Sheba

I visited Sheba at lunchtime on a Tuesday. There was a group of four of us, and for the most part we were the only customers. After waiting nearly 40 minutes for our meals, most of them were cold or barely warm, and the man who claimed to own the restaurant brought out the wrong main, meaning I had to wait an extra 15 minutes or so until I was able to eat. This seemed ridiculous seeing as we were the only customers in the restaurant. The waiter then went through to the kitchen, and had an argument with the chef – very loud, and off putting. The waiter after, seemed very wound up, and kept hovering around us, making us feel very uncomfortable, as we proceeded to eat what can only be described as very poor quality and bland food.
Never-the-less, we held our tongues about the poor service and the cold, unappetising food as we asked for the bill. What followed was simply unbelievable. The bill was alarmingly big, and much more expensive than anticipated. We asked for a menu, and we totalled up what each of us had ordered. This amount was significantly less than the number printed on the very confusing, and absurdly written bill. I then asked the waiter to go through the bill with us, because we couldn't understand what many of the items and prices were relating too. It seemed he'd added on all sorts of extra charged for things we hadn't asked for, nor had he expressed that there would be charges for (for example, tap water). We were baffled as to how he had charged us so much.
We tried to explain that we had calculated how much we should be paying, showing him the notes we had made on the receipt, at which point he ripped the receipt, snatching it from my hands, and started speaking to us in a very aggressive tone. Only to get more and more angry, rude and abusive. This resulted in him swearing at us, and calling us many a name, even though by this point another couple was sat in the restaurant and had to witness the whole thing. We left feeling very harassed and scared, having paid only the amount we should have, as the waiter hurled all sorts of abuse and obscene language at us from the other side of the restaurant.

Nearly all the restaurants in Brick Lane always try to lure you in with discounts and free drinks and it can be hit and miss. We found it refreshing that Sheba does not operate a door tout to drum up business. Having booked a table for 10 people we can honestly say that the food and service is top notch at a fraction of price compared to the West End and other parts of Central London.

As for the food I opted for the sophisticated Lobster Bengal special bengal lobster marinated for several hours, slow grilled in clay oven then cooked in special recipe. Rice included which cost only £14.50 with rice.

Three good sized lobster tails sat under a mixture of vegetables in a limited sauce, although everything was well marinated.

The lobster was amazing and the fact that the rice was included made the dish reasonably priced. I also enjoyed the lamb shank which was very soft falling off the bone easily. The bhuna sauce on the shank was to die for.

I really recommend sheba for group bookings as it caters for all tastes. We really enjoyed our time there and we would be back again soon.