Rüya — Restaurant in London

We visited Ruya at 6.15pm and neither of us were extremely hungry. The first impression was amazing. A luxurious setting with an incredible ambience. We were well greeted and seated on what were very comfortable seats.

We were however seated right next to their little counter where the waiters would retrieve menus, process orders and get the glasses. Throughout the meal the waiters would keep coming to their little counter and at multiple times several waiters stood there having conversations. 6 different waiters would come over and 1 point 4 of them were hovering around talking without being mindful of us being seated right next to them. We could hear their conversations constantly and did not enjoy our experience at all because of this. We were unable to have our own conversation in private. The restaurant was practically empty and therefore they could have seated us somewhere more sensible.

We ordered mocktails, 1 called the Spicy Dream which was highly recommended to us and the other was the Majun. Both of these were not nice. We told the waiter who took away a full glass of the Majun, didn't replace it and charged us for it.

We then ordered our food. As we were not extremely hungry, the 2 of us only ordered 2 items from thr "to ponder" menu, 2 main dishes and 1 triple cooked chips. The waitress who specifically came over to take our food menu, looked at us rather disgustingly and said "is that enough, you should order more". We found this rather insulting. She could have chosen better words such as "our portions are rather small so I'd recommend ordering a hot starter, another main or a another side." We didn't order any more.

The to ponder items came out rapidly. The Borek was nice and the Muhamara was ok. Another bad experience occurred here as the waiter came over whilst we was eating our ponder items, put his hands on the Muhamara and asked if he should take it away. Bearing in mind I was still holding the bread which accompanied the Muhamara! They were in such a rush which was annoying.

Our two Cag kebabs then arrived, one chicken and one wagyu/lamb. The portions were definitely small and were not accompanied with anything! The wagyu/lamb was nice, good quality of meat but nothing flavoursome. The chicken was ok, very slimy, more flavour than the lamb but perhaps too much flavour on this one. The triple cooked chips were decent, but very chunky.

We asked for the bill 5 times before it arrived.

Whilst waiting for the bill, the fire alarm went off and all the staff were laughing. This was obviously a bit stressful and we were eventually advised it is from the hotel next door. I said to my partner that the noise is annoying, and the waitress who insisted to stand practically next to us throughout the meal said she's sorry for the inconvenience. Although this was nice of her, it was also weird as I made that comment to my partner rather quietly so she was clearly eavesdropping or we were seated far too close to where the waiters and waitresses stand.

We were charged for a drink which was taken away from us (full glass). We didn't complain and as much as I didn't want to pay the service charge (as the service was terrible), we did.

This restaurant looks amazing, the food is okay but the service is just not...

Very poor management and rude reception and not punctual with time. Despite our reservation and late time slot, we had to wait for 21 mnts before we got seated, tho the wait was ok! They had the audacity to tell us that normally they seat people in waiting lounge (corner chairs not much of a lounge) before they get seated at their table. If you book you have to guarantee your booking by card and if you are late or no show they charge you. But this does not work the other way around! So they are free to do whatever. While waiting we saw 3-4 4 people groups (like us) get seated who came after us. This is typical of third world restaurant minders not to respect the system. The place is overrated and has confused identity! Not sure if it is a bar, nightclub or restaurant! It can be the first two but can’t have it all. Way too loud and unrealistic for restaurant! They have to understand that people come here to enjoy food, socialize and chat with each other’s not overrun by loud music...! All is one thing but to be dry, rude and right out unprofessional is another thing! Then I thought I was in a church for them to ask us to take off our overcoats and hat while walking to our table. It is one thing to have class but it is another to try to make an odd one for you. I have been to top flight restaurants in NY, LA, Paris and many in London but never seen this arrogance! It is definitely my last time in this place. As for the food, no question about it, simply great. I feel for the chef and kitchen staff who work hard to make such great tasty food only to get front desk staff...

I’m sitting in the restaurant, I swear I’m not pissed, and I am moved to write the review right now! There is this ‘thing’ about taking cuisines to Mayfair, making them Michelinised and charging a lot more for them. This is the first place I have been to in DECADES where the rule (flavour extracted, price astronomicalised, experience made boring) where this very definitely has not happened. This is Turkish food taken entirely to a higher level and made even more delicious than you’ve probably ever had. Perhaps you are descended from Ottoman royalty, in which case maybe you have. The Adana Kebap was literally the best, most tender and moist I ever had in my 44 years of eating from cheap to super-expensive in London. I mention the kebap as a reference, especially to people who were students here. The rest of the menu, which occasionally reads like old favourites but quite often not, is just delicious. So well and cleverly prepared, spiced or seasoned perfectly, and presented in a way that you probably won’t have seen before. The Patlican (smoked aubergine purée) is served with incredibly thin and crisp slices of aubergine, to dip, that have been dried, dusted with spice and flash fried, that are just bloody delicious. It’s Mayfair. It ain’t cheap. But it certainly is worth it. Oh, and the Turkish reds start at £45 and are excellent and surprisingly ‘left bank Bordeaux' style for 1/10th the price. I hasten to add that I was dragged in here expecting the worst and have absolutely nothing to do with the restaurant company.

Now to sample...