Reineta — Restaurant in London

From the moment they opened a second restaurant, Rayuela virtually next door, it’s been hit and miss as to whether you caught Reineta on a good or a bad day.

Initially it was lack of management as the talented staff moved over and it began to lose its edge. More recently looking at the reviews and our visit yesterday, there are not many good days any more and on the bad days they are hitting all time lows. Which was certainly our experience.

Forty minutes to get even bread and olives. An hour to get an undercooked steak. Fifteen plus minutes to have the rare steak become heated to medium, which means it must have sat around for ages either before or after cooking. Having to go inside repeatedly either to beg for a second drink or even the pay the bill , which seemed like it would never come.

I complained about the complete lack attention to customers and the huge waiting time and was offered the “explanation” that they had “taken three bookings too many, including mine, and probably should not have taken them”.

Given they were very far from full, and this poor explanation was given in a weary “it’s not the first time” tone, it seems clear they just can’t manage both restaurants properly and rebranding Reineta to be a steak restaurant in the evening is a straw that’s breaking their particular already quite sick cow’s back.

This acceptance of responsibility did not come with any actual apology beyond “it’s been a long day” or offer of a discount or something on the house, or any other recognition of a spoiled evening, which just made the overall experience, even after removing the service charge, still feel quite unpleasant. And very far from being anything like value for money

That the team at Rayuela are still on top of their game from food to cocktails just highlights how far the performance and attitude has fallen next door.

The truth is that it was struggling just being a cafe once the people moved over, so to try and have it do more was a disaster waiting to happened. And it did, to us, last night.

More Ruineta than Reineta these days, so sadly we...

I recently visited Reineta, a nice place with decent coffee. But (a big one!), while I found the coffee to be enjoyable, there were a couple of aspects that left me with mixed feelings about the experience.

Firstly, Reineta has a rather strict "laptop policy" that limits the usage of laptops to just one hour. This policy may (maybe!) make sense during peak hours when the café is bustling with customers and space is limited. However, when I arrived, the place was completely empty, and it remained so for the next 45 minutes until I left. I couldn't help but feel that the laptop policy was unnecessarily restrictive in such circumstances. The manner in which the policy was communicated to me also gave the impression that laptop users were not entirely welcome, which made me question whether I was truly eligible for their services.

Another disappointment was their lack of regular Coke, offering only the Zero version. While I understand the desire to provide "healthier" options, it felt somewhat limiting.

In terms of policies, I generally prefer approaches that inform customers of how they can utilize the space rather than imposing strict limitations. For example, Reineta could consider implementing a policy where customers intending to sit and use their laptops are required to meet a minimum spending requirement or pay a fee for using the premises in a way that deviates from the café's intended purpose. This way, customers would have the freedom to choose their preferred means of work or leisure while still supporting the establishment financially.

On a final note, I believe it's essential for Reineta to deliver their laptop policy in a more sensitive manner. Clear communication about the rationale behind the policy, such as limited seating during peak hours or the desire to accommodate a diverse range of customers, would help laptop users feel more welcome and understand the café's perspective. After all, there is little difference between using a laptop or a phone for personal or professional reasons, and both should be...

Popped in here last night to meet a friend who had arrived about 15 minutes before and had a coffee. When I arrived we asked to see the wine list and the waiter asked if we would like a recommendation - we said yes and he recommended a bottle of Spanish Rioja. We accepted this and the wine was duly poured. five minutes later the same waiter came over to inform us that he had forgotten to mention that there was private event on that evening and that they would need the table back by 6pm - It was 4:30pm I'm no slouch but expecting us to sink a bottle of wine in 1 1/2 hours is a bit much! Worse than that the staff then proceeded to set up for said event - moving tables and chairs around us to the point where we were sitting in no mans land on one table with emptiness around us. We asked the waiter if we could take our bottle of wine to their sister restaurant Rayuela next door but were informed that they were fully booked tonight and would not have space for us. We therefore decided to cork the bottle and move on elsewhere. I was astonished when I paid the bill and the wine was £30 Certainly not a value for money experience. Shocking customer service on their part. We were made to feel completely unwelcome and in the way. If they had advised us at the start we would have had a glass of wine and then moved on. We won't be back...