Wagamama Basingtoke

Jake L

The purpose of my visit was lunch with a friend after I had read several good reviews. They also do takeout and you don't need to book a table unless you have over 6 people in your party. We were greeted immediately after entering and shown to a long table which is shared with other people. We were given menus and drink orders were taken soon after by a polite and friendly waitress. The variety of juice flavours was good although they are a bit expensive, you can go for regular at £3.50 which was a good size for me or you can go for large at £4.50. In order for the staff to remember your order, they write what you ordered on your placemat which I found slightly strange. After receiving our drinks (at different times) we had to pick a main. The menu appeared comprehensive and I am a fussy eater but still managed to pick something, it's a shame that they don't sell any sushi, though. My friend went for the Wagamama Ramen which she was very impressed with. I decided to have a kids Chicken Katsu with a side of plain noodles and I could not fault either of the dishes. The chicken was of a very good quality and it was all served fresh and presented well. All of this came out quickly, though at different times, like the waitress warned us. I understand that they deliver it at different times to keep it fresh but I didn't like the fact that I had started my dish before my friend. They should time when they start making the food so that it can be delivered fresh to the table at the same time (eg. start making my small dish after my friend's so that they are delivered together). Although there appeared to be adequate staffing, they are not used efficiently enough because it took a while for our plates to be collected after eating when staff could be seen wandering about not doing much. Several staff members walked past our empty plates but didn't collect them. I took this wait as an opportunity to have a quick look around the dining area, the place was modern and very clean and this is confirmed by their 5/5 hygiene rating. The kitchen is open planned and you can watch your food being made, although this does make the dining area noisy in addition to the long benches and popularity of the restaurant. There was a broken window held together with tape. The place had a Japanese feel due to the bench design and chopsticks (I also liked that kids get easy to use chopsticks and you can ask for cutlery if you prefer). The men's toilet is very small and quite cramped, one of the urinals was leaking and waste water was being collected using a dirty bucket. Eventually, a different waitress to the one who we had before came to collect our plates. When she did, she didn't smile, she was expressionless and she didn't ask if we wanted to view the dessert menu or if our mains were okay. This then meant that I needed to catch her eye as she walked past our table; easier said than done as she was moving past our table very quickly without realising that I was saying excuse me to her or that we had no food. Eventually I managed to call her over and asked for two dessert menus. We waited and then she brought the bill over, without any dessert menus. This meant that I had to go up to the bar and ask for a menu myself, she didn't come back for a couple of minutes but when she did she swiped the bill from our table in a rather rude way and said 'it was my understanding that you asked for the bill' when we clearly hadn't. Her apology was rather minimal and I found her attitude rather confrontational. Now that we finally had dessert menus, we could order. I was generally impressed with the choice and the fact that they offer green tea and cococino's free. I ordered a kids cococino and the 'Mix it up Mochi balls' while my friend just ordered a green tea as she was full from her large previous meal. The prices seemed fair generally. Our order was taken quickly and delivered at the same time. I liked the coconut flavour ice cream. I found the rice coating too chewy as a matter of personal preference, and I wasn't a fan of the sesame ice cream. I have marked the food area down because the Raspberry ice cream did not taste like Raspberry, more like perfume. Also, the menu images are very good at making the dessert look double the size it actually is and I found the portion size a little small for the price. Also, the presentation wasn't quite as careful as it could have been because the sesame seed coating was scattered rather unevenly. Overall, the dessert was a letdown. After we had finished, the bill was brought to our table. We paid, the staff thanked us and we left. Overall, I would return but only for the food and I wouldn't bother with dessert. A lot of nearby restaurants (Ed's diner, GBK, Coal, Nando's, Pizza Express) have loyalty schemes for regular customers, whereas Wagamama don't.