Bluebird Restaurant & Bar

NickR

28th September 2008

0 found this helpful

The restaurant space is fantastic. Large and open. The service is very good too. The food was generally tasty, but not exceptional. My ribeye steak a little stringy!
I do enjoy it for a large boozy lads lunch every now and then. They did let us get quite messy only leaving from lunch at6:30 pm!!

jill21

Bluebird Bar 16th July 2008

1 found this helpful

Just don't bother. The bar food is good ....... when it eventually arrives. the drinks are OK too but the wait is interminable and you have to order twice, wait until the wrong order is brought and wait again. We asked for napkins twice and finally got up to find our own. The management couldn't care less - an insincere apology delivered with a smirk. We definitely won't be going back

perinouk

Beautiful, lounge like but not great at all 23rd March 2008

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Before Thursday, the last time I was a Bluebird is more than 5 years ago. I actually wanted to go to OXO Tower but ended up at Bluebird. Bad, bad, very bad choice.

The evening started out bad and I should have understood from that point to leave. Walked in, someone asked if they could take my coat and then turned their back to me. I handed the coat to them and, trust me, about 30 seconds later they turned around again. They then located the wrong reservation, finally found the right one.

The restaurant was empty in one half and we got seated towards the edge of the restaurant – I asked to keep the table next to us empty, the reply: all tables are already assigned. When we left about two hours later they had either had the biggest cancellation in history or they were just lying to me. The restaurant was still half empty and they had seated someone next to me. Very bad service.

We paid the £250 bill for two starters, two mains, a side of mash, a bottle of wine and two glasses of champagne.

On my way out I asked to speak to the manager after again being ignored by the duty manager who walked past me twice entered the cloak check and didn’t apologies for the wait.

Olga, the manager (by title) appeared and after hearing me plainly told me that she would point out the problems to the staff. I suggested the problems might be in her court and she repeated herself. She was way out of her depth and didn’t get that the restaurant didn’t work because she couldn’t control it. A good manager at least understand when the problems are with them – they may not be able to fix it. Olga decided just to ignore her shortcomings and was rude about it.

The evening had a good start, but turned bad. As I said, great interior, good food but way overpriced. Stay clear of this brasserie, that’s right, Olga classified the eatery as a brasserie.

vobin

Bedlam 23rd February 2008

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Visually sock-it-to-yah and yet well spaced tables, for four-somes at any rate. Confused service - over-attentive duplication but when asking waiters for anything they had the attention span of a gnat. The best chicken soup with matzo balls I have ever tasted (including my Jewish grandmother's) but the worst fisherman's pie, which had nothing but salmon in it with a cloying sickening pink sauce - and this in spite of troubling to ask the waiter what it contained and was given an appetising variety of white fish, shellfish and salmon. My 3 dining companions left half their main course untouched. The Caesar Salad departed all possible authentic recipes to produce something vile to look at and even more vile to eat. But all of that could just about be tolerated as part of the typical hyped trendy London eating scene. The true sticking point, putting it on my never-again list, is the high volume audio bedlam. I thought it was a party in an adjoining room (with the usual unremitting bass thumping sounds) and that we had chosen an unlucky night but it transpires there was no pparty and that this is their usual audio background. They believe it gives the place buzz, Spare me! Conversation is practically impossible and there is no table in this place that offers respite. It was Friday night and occupancy remained two thirds throughout the evening. So while cream and gharbage both float to the top, maybe eventually garbage does sink to the bottom

Sami

9th May 2007

3 found this helpful

I wasn't very impressed when I ate here. The food was really lovely but the menu was standard gastropub fare and I'd so much rather go to an interesting gastropub than eat at a Conran restaurant and pay three times the price of what should be.

I walked out quite satisfied but that was after eating three courses, but I wouldn't eat there again. There is more to discover here and like the previous reviewer says, take someone there who isn't into really wicked/interesting/different food because they'll enjoy it. It's way too noisy for my liking and a bit too stuffy as well.

alevy

Not so much. 3rd October 2006

2 found this helpful

Here's the problem with Bluebird: It's trying so hard to be fine dining, but it isn't fine dining. They charge fine dining prices, but Bluebird is what somebody completely uninitiated would consider fine dining.

The food is good, but it's not going to set your world on fire. Any competent bistro has a menu that's at least as inventive -- and would probably execute on it better. The Bluebird kitchen, probably owing to its size, is a factory. They just can't provide the attention to detail that a smaller (or better staffed) kitchen would.

Beyond that, one function of Bluebird's space is that it puts the "din" back in "dinner." That is to say, it's loud. Which is fine, if you don't mind having to yell to be heard.

Look, it's stylish and nice, and probably a good place to take your American aunt and uncle who are in town for a couple of days -- as long as they're not gastronomes, and as long as they're buying.

Apart from that, it's just poor value for money. You can do better.

NikoTheFinn

Stylish modern dining 3rd August 2006

2 found this helpful

Bluebird on Kings Road is one of the Conran restarants, serving modern British and continental food. The restaurant is quite large (190 seats), therefore lacking the charm that smaller places have, but the food is excellent. The decor is very modern-looking, with glass and steel and light wood finishes, the staff are friendly and knowledgeable and the food is excellent. If you eat from the a la carte menu, Bluebird is expensive, but they do special lunch and dinner offers for around £15 or £20, Mondays to Fridays, between 12 and 3 for lunch and 6 and 7 for early dinner. The wine list is extensive and good, but I suggest asking the waiters to pick one out for you.