Latest reviews in Stepney, London, United Kingdom

Rosa's - Great by bakerga1

bakerga1 — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 11:19:09 +0000

Review by bakerga1

Rating: 4.00

Phone: 020 7247 5830

This place is fantastic. I almost do not want to write a review as it may get popular and this would spoil the charm of the place. The food was fantastic I recommend the fried seabass. Also worth noting that it is a bring your own booze restaurantThis place is fantastic. I almost do not want to write a review as it may get popular and this would spoil the charm of the place. The food was fantastic I recommend the fried seabass. Also worth noting that it is a bring your own booze restaurant

Brick Lane Beigel Bake - Best bagels in world (probably) by french_girl

french_girl — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 21:36:56 +0000

Review by french_girl

Rating: 5.00

Phone: 020 7729 0826

Tags: cheap eat, jewish, lively

I love these and the best way to persuade me to take 2 buses and 2 tubes to visit my friend nearby.

Personally I love them with just cream cheese and tomatoe or just butter or with salad cream and cucumber if I'm in a really sulty food mood.

And open 24 hours great. One piece of advice if your taking them home to fill yourself / freeze ask for the ones that are still hot so they are as fresh as they get. Though to be honest the place is so busy the bagels would only ever be a few hours since making / baking.

Plain straight forward service no have a nice day fakenessI love these and the best way to persuade me to take 2 buses and 2 tubes to visit my friend nearby.

Personally I love them with just cream cheese and tomatoe or just butter or with salad cream and cucumber if I'm in a really sulty food mood.

And open 24 hours great. One piece of advice if your taking them home to fill yourself / freeze ask for the ones that are still hot so they are as fresh as they get. Though to be honest the place is so busy the bagels would only ever be a few hours since making / baking.

Plain straight forward service no have a nice day fakeness

The Market Trader - City Pub by floral

floral — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 15:55:10 +0000

Review by floral

Rating: 3.00

Phone: 020 7247 3459

Website: http://www.thorleytaverns.com

Tags: relaxed, friendly, food

Nice pub on Petticoat Lane near the city which explains the popularity with the lunchtime and afterwork crowd. Has a really nice feel about it and as it's a bit off the beaten track, not as busy as more central city pubs which can get a bit boistrous. Nice food too, but not Thai food.Nice pub on Petticoat Lane near the city which explains the popularity with the lunchtime and afterwork crowd. Has a really nice feel about it and as it's a bit off the beaten track, not as busy as more central city pubs which can get a bit boistrous. Nice food too, but not Thai food.

Coffee @ Brick Lane - Top Coffee Shop by subterranean

subterranean — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 13:54:18 +0000

Review by subterranean

Rating: 4.00

Phone: 020 7247 6735

Tags: cosy, quick bite, lively

Reminds me a lot of a coffee shops in San Francisco. Very good feel to the place - relaxed atmosphere for hanging with with a good book, the paper, using your laptop or just whiling away the hours listening to the Dylan tunes they play. Oh, and good chairs - lots of knackered comfy leather chairs and sofa....always a plus.Reminds me a lot of a coffee shops in San Francisco. Very good feel to the place - relaxed atmosphere for hanging with with a good book, the paper, using your laptop or just whiling away the hours listening to the Dylan tunes they play. Oh, and good chairs - lots of knackered comfy leather chairs and sofa....always a plus.

Les Trois Garcons - One off by gastro1

gastro1 — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 16:20:58 +0000

Review by gastro1

Rating: 4.00

Phone: 020 7613 1924

Website: http://www.lestroisgarcons.com

Tags: french, expensive, lively

Top food in very uniquely decorated restaurant.

A good venue for a romantic dinner for two as well as a place to come with a group of friends.

Good ingredients well prepared.

Top food in very uniquely decorated restaurant.

A good venue for a romantic dinner for two as well as a place to come with a group of friends.

Good ingredients well prepared.

The Brown Bear - Nice 'Pub' - Minging Burgers by snowbadger

snowbadger — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 14:31:48 +0000

Review by snowbadger

Rating: 2.00

Phone: 020 7481 3792

Tags: traditional pub, relaxed, food

If you want a drink in a trad pub. Good.

Thai food might also be good.

I just had a pint of London Pride, which was nice and a homemade rump burger.

Not sure what was going on there, but it tasted like someone had spilled either MSG or cumin into the pot. Maybe both.

It's the first burger I've failed to eat.

Not overtly horrible, just too strong, whatever it was.

Don't get me wrong though, beer was good, pub was nice.
If you want a drink in a trad pub. Good.

Thai food might also be good.

I just had a pint of London Pride, which was nice and a homemade rump burger.

Not sure what was going on there, but it tasted like someone had spilled either MSG or cumin into the pot. Maybe both.

It's the first burger I've failed to eat.

Not overtly horrible, just too strong, whatever it was.

Don't get me wrong though, beer was good, pub was nice.

Pride Of Asia - real name of shame by wasi

wasi — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 00:38:55 +0000

Review by wasi

Rating: 3.00

Phone: 020 7780 9321

Website: http://www.prideofasia.com

Tags: indian, vegetarian dishes, asian

this is one of the most un organised wedding management companys. they have not style of cooking and try to embed that they are the market leading companys. my family regret taking food from this company as they had ruined the element of the weeding by serving very poor standard food. i expected better from this company but regret to imform all you guys that it is a game they are playing. any way if i had to get food of these people it would never happen as they had lost their opportunity by running some one special day with un trained staff poor event management also very bad setup . they are not on time and the wedding was a shambles. now it is you choice to take food from these guysthis is one of the most un organised wedding management companys. they have not style of cooking and try to embed that they are the market leading companys. my family regret taking food from this company as they had ruined the element of the weeding by serving very poor standard food. i expected better from this company but regret to imform all you guys that it is a game they are playing. any way if i had to get food of these people it would never happen as they had lost their opportunity by running some one special day with un trained staff poor event management also very bad setup . they are not on time and the wedding was a shambles. now it is you choice to take food from these guys

Rich Mix - cool by topruss

topruss — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 15:09:15 +0000

Review by topruss

Rating: 5.00

Phone: 020 7613 7498

Website: http://www.richmix.org.uk

Tags: cultural, modern art, art

best movies and great for food and ocasional footy toobest movies and great for food and ocasional footy too

Leon - pricey nonsense by gavinedwardsuk

gavinedwardsuk — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:11:07 +0000

Review by gavinedwardsuk

Rating: 2.00

Phone: 020 7247 4369

Website: http://www.leonrestaurants.co.uk

Tags: takeaway, international, free wifi

Leon milkshakes are awesome but i was disappointed with the chicken wrap and lemon quencher.

Expensive, small and only averagely tasty. Seating area was nice, clean and service was fairly quick but i'm not at all convinced so far.....

and Leon, if you sell a chicken wrap it would be nice to see more than a very mild spattering of Chicken! i know cabbage is cheap, so call it a cabbage wrap instead.Leon milkshakes are awesome but i was disappointed with the chicken wrap and lemon quencher.

Expensive, small and only averagely tasty. Seating area was nice, clean and service was fairly quick but i'm not at all convinced so far.....

and Leon, if you sell a chicken wrap it would be nice to see more than a very mild spattering of Chicken! i know cabbage is cheap, so call it a cabbage wrap instead.

Exit Bar - Base Mosquito -Exit Bar by alienbabes

alienbabes — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 00:30:24 +0000

Review by alienbabes

Rating: 5.00

Phone: 020 7377 2088

Tags: jazz, cool, friendly

WOW Mega Party .
Absolutely fantastic live electronica "Base Mosquito" 3 piece band incl percussions at EXIT Bar.

Next event will be 11th of July.

Can't wait.
I am there.

See you too.

A. B. WOW Mega Party .
Absolutely fantastic live electronica "Base Mosquito" 3 piece band incl percussions at EXIT Bar.

Next event will be 11th of July.

Can't wait.
I am there.

See you too.

A. B.

The Ten Bells - Good stock, but Main Strip by snowbadger

snowbadger — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 22:22:00 +0000

Review by snowbadger

Rating: 3.00

Phone: 020 7366 1721

Tags: independent pub, trendy, jazz

I like a bar with a good stock.

Hendricks Gin, Grey Goose vodka, Bulmers Cider, Leffe, Fruli, Grolsch on tap and Illy coffee are all good signs to me.

WHilst on the main strip this bar is pretty decent. Usual Brick Lane mixed bag of folks that make people watching a fun thing to do.

Or there is always reading the graffiti in the toilets which carry some serious pearls of wisdom I can tell you.

Staff were reasonably friendly.I like a bar with a good stock.

Hendricks Gin, Grey Goose vodka, Bulmers Cider, Leffe, Fruli, Grolsch on tap and Illy coffee are all good signs to me.

WHilst on the main strip this bar is pretty decent. Usual Brick Lane mixed bag of folks that make people watching a fun thing to do.

Or there is always reading the graffiti in the toilets which carry some serious pearls of wisdom I can tell you.

Staff were reasonably friendly.

Pride Of Spitalfields - simple, cheap and hearty by gavinedwardsuk

gavinedwardsuk — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 12:33:35 +0000

Review by gavinedwardsuk

Rating: 4.00

Phone: 020 7247 8933

Tags: relaxed, friendly, food

found this after moving office to Brick lane. Was looking for a simple pub, wiht a pie and beer option. Even better i got Chicken Kiev, chips and beans. None of that swanky gastropub hand reared by monks in the hills Ostrich burger with hand massaged rocket.

The beer tasted great, service was quick and friendly and i got to site outside on a nice cobbled street.

Not the place for gastro extravaganza but perfect for a quick simple, cheap bite to eat near brick lane

*UPDATE: Just went back, awesome service, friendly and once again great food and beer..tempted to upgrade to 5 stars!found this after moving office to Brick lane. Was looking for a simple pub, wiht a pie and beer option. Even better i got Chicken Kiev, chips and beans. None of that swanky gastropub hand reared by monks in the hills Ostrich burger with hand massaged rocket.

The beer tasted great, service was quick and friendly and i got to site outside on a nice cobbled street.

Not the place for gastro extravaganza but perfect for a quick simple, cheap bite to eat near brick lane

*UPDATE: Just went back, awesome service, friendly and once again great food and beer..tempted to upgrade to 5 stars!

New Tayyabs - Fantastic pakistani food at superb prices by Niamheen

Niamheen — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 11:03:58 +0000

Review by Niamheen

Rating: 5.00

Phone: 020 7247 9543

Website: http://www.tayyabs.co.uk

Tags: indian, lively, crowded

Fantastic pakistani and punjabi food: lamb chops, masala fish, karahi chicken, dry meat (yes! but itâ¬"s good), dal, thereâ¬"s something for everyone here. There's also daily specials, on a Tuesday I had the quail, and it cost all of Â£6. Fabulous mango lassis.

Be prepared to queue every day of the week, if youâ¬"re clever you can book the day before. Ridiculously cheap - starters Â£4.50 (thatâ¬"s for 4 lamb chops or 3 pieces of masala fish) and mains on average Â£6 for small. Trust me, thatâ¬"s all you need! Does it get better? Yes! Itâ¬"s BYO and thereâ¬"s no corkage.

What are you waiting for? Get down there!
Fantastic pakistani and punjabi food: lamb chops, masala fish, karahi chicken, dry meat (yes! but itâ¬"s good), dal, thereâ¬"s something for everyone here. There's also daily specials, on a Tuesday I had the quail, and it cost all of Â£6. Fabulous mango lassis.

Be prepared to queue every day of the week, if youâ¬"re clever you can book the day before. Ridiculously cheap - starters Â£4.50 (thatâ¬"s for 4 lamb chops or 3 pieces of masala fish) and mains on average Â£6 for small. Trust me, thatâ¬"s all you need! Does it get better? Yes! Itâ¬"s BYO and thereâ¬"s no corkage.

What are you waiting for? Get down there!

L'Oasis - L'Oasis by mesh

mesh — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 15:00:17 +0000

Review by mesh

Rating: 3.00

Phone: 020 7702 7051

Website: http://www.loasisstepney.co.uk/

Tags: food, good value, mediterranean

In an area not famed for its gastronomical delights, L'Oasis is true to its name. Out of the dingy drinking hole desert, arises L'Oasis that you have been looking for. Decent gastropub fare with a leaning on the Mediterranean (lovely gazpacho), with very large portions and a fair wine list. They also do mid-week wine tastings and it's also a stone's throw from 54 Mile End if you fancy a dance afterwards.

Only issue - try not to sit by the door - Stepney's multitude of passing sirens is sure to put you off any romantic sentiments as they can drown out the conversation a little.In an area not famed for its gastronomical delights, L'Oasis is true to its name. Out of the dingy drinking hole desert, arises L'Oasis that you have been looking for. Decent gastropub fare with a leaning on the Mediterranean (lovely gazpacho), with very large portions and a fair wine list. They also do mid-week wine tastings and it's also a stone's throw from 54 Mile End if you fancy a dance afterwards.

Only issue - try not to sit by the door - Stepney's multitude of passing sirens is sure to put you off any romantic sentiments as they can drown out the conversation a little.

Mr Cappuccino - Best creamy capuccino in town by ArabellaHowell

ArabellaHowell — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 13:22:40 +0000

Review by ArabellaHowell

Rating: 5.00

Phone: 020 7488 2595

Tags: quick bite, crowded, takeaway

5 stars because the coffee is my all time favourite. Very good beans. Smooth, creamy full bodied latte-like capuccino. Not old fashioned. Does what coffee is supposed to do, with pleasure.
Perfect local and affordable coffee!
The sandwiches are generous. And their "cooked vegetables" filling adds substance and sweetness.
5 stars because the coffee is my all time favourite. Very good beans. Smooth, creamy full bodied latte-like capuccino. Not old fashioned. Does what coffee is supposed to do, with pleasure.
Perfect local and affordable coffee!
The sandwiches are generous. And their "cooked vegetables" filling adds substance and sweetness.

Energy Clinic - The BAD Energy Clinic by mrdaigle

mrdaigle — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 17:00:47 +0000

Review by mrdaigle

Rating: 1.00

Phone: 020 7650 0718

Website: http://www.energyclinicuk.com

Tags: massage, healthy food, alternative medicine

Read this and stay well clear from that company! Read the other reviews, they definitely have a big problem with customer service!

They seem all nice and professional, but they will make verbal promises and take your money for later treating you with contempt.

I have bought for almost Â£600 pounds of treatments to share with my partner as a Christmas gift. I was sold an unforgettable pampering experience from real professionals, something that I would never forget.

On one thing, they were right about: I will never forget the way they treated us as soon as we tried to book the so called pampering experience. We were told that we had bought cheap treatments and therefore we could not chose the time of booking. This was of course utter non-sense and they recognised this after many phone calls and emails, although their rather enigmatic answer was: "As a result of our investigation, we found that apparently, the problem was the result of misunderstanding from all parties."

We still have not been able to book a suitable time and the company refused to reimburse me. We thought we had booked for one day for then having our booking moved to another day. As I will never trust that company, I will never book any treatment with them. Therefore, I have lost almost Â£600 from the Energy Clinic.

They may look all nice, but don't pay them in advance. Once they have your money, they will certainly not care anymore about you!Read this and stay well clear from that company! Read the other reviews, they definitely have a big problem with customer service!

They seem all nice and professional, but they will make verbal promises and take your money for later treating you with contempt.

I have bought for almost Â£600 pounds of treatments to share with my partner as a Christmas gift. I was sold an unforgettable pampering experience from real professionals, something that I would never forget.

On one thing, they were right about: I will never forget the way they treated us as soon as we tried to book the so called pampering experience. We were told that we had bought cheap treatments and therefore we could not chose the time of booking. This was of course utter non-sense and they recognised this after many phone calls and emails, although their rather enigmatic answer was: "As a result of our investigation, we found that apparently, the problem was the result of misunderstanding from all parties."

We still have not been able to book a suitable time and the company refused to reimburse me. We thought we had booked for one day for then having our booking moved to another day. As I will never trust that company, I will never book any treatment with them. Therefore, I have lost almost Â£600 from the Energy Clinic.

They may look all nice, but don't pay them in advance. Once they have your money, they will certainly not care anymore about you!

INDO - quirky by kateyay

kateyay — Sat, 31 May 2008 14:38:48 +0000

Review by kateyay

Rating: 4.00

Phone: 020 7247 4926

Tags: cool, relaxed, friendly

the Shoreditch / Hoxton influence can definitely be felt in this little bar, but its tiny tiny size and crowded nature of some evenings can definitely make for an interesting experience.

Lots of different bottled beers and ciders on offer - a pleasing range to suit most tastes. A friend enjoyed a good glass of wine, and had previously ordered food which was tasty and not overpriced.

Definitely the sort of place to go back to, maybe at the start of an evening out - but perhaps not spend too much time later on, as it can get very crowded of a weekend evening.

Have heard a lot about coffee and chilled atmosphere during the day, so will probably return to check this out!the Shoreditch / Hoxton influence can definitely be felt in this little bar, but its tiny tiny size and crowded nature of some evenings can definitely make for an interesting experience.

Lots of different bottled beers and ciders on offer - a pleasing range to suit most tastes. A friend enjoyed a good glass of wine, and had previously ordered food which was tasty and not overpriced.

Definitely the sort of place to go back to, maybe at the start of an evening out - but perhaps not spend too much time later on, as it can get very crowded of a weekend evening.

Have heard a lot about coffee and chilled atmosphere during the day, so will probably return to check this out!

Cafe 1001 - Great little summer evening spot by Sami

Sami — Sat, 17 May 2008 19:08:25 +0000

Review by Sami

Rating: 4.00

Phone: 020 7247 9679

Tags: friendly, relaxed, quick bite

Slight grotty but wicked just the same, Cafe 1001 is a really good place to stop over when you're wandering around the Brick Lane area.

Most evenings you'll find it is absolutely packed as it is also a music venue with a variety of different gigs going on; it can get so busy outside the club that you'll have a hard time navigating through the crowds smoking, chatting and standing around and sitting on the numerous picnic tables just outside the front door.

The burger stand and other food available is pretty good for street food, although on the week-ends you are spoiled for choice as you can go right around the corner to the Sunday Upmarket and sample a variety of world cuisine and do a bit of indie shopping as well.

And any place that serves Red Stripe in "tall boy" cans receives extra brownie points in my book!

It's worth a shot to check their myspace to find out what's on in the evening as they don't update their gig listings on their site too often. Slight grotty but wicked just the same, Cafe 1001 is a really good place to stop over when you're wandering around the Brick Lane area.

Most evenings you'll find it is absolutely packed as it is also a music venue with a variety of different gigs going on; it can get so busy outside the club that you'll have a hard time navigating through the crowds smoking, chatting and standing around and sitting on the numerous picnic tables just outside the front door.

The burger stand and other food available is pretty good for street food, although on the week-ends you are spoiled for choice as you can go right around the corner to the Sunday Upmarket and sample a variety of world cuisine and do a bit of indie shopping as well.

And any place that serves Red Stripe in "tall boy" cans receives extra brownie points in my book!

It's worth a shot to check their myspace to find out what's on in the evening as they don't update their gig listings on their site too often.

Giraffe - Went downhill as it got busier by anise

anise — Wed, 14 May 2008 14:32:45 +0000

Review by anise

Rating: 2.00

Phone: 020 3116 2000

Website: http://www.giraffe.net

Tags: lively, good value, crowded

My goodness the staff here are chirpy - one wonders what they put in their coffee. We went here for dinner on a balmy Tuesday evening in May because we were too lazy to go home and cook. The starters were nice enough (chicken and vegetable dumplings and potato wedges were popular) - fairly predictable for this kind of venue but they arrived hot and fairly promptly. The waitress also worked out immediately that we were going to share them around generally, rather than each 'own' a plate and she offered to go and get us side plates, so that was great (I am used to going to the branch of Canteen next door where you may, on a bad day, need to ask for a knife to spread the butter onto your toast. That is if they remembered to give you butter. But that's another story.).

We ordered hamburgers for the main course and this was where it started to go wrong. The accompanying onion rings were cold and the burgers were dry. Not that they had been cooked to death (in fact they were nicely pink), it was just that the meat was not juicy at all. The dryness also extended to the buns. To add insult to injury, the presentation made the burgers so tall they were impossible to eat so we had to dismantle them - taking out the tomato slice and (optional extra) mushroom just to be able to give our poor aching jaws a chance of biting into them. All a bit disappointing really as the point of optional extras is that you want them to be part of the burger. The chips were fine though.My goodness the staff here are chirpy - one wonders what they put in their coffee. We went here for dinner on a balmy Tuesday evening in May because we were too lazy to go home and cook. The starters were nice enough (chicken and vegetable dumplings and potato wedges were popular) - fairly predictable for this kind of venue but they arrived hot and fairly promptly. The waitress also worked out immediately that we were going to share them around generally, rather than each 'own' a plate and she offered to go and get us side plates, so that was great (I am used to going to the branch of Canteen next door where you may, on a bad day, need to ask for a knife to spread the butter onto your toast. That is if they remembered to give you butter. But that's another story.).

We ordered hamburgers for the main course and this was where it started to go wrong. The accompanying onion rings were cold and the burgers were dry. Not that they had been cooked to death (in fact they were nicely pink), it was just that the meat was not juicy at all. The dryness also extended to the buns. To add insult to injury, the presentation made the burgers so tall they were impossible to eat so we had to dismantle them - taking out the tomato slice and (optional extra) mushroom just to be able to give our poor aching jaws a chance of biting into them. All a bit disappointing really as the point of optional extras is that you want them to be part of the burger. The chips were fine though.

Alishaan - Atmos by jovike

jovike — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 06:15:02 +0000

Review by jovike

Rating: 5.00

Phone: 020 7392 2100

Website: http://www.alishaanrestaurant.co.uk

Tags: indian, lively, smoking

Good atmosphere with colourful decor - I hope they never repaint it!

I recommend the chicken dhansak here. It is superb, sweet and prepared in a way quite unlike anywhere else. The garlic, the balti and the bhoona are good. They also have prawn and fish dishes on their extensive menu which also features such staples as lassi and raita. I must try the roop chanda biran and the fish egg bora one day.

Friendly service. Sometimes busy with a few large parties.

The Alishaan is on Osborn Street, which is the southernmost section of Brick Lane. You can't miss the red neon.Good atmosphere with colourful decor - I hope they never repaint it!

I recommend the chicken dhansak here. It is superb, sweet and prepared in a way quite unlike anywhere else. The garlic, the balti and the bhoona are good. They also have prawn and fish dishes on their extensive menu which also features such staples as lassi and raita. I must try the roop chanda biran and the fish egg bora one day.

Friendly service. Sometimes busy with a few large parties.

The Alishaan is on Osborn Street, which is the southernmost section of Brick Lane. You can't miss the red neon.