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The best restaurants serving Vietnamese food in Swiss Cottage Camden London

1 Restaurants on GastroRanking

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3.5

3 Opinions

location-icon2 Canfield Gardens, England
Vietnamese
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I think the other two reviews are over a year old as things have changed drastically since then. After undergoing a refurbishment earlier this year and (presuming) a change of ownership), I found a great improvement in the food - the previous food was underwhelming, to say the least, so the changes were very pleasing, and I started eating there at least once a week. I recommended it to friends and relatives who agreed that the food was very tasty, they had a special lunch menu for £8.50 which was wonderful value, with a tasty choice of 4 dishes. Unfortunately, after a few months it started to go downhill and there became a total lack of continuity when one didn't know what kind of meal one was getting. The crux came one day when I ordered my 'usual' noodles with vegetables (i am Vegetarian) and they know exactly what I like. My husband received his lunch and they apologised for the delay, saying the chef had prepared the 'wrong' dish meant for someone else and mine would be arriving shortly. The plate placed in front of me a few minutes later was a dish of grey looking boiled vermicelli with lumps of even greyer looking chicken, when I showed my horror, they rushed it away and eventually my dish appeared but as I was running late for a hospital appointment, so I asked for a container saying I would take it home and eat it later and don't think of charging me 30p for the container as it was down to them that I couldn't eat my meal there and then like my husband who had long since finished his. They did add on the 30p for the cardboard container which I refused to pay. The next day I warmed up my 'lunch' only AGAIN to find it full of lumps of chicken. I just took the whole thing back, slapped it on the counter and demanded the name of the owner as I felt it right to inform him/her how the staff were running this place into the ground. All of a sudden total amnesia set in among the staff and nobody knew anything! The few words of English they knew had vanished. I left them my card, asking them to give it to this anonymous owner and ask him to get in touch with me. Surprise, surprise the only person to get in touch was by text, one of the waiters telling me the days the 'skilful' chef would be working, and I went back a couple of times after that with a friend and the meals was reasonable again so when I knew I was going there I would text the waiter, but in the last 3 weeks received no reply when I asked what days the 'skilful' chef was working (apparently his wife was very ill and he didn't come in very often, maybe a couple of times a week. I went in to ask after the waiter with whom I had been in texting contact with and was told he was on holiday, I left another of my cards, asking the staff to pass it on again to the owner (who still re. mains anonymous), all they'll say is that he too is a chef and sometimes works there as well. don't think I will ever trust a restaurant with an anonymous owner and a horrendous staff problem who lie through their teeth. I'll wait for the new ownership signs to go up - shouldn't be long now.