3 /5 Robert M.: We recently visited Lezzet Kitchen and overall had a mixed experience. The food was genuinely excellent, warm, fresh and full of flavour. Everything we ordered was tasty and clearly well prepared, and I can only say positive things about the food itself. The atmosphere was lively and enjoyable, a little noisy at times but still a pleasant place to spend the evening.
Unfortunately the service really let the experience down. It started well, but as the evening went on it became noticeably slower and more disorganised. It felt like tables around us were being served and turned over much quicker, with groups arriving, eating and leaving, while we were still waiting for things such as menus, drinks or general attention.
One example was that we asked for another jug of water around five times, including to different members of staff, and unfortunately it never arrived. We were initially charged £1 for the water jug, which in itself would have been fine, but since we repeatedly asked for it to be refilled or replaced and it never happened, it felt disappointing. It was also unclear whether the charge was for the first jug only or if we would have been charged again for additional jugs. Given how many times we asked, it made the situation feel a little frustrating.
No one came to check how our meal was going, ask if we would like more drinks, or offer dessert menus. In a Turkish restaurant it would have been nice to be offered things like baklava, Turkish delight or Turkish tea after the meal, but this never happened. The experience left us feeling a little overlooked, as though our table had been forgotten during a busy service.
We were also surprised to see a £15 service charge added to the bill given how delayed and inattentive the service had been. It made the experience slightly frustrating, especially as we had spent quite a long time waiting compared with other tables around us.
That said, the food really was very good and the restaurant has a great atmosphere. I would consider coming back again purely for the food, but with the expectation that the service may be slower than hoped.
Overall rating,
Food five stars,
Service two stars,
Atmosphere five stars,
Overall three stars. (look if we were served a little bit quicker and cared for it would’ve been a different story and it would be a clear five stars across the board.)
