Sambal Express East Ham — Restaurant in London

The food is fantastic and the service is great too. The staff are very friendly too. I usually visit East Ham atleast once a month to buy Sri Lankan products as we don't have much of it in our neighbourhood in London Spitalfields.

I generally get short eats and small tubs of coconut sambal seeni sambal, fish buns, different types of patties, cutlets and rolls. Sometimes sweets too.

But yesterday I went to the temple nearby and then went to your shop and for the first time I got string hoppers. I wanted iddiyappam for 2 people but your brilliant sales girl, the very friendly Vijaya Lakshmi, convinced me to buy 50 iddiyappams.

I decided to do so and paid the extra for sambal and sodhi.

When I got home, I was disappointed as there was only 1 packet of sodhi and 1 packet of sambal. Not anywhere nearly enough to go with 50 iddiyappams. This is unfair!

My advice to the owner of this establishment is to offer 2 packs each of sambal and sodhi when you sell 50 iddiyappams and don't charge extra. You don't want your regular customers to feel cheated! This used to happen in Sri Lanka too, when we used to order and then go and pick up and then come home and feel cheated.

There are other ways to maximise your profits in an ethical way. Tell the customers that you have to charge extra for additional packets of sambal and sodhi. I'm sure we will pay extra as it is not expensive.

And ask the customers who order iddiyappams if they want sambal and sodhi. Some customers assume they come with it and it's all inclusive.

And ask customers if they want red red or white iddiyappams. Not everybody prefers either/or.

And if Sambal and/or Sodhi has run out, sell them some curry or pirattal and maybe cutlets and Sambal tubs.

As popular as you are, you can do with some clever marketing techniques.

I called your establishment when I got home and unpacked everything I bought. Rekha answered and didn't seem to know what to say but she was very polite and friendly.

I hope whomever manages the online presence of Sambal Express shows this review...

While the food is excellent... fresh curries, snacks, meal deals, veg /non veg, stringhoppers, pittu, fried /grilled food and such, the service is atrocious. This is the East Ham branch of the 8 shop chain. Its good quality Sri Lankan and south indian tamil food on offer. Freshly made and tasty but rather on the hot spicy side of the spice meter. Its seems incredulous that staff here are unable to communicate effectively in English. As a customer you liable to suffer the indignity of being ignored or made to wait if you speak in English. Certain staff are especially abrupt with english speaking customers. It is sad and a pity that it's 2024 and you still have discriminatory service. It's a shame because it spoils the experience of Sambal Express. Except for 2 ladies all the rest of the staff need to be retrained in customer skills and more importantly brush up on simple...

I want to take a moment to sincerely thank Renuka and Vijayakumari at Sambal Express East Ham for their outstanding customer service. These two ladies go above and beyond every single day, and it never goes unnoticed.

They always greet me with a warm smile and serve with genuine care and professionalism. Their friendly attitude, efficiency, and attention to detail create such a welcoming atmosphere that keeps me coming back.

Renuka and Vijayakumari, your dedication, kindness, and consistency are truly appreciated. You both represent Sambal Express in the best way possible. Keep up the amazing work—thank you for making every visit a...