I so want to give a five star rating here but am terribly torn. The level of service was so disappointing that I think I may never convince my other half to return here with me again. Please read in full- I am desperately hoping this was a one time service mishap.
Let me begin with all the positives! I am absolutely enamoured with the ambiance and decor at Comptoir! The food was also fantastic!
The decor is colourful and full of life. There is an indoor Souk Shop, which is an open air marketplace in Middle Eastern cities. There are beautiful straw bags, silver baskets and tea pots lining the walls which are available for sale.
There are also Turkish teas, fig jams, harissa paste, Fanta and delicious sweets that you can take home or gift to keep the experience going.
The food does not disappoint! We shared the Mezze platter for two that game with all sorts of deliciousness: Baba ghanuj, hommos, tabbouleh, falafel, lentil salad, cheese sambousek, pickles and pita bread. Everything was marvellous when it came to the quality of the food. The dessert menu itself makes a good argument to stop in for a quick treat!
There is an outdoor patio along the Thames which is also a lovely area in nice weather.
Now for the service: The day I visited there was twice the amount of staff as patrons when we arrived. We were seated by the staff and waited several minutes to order water and wine. After a long wait, a waiter came and took our order for our Mezze platter. As we sat for 30 minutes in a calm restaurant waiting for our Mezze platter, we saw the staff continuously cleaning silver wear, the cooks staring at patrons and wondering why everyone appeared busy but alas, no food or any other communications. As we had given up hope of eating, the waiter came back and asked us if we were ready to order. The waiter clearly forgot to enter in the food. He quickly blamed the kitchen and put in our food order on the computer.
After this, the cooks and several staff were staring at us for the rest of our meal, circling and hovering clearly ready to help but very, very awkward having so many people stare while trying to eat. We were so uncomfortable that I couldn't even order dessert- which I was very much looking forward to. It would have been so much better to simply apologise for the mishap.
I will absolutely give Comptoir another try, as everyone has a bad day, but I do hope that the management team takes note. It's such a gorgeous place and I would love to bring a group of friends here for a party- read more