The Magazine (Under New Management as of Nov 2024 by Friends Of Ours) — Restaurant in London

We went in for lunch after a walk in the park. The architecture of the place is amazing.

We walked in and while it was busy, there were clearly at least 3-4 tables where people were getting up.

The hostess was incredibly cold and rude. She almost yelled at us that were were no empty tables and then after we asked further, said we could sit on the side tables for tea while waiting for a table.

Then, no one ever came to take our order for tea for 15 min. Meanwhile, all 4 tables freed up. We went back to the hostess who told us to 'sit back down'. I was already very annoyed at that point and this comment was infuriating.

We did sit down eventually because we were hungry and then it took another 10 minutes for a waitress to come.

She took our order and then ...after a considerable wait, the food came without drinks. When the drinks finally came, the tea was cold. It had been sitting somewhere for a while.

There were a number of other interactions with the staff which left us annoyed and slightly stressed. They knew they did terribly, too because they took the tip off the bill before we even asked. On the plus side, the food was good although portions are on...

Wintry Saturday eve -- went in for a hot chocolate but it was full of the chattering so I asked if I could sit outside -- darkish and cold, but I was well wrapped up. The very helpful servers said no but I could have a take-away as they were only serving inside now. Fair enough -- I prefer china to plastic but no point moaning.

A pleasant conversation with the young lady behind the counter -- about art mainly. Took my warm plastic container & sat beneath the magnificent curved roof & beyond the chatter, stretched out, took some photos of car lights on the rim of the roof -- Starship Enterprise against the almost dark sky -- & then I sipped.... the most magnificent hot chocolate! One of those perfect, advert-style moments. A smile, a nod, a satisfied look. Paradise!

At £3-50 it was probably what you would pay in S/Bs for an inferior product in unpleasant surroundings. Next time I'll go when it's quieter and try the food....or maybe just sit outside again & repeat...

We popped in here on a Sunday morning and were met with some of the worst service imaginable. Despite there only being 2 other tables taken, and a handful marked as reserved, they tried to put us - with a sleeping baby - right next to the loud kitchen. When I asked to move they accommodated us but were fairly unpleasant about it. They then basically ignored us - I had to go up and get their attention repeatedly both to order our food and to get the bill. (And at this point we were the only table in the restaurant!) The food was fine, but the virgin marys were terrible - just tomato juice and ice with celery that had gone off. I’ve been before and it’s been good, but this time we had such a poor experience and that was sadly down to the staff...