Orrery — Restaurant in London

I have been going to this restaurant for many years and it was a real favourite of mine. However I have to say that last night the experience was not a pleasant one, in fact a disappointing one.

For a start we were given a really big round table, so big that we could hardle hear each other. It’s hard to have a good conversation when you can’t hear the people in front of you. I had booked 10 days before so it’s not like we showed up the last minute….we asked to change to a different table but we were told that it was not possible. Our table was for 10 people at least and we were 6. This was quite upsetting.

Then the choice of food on the menu was really not appealing. Starters: Chicken parfait….bufala mozzarella…I took the the mozzarella and I was served a whole mozzarella with on top tasteless cubes of apple which were not even cooked well…they were still too raw. I would say uneventful if I want to be polite….I do really wonder who tastes the dishes?

Mains: beef wellington, seabass…..venison. I choose the seabass, which I have eaten there dozens of times over the years, enjoining every single one of them. This time it was really not good. A sort of boiled seabass filet with a tomato sauce on top (by the way….people don’t eat boiled fish skin…) a zucchini flower full with goat cheese which was not really well cooked and a purée of somekind with a taste that did not mix well. A terrible combination. It was a dish you expect in a simpler Italian restaurant where they put tomatoes on everything. Tomato (pesto…they called it) on a boiled fish frankly is not a refined dish.

At my table other people had other mains - bit of mix results there too. The little lentil scamorza pre appetizer they gave us was nothing short of disgusting….no taste….I wonder if the chef action tastes what is being served? Please do…lack of salt….lack of taste….

The service, which is normally impeccable, was disappointing too.

A very upsetting thing was this: It was my son’s birthday last night. I had called at 11am the restaurant to ask if they could serve at the end of the meal to everyone a mix of sorbets as dessert adding a Happy birthday chocolate sign on his plate so we could celebrate. The lady who answered the phone said…yes no problem. However Nothing arrived at the table exept for a single lonely sad plate for my son with some praline and Happy birthday. All the remaining 5 people had nothing. Really upsetting. The waiters were running back and forth next to us…as our table was the closest to the kitchen and I tried to ask to at least two of them about my sorbet request….nothing happened. I am quite cross about this. It was a little family celebration and it felt like they were all too busy to care for us.

I did see a cake with a candle going back and forth to another table….so maybe it was just our party who were totally forgotten.

The very sad, somewhat not cold??, clementine sorbet I managed to order in the end was just the appropriate end to a very mediocre but quite expensive meal. Something to forget quickly and not to repeat anytime soon.

I am actually quite sad. I spent so many evenings and lunches at this special place in Marylebone but I doubt I will go back. Bad food, mediocre service and expensive price do not really make you run there. Something is not right in this restaurant right now please...

I took my partner here for his 50th. It was an absolute shambles. When booking the restaurant I notified them I have an allergy to chillies. When picking items from menu, I ask which dishes I could eat & explain I have allergy to chillies.

We waited ages for starters to arrive. My partner's starter finally came & the waiter informed me the starter I ordered had chillies, plonked the menu infront of me to indicate I had to pick another dish. Meanwhile, my partner picked at his starter which was cold & underseasoned. We didn't say anything as I was already having difficulty with the waiter; I asked which starter could I have, i.e. didn't have chillies? He told me, "wait," marches off & comes back after quite a while & says, "we can offer you goats cheese & beetroot but it's off menu." An age later, he brings out a bowl of beetroot, slams on the table & marches off. I call him back & ask "where is the cheese?" He says, "it has chillies, so all we can offer you is beetroot." I ask, "all your cheese has chillies??" He marches off, comes back with a side dish of 2 slices of goats cheese & a side bowl of yoghurt.

Clearly its "build your own starter" day at Orrery.

We wait an age for plates to be cleared & for mains to arrive. My partner had ordered steak. The waiter had advised him, "chef recommends having it medium rare." Chef clearly forgot their advice, as it was well done, a skin formed on the sauce & served cold. I'd ordered duck & was advised that it's served pink... yet it was brown & tepid, served with cold vegetable sides.

We sent the steak back which made our already aloof waiter advance into hyper avoidance mode. I was given a free glass of wine by another kinder waiter, in an attempt to pacify the situation. My partner had to ask for a drink though and it wasn't free of charge.

Partner's steak arrives, by which time I'd finished my main, my dishes were cleared & we were ignored for a long while.

Aloof waiter finally clears partner's plates & takes dessert order. Chocolate for him, panna cotta for me... wait for an age. The afternoon shift has finished, another waiter starts ironing tablecloths on the table in front of our table. He set up the ironing directly in front of us to prove his distain of us still being there, sneering over his shoulder at us.

Desserts arrive, slammed on table by aloof waiter who immediately matches off. Chocolate for partner & what's this, crumble for me. I hate crumble. Call back waiter. He ignores us. Manage to get attention of other waiter, who brings out correct dessert & happy birthday chocolates.

All waiters practically dissappear at this point, meaning the only way to pay bill was by going to front desk, where head waiter who'd been aware of all the mistakes totally ignored me. Another waiter gave me the bill & had the decency to charge less than full price.

It was like being in an episode of Faulty Towers. I really disliked Orrery.

Totally ruined my partner's 50th birthday meal. Worst restaurant experience I've ever had the displeasure...

The restaurant is beautifully located on the quiet end of High Street in Marylebone, and the restaurant itself is a lovely set-up. Airy, light, modern, and elegantly furnished. We had the 3 course option where I had selected the beetroot tart for starter, shared a lamb shoulder for the main, and had the cheese course for dessert. The portions were very generous, and each course was delicious and plated beautifully. However, the combination on the main was rather questionable. The jus that accompanied the lamb and its sides were lovely. Then appeared a generous amount of harissa, placed on the side of the plate. Again, the cheese course was generous, but the positioning of the cheeses and therefore the order of consumption were not appropriately placed, resulting in stronger cheeses being consumed before milder ones. The biggest observation was the professionalism of the waitstaff. Being asked if we would like drinks to start with no menu provided and suggestion of a bottle of wine that cost twice as much as the initially ordered one, as the chosen wine was "only available at lunch" - the suggested bottle's quality was not worth £90 IMHO! During conversations with my friend, the waiter would step right in between us to serve the wine rather than stepping to each side of us to refill our glasses, so conversation was continuously interrupted. The most ridiculous moment was when waitstaff brought out a steam iron with guests in the restaurant, and they proceeded to iron. All that I've mentioned would seem an overreaction to such trivialities, but when the cost doesn't reflect the service and refinement, it needs to be raised. Half the items on the menu, which seemed like normal dishes incurred questionable supplementary costs. Overall, the experience wasn't bad, but it also wasn't great. There's room for improvement, and if The Orrery manage to reach that next level, then whatever the prices, it will definitely be a more...