Patara Wimbledon — Restaurant in London

This restaurant has some serious potential, has a nice modern feel, lovely decor and who doesn’t love a bit of Thai food?

It was my birthday and I decided to go for a meal with 13 of my friends. I fancied Thai food, in a central location, that was big enough to accommodate us all. We all know the Giggling Squid, tried, tested and pretty damn good food, but not big enough for a group our size. Whilst searching I came across Patara and from the outside looking in there seemed no good reason not to visit. How wrong I was...

Unfortunately this restaurant continuously let itself down from start to finish. We all arrived within 20 minutes of each other, but once we were all there I think that’s a safe time to assume that we all may want a beverage of some sort. It took almost half hour for us to be asked what we would like to have to drink. The server seemed to be completely incapable of taking an order for the whole table in one go and kept wondering off. All in all it took another 15-20 minutes for the whole table to receive a drink, however we didn’t all get the drinks we ordered. My friend ordered a Rekordelig Cider and received 2 Lychee cocktails (buy one get one free), after a couple minutes of confusion we managed to get the message across that we had got something we did not order. They decided that as we had them we could keep them, but then had the audacity to charge us for them, even though they probably had to go down the sink!

Then came another long pause, the idea that we were in a restaurant to eat food seemed to be foreign to them but eventually we were asked what we would like to eat. We had all decided we would have starters and after the server took half the orders he seemed to decide that the the rest of us may not want starters and again wondered off. He returned shortly after, at which point we took the opportunity to place an order for the rest of the table. Fearing that we would have a repeat of the earlier lengthy wait, we told the server we would also like to order our mains. After seeming overwhelmed buy such a request he flicked through his note book and found a fresh page to jot down our requests. The dismissive nature at which he took our orders did not help my now skeptical feeling towards the server, but in the interest having being in a good mood (due to it being my birthday) I chose not to challenge him, what a mistake that was...

Our starters arrived shortly after, within 10 minutes of us ordering, so now I’m starting to think “at least they can get something right” wrong! We all got our starters, ready to tuck in when I hear my friend complaining her starter was cold. To my disgust when she reported this to the server he tried to claim it should be cold, something he could have got away with had another friend not had the same order, only warm! After waiting another 10 minutes she received her order, but was not satisfied, again the restaurant had let themselves down and again they had not tried to redeem themselves and left the order on the bill. In truth the rest of us seemed to enjoy our starters or at least claim they were “good enough” not to have to complain. Now for the mains...

My earlier skepticism had been validated, all our food arrived and low and behold the server had forgotten to write down some of the food, oh so unfortunate for him it was the same friend that had received the cold starter another ten minute wait and she’s away and able to eat... after a lot of us were coming to the end of our meals.

Rather kindly my friends had got me a cake and I received the obligatory happy birthday rendition from not only my friends, but the neighbouring table. Thank you Patara you finally got something right or so I thought, I later found out that the cake was actually requested a lot sooner than it actually arrived, what a way to round up an pretty poor experience. 3 hours after we arrived we finally got to the stage of requesting the bill and for the first time in my adult life, my group and I exercised our discretion and did not leave...

We went for a special occasion, a birthday request. The staff were very attentive. We ordered the following items the mixed platter starter and the Tom yum Goon soup which they said they could accommodate. Then the Lime and Chilli Seabass, fat rice noodles with prawns, green chicken curry, and crab yellow curry.

The starter platter came which was a whopping £34. Two of each item, the spring rolls lacked flavour and substance, the scallops were a bit on the raw side, the fish cakes were the only item that was truly edible. There were three of us so we did share as the soup had still not materialized. When the waitress came to remove the plates we asked about the soup? Apparently she could serve it with the mains???? We said no and to take it off the bill. The mains were the served. Everything lacked flavour and substance. The Seabass was actually quite good, delicate but it was drowning in the sweet sour sauce. The green chicken curry lacked flavor, the sauce felt reproduced from a jar sauce. The noodles were ok but only 3 prawns for a £22 price tag. And yet again they had forgotten the Crab yellow curry!!! When asked about it again they had forgotten to let the kitchen know of the order. As by this point we had practically finished our meal we told them not to bother and to take off the bill.

We asked for the bill, checked that they had taken of all the items that had not served and paid. When we got home just decided to double check the bill, they had overcharged us. I then proceeded to call and get this rectified. This was a bit of a s* show in itself as first there was some denial and explanation of the charge until we explained in simplest of terms that they had in fact overcharged , they blamed it on their system, and then the waitress. They could justify it how they wanted as long as I got my money back! They did pay up which was appreciated, I hope they don’t make this mistake with others who might visit their establishment. As Thai restaurants go, this one was a massive fail for me. Ok if you haven’t eaten Thai before, but an expensive...

I am compelled to share our unfortunate experience with the takeaway from Patara Thai in Wimbledon. My wife and I have been regular patrons of their establishment on a few occasions and had previously enjoyed the food at their restaurant with no issues. However, the takeaway we ordered on Wednesday October 18th 2023, has unfortunately resulted in a distressing case of food poisoning.

After consuming their food, my wife fell severely ill, experiencing excruciating stomach pain, followed by unrelenting episodes of diarrhea and vomiting, accompanied by debilitating stomach cramps. Despite the passage of two days, her condition has not improved, and she continues to endure the distressing effects of the food poisoning.

Upon careful consideration, we have concluded that the source of the food poisoning was the Riceberry rice that my wife consumed from the takeaway, as I did not partake in eating the rice and have not experienced any such symptoms.

The negligence of food safety standards at this establishment has led to an utterly regrettable and distressing situation. The lack of proper hygiene practices and quality control is evident, as the food delivered proved to be highly detrimental to my wife's health.

I am deeply disappointed by the complete disregard for customer well-being and the serious repercussions of consuming their food. It is disheartening to see a restaurant neglecting such critical aspects, putting their patrons at risk of severe health consequences.

Given the severity of this incident and its impact on my wife's health, I strongly advise against dining at Patara Thai and caution others to be aware of the potential health risks associated with their offerings.

My sincere hope is that this review serves as a cautionary warning to others and prompts the necessary improvements in food safety and hygiene practices at this...