My partner and I dined here on October 4th 2015 our first day on vacation in London . We had just finished visiting Hyde Park as well as Kensington Palace. We had walked extensively and were hungry. We wanted to dine at the Orangery at Kensington Palace for the upgraded tea service but the weather was sunny and the crowds were huge with a long wait. We decided to walk in the surrounding area and discovered Randa. We saw they had open tables so we popped in. Service was prompt, polite and on target. The restaurant is pretty both outside and inside. My partner ordered the beef kebobs. I ordered lite bites from the "mezze" appetizer side of the menu. I had the fish in tomato sauce and the spinach and cheese puff pastries. We also ordered the Lebanese White House wine which paired nicely with the bold favors of the food. Everything was delicious ! A large salad of fresh raw vegetables was included plus we ordered the marinated tomatoes and onions. We commented to the management on how much we enjoyed our meal. We ordered cafe macchiatos and the kind manager brought us an assortment of baklava and pastries for free!! What a nice gesture! Really made us feel welcome and offered us tips for our vacation. Overall, we had great food and service in a really nice ambiance. Total bill with tip was 65 pounds which was a good value for the generous portions and quality in a prestigious area. read more

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I've never had Lebanese food before so I've nothing to compare it to. That aside, the food at this place is incredible. I had hummus with grilled lamb to start. The lamb was super tender and the hummus was very light and creamy. Then, lamb kabobs served with a tomato based ratatouille alongside sliced onion and potato. There were flavors happening that I didn't know existed. All of it was awesome. The service was excellent. The waitresses were super helpful in explaining the menu, which was detailed and lengthy. I will be dining here again ASAP! read more

Randa By Maroush - Kafta Khosh-Khash - Middle Eastern Near Me - London, XGL

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Allen and I had a night free of any engagements with friends in London on a recent visit so we thought we would pick a neighbourhood within an easy and relatively short ride on the Tube from our hotel. We decided on the Kengsington Church Street neighbourhood which neither of us had visited. We got off the station and immediately saw an array of restaurants and a Whole Foods along the main street - Kensington Church Street. We walked around for a bit since we were not hungry yet. We checked out the residential parts of the neighbourhood, studied the menus of the restaurants nearby, and settled on Randa. It is Lebanese restaurant and is part of the Maroush restaurant chain but I did not feel like I was in a chain restaurant. The atmosphere was lively in a elegant setting. There was an 2nd dining level built into the loft space. A basket of vegetable with peppers, tomatoes, ... was brought out along with bread and hummus as soon as we were seated and ordered. We both had kabobs for dinner and they were delicious. I had a mixed grill which included a piece of chicken. This is my only regret because I don't like white meat which tends to be dryer and less flavourful than dart meat when cooked in many restaurants. Service was prompt and attentive. Our waiter came and asked how we liked the restaurant and what we thought of the service which I thought was nice. I added this restaurant to my restaurant list for our visit next time. The prices are very reasonable for London standards. We had softdrinks, our own appetizers, our own main dishes and coffee. All came to less than GBP 50 including the charge for the vegetable basket. read more

I absolutely love this place. There is nothing on Randa's menu that I do not like and the staff are very, very friendly and accomodating. If you want a filling lunch, try Randa. If you're out late and want a more high-end kebab, try Randa. I am definitely a fan of Randa. read more

Very good. Explained dishes to me &quickly correctly an ordering mistake that I made. The restaurant was clean & posh looking. I had roasted beef with a red sauce with veggies. My husband had roasted chicken & rice. They even gave us dessert. I usually don't care for baklava but it was great. The kibbies were good too. Balls of meat with wheat on the outside. read more

Nice looking restaurant from outside to inside, and it's matched by friendly service. We came in hungry and left very full. The meal starts out with a bowl of crisp vegetables that go well with their humus. We ordered to main courses for the two of us, which were excellent. If you're not too hungry you could order just one to split. I would recommend this to lace to anyone who likes Lebanese cuisine. I would recommend business casual or something along those lines for this place. It is nice and I felt under dressed, but the staff did not treat me like I was, which I appreciated. read more

This was my first dinner here and the first Lebanese food experience at all. The Shish Tauk was simply delicious. The meat was cooked exactly as I like it. The Ksara wines are great, I expected less but I`m nicely surprised. The service was also good, the waiters was polite and they care of the details. I`ll come here again and I recommend it. read more

So many great restaurants in London but this is not one of them! Let me say upfront that to be fair it could have been an off night and I only had three items on the menu but still for these prices..and with the glowing reviews... I walked in and the host looked me up and down like I was a piece of used toilet paper blown under the door.. it was actually funny.. He clearly didn't like something about me. Was it because I was a single diner or my jeans? It was so obvious I had to laugh and I jokingly asked if my jeans offended him. I think my fancy leather jacket swayed him just glad he doesn't know I bought it used... I should have flashed him the label. Nontheless he decided I wasn't window material.. I was there to relax and do some journaling so it didn't really matter to me. Oh dear I'm doing the self important Yelp waffle.....Here's my verdict and why. Massively overrated and overpriced. *Dried out lamb, *Flavorless chicken, *Over dressed fatoush salad, *£7 for a well gin and tonic. I asked for Bombay sapphire and got Gordons.. *Plastic bottle of slimy water - looks like a cheesy own brand label and to add insult to injury ... *£2 cover charge..... for what? Here's what... A giant bowl of inedible vegies i.e.whole bell peppers, an entire head of romaine and about a pound of carrots.. great for horses mind you... bizarre indeed oh.. and bread that was brought half way through my meal so I didn't eat it - non of this optional!! Weak service, food came out really quickly like they wanted my table and no one ever came by to see how my dinner was or I would have politely and honestly explained...although the server did apologize for the cover charge.. (not the same as a tip) and she was nice enough. I jokingly asked her for my uneaten vegies and bread back.. she thought I was serious and started to scurry off until she saw I was joking..Plus she had to walk up and down 3 flights of steps all night... I left her a good tip regardless. Poor all round. Had much better Lebanese food for a a third of the price at Mezze in my home town. Those 4 star reviews should be taken under advisement. Yelp can be wildly uneven. read more

Came here for a big lunch with a group of family and friends, and we were spoiled by the friendly service and generous portions of delicious Lebanese food. They started by bringing us loads of olives and fresh raw veggies - a bit unclear if we were supposed to eat them raw or wait and order hummus or something, and most people in the group got lovely fresh juices. We passed around a slightly spicy, creamy hummus Beiruty, as well as chicken liver (which my dad loved - it isn't my thing normally but they were actually all right), foul moudamas, and refreshing green beans in tomato sauce. My husband and I devoured the lovely lamb hummus shawarma with the fresh hot bread, and the mixed grill - the meat was so juicy and perfectly seasoned! Everybody was stuffed and we were ready to roll ourselves out of there, when along came a complementary plate of baklawa of all different kinds, delicious little sweet, nutty pastries. Service was very attentive and the little complementary touches made us feel like guests in someone's home. You can get cheaper Lebanese food, but the portions here suit the price and the quality is very high. A great place for lunch in the neighborhood! read more

We stumbled upon this restaurant one night by accident. It's on a quiet street but the restaurant was full. I guess locals know it well. Randa is small and perfect for couples or small groups. The staff was prompt and attentive, bringing us a large bowl of fresh veggies along with fresh bread/dip. I had a delicious kebab, perfectly cooked and seasoned. At the end of our meal, the waiter brought us a small plate of various baklava pastries. A surprising and delightful end to the meal. read more

Couldn't wait to leave, the moment I sat. Unfriendly gangsters in wrinkled clothes yawn around unclothed tables. Every 2 minutes one walks out on sidewalk to smoke, spit, make calls. Large gnats fly around my food, there are video cams everywhere and the kitchen rusty, like it predates Maroush by 50 years! There were chewed-on (I know what they look like, don't lie) olive pits in my bowl! Flavors non existent. All the food, vegies, flat bread, meat, olive rolls were stale. Baked to death. 90% gangster's paradise. 10% dry crap!! Plus you pay a cover charge. At a chain this awful? Yep, even if you drink only water.. Rebel's Review: 1 star read more

I had a friend visiting and staying near KHS who was dying to eat some Lebanese food. I first made the mistake of not making a reservation (oops), then calling last minute to try to book. They said they were completely full for the night, but after some pushing they said to show up at 8pm and would 'see what they could do'. I think that's a good move on any restaurants part to try to squeeze someone in if they are really interested in visiting. Was a little surprised to see a lot of empty chairs and tables when we did arrive but soon found out they had many large parties that night which may explain the reason for booking more people in. The food was good. We had the spicy sausage and some type of pastry/dumpling/minced starter which was great. Not sure why they gave us a whole bowl of un-cut veg (full sized green pepper anyone?) the mains were interesting too and I was happy to see they had Lebanese wine on the menu. Overall it was a little to main-stream Lebanese for me. It almost felt slightly like a chain (maybe it is?) so next time I'll opt for something a tad more authentic. Staff was good and attentive though, and new when to pour the wine. :) read more

Unfortunately disappointing. Knowing the Maroush name and quality, I was expecting much better service and food. Neither was good. One of the plates we ordered (Haloume Meshwi) was forgotten until we asked for it after a long time. When we asked the server, only then she went to ask the chef about it and he then started to make it. So basically there was no follow up on our order from our server or the chef. And when it arrived it didn't taste good at all. We also ordered foul modammas and it was disappointing as well. Other items we ordered were good but with the lack of attention to service we didn't enjoy the whole experience. I would try some other place for better Lebanese food. read more

Not bad. I didn't know this place was a part of the Maroush chain as I've been to the one in Knightsbridge on many a drunken late night, and it is pretty much what you'd expect. The service was excellent, and the house wine is very good and inexpensive. The food is average for a typical Lebanese place, as are the prices. The halloumi was pleasantly non-rubbery, and the baba ganoush was great, but the mousaka was unimpressive and the pita bread got cold and dry quickly. I like the free baklava at the end, and the room is pretty nice and clean, but I wouldn't go out of my way to go here -- I'd much rather get down at a mom and pop hole on the wall on Queensway over this large chain. read more

This is our local pick up spot as we live a few streets over. The staff are lovely and attentive. The food is great- nice and fresh. We usually order a few hot and cold mezze and then share a grilled plate. Love the baklava! read more

First time eating Lebanese cuisine and I loved it. The salad was fresh the portions were huge. The veggie and hummus platter was massive. I had a grilled chicken dinner with a garlic sauce that was simply the best. read more

I was rather disappointed in this place. The menu outside seemed reasonable for the area (£15-25 entree). Once inside, the staff looked at me like I'd just crawled out of steerage on the Titanic. From what I've read here, that may just be their M.O. . As someone else mentioned, they bring you an oddly oversized bowl of vegetables. Its scale made it look more like a centerpiece than something edible. Didn't know what to make of it so it went untouched as did the gentleman's at the next table. The chicken schwarma was plentiful but not particularly tasty. The baklava at the end was a nice touch though. Truthfully, I've had better Lebanese food in Kansas. If you have limited time in London, do yourself a favor and give another place a try. read more

The food was delicious. We had a lovely time and ate to bursting. We would definitely return! The mezzanine area is a nice touch that adds a bit more space. read more

I liked, the same quality than Maroush, but more sofisticate place. :) FV read more

Went with a group of 8 with kids and were seated upstairs. I felt the lights were a little off but the place looked relaxing and quiet enough to be able for speak to each other. Kind of relaxing. We had great service and we went for the sharing formulas and sampled lots of different thinngs. Actually we had way too much food because this place is not kidding. Starters were fillers and when mains came up we were full. We went through most of it. Washing it with wine. But it was hard by the end. All very good but we went too hard on starters maybe and should have saved space for later. After all check was modest even with wines and all and we had way plenty of food to play with. read more

Delicious lebanese food. We live just around the block and have always noticed the crowd filling this place so decided to give it a try. The staff was friendly and along with the yummy dinner they also provide a basket of crudites with dip before dinner and a small variety of sweets after dinner as well. Will definitely return here! read more

I ate here with my family while visiting London. We ordered the fixed 4-person dinner. It was about £30 per person and included TONS of delicious food. My only complaint is that the first thing they served us was a bowl of uncut veggies. What are we supposed to do with that? Hungry and not one to waste food, I ended up chopping the green pepper up so we could eat the hummus with it. read more

Mediocre and very pricey for what you get. I live just a few blocks away and think that the Lebanese Diner (although I believe it may now be shut down) has superior food at a much lower price point. Skip the falafel as it is quite dry. read more

We visited London in October 2014 and we love international travel. We are Lebanese and love the food!!! Read about Maroush before our trip and decided to give it a chance in spite of the red flags found in reviews. The restaurant is located in a very nice area. The inside was clean and well presented (no extras). Service was bad and we were not impressed with the taste of the food. In all honesty, the food was not worth the cost. read more

average food and crowded dining room was further diminished by indifferent service and the waiter becoming irritated because i didn't know to add the tip to the bill before he ran the card. yeah, i live in your restaurant and know how everything operates... so i guess you know how to code HTML by hand and fix broken javascript? okay. read more