Melo Persian Restaurant & Lounge — Restaurant in Southampton

Very disappointed in this Persian restaurant. For a Friday evening it was quiet with only 2 of the 8 or so tables occupied. We took a table by the toilets, not great as it turned out we were on constant route for toilet users. I think the locals were using the facilities as there weren’t that many customers in there. After a few minutes of looking at the menu we were told that they only took cash, now don’t get me wrong I am sure they have their reasons, however the prices were around £15 for a main meal which isn’t cheap, so the bill could soon rack up- who carries that much cash these days especially post covid The menu had a lot of lamb stew variations and not being terribly familiar with Persian food we opted for lamb stew of two different types and saffron rice. Well there was lots of white rice with a runway of yellow rice sprinkled on the top. One stew the meat was cold but the sauce hot, work that one out?? And the other stew was green and very oily, dark green so goodness knows what was in it. We sent the cold stew back and it was replaced with apologies, but the stew wasn’t very impressive and was tasteless. The final thing came with the bill, we were astonished to see the cold stew had been left on there. We had to pay for it even though it was literally a health hazard. Wine was cheap Costco individual bottles, choice of 3 red, white or rose and very pricey, they had around 5 lagers and no IPA. Will NOT be recommending...

was in southampton on a weekend break . looked at reviews of this restaraunt and thought give them a try . the worst customer service i have seen in any restaraunt establishment . from the start of taking orders which was taken with attitude no customer service and politeness on taking orders.especially this woman in black ... food was 4-10 at the best . then went outside to smoke shisha one of our friends was asked for id who looks over 18 but that's fine rules are rules we where explaining to the waiteres that he is over 18 and when asked to speak to the manager was told that if you want to speak to the manager you come inside and speak to him. which i found highly disrespectful to your customers who just wanted to spend more money in your establishment. when my freind went inside to show him his id on his phone he approached the manager and said in arabic akhee which means brother .. he was told don't call me this . this aggravated my freind and still the attitude from all staff was showing . i just can't believe an establishment can survive with such poor customer service . well it was a saturday and it was very quite i wonder why !!!!!!! all i can say stay well away from this restaurant and spend your hard earned money where they treat you with dignity...

We ordered the "Kabab Bakhtiari Makhsoos" at this Persian restaurant. Unfortunately, the dish deviated significantly from the authentic Persian kebab taste we were expecting. It had an unpleasant flavour that certainly did not align with the usual Persian kebab profile. Additionally, the meat texture was tough and challenging to eat.

Moreover, the dish exhibited an unusual yellow colour that was distinctly not saffron. It seemed like an excess of spices had been added, and the yellow hue did not resemble the natural saffron tint. It's possible that low-quality Arabian spices and food colouring were used, contributing to an unfamiliar and off-putting taste.

Regrettably, the overall experience left us with the impression that this restaurant falls short in capturing the true essence of Persian cuisine. The absence of authentic Persian flavours was quite apparent, making it a disappointing...