Hackney
Dilara

Dilara

27 Blackstock Rd, Hackney, United Kingdom

Soup • Kebab • Asian • Turkish


"Awful and beyond disappointing. Pay attention to the vast number of negative Google reviews. I was there with two family members, lured by Time Out’s glowing review. However, I should have started asking questions from when I noticed how empty the place was. The food is tasty, but the experience is completely ruined by the shocking service. Staff are not just unkind – I don’t care for extra smiles or ceremony – they are plain rude, aggressive and resentful if you ask any questions or clarifications about the menu. Queries and mild complaints are greeted with denial, accusations that you are a stressful customer, insults and shouts. Also expect to wait at least 45 minutes for your food to start arriving and to be served at least 20 minutes apart – we were watching each other finishing our meals, before the next person was served. No hope to eat together there, unless you share your dishes as they are brought to the table. Also no explanation on the menu about spiciness. Time Out make light of the waiting times, or the abruptness of the service. However, there is no charm in rudeness. Eating out cannot be just about the food in your plate. It’s an experience you pay for, going from the surroundings to the social interactions with people around you. To waive all this, is taking away from all those restaurateurs who put their heart and soul into making their customers enjoy what they pay for. When we left the restaurant, we felt sick with disappointment. Dilara deserve's 1st place on Time Out's Worst Restaurants in London, if there is such a thing."

19 Numara Bos Cirrik Ii

19 Numara Bos Cirrik Ii

194 Stoke Newington High Street, N16 7JD, Hackney, United Kingdom

Pizza • Mexican • Turkish • Vegetarian


"BOOKING Making a reservation for this restaurant on the surface seemed to be straightforward, but was not. Upon making a reservation on their website, a message pops up informing you that a confirmation email will be sent to your designaged email address. That email never came through. On the morning of the day my reservation was booked for, I emailed their general enquiries ' email address to confirm my reservation. Several hours later, after still not hearing back from the restaurant, I called an hour before the time I 'd booked, which revealed in fact that my reservation hadn 't been placed and was then made on the phone at the time. Whilst it wasn 't a problem because the restaurant was relatively empty, if it had been busy it could have been an issue. FOOD My mother who attended with me suffers from Coeliac Disease and a Dairy Allergy, and I 'm Lactose Intolerant. The online and in person menu doesn 't have any allergen information available, so we had to guess and hope for the best with what we could eat. Could be potentially life threating for people with severe allergies; would recommend that info gets added asap. No water was offered to us on the table throughout the entire duration we were there...We weren 't given new knives and forks when our main dish arrived; it is basic hospitality to get new cutlery with each meal and water on the table! Food was ok, not bad not great. I 've tasted far superior Turkish food so was disappointing. Would have liked more seasoning, but that 's personal preference I think they 'anglocised ' the menu to suit the English palette...Also I 've noticed I 've been sick and on the toilet more frequently since eating here, so think that maybe my fish or rice wasn 't cooked properly ? ACCESSIBILITY I have a real problem with the fact it states on Google that it 's wheelchair friendly, when it 's evidently not. Both customer AND staff toilets are up a set of *very* steep stairs which would cause difficulties for customers with mobility needs. Customer toilets were located next to staff toilets which I think is inappropriate, and should remain in separate areas. Only 1 toilet for each sex male female when full would be inconvenient, and no changing facilities for parents. STAFF/CUSTOMER SERVICE This is the area that we had serious problems with. Whilst staff were friendly and attentive, I would dare say that they were excessively it was too full on! Firstly, all the waiting staff were male; at least 1 or 2 female waiting staff is much needed. Secondly, there was 1 waiter in particular who made both me a 19yr old female and my mother who 's 54 feel extremely uncomfortable. This waiter was our main server who took over from the original waiter who seated us: he was polite, however was standing over us nearly the whole time. My mum even made a joke saying he was obsessed! He was staring a lot in a way that could be intepreted as threatening and borderline harassment for females. It was intimidating and made us uncomfortable, putting a downer on our overall experience. He also kept coming back to our table checking in every 5 10 minutes, meanwhile he didn 't do this with any of the other customers who were ironically women with male companions, which made us think he was targeting us 'cause we were 2 women on our own. When eating out, most people want to be left to their own devices it was extremely intrusive. It 's far from the standard of professionalism I would expect from a restaurant rated 4.7/5. DISCREPANCIES WITH ONLINE INFO The info stated on Google isn 't accurate. It says that it 's women led , definitely not when you have no female staff on hand. Free water refills we weren 't even offered water so that 's interesting. Braille menu not true. Fireplace nope, none in sight. It may seem I 'm being nitpicky, but I just don 't see the point of lying online about things that you don 't offer in person not beneficting your brand image in any way. Overall, whilst it was nice as a casual local spot and the food was edible, I wouldn 't recommend and will not be coming back. There are far better Middle Eastern eateries in the area..."

Testi

Testi

38 Stoke Newington High Street, N16 7PL, Hackney, United Kingdom

Meat • Pizza • Cheese • Turkish


"On Sat 12th July, was my 2nd visit, for a freinds birthday 1st was on new years eve and both times was a complete sham! The food standard was way below par. No bread, salad or dips or given to start, most other places give this as standard, while you wait. Bread came with the was burnt, no decent salad, slices of thick carrots on the edge of a sad looking salad, on a small plate. We ordered a £60 platter, meant four people, it came with just wings, ribs, one each skewer of chicken lamb shish. The lamb shish cubes were tiny. This place cuts corners everywhere. I ordered a seabass, it came with a sprinkling of wilted lettuce, I called the waitress over, to draw her attention to this, I asked if this is meant to be the salad,,she replied yes , then said she 'd call someone. We had the same experience on new years eve. We were also rushed, as food took ages to arrive as well. I felt sorry for the male waiter with the glasses. He tried his best after taking over from the lady, because we raised so many issues. Will certainly not be going here again, there are loads of other Qualuty Turkish restaurants just down the road, where you 'll get your monies worth on the platter, as it will also include, chicken lamb doner, köfte and two types of rice. Only those who are inexperienced with Turkish dining would find this place amazing. There 's much better place down the road. I hope the admin from Testi do not attempt a response, because when we asked for the manager that night, they refused to come and put the poor chap instead."

Salvation In Noodles

Salvation In Noodles

122 Balls Pond Road, N1 4AE, Hackney, United Kingdom

Asian • Salad • Noodles • Vietnamese


"That is actually the name of the restaurant, not just me seeking salvation in noodles although it's something I'm likely to do. Good Vietnamese food is hard to come by in London, so when Angela asked if I was up for trying SIN, I was more than eager. The only slight downside (for me my location) is that it's in Dalston, an area I'd never ventured into before, because it just feels that little bit too far away... but will travel for food, and all that. It's a bus ride away from a couple of tube stations, so it's not too bad (and if you live East, it's really not a trek at all, but I live on the other side of the city), but something to keep in mind. Geographical logistics aside, I had a great evening of food and chatting with Angela, her boyfriend and his friend. It's a cosy little place which is clearly popular, with friendly staff and a no fuss vibe that I think suits Vietnamese cuisine. With four of us hungry and ready to dig in, we ordered a selection of sharing plates: summer rolls, spring rolls, lamp chops and chicken wings. Although everything was delicious, the meat stood out for me the chicken wings were so moreish with that sweet and salty flavour everyone loves, and the lamp was excellent too. Perfect little plates to open up our appetite! Thankfully our appetites were still going strong when the noodles arrived, because those bowls are massive. You know those bowls that seem never ending, no matter how much you think you've eaten? I went for the Bun Rieu, which is Vietnamese crab noodle soup with pork belly prawns, which comes with these crab meat balls that take the dish up a notch. It was incredibly fresh but pretty spicy, so I'd stay away from it if you're not a spice fan I really enjoyed it myself. They also have other noodles, such as the classic Pho and also noodle salads, if you're not keen on soups. I'm kind of hoping that they open a branch somewhere central at some point, although that would mean we'd probably have to fight for a table... in the meantime though, I'd definitely recommend it for those who want to quench their Vietnamese noodle craving and not be disappointed. Up next on my Vietnamese food trail is Cafe East, which I've heard rave reviews of. If you have any other suggestions, let me know!"