The Last Wine Bar and Restaurant — Restaurant in Norwich

The Last? More Like the Least

If you’re looking for a dining experience where your enjoyment is treated as an afterthought, The Last in Norwich is just the place. Our visit on March 8th started with high hopes and ended with a firm resolve never to return.

Despite the restaurant’s fine-dining aspirations (complete with a 20% service charge for service you’d rather forget), our evening quickly spiraled into chaos, thanks to a drunken, shouting table of patrons seated mere inches away. The ambiance? Imagine trying to enjoy a meal inside a packed rugby clubhouse. The staff’s response? Utter indifference, if not outright hostility.

Our waiter, David (remember the name if you like passive-aggression served with your overpriced meal), showed no interest in addressing the issue, essentially telling us that the environment was our problem to endure. The pièce de résistance? When we dared to question the bill in light of the debacle, he doubled down on the sarcasm—because nothing says “hospitality” like a waiter mocking you on the way out.

For £200, you’d expect an evening to remember, not one you’d rather erase. The Last should stick to its name—because it was certainly our last visit.

TO ADD TO YOUR RESPONSE

Dear Sebastien (or whoever is responding),

Thank you for taking the time to reply. Since you’ve addressed my concerns, allow me to do the same.

First, I’ll hold my hands up regarding the service charge—it was indeed 10%, not 20%. That was my mistake. However, the rest of your response leaves quite a bit to be desired.

You seem to question whether we actually booked online. We did. Through your website. I have the booking reference to prove it, so let’s put that one to rest.

As for the table from hell, your own waiter admitted they were inebriated and then told me we should “just put up with it.” That’s a rather interesting approach to hospitality. I’d have thought a good restaurant would step in when one table is actively ruining the experience for others—but apparently, The Last prefers a more hands-off, “let the chaos unfold” policy.

My partner reminds me that he did feel he need earlier in the evening to make a sarcastic and unwanted broadcast to all who might be listening about an international Women's Day procession that passed the restaurant with women's safety placards on display. If you overlooked the drunk, noisy ones, then I am guessing you missed that one too!

Now, about David—or rather, the male waiter working with you on Saturday night, since I may have misremembered his name. Either way, he didn’t need to ask whether we’d had a pleasant evening because I’d already made it quite clear that we hadn’t. His response? Dismissiveness, sarcasm, and a complete refusal to acknowledge any responsibility on behalf of the restaurant. Not exactly what you hope for after spending £200.

And then there’s you, Sebastien. Assuming this is indeed your response, you might recall apologising to my partner’s wife at the door for how your waiter spoke to us—while said waiter continued to bark at me as I stepped outside. That moment alone rather contradicts your defence of the evening.

I’ve read many reviews of The Last, and while some are glowing, others mirror my experience with surprising accuracy. I’d be happy to highlight those for a little balance—let me know if you’d find...

My husband and I made a large group booking (40 people) at The Last for our wedding dinner, as we wanted something really special. But it ended up being a complete disaster on every front and very nearly ruined our day. We arrived a little after the rest of our party, and went into the bar first to get a drink. Despite very obviously being the bride and groom, we were spoken to very rudely by the barman, and refused drinks because of "a backlog". After 45 minutes most people in our party still had not received their drinks, with some even having to give their orders all over again. When we first booked, we explained that we were going to need a quick turnaround as we would only have an hour and a half to eat before we all had to move on to our evening party. We were told this would be fine so long as we pre-ordered, which we duly did two weeks in advance. However, the restaurant was clearly not ready for our arrival at all, and after an hour and a quarter no food had emerged from the kitchen. Having asked what on earth was going on, we were told that there was no way they ever would have been able to meet our required turnaround time (despite having assured us previously that they could). But even putting that aside, the delay was still of an unacceptable length. We were told that the kitchen staff were now "rushing" to get our food ready, which was also very off-putting - we weren't paying for rushed preparation. When the food finally started coming out, the serving staff had no idea who had ordered what, despite the fact I had issued them with a very clear spreadsheet giving names and requirements. Presumably this meant no one's dietary requirements were observed. One guest, who I had clearly stated on the pre-order could not eat dairy, was presented with a supposedly vegan starter that had yoghurt on it, and a supposedly vegan main that had a cream-based sauce in a jug on the plate. Had any of our party had serious allergies, the restaurant could, quite frankly, have killed someone. Several guests' meals were barely warm, and at least 3 had to send theirs back because it either wasn't what they asked for or the food wasn't properly cooked. One guest had to leave without eating at all due to the delay. We ended up being an hour late to our own evening party, and I had barely a bite to eat because I was so upset by the experience. We were given a sizeable discount off the bill, but to be honest nothing can make up for what happened. The owner of the restaurant emailed a day later offering to call us to discuss and apologise, but it's been a week now and I've heard nothing more, so I've rather given up on that. Utterly unacceptable, and on our wedding day...

This was my second visit to the last wine bar and it was fantastic.

We were seated promptly and informed about the specials and menu availability. We were given ample time to choose our food and drink and offered more if required. We were given complimentary bread while we were viewing the menu, at this point I considered if it would be strange to ask for lots more as my main. I didn’t want my date to think me strange, so I chose from the menu instead. you should sell bread in the mornings! I’d buy it!. Lewis (sorry if that’s not your name), our waiter, offered recommendations from the menu confidently and even enquired about my usual choices and advised trying something different and unique to them. Absolutely brilliant service, as with my previous visit.

I had a starter and main, as did my company. We both sampled one another’s starters and were very impressed with both. I certainly couldn’t choose between the two! We had the same main, ox cheek, and it was delectable. I forgot to take pictures but I will next time!

The food was fantastic, the service was fantastic, the atmosphere and decor were fantastic. A side note, I loved the artwork on display/for sale. If you want fine dining at an affordable price, look no further.

With COVID being a consideration to diners, I thought I’d give it a mention. The last wine bar offers spacious dining and ample room to manoeuvre around if required. The staff all gave us space and only made contact with us when necessary. Everyone was wearing the correct PPE. I can’t imagine what that must feel like in the kitchen! Hand sanitiser was available too. They were certainly following the guidelines perfectly and I’d feel very safe to dine there again in...