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London’s diners are some of pickiest in the world
Restauranteurs beware: London has some the pickiest diners in the world.
Based on a study of almost half a million restaurant reviews from seven of the biggest cities in the world, including Delhi, Johannesburg and Auckland, recommendations service Zomato found that Londoners were most likely to vent their spleen at a disappointing dish.
Turns out we're a fussy bunch, most likely to use words such as "bad", "awful", "unpleasant"
“Londoners are also much harsher with reviews overall when compared to reviewers from other cities," the group said.
However, Londoners are also likely to be “twice as satisfied” with customer service and ambience which is either indicative of an ambivalence to sloppy service or a well-drilled army of waiters in the capital.
Judging by their apparent readiness to criticise the standard of food, we’d guess the latter.
Here's a brilliant example of a London take down. S. William Thomas posted these scathing words on Zomato about the Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, in Chinatown.
Perhaps even worse than the deception (and insultingly high £20 price tag) was that the salad was barely edible. It consisted solely of shredded iceberg lettuce, with these particular pieces coming not from the leaves but the dense, tasteless core.The shrimps were passable, but would have suffered greatly were it not for the three dips provided. We ordered a cocktail each, which would have served to comfort us somewhat were they not so weak. Tasty, yes. But very weak. A telling bonus offered by the restaurant was the opportunity to take home a free glass for each of the cocktails we bought.From the moment one enters the restaurant, one is aware that they are being chugged along through some great machine of large smiles and insincere questions.
As the UK’s restaurant industry grows, Londoners’ tastebuds have seemingly become more refined. Six Michelin stars have been awarded to restaurants around the city in this year alone.
Want somewhere good to eat? Click here to have a browse of City A.M's best set menu lunches in the capital.