Côte Barbican

Excellent, well-priced meal, flawless, polite service. I was entertaining some business visitors from abroad and they had a great time. Would recommend to all. Great stuff!

We dined at Cote on a Friday night before a concert at the Barbican. The restaurant was packed and then their computer system went down. Our waiter notified us right away that the courses might be delayed but we took our chances. Despite the glitch, we got all our food in good time, it was delicious as always, and we had a lovely evening. It looked a bit stressful for the staff, but they all worked together seamlessly - well done for managing through the crisis.

Getting food served hot here does seem to be a problem. Little niggling things. Helpful and attentive staff. Unexceptional food, but this is not top shelf dining. Good value by today’s chain restaurant standards. Noisy room.

Wonderful meal, seat near the window, the staff were attentive without being intrusive. I would definitely recommend this restaurant, we went before going to the Barbican for a concert. They served us quickly, so we had plenty of time without being rushed,

The service has been really bad. We had dinner at 9 45pm and the staff had just one idea in mind : going back home. Also they did not propose the vegetarian menu spontaneously and we had to ask for it.

I love Cote at the Barbican ... the Brasserie and the atmosphere are the best, the food great and most of all the fabulous staff. Thank you Cote Sylvia Usher

Not as good as usual. Too busy which meant staff rushed off their feet! This affected the level of service we have come accustomed to over the many visits we make to Cote.

Service here is always courteous and food good value for money. We came for a pre-concert dinner, and the restaurant was busy as usual. We'd left an hour and 15 minutes for dinner. Usually this is plenty, as the restaurant is used to catering for the pre-concert rush. However, because there was a problem with the starters, we had too wait too long, and could only hurry through two courses.

I had 65 minutes to have the pre-theatre menu. I was able to order quite promptly and the first course soon arrived. After 50 minutes and my asking twice the second course still hadn't arrived so I put cash on the table and left. I have been a regular customer for many years at various different branches and this is the first time I have been let down.

Everything excellent. We very much enjoyed food and service was very attentive. I think this was the best Cote I have been to.

Excellent food. Very tasty and reasonable price if you go for the set menu. Service is efficient and friendly. Been to this and other Côte brasseries and have been very impressed.

Nice place, good food, lovely service. French food is always to go for.

The staff were friendly and efficient, service was excellent and the food delicious. Overall, a thoroughly enjoyable experience.

The restaurant was busy with the pre theatre/cinema crowd. As a result service was very slow. We had to ask several times to be served. I had booked and informed them in advance that I am coeliac, so on arrival and being shown to our table I was given a Gluten Free Menu. Eventually a waiter came but as soon as he saw the Gluten Free Menu he told us we had to have another waiter. 30 mins later we made our order. It was a shame as the gluten free menu is extensive and when our food did arrive it was good. But we were worried that we would miss our theatre. We had to ask to pay the bill and ended up walking to the bar area to pay. I would go again as the food was good and the location convenient but would perhaps arrive even earlier. Perhaps Cote Barbican were just understaffed that night?

I very much enjoyed dinner. Wonderful and gracious host. Tasty food. Great value for money. Perfect pre-Barbican dinner. Cote is one of my favourite restaurant chains in the UK.

Always a wonderful experience at Cote Barbican - great service and delicious food! Thank you!

From the Prestige Set Menu I had the feuillete, pork tenderloin and apple crumble. I enjoyed the starter and dessert. I thought the pork tenderloin sauce was over-herbed. The portion was generous, but one of the pieces of meat was quite pink throughout so I left it. When I mentioned this to a waiter he said "we always serve it pink". This is the advice from the UK Food Standards Agency: “We always advise that whole cuts of pork, pork products and offal should be thoroughly cooked until steaming hot throughout, the meat is no longer pink and juices run clear". Also, I think for the price this dish should be served with potato and another vegetable, in line with the pork belly on the a la carte menu. The noise level from general chatter in the full restaurant was very high, no doubt because of the low ceiling.

Service wasn't quite as fast as usual, fewer waiting staff perhaps? We'd been delayed on the underground so arrived late for our pre theatre meal. Pleased that our table was still available but our order wasn't taken for 10 minutes. We then had to chase our deserts which we'd ordered and they arrived too late to enjoy them as we needed to leave. Shame as food was good.

It was my sons birthday and we received a complimentary glass of Prosecco. Good value set two course lunch menu with a good rib eye steak.

A very enjoyable evening with good food and friendly service

The children's fish and chips was tasty and enjoyed by the kids. Unfortunately the other dishes left us wishing we had also had the children's menu. My tuna nicoise salad was underwhelming - I had to ask for capers and the fish was not only overcooked but also tough, as if it had been sitting around for a while. My husband's steak was bland and needed lots of seasoning. The other two fish dishes were also mediocre though the sea bass was much better then the cod. It was my post graduation celebratory meal and we were all left disappointed.

excellent and prompt service which allowed us to get to Barbican theatre straight after.

Always a pleasure to come here before we go the Barbican.

We come to Cote across the country at least 3/4 times a month. However we didn’t have a great experience today for my birthday. We have been to the Barbican Cote before. However this evening it wasn’t great service. We waited a long time for any service throughout the evening. Often staff would ignore us so we would have to go up to the bar. My husbands meal wasn’t what we had ordered. The staff did apologise but that was all. Such a shame but don’t think I’ll visit the Cote at the Barbican again!!

We dined on Sunday, 3rd March at Cote, Barbican ~ which is our "default restaurant" when we are going to the Barbican Concert Hall ! We were grateful for our complimentary Gin & Tonics, but hugely annoyed to be told that (as we had been given free drinks) we had to order ONLY from the a la carte Menu and NOT from the prix fixe at £19.95 selection! In my view , a totally ridiculous restriction, which only served to give the impression that you were attempting to "increase the customer spend" for our meal !! Tell me if I'm wrong here !! On complaining, the Manageress said we could ignore this ruling and order as we pleased, which was the obvious step to take under the circumstances ! Please explain why you have this (thoroughly stupid!) rule in the 1st place !! Aidan Jones ~ 07766 700553 aidan1jones @gmail.com

It was a wet Monday evening, yet this venue was still buzzy with diners, just pleasantly so... Seamless service (which took stress from us knowing our train service ended early this evening), the usual good ingredients, well cooked and presented.

Excellent service and really tasty lunch will definitely return .

Having been to many 'Cotes' this one is very convenient for the Barbican cinema(s) and, although very busy, we were given excellent attention: the staff went out of their way to find a good table for us - thankfully away from the extra loud noise near the entrance. The service was impeccable - including rapid help when I knocked over (and broke) a glass, losing the last few drops of the delicious Cocktail of the Month. The waitress was delightful, polite, caring and did everything to make our visit comfortable and enjoyable, solicitous about the timing of when we wanted the wine and each course - and helping us with any indecisiveness on our part. Shame the food was not quite up to scratch.

The staff was very friendly catering for all our needs, the food was delicious (including the vegan option), and the atmosphere was pleasant and relaxed.

Normally I write rave reviews about Côte but this evening’s main course was the worst ever. Worse than bad economy class airline food. Avoid the chicken parmentier on the early evening menu. Maybe it’s better when full price, who knows?

Starter service was fast but main course and dessert service was slow. Overall time spent in restaurant 2 hours. The duck breast was very tough and bland.

Always good service, great value for money. Waiting time is insanely quick and the food is enjoyable. Never had a bad experience. Thanks to all at Cote.

Lovely food - the pork and the duck were wonderfully tender and well cooked. Efficient staff, who, in spite of being very busy, were smiley and attentive. What's not to like?

Overall we were disappointed with our experience. We waited over half an hour for our starters, which only came when we prompted the staff, the mains came with additional fries, not ordered and our side order of beans was missing. The wrong dessert was brought to the table. We usually have had very good experiences of dining at Cote. The manager apologised and gave us free drinks and discount on the food which was generous but did not make up for the unsatisfactory experience.

Lovely meal excellent service loved it! Will eat there often great place

Excellent value with good service and tasty food. Happy to recommend the restaurant. The staff are always courteous and helpful. Ideal for pre theatre and cinema.

We took some friends to a pre-concert supper. Unfortunately there was a mix up in the kitchen and our main course wasn’t ready in time for us to eat it before the concert. Potential disaster was averted when the delightful manageress asked us to come back after the concert when our meal would be free of charge - absolutely wonderful way to look after customers. We are regular visitors to Cote Barbican and will continue to do so!

First two starter choices were not available. We sat down at 7 pm!

Initially we were offered a table right by the bar and the noisy coffee machine asked for another seat - there were plenty of tables and banquets, but we were offered a table in the middle of where everyone was walking past, so not ideal. I had mussels and wasn't offered any bread and when asked for it was then given a whole basket and charged for it. I like Cote and visit this and St Paul's quite regularly but was very disappointed. they also assumed we wanted dessert and when we didn't we had to wait an age for the bill. in hindsight I should have taken the service charge off

Food as good as ever and great value for a money . Fast, polite and happy service which is great for pre concert or theatre.

Good food, set menus are excellent value (though it is underwhelming that you always have to ask for the set menu card). The Barbican branch is rather spacious. Staff was a bit cold that evening - too bad. Overall had a good dinner and would return.

The menu seemed a bit limited & the pudding was rather small

Fine with a caveat ... Main course arrived before we finished starters . Despite my request , food was kept warm under lights so it rather dried out. Unnecessary but credit to manager who arranged without fuss a refund Oh and the water glass smelt , left too long in dishwasher maybe ?

Perfect for our pre theatre supper at the Barbican. A real taste of France in the centre of the city. Divine Sauvignon blanc at reasonable price.

tried the swordfish on the specials menu. It was unusual and very tasty. I enjoyed it a lot. Also took advantage of the free cocktail offer and enjoyed that a lot too. We needed to pay quickly to get to a cinema in time for the start of the film and the staff were excellent making sure we left in good time in spite of the restaurant being busy.

Very good value amd excellent food. Staff friendly and hard working

food was not as good as usual today but the service was

6 of us had a very pleasant and tasty Saturday night reunion. Good value, good if simple food & wine, good service, plenty of space on a fairly quiet night, so noise level ok. Recommended.

One of our top three favourite restaurants - we go here probably once a month! All the branches we’ve tried in London - probably five of them - are excellent.

Usual friendly greeting upon arrival Speedy polite prompt and helpful service Up to the expected Cote “ Gold Standard “ Staff never fail to totally please