Scoff & Banter Canary Wharf — Restaurant in London

I had pre-booked and paid a deposit for the Christmas Day set menu for three people, totaling £240.00. I am shocked and disheartened by the complete lack of festive atmosphere upon our arrival. There were no decorations or any effort to create a Christmas-themed environment.

Upon arrival, we were directed to a table that had not been set. There were no glasses, cutlery, napkins, or menus in place. Despite being seated promptly, 30 minutes passed without anyone approaching our table to take a drinks order. It was only after I personally approached the floor manager that we were finally acknowledged. Notably, the restaurant was far from busy, so lack of staff or being overwhelmed cannot be considered a valid excuse.

They informed us that the Christmas Day dinner service had concluded, encouraging us to order from the À la Carte menu instead.

After expressing significant displeasure and presenting the email confirmation of our booking and pre-order, the manager reluctantly agreed to honor our booking. However, the experience continued to deteriorate. The starters, which included two duck salads and one prawn salad, arrived without any dressing, leaving them dry.

The dessert course consisted of two pieces of dry cheese that had clearly been left unrefrigerated, served with a sparse and uninspired salad. Furthermore, the menu had mentioned pickled walnuts as part of the dish, but these were completely absent.

I attempted to raise my concerns on the day, but unfortunately, my complaints seemed to fall on deaf ears. I also raised a complaint via email but unfortunately was not taken seriously and deemed that this did not deserve a response.

I encourage you to avoid making dinner reservations here if you are looking for a pleasant evening. I would only suggest making this your...

Birthday ruined: I wanted to celebrate my 30th birthday by going somewhere with my partner for afternoon tea. I am allergic to dairy and eggs so I had to call a number of restaurants to ask whether they could cater for me. (I have previously been to the Royal Garden Hotel at Kensington, where they provided delicious sandwiches, scones and cakes all dairy/egg free, so I know from experience that this is possible). When I called Scoff and Banter Canary Wharf the week before, I made it clear what my allergies were and asked if the person taking my reservation could ask the chef whether sandwiches and cakes could be provided for me. I even (half) joked that I did not want a fruit salad. I was asked to call back in 15 mins. When I called back I was told that they could cater for my allergies, so I went ahead and booked.

When we arrived and were seated, I made the waitress know that I was the one with the allergy to dairy and egg. She seemed surprised but I assumed the chef would already be prepared for me. She took our tea orders and after asking me about 4 times in a row to confirm what I was allergic to (???) she still gave me cow’s milk with my tea!! Then another waiter came out and said that unfortunately they could not cater for me, but they could make a fruit salad or soup! I was so upset by this, as I specifically let them know in ADVANCE of my allergies. If they were not able to cater, why did they lie and make me waste time and money on my birthday travelling down from Hertfordshire to be disappointed. We left shortly afterwards.

It’s a real shame, because the place looked nice but I was misled and as a result my birthday was ruined. I will not be coming back here or to any other Scoff and Banter restaurant again due to their...

Food 4*- Was yummy

Atmosphere 2*- only customer there on a Saturday lunchtime

Staff 0* - 3 of the staff absolutely oblivious of what was happening.

My husband had tried to book online which wasn't working he had called up to book but a lady on the phone says it can only be done online, so we decided to just turn up on the day. On the day we arrived and a lady said there was a booking but got cancelled so we don't get the discount.

Fds who came 45mins later, ordered their drinks and got it before us who ordered it on arrival.

Asked countless times for some tap water, and the 4th time she comes over with half a jug, filled 3 glasses , goes away and doesn't come back.

Amongst other questions asked , none were answered .

Asked for the bill. I asked if they take the blue light discount for emergency services, she replies I don't know. I then asked if she can go check as just standing there saying I don't know doesn't really solve that question.

She comes back with the card machine, and no answer. We end up telling her we will split the bill for each of us to pay for what we ordered (we knew how much we were going to pay so she didn't need to calculate it), she thought we EACH wanted to pay the full total, she'd confirmed 7 x bill total (who on earth would want to do that) so after more explanation and her confusion my husband ended up paying the whole bill then us sorting it out later.

It was a very frustrating...