Palm Restaurant

You won't find many better steaks in the UK

We have dined here a number of times now and the steak is worth the trip alone. Having visited a number of Palm restaurants while in the US my biggest concern was would it be authentic USDA prime meat cooked on a proper broiler. I am pleased to report it is although the cost bears testament to this, £42 for a 12oz NY strip or 14oz ribeye which is 50+% more than the US but what's new there…

The service we have had from the waiting staff has been at times very good however on the second last visit when requesting to have a glass of red wine from the US we had an extremely unhelpful conversation with a manger which almost ended our patronage. How a US restaurant chain could not serve a US red by the glass and refused to do so when asked is unacceptable (there is still only one on the list – hopefully it won't run out as they seem incapable / unwilling to assit – rant over!).

That said we really like it and will go back and while pricy the portions are big and the service good, the waiter recommended I had my ribeye “Pittsburgh style” (charred on the outside and still M/R inside) rather than the M/R I had ordered so this would breakdown the fat better. He was right!

If you like great steak it is worth a visit and while it is expensive it is a cheaper than a flight over there.

One of the best!

We had an absolutely amazing meal at The Palm on Saturday night. I'm very suprised to read some of the other reviews criticising the food and the atmosphere, as I thought both were faultless. We started off with a couple of delicous cocktails at the bar – I think my margarita was particularly potent! – before moving to our table. The maitre d' was very friendly and came over to chat with us about the history of The Palm and decor, and made us feel very welcome. I loved the warm, relaxed American style of the place.

I started off with the calamari, which was exactly how calamari should be – very fresh, crisp and well seasoned. My boyfriend had some of the plumpest largest prawns we've ever seen. For our mains we both went for the New York strip which was perfectly cooked – rare in the middle, char grilled on the outside, and tender and juicy. As good as any steak I've had. I loved my little bag of donuts for desert too, thought that was a lovely touch.

All in all a fab night and we will definitely be back!

Palms is somewhere you are surprised that is still open. I first visited four years ago and revisited again tonight. Not much has changed, same slightly creepy caricatures on wall and same inefficient yet solicitous service. On ordering the sirloin at £29.95 the waiter was keen to upsell the New York strip at £46 explaining that the sirloin was in fact a rump and he didnt want to disappoint. Kind of him but why call it a sirloin on the menu? That said, it is a relaxing place – we were a table for two but seated at a banquette for 6 at 8pm on a Thursday night. The the waiter was great at pouring the wine properly – i.e not flooding your glass but gently topping it up at generous intervals. Would I go back again? For over £100 for one course each, a mediocre bottle of wine and a bottle of water it is not a reasonable spend. But if you want to have a private conversation in a smart part of town its not a bad place to call on.

went with some friends, unfortunately the place had zero atmosphere, was just under half full for a friday night? and then i saw the price list and that explained it! food is average, nothing special, i had smoked salmon to start my wife had tuna carpaccio , portions were tiny and for £15 not great. we asked to have the house red, they had run out! the next cheapest was £88..joke. bottle of evian £7 ! are they taking the p**s. Steak was very good, but t thats about it, the bill for 4 of us £500 and they even tried to add 4 coctails to the bill that we did not have!. this is by far the most expensive restaurant i have been 2, one word comes to mind rip off! Its nothing special and any reviews written in a positive light will be written by extremely bias peole. You think places like zuma are expensive, they are cheap compared to this place, i was at zuma a month ago, 4 people and we ate and drank loads came to just under £380. This restarant is located right in the middle of belgravia, so i guess people who come here have very deep pockets and dont care having there arms and legs torn off! i will never be going back. dont get me wrong i dont mind paying a lot of money for a meal if its spectacular and a very memorable experience, this was memorable but for all the wrong reasons. advice, if you want steak either go to goodmans or cut.

The prices are very high, the food is mediocre and the service is non-existent.
For £17 you receive a lobster salad with virtually no lobster, cheap tinned asparagus (asparagus was in season when we went!) and cheap black olives (black olives with lobster!). The creamed spinach with “Reggiano Parmigiano” was cloyingly heavy and the steak was tough and lacking in flavour. The tomato and onion salad was good except for the sprinkling of cheap, acidic blue cheese. The “chimichurri” was quite tasty, however we use this word in quotation marks because it was not actually chimichurri, it was a thick red concoction made primarily with tomato paste.
The waiter ignored us throughout dinner and we kept having to chase other waiters to get service.

The prawns Bruno were very good with a tasty, original sauce (even if the size of the portion – three prawns – not really generous). On the contrary, the fried calamari were excellent and the portion was American style. The rib-eye (American meat) was superb while the sirloin steak slightly less attractive. The lobster enormous and very very good. A good wine list but too expensive as there are almost no options below £ 50. Excellent service by a New Zealander lady waitress, kind and attentive. Overall a must if you want a taste of traditional American food at a very high level, but be ready to face a bill beyond your worst expectation.

The food at The Palm is just fantastic! Other reviewers who have mentioned the lack of atmosphere and poor decor are not wrong, but the food really makes up for this. The lobster is outstanding, perfectly cooked and comes with a beautiful garlic butter sauce for dipping. This goes down a treat with a few glasses of champagne. I have also tried the perfectly tender mouth watering steak here as well as the juicy lamb cutlets, all go very well with the delicious creamed spinach.

Come here hungry as the portions are very generous! Don't be put off by the decor, this place is about the food and having a great time. The staff are always polite, very helpful and attentive.

I'm sorry … I think this place is just great ! I will agree 2 things … it is VERY expensive… and yes.. Europeans just don't eat plates that big ! .. But regardless I enjoy my visits there … I love the staff there … the long dark wooden American bar is just made for ME !…the welcome and general service has always been excellent… I… It just works for me ! I tend to sit in the main restaurant rather than the booths. I've yet to have a bad bit of meat there ( and at for £40 + I'm grateful ) … last visit my partner tucked into the lobster ,…superb …and again was of a decent size ! .. We love the side dishes such as the asparagus tips fried in butter…the squid .. and the fries…hmmmmm !…Let's not harp on about a healthy balanced meal that's good value for money and where the number 28 stops right outside.. That is not what this place is about.. It's about indulgence ,,,nice wine ( again restricted to wallet size as the older vintages can be brutal ) …great service… good decent steak,,, No good complaining about the price afterwards… you know how much it's going to be before you go .. so go with an open mind and empty stomach …enjoy …just make sure you have a few after dinner drinks to dampen the shock of the bill when it lands !

Excellent steak – that is the good bit!

Service friendly but too ‘gushing’ – bottle of wine dropped at a nearby table

Decor dull and uninteresting – I didnt go for the cartoons on the walls of various people who have been there. Lacking any buzz in terms of atmosphere.

Prices absolutely astonishing! Money better spent elsewhere in my humble opinion!

V good service… But the food is way overpriced!

Same applies to the wine list. At more than three times the cost for a bottle, compared to buying that bottle at a reasonable wine store, it's just too much… And the list is too young, unless you want to spend hundreds of pounds for something that has a little bottle age.

Not going again!

FA London