Cinnamon Bazaar - great foood, shambolic service

We’re meeting J&K to mark K’s birthday the next day.  Our first choice, House of Ho, is fully booked up – odd as it’s a big place.  Dishoom also can’t take the booking – not for the first time.  B finds an offer on Bookatable of 9 dishes and a cocktail at Cinnamon Bazaar, so goes ahead and books that. We’d been interested to try this latest incarnation of the Vivek Singh Cinnamon chain, because we have liked both the upmarket original Cinnamon Club, and the tapas-style Cinnamon Soho, and very recently enjoyed the “Desert Island dishes” (DIDs) at Cinnamon Kitchen.
After some drinks in Davy’s, we arrive at the restaurant a little later than originally planned. It’s a nice bright room with interesting streamer decorations around the high ceiling. We’re shown to a table by the rear fire exit – nice and light, but I doubt health and safety would have approved of B putting her coat on the steps! 

Menus are brought, but nothing said about the offer, so we ask. No, they’re not doing it. Not their fault if Bookatable got it wrong. No recognition that we might be disappointed. So, with no cocktails on their way, I quickly scan the wine list and choose a Macabeo at £25.  This takes an age to arrive, while the waiter is harassing us to choose our food – when we had been expecting to have a fixed menu.
We do then order starters and mains. The waiter says – “it will all come together” (ie “our convenience is more important than your enjoyment”).  I’m starting to sulk, but J goes off to sort him out.  

We’re enjoying our wine and conversation, but it does seem an age before any food arrives. I check my watch – it’s an hour since we arrived.  Eventually the four starters do arrive – J’s efforts paying off.  The Mirchi vada chaat (stuffed padron peppers) in yoghurt with pomegranate are super as the first dish I taste (and strangely not on website menu). The Kachori chaat (described as spiced onion dumplings, but actually much crispier) is also good. Crab bonda (crab in chickpea batter, similar to one of the DIDs) is full of crab flavour, and the shrimp dish drier and also very tasty. Portions were ample to share between four.
I’m beginning to feel they have redeemed themselves.  But another slow order of wine (regular readers will know that “quick wine” is important to us!), and an age for the mains  - presumably because they didn’t start on them straight away – makes me wonder again.  

When the mains do come, we’re presented with two cauliflower dishes instead of our order of one cauliflower and one aubergine.  We complain and they take one dish away, and return with the aubergine three-quarters of the way through our meal. They’ve also brought two pilau rice when we only ordered one. 

Once again, the quality of the food comes to the rescue. I’d chosen the cauliflower because Vivek Singh had given it us as an extra DID, and I’d been so impressed - it didn’t disappoint here either.  The aubergine when it comes is very good too.  Mains include lamb galauti, a very spicy burger-like patty on paratha, pepper fried shrimp which is sharp and dry, and a very rich and spicy mutton curry – all top favour dishes. We also have black dhal, B’s favourite.
Service is still slow and erratic, with no appreciation of the totality of the experience.  We do go for desserts – a mango brulee, chocolate golis (three elegantly flavoured pieces) and ice cream/espresso.  

The bill looks very reasonable, partly because it doesn’t include service. I would normally credit them for that approach, but unfortunately for them, because of the experience, I tip less than 10%.
Later when I look at the bill I’m a bit confused. Yes, they did charge us for two pilau rice when we’d only ordered one, but we had eaten them; and they charged us for two cauliflowers and no aubergine, but I imagine there would be little difference in that.  I seem to think we must have had a fourth main course that isn’t on the bill, but neither of us can remember what that might have been. And the mutton curry and the ice cream are listed at £0.00 – there may have been a set-price limit operating, but again it’s not clear from the website. No wonder the bill seemed reasonable.


So all in all?  Glad to have gone.  Food excellent.  Room and ambience fine.  Service all over the place, and insensitive.  Web presence (own website menus and link to Bookatable – which is still offering the 9 dish special offer) poor.