The Light

A terrible experience. The restaurant manager was incredibly rude and it ruined our night. It started when our group of nine turned up, only to find our booking had been lost. Instead of apologising, the restaurant manager refused to take responsibility, saying she 'couldn't be responsible for every cowboy that answers the phone'. Despite the restaurant being completely empty she said we really shouldn't be allowed to eat there as they already had a booking for a table of 15 in half an hour. She ungraciously agreed to seat us but said as she had no record of our booking she would be prioritising the other table and we would just get our food whenever they had time. I ask you, what decent restaurant can't cater for one table of 9 and one table of 15 on a Saturday night – all the other tables were empty!! The food ended up coming out quite promptly but the restaurant manager's bad attitude continued. She acted like she was being nice, but was actually very condescending, as if she had done us the biggest favour ever by allowing us to eat at her restaurant. On top of this, the food itself was very average. Most of our group got a risotto special and all agreed it was very bland, although my baby chicken was quite nice. To top off a crummy night, when it came to pay the bill, some of our party did not want to put in the recommended service charge as the restaurant manager (who served us about half the time) was so rude. So instead of the recommended £10 tip, they got a £5 tip instead. The restaurant manager came over and accused us of not paying enough. When I said that we did not believe she had earned the full service charge she said: 'I want you to leave now. And don't come back'. We had not been demanding customers by any means and her attitude the whole night was completely unwarrented. If she had just smiled once, or apologised or sympathised for the lost booking, the whole night would have been vastly different. The Light really needs to teach its staff that service is not just bringing food out on time, but is also about customer service, courtesy, and creating a welcoming atmosphere. Simply one of the worst dining experiences of my life.

***UPDATE***
The managing director of the Light tracked me down and apologised for the service I received. He said staff (including managers) were receiving additional training. I thought it was very nice that he had gone to this effort and perhaps the review below indicates the retraining has paid off. Let's hope so!

I went to The Light on Saturday night with my girlfriends, we had such a great time there. The food was amazing, The service was excellent, really friendly and helpful. The music really groovy. The presentation of the food was impecable, we were all mouth-watering while we waited to tuck in. Most of us had scallops with artichoke puree and pancetta…so so good, Vegetable soup, super chunky, Seared loin of Tuna…fresh and incredibly tasty. The mains were as impresive. My seabass was delicate and the nero risotto scrumptious. The Pork was rich and we all fought over trying it. My vegetarian friend was delighted about her butternut squash gratin, so original and different to the normal vegetarian choices of other restaurants. We had both waiters helping us out all night, they were really pleasant, quick and made us feel at home. They know their menu well and were able to pair up all our choices with adecuate wine. The also, thankfully, convinced us of sharing desserts, the Eton mess is to die for and so is the sticky toffee. We are coming back for more of this place for sure.
Brilliant!!!
Eli.