonese style interpretation wasn't the same, as expected. Personally, the food isn't bad, but their attitude when something goes wrong is horrible and disgusting. I forgot to mention that another guy came up in between to try and intimidate me. I...

Absolutely bewildered! I booked a table here for 5 people as a team lunch with work colleague. We were especially please to have found it as it's halal and meets our needs. I booked online and received a confirmation email - so far so good. When it came to the day of the lunch, we walked the 15 minutes from our office to the restaurant only to find it closed!!! I had not received a cancellation email, no phone call, nothing to say they would not be open. I tried calling a couple of times and no-one picked up! We were then stuck for somewhere to go at late notice, luckily Laksa, a couple of doors down could seat and it was lovely.

UPDATE: I had a phone call from the restaurant after my one star review saying that they had emailed me in advance. I found this email in my spam folder, having been sent at 2am the day of the booking! They then said they had tried calling and sent me a screen shot of calls made the day AFTER the booking. I was also asked to take down my review. I am not an expert in GDPR, but I'm pretty sure that when I left my phone number during the booking process it was not so they could call me up anytime they wanted to ask me edit reviews. Really poor experience...

For someone like me, who craves authentic Chinese cuisine in the UK, Lantern is truly a hidden gem. I had their Beef Chilli Sambal Rice, and it was outstanding. The rice was light, fluffy, and perfectly cooked, while the beef chilli sambal delivered a bold, fiery kick—just what spice lovers like me are looking for. This dish has quickly become one of my go-to meals.

I also tried their Chicken with Broccoli. The chicken was tender and perfectly cooked, and the broccoli added a crisp, refreshing contrast. To top it all off, I indulged in their Fried Ice Cream, which was easily the highlight of the meal. Crisp on the outside with a cool, creamy center—it was a perfect end to a fantastic dining experience. Also, The staffs were very friendly and welcoming, making the experience...