OKA Restaurant Primrose Hill — Restaurant in London

Allergy Alert: Vegans and Vegetarians Beware

I dined here in June and, up until now, considered myself a loyal customer. I’ve ordered every single vegan and vegetarian option on their Uber Eats menu - at least two dozen times over the past few months - and have even recommended the restaurant to fellow vegans and vegetarians.

Never again.

It turns out that some of the dishes labeled as vegan or vegetarian contain shellfish in the sauces. According to staff, it "depends on the chef" whether or not this serious allergen is added to dishes explicitly marketed as vegan or vegetarian.

Here’s what happened to me: I ordered the Kung Pao Tofu while dining in. The server initially asked if I was vegan or vegetarian. I replied, “Just vegetarian.” A sweet & sour tofu dish was brought out instead… not what I ordered. When I politely returned to the counter to clarify, I was again asked about my dietary preference. I reiterated that I was vegetarian (eggs and dairy are fine). The staff apologised and quickly brought me the Kung Pao Tofu I originally requested. At this point, the service was courteous and professional. I have no complaints about the front-of-house staff - they were polite and did their best. However, when the corrected dish was handed to me, the (presumed) head server casually mentioned that the Kung Pao Tofu isn’t actually vegan because it contains shellfish. This information was shocking. Nowhere on the menu, or on Uber Eats, does it mention this. In fact, online it clearly states the dish is vegan. While I appreciate the staff's professionalism, this points to a serious issue: lack of allergen training. Shellfish is a common and dangerous allergen. It should never be used in dishes labeled as vegan or vegetarian. This isn’t just a mix-up! This is a health hazard, especially for those with allergies or strict dietary requirements!

To be clear, this review is not a criticism of the front-of-house team, but a warning to the chefs and management: proper allergen protocols are urgently needed. This is...

Oh dear, I wasn't impressed with the service my daughter and I received on Sunday 08/05/2022 from 4pm to about 5pm.They let us have one of their reserved tables for 1 hour which was nice so we decided to keep our order simple so we would be done quickly and they could have their table back I assumed this meant that they would also serve our food quite efficiently. Our starter of edamame beans came out within minutes of us sitting down and was tasty. After that we waited ages. The waiting staff were asking everyone around us how their meal was and checked if they needed anything but never once asked us. I told them that we were wondering when our mains would be served and they looked confused. The lady went inside and came out with my main meal, the prawn sambal (which was delicious) half an hour after we sat down. And there was still no sign of my daughter's main which was simple salmon sushi rolls. We watched as people who arrived after us, got their meals within minutes of sitting down. I enquired again about our mains, again the waitress looked confused. I said you've given me my main but where are my daughters sushi rolls? She went inside and they were served 45 minutes after we sat down. No apology and no body asked us how our meal was. And this place has the nerve to put a service charge on the bill. I went inside to pay the bill, thinking perhaps they will apologise and I can still pay the service charge but no. No apologies. So I asked them to remove the service charge. I didn't mention anything else as I just wanted to get out of there. The service wasn't good enough for me to be charged. The food was terribly late and I had to make several enquiries otherwise I probably would never have been...

My boyfriend offered me dinner here as we decided to celebrate together. I phoned and they gave me the reservation for Friday the 3/12/21 at 19,30 (for Martina) and said to me that at 8,30 another table would come so we had to leave, since that was the only time we could go I was fine with it (even tho only 1hr for a table it’s quite tight) so as we enter I go to the table and the receptionist (red hair) advices my boyfriend again “just remember you only have an hour” well that made him nervous as it was not the most pleasure phrase to hear before eating. Anyway we have eaten in quite a rush as they kept asking if we needed something else and clearly needing to have us going, meanwhile the table behind us also complained for the same problem as the three receptionist kept them rushing and asking for the bill. Anyway we eat the last dishes and I happen to find a hair into the chicken so I immediately tell them and they took all the plates away without even asking if I needed something else or having the new dishes again (of course it was 8,30) so we left. No even goodbye or apologies by the two receptionist at the entrance; I did tell them that we had a terrible and rude experience and all she does is smile at my face and says “thank you”. Pretty disappointed given also how expensive the place is. Not recommend if you’re looking to have a nice relaxing dinner, over all the good is great just careful for the hair in plates, not...