Almeida

I ate at Ameida for the first time last week. Since this visit I have been recommending it to all my friends! I was confused to see such negative reviews on this website, however, with the most recent one being 3 months out of date, I think a lot must have changed!

The food was delicious and the service impeccable! I had the Foie Gras for starter. It was very rich and complimented beautifully by fig bread and an apple salad. Following that, I had the duck for my main course. The duck was cooked to perfection, succulent and accompanied by creamy pomme dauphinoise. My partner had the Mushroom and Truffle Risotto, a dish which is very popular in the restaurant (and once youtaste it you'll know why!) Last but not least. dessert. I had the Passion fruit tart which is delicious! I must also mention my partner's dessert as he had the chocolate fondant with honeycomb ice-cream which also blew me away. All of the courses were of a substantial size and left me feeling well-fed, but not full or bloated.

The service was attentitive and knowledgable. From the minute you walk through the door you are greeted by a charming and warm hostess, to the waiting staff who are friendly, approachable and efficient. The surroundings are relaxed (my only comment being that they could do with some music!)

All in all a wonderful experience and great value for money! I will definitely be eating there again and again!

The dining room at the Almeida is one that others trying to do the whole “French brasserie comes to London” thing could learn from. Tables are large, well spaced and there is a mirror running the full length of the room, so that not only can everyone get a good gawp at what is going on around them, but the room feels far bigger than it is.

That is the good news. The food is another story: it is not bad, but it doesn't live up to the expectation that the lovely, welcoming room gives. The charcuterie plate that we shared was perfectly fine. This is advertised as a trolley service, but, we were told, the trolley couldn't get to our table, so the waitress would chose for us. As we were on an outside table, rather than in the maelstrom of the innermost tables, this seemed a little odd. Her choices, however, were fine: some nice Bayonne ham, some smooth (and really a little sweet) foie gras pate and some really wrong rillettes. Rillettes should be fatty and shredded lovingly (and boringly) by hand, using a pair of forks, so that it retains a certain fibrous quality. The tasty pork and rabbit varieties that we were given were too dry and had been whizzed in the food processor, so were way too smooth.

Main courses too proved a bit of a let down, as, whilst the venison was still on the menu, the advertised accompaniments had all gone, so the dish was offered with the same as one of the other dishes; the duck. That would generally have been fine, but, as the duck was what my companion had ordered, it meant that we had identical meals, other than the main protein piece. Of the too, the duck was the better; properly fatty, properly pink and served with a nicely piquant pepper sauce.

The wine list is good, with many good quality, good value wines at reasonable (by London standards) prices.

Service is hit and miss: the waitress was very friendly, but didn't know the wine, got distracted by another table and then took an age to get the bill (which, when it came, was sans the wine. Alas, a mistake not deliberate).

The really good thing the Almeida has going for it, however, is that it is directly opposite the theatre of the same name: the night we were there, striding in as we left was the luminous Gemma Arterton, resplendent in high heels, with her modesty covered by a pubic pelmet.

Excellent evening. Great atmosphere and food. The servers could have been a little friendlier as communication could have been better. The only other downside was that the mint ice-cream tasted like it should have been served with lamb and not a chocolate fondant!

As a Conran many years ago, Almeida was a favourite and I ate there at least once a month. Since its MBO and reconfiguration (with almost half the floor space becoming a unwelcoming and underused “bar” area) it has become very poor value for money and is characterised by poor service. For me one of the real pleasures in a restaurant is the small touches. Almeida has abondoned many of the features I used to enjoy in what seems to be a ruthless pursuit of profit at any cost. Gone is the voluminous wine list with many interesting and well priced regional wines as well as the dedicated sommelier, gone is more than half the menu and all of the most elaborate choices, gone is the trolly of charcuterie mentioned in another review and the selection of fruit tarts for dessert. The menu has become a fixed price affair of bog standard bistro dishes utterly devoid of any immiganation. Horrifylingly more than half the menu requires extra supplements to be paid. When the food arrives, the portions are miniscule and vegetables are extra (again in tiny portions). I have had to send back dishes on more than on occasion when the portion size became too silly to stand any longer (less than a tablespoon of steak tartare as a starter). That said the food is pretty decent although I suspect that the recepies are chosen so that minimal “finishing” is required for serving with most cooking done many hours earlier and in all probablitiy not on the premises. The wine list is short and pricy with many standard wines selling at four or five times retail prices (Cloudy Bay at £86 a bottle!) The service has declined considerably in quality over the years probably because the staff seems to change every time I visit. I suspect that until D&D pay off some of the loans they took out to buy the business, they will continue to trade on Conran's reputation and fleece their customers. If you want to see how it shoud be done, try the new Boundary or Lutyens.

I don't know when your reviewer went to the Almeida last but we went (four of us) this week, on Tuesday evening, and although overall it was a good experiences I do have some quibbles. For a start your reviewer mentions amuse bouches. These were not offered. Whether they had them I don't know. (Incidentally we were not on the set pre-theatre menu, which possibly might preclude amuse bouches. But I suspect they don't offer them any more at all). We have been going to the Almeida for years, right from it's heyday when it was Conran owned and made fabuous chips (huge square ‘girder’ like chips heaped up in an architectural tower shape) and when the trolley of chacuterie was interesting, well stocked and generously served. I realise they have to make a profit but we did find the portions of vegetables very mean and tiny. Ditto some of the starters. The rest was good but we ordered a bottle of Champagne which was poured once and then put to the side in an ice bucket. We waited… and waited… finally had to request refills, which we waited so long for that the starters arrived at the same time. The white wine received similar treatment. It is infuriating if the wine is removed from the table and then you are at the mercy of the staff to keep an eye out for when a refill is required.
We will continue to go, nevertheless.

This was our 2nd visit this year. As previously, it was after the theatre, and the restaurant was again very busy. It seems to attract a local special occasion crowd, plus the theatre go-ers.

The dining room decor is very pleasant, quite modern and warm, and the tables reasonably spaced.

I’m afraid we again thought the food was very OK or very average – Not actually bad, but our starters were both rather bland and tasteless, and our main course beef was tender but a bit overcooked and not that tasty.

Service was efficient and pleasant, although the waiter didn’t know how to react to the non-positive answer to the “did you enjoy your meal” standard question. I also dislike it when waiting staff insist emptying the wine bottle sediment into my wine glass without asking.

I seem to remember this restaurant being much more up market when it first opened many years ago, but its now very much a mid-range restaurant or perhaps a brasserie.

Overall, I would say it’s main or only selling point is its proximity to the Almeida theatre for post or pre play dining. I won't be rushing back for the food, and it could not be described as good value at c£100 for 2 ex wine. Compares badly to a good gastropub.

Don't go at lunchtime – in fact, dont go full stop. There were 6 people (including us) in the restaurant. Service was chaotic, maitre d' surly. A simple medium rare grilled steak took 50 minutes from ordering to arrive – had obviously been sitting under lights. It was tasteless and over priced. Never again!

We dined here three days ago, overall I thought it was OK and I would like to come back to give it another go. The day boat gratin was tasty, done to perfection and my partner enjoyed the barbary duck. Service was a little rushed for us and also took three attempts to get the bill right. Buzzy atmosphere and reasonable price.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this place – the food is amazing!! i've been about 4 times recently and every time they get it right. the roast barbary duck with spring greens is delactable served with daphinoise potatoes on the side – my favourite. i've also tried the steak tartare, which i never thought i would be a fan of, but Ameida have turned me! it comes with the perfect amount of chopped shallots, parsley and gerkins on the side with an egg yolk in the middle, honestly – i am a true convert! the passionfruit souflee with homemade vanilla icecream in the middle is just amazing – they bring it to the table and dollop in the ice cream in front of you so you can see it sink in and melt. i have taken my friends and family to this restaurant and every single one of them has come back for more! the restaurant staff are efficient, friendly and so smooth you barely even notice them! i genuinely recommend this place, delicious food, great staff and above all affordable! i will definitely be going back again and again.