Gourmet San

WARNING!!! AVOID AT ALL COSTS: Worst than mall food…

I ordered from Gourmet San for the first time today because a friend recommended it. I cannot express how disappointed I am. I am actually writing this review instead of eating!!!

The things I ordered because I thought would be safe: hot and sour soup, Singapore vermicelli, King prawn curry, Sweet & Sour pork and Egg fried rice. They told us it would be an hour wait. We did not mind as we knew this meant that the food would be fresh. The driver arrived less then 30 mins later; which means, the food was probably sitting there for who knows how long!

Review of FOOD:

Hot and sour soup:
Smells like manure… could not even have a full spoon of it. Tasted old and like burnt pepper. Absolutely disgusting!

Singapore vermicelli:
The color is orange rather than yellow and it does not have the distinctive flavor that is should have. All you can taste is the red chill peppers and the red chili pepper!!! That is it – it is so hot/spicy that you cannot eat it!

King prawn curry:
Does not taste like curry. Just a goopy sauce – More than half the box is onion and green pepper… mostly onion.

Sweet & Sour Pork:
Have had better in shopping centers. Again, more onion and green pepper than pork.

Egg fried rice:
Was the only thing I could eat, but it is quite oily.

What annoys me even more is the lady charged us more than what our menu stated. Complete joke!

The Chinese food at Waitrose and M&S are infinitely better and that does not say MUCH!

Save your money and AVOID this PLACE!!!

I was invited to dine at this restuarant on the back of a Guardian review. I arrived on November 13th 2009 as one of a party of ten. I shuffled into this cramped and humid dining room. The first thing that impressed me was the number of guests waiting to be seated. They lined the length of the room and invaded the personal space of the seated customers. The second thing I noticed was the decor. Now, some will say the place has charm. Some will say it is basic, and others will attest to what they call authenticity. If you ignore those subjective emotional responses, what you end up with is a dirty establishment. The floor, the walls, and the toilets are all lacking in cleanliness. Grubby. Not a good start! I was guided up to the first floor, which meant walking on the filthiest carpet I have ever seen, up to the ‘private’ eating areas. There are two of them and, you guessed it – they too are well below the basic standards one expects from any restaurant. We were crammed into a small room that looked like it doubled-up as the staff accommodation after closing time. I was gob-smacked that the owners had the audacity to present this area as fit for purpose. We ordered a number of dishes from the extensive menu. Trotters, Pork intestines, Crab, Bass and Prawn and the like, with a rake of boiled rice and beer. The food is very samey and appears to have two flavours. Oil with chilli and Oil without chilli. Yes, I accept it is cheap, but so is chips. Yes, it is beautifully presented but so is Cheryl Cole. Yes it is generously portioned. And your point is? The real problem with this place is the clientele. For tolerating, supporting, and almost demanding to be degraded on a culinary level. This gaff could not, would not survive outside of London.

Like any good restaurant in China the service is functional and abrupt – but that just adds to the atmosphere! The restaurant itself is a converted house – the upstairs room even has stickers on the window left there from a childs room – but this all just adds to the feeling that you are on the verge of discovering something quite miraculous! This is not the place to come for a lovely evening chatting with friends over endless wine – this place is about the food and food alone!! I strongly suggest you go with people you are happy to sit in silence with – but go with a group so you can order lots of dishes! From the moment I arrived I was spellbound by the menu, it has no frills or pretentiousness – it just tells it like it is. The Prawns with chilli were spicy and mouthwatering and the four of us clambered to get our share, barely blinking when the waitress brought our cold beer. The crab was to die for – even now, 4 months after our first visit, me and my sister talk about it in hushed tones, like a long lost friend. The aubergine was equally as succulent, bursting with flavour and highly addictive. At a little over £10 a head with beer the bill was a pleasant surprise! Various family members frequent this place (we grew up in Asia and this is as good a Szechuan as you will get in London) – I am obsessed with going back – the only thing that stops me is all my babysitting options are dining there without me!!!