The Archduke Reviews Summary

Food Quality

Pros:

• "The meals are made with quality ingredients and is great value for money."
• "The steak was one of the best I've had in ages."
• "Our third time at The Archduke. The food is quite expensive for what it is, but is always to a really good standard and the portions are generous."
• "I had the Rotisserie Chicken which was amazingly done."
• "The food was pretty mediocre considering the price tag."
• "The steaks were perfectly cooked. I would say one of the best steaks we've had by far."
• "The food was absolutely amazing I really appreciated it."

Cons:

• "The food is cheap, but be prepared to get what you pay for."
• "Standards have slipped. We haven’t been here in a while. We went for the pre theatre meal and my steak was so sinewy and tough I left most of it."
• "However we found the steaks are rarely cooked to the order, my brother's steak was more rare, and mine more well done than we expected."
• "A meal that was badly cooked, badly presented and very very expensive definitely not good value for money."
• "The chicken was hard to eat, incredibly dry and overcooked."
• "The food was unfortunately under cooked."
• "When I ordered the Beef bourguignon, I was expecting something cooked in an authentic way or close enough, the least. They brought me a slightly undercooked flavourless beef stew."

Service

Pros:

• "Katalin in particular was amazing as our hostess."
• "Waiter was friendly and helpful."
• "Service was extremely kind and welcoming."
• "Great service from start to finish."
• "The staff were amazing and the service was excellent."
• "Service was good (I appreciate table service and not having to queue for the bar!)"
• "Staff are also another level - great, fast service, very attentive and observant."

Cons:

• "Huge, but when it's not busy don't expect privacy - they squish everyone into one small area."
• "The waitering service for drinks is pretty poor."
• "Waitresses have no manners or idea what customer service is to the point of which I refused to pay the optional service charge."
• "The worst dining experience I've had in London. I'd avoid if only because of the staff's attitude."
• "But how can you be happy when the service is poor?! From 11pm there is a huge pressure to the customer to pay the bill and get out."
• "Although the man in charge was efficient and polite in finding us a table, the waitress that served us seemed bored and ignored her clientele."
• "The staff including the management have no idea of customer service."

Ambiance and Location

Pros:

• "What makes the place and the evening is the live music."
• "Great atmosphere, friendly staff, lovely surroundings."
• "What a lovely place, underneath the arches!! Great atmosphere, great service the staff could not do enough for us."
• "The Archduke had live music on the night I visited with a pianist and a singer who provided a nice relaxed atmosphere."
• "Great relaxed but sophisticated vibe. Beautiful decor and live music."
• "Lovely atmosphere. Beautiful Jazz playing and a wonderful staff."
• "Nice handy location for Waterloo and the Southbank."

Cons:

• "This blatant discrimination towards us ruined the entire experience."
• "We were sat near the piano which was very loud so it was hard to have a conversation."
• "Some spots feel a bit dark and dingy but that's because it is under the rail arches and so some parts don't get as much light as other areas."
• "It is on multi levels, so not so good for the disabled. Although there are tables and seating on the ground floor."
• "The waitress upstairs was rude and in a bad mood all night."
• "It's a jazz place but if you aren't sitting right next to the piano, you can't hear a thing."
• "Archduke, if you're reading this, kindly invest in speakers so everyone can enjoy the music and don't judge people by the way they're dress as, it made us feel very uncomfortable."

Value for Money

Pros:

• "The meals are made with quality ingredients and is great value for money."
• "There was also a surprise happy hour (in that we weren't expecting it) but it is generally good value for money anyway."
• "Cost- for what I experienced was worth it."
• "Great quality food, drinks and service at decent prices."
• "Good food and drinks at decent prices (at least decent as far as London prices are concerned anyway!)"
• "Great new years eve dinner here with amazing views of the fireworks, great value for money."
• "Good prices! I was quite surprised when we got the bill!"

Cons:

• "We had some snacks and quite a few drinks but no main courses. It was an eye watering 311 quid btwn three!."
• "If you want poor food, indifferent service but an expensive place. Then this is the place for you!"
• "A meal that was badly cooked, badly presented and very very expensive definitely not good value for money."
• "Service was good and friendly however at £15-£20 a main we expected more."
• "For a Steak restaurant it was very disappointing... for the price you are paying one would expect a better service and standard."
• "The steak was however a little bit too pricy for the quality."
• "The fillet steak was more of a sample then a steak 35 quid for something not even big enough to make a sandwich."