We dined here since it was walking distance from our hotel. The décor inside is very modern. I ordered the Thai chicken green curry. When I tasted the dish, it was much different that what I have eaten before. The curry was very heavy and the chicken was dark meat. I explained to the waiter that I didn’t like the dish and ordered tom yum soup, har gau and shu mai instead. Once we got our bill, the green curry was still there. We spoke with the manager, explained the situation and she said it’s not typical for a dish to be returned as it was prepared correctly. She made a one time exception for us and removed it from the bill. I appreciated her understanding & will stick with the simple items when dining out & abroad.
David J.
Rating des Ortes: 4 London, United Kingdom
I went there today for lunch on the recommendation of a colleague. As others have said, you descend a rather inconspicuous set of stairs(it must be easy to miss in the dark) and find yourself in a deceptively large two-room space: one with tables and chairs and a banquette, is the main dining room, and off that are four karaōke rooms with banquettes and deeply-upholstered chairs. My colleague and I both chose the lunchtime Bento boxes, where you choose a soup, a rice, a main and two side dishes. So, I chose Miso soup, spring rolls, stir-fried mixed vegetables, with tofu and aubergine in black bean sauce for my main course, and steamed rice. The Miso soup came first and actually turned out to be the highlight: the best I’ve tasted yet in London, and it reminded me of visits to Japan many years ago. It had just the right amount of miso and nori(seaweed) to give it that gently salty, seafood flavour without being over the top. The rest of the meal was perfectly all right, if unremarkable. The mixed veg were slightly over-cooked, and the spring rolls were one spring roll cut in half, and the sauce of my main course was slightly gravy-like in consistency rather than being thick and tangy, as I’m used to. But there was nothing to take exception to, and it came piping hot. Service was fine(though they weren’t busy) — polite, quick and unobtrusive. What adds a star to the review was the bill; which(with soft drinks) came to £10 a head before service, so it would be churlish to complain in this part of London, and I’d happily come again for lunch.
Jay S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Aliso Viejo, CA
The absolute best hot and sour soup I’ve ever friggin’ had. Holy cr@p that was amazing. London is great for other historical, cultural and landmark reasons, so I can’t believe that I’m probably going to miss Firecracker’s hot and sour soup the most when I look back on this trip! Be warned it’s incredibly spicy, and that’s being said from a person who eats those little yellow hot peppers from the jar like potato chips(they’re way hotter than jalapeños if you don’t know what I’m talking about). All of the food was excellent quality, made with fresh ingredients and cooked perfectly, but the stand out was the soup. I’d seriously eat that every day if I could.
Mandy S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
After spending time at Tate Britain, we were looking for somewhere to eat and decided to use the trust Unilocal app for a recommendation. Firecracker came up and we gave it a try. We were not disappointed! We were looking for something light to eat so we shared a series of steamed dim sum parcels with an extra serving of tofu. Then we shared a Thai green curry. All of the food was absolutely delicious and the service was great. We were also pleasantly surprised at the price — £18.95 each including drinks and service charge.
Lori M.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Pawcatuck, CT
Firecracker was the perfect solution to jet lag exhaustion! We decided to order take out for our fist night in London(–after arriving at 7am then sight seeing all day even sitting at a table seemed too much effort). Firecracker was our choice based on location. The service was excellent(even on the phone they helped suggest options and quantities). We ordered several small bite dishes all of which were great. The atmosphere looked great — modern and hip. Next time we’ll eat there!
Soomin R.
Rating des Ortes: 4 London, United Kingdom
Please note that this review is based on my experience of their DELIVERY only. I’ve ordered delivery from Firecracker twice now, and they really hit the mark for me on both occasions. First, the food comes delicious and hot. So far, we’ve ordered a range of sweet and sour pork, beef in black pepper sauce, chicken wings, pad thai, etc. All of them were solid for a place of delivery, neatly packed in containers, and brought hot and ready to eat. Best delivery in terms of content I’ve ever experienced. Second, the deliverymen are generally nice. I live on floor 5 in a building without a lift, so sometimes, the deliverymen come panting(which I feel for) and upset(which I do not appreciate). Firecracker deliverymen have always been polite. Perfect place to order delivery from if you’re looking for a quick dinner fix!
Jessica P.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Wellesley, MA
After a day of moving, we decided to order there and get it delivered. We ordered at 7:50pm but the food didn’t got here until 10:00pm! The food wasn’t really good or fresh. My pork buns were cold and mushed, and my duck noodle were tasteless.
Yuko W.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Fallbrook, CA
This place was much smaller than we expected and we even missed the entrance because I was expecting a big red Chinese sign for a some reason. Inside is dark and unlike the typical family style casual restaurant. More like romantic atmosphere. Everything we had was excellent and very authentic. But the portions are much smaller than American size. I thought the dessert was sooo yummy even though it took at least 15 to 20 min for perpetration. Mochi with black sesame seeds(3 pcs for one order) were piping hot and soooo yummy. Coconut tiramisu is very different and not the norm typical tiramisu but it was delicious. We will definitely go back again.
Paul C.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Vancouver, Canada
Ok, the food we ordered was crispy duck wrap(Peking Duck), chicken and pork skewers, and Singaporean rice noodles. The rice noodles was the only item that was ok. The wrap wasn’t even steamed! If anyone has seen a wonton outer wrap uncooked, that was the wrap. The duck is actually suppose to be its crispy skin. They served us overcooked duck bits. Just the worse ever Peking duck! U think they can’t mess up some skewers. The skewers were chewy as rubber. I didn’t want to order anything else cuz I was too scared. However, we were in the karaōke room which made fun. The food was a joke.
Yuen P L.
Rating des Ortes: 3 London, United Kingdom
The front entrance is a bit inconspicuous so if going to this restaurant look out for a narrow doorway sandwiched between two other businesses. Upon entering the premises you can appreciate that it is well decorated and laid out and that presentation is clearly a priority for the business, which is also reflected in the food. The attention to the appearance of the food is good but the substance is lacking. The portions are fairly small and the quality(whilst good for a karaōke establishment) could be better e.g. the crispy pork was fatty and most of the food tasted a bit too strongly of MSG which was apparent by how thirst-provoking it was. The service was also lacking, but again this is typical from a karaōke restaurant. The karaōke system itself and sound quality from the microphones is excellent. Beware the drinks are pricey despite not being particularly special. In summary, the food and drink here is presentable and tolerable but quite expensive and the karaōke on offer is good.
Reem D.
Rating des Ortes: 5 London, United Kingdom
5 Stars for the following reasons: –Delicious food: The crispy pork belly meal is my favorite, also the steamed buns are so soft and scrumptuous –Great prices: I almost feel like I’m back in the USA, with normal real-world prices. A great dinner for under 10 quid, and I’m full! –Friendly staff: every time I phone in my order, and pick it up, they are so pleasant –KARAOKE too?! Bonus points! Plus, the décor is cool, and not what I’d expect for the great prices.
Tammy T.
Rating des Ortes: 4 London, United Kingdom
I would more accurately give Firecracker a 3.5 star review, but it was surprisingly delicious Chinese delivery! We ordered the sweet and sour chicken and aubergine pork dish. Both were really tasty albeit very salty. We ordered online on a Friday night, and they delivered about a half hour later! The food was hot upon arrival too. Can’t ask for much more from a delivery. If you want a night in with non-dodgy Chinese takeaway, check this place out! Next time I’m feeling too lazy to cook, I’m definitely giving them another call.
Rachel K.
Rating des Ortes: 5 West Palm Beach, FL
We loved the food here. We ordered a few dim sum items and a beef dish, and they were all delicious. The décor is fun and trendy.
Jason E.
Rating des Ortes: 3 London, United Kingdom
So this place delivers, which was handy as I’m having a stay at home night and watching Star Wars IV. I enjoyed the Berkshire pork dumplings and the pork and prawn dumplings. The Fujian fried rice was interesting and the ribeye beef with crunchy green beans in black bean sauce was also very pleasant. The beef skewers were a little tough, but other than that, it was all pleasant. So I got to watch Star Wars while drinking Pinot Grigio and eating dim sum. The force was with me.
Lisa E.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Scottsdale, AZ
Had a very pleasant experience here. Although we walked in 25 minutes before closing and was asked to order quickly the food was excellent and when they got an order incorrect they quickly replaced it and took it off the bill. Really enjoyed the wok fried pork shoulder and the cashew chicken was delicious.
Olive_
Rating des Ortes: 4 London, United Kingdom
It would be the perfect place if it weren’t for the noise and the way too much people that gather at the lunch hours. I know that’s great for the business but I just don’t like all that commotion while I eat. However, the restaurant is excellent and if you’re into Chinese food, this is your place.
Valentin G.
Rating des Ortes: 2 London, United Kingdom
We went to this place for a birthday celebration of a friend. Since it was December the whole place was packed with people from nearby businesses, having their Christmas parties, doing karaokes. If you go there around this time expect to hear a ton of ridiculous and funny performances:) I haven’t tried dim sums properly before, so decided to give it a go this time. There are three on the menu which are chef’s recommendations, so I took all three. All of those turned out to be quite bad and far from something I’d recommend. Since it was a birthday party we’ve ordered couple of pitchers of piña colada. Those tasted average, but the amount of alcohol they’ve put in was a joked. After even three glasses no one felt anything whatsoever in their heads… I also tried sweet and sour chicken which was quite good, so at least I didn’t leave the restaurant feeling hungry. Location of the place is pretty inconvenient, the nearest tube is around 15 mins walk away, so if it rains either get a cab or a bus. In general, not impressed, so I don’t think I’m coming back any time soon.
Alex S.
Rating des Ortes: 2 London, United Kingdom
Here’s the thing — I love Dim Sum. I love the Dim Sum experience, I love the sharing, I love the food. It’s all something I love. And this may have been the worst Dim Sum I’ve ever had. We were in the area late-night and stopped by because of the fantastic Unilocal Reviews. The restaurant is down a flight of stairs and way bigger than it looks from the outside. It’s chicly decorated with mood-lighting and things like firecracker artwork in the middle of the room. It was beautiful for sure. We got our menu and choose some items. Shanghai Pork Dumplings, Steamed Vegetable Dumplings, BBQ Pork Bun and a Custard Bun for dessert. We figured we’d order more if still hungry. The waiter came and took our order and the food came out a little while after that. They came in the dim sum baskets that I love so much but then our waiter tried to take the covers away. We had to stop him and ask if he could leave them on so the food would stay hot. And he did. But alas, it didn’t matter if it was hot, the food was terrible! The meat was gelatinous, the noodles were rubbery and the vegetables were soggy. For the dumplings, we got three, and we couldn’t even finish one. Holy god, it was awful. I’m not sure if it was an off night but yikes. I mean, one dish I could understand but all the Dim Sum being gross? Ugh. It was cheap though, I can give them that. Firecracker also has a karaōke room in the back, which was cool, but every time one of the servers opened the back door, the whole place was filled with the sounds of people singing terribly. Maybe not so much a problem when the restaurant is noisy, but on a quiet evening out, this is very distracting. Now, we didn’t try any of the regular meals so perhaps that’s where the glowing reviews come from. Still, I’m not sure I’ll be back to give them another shot.
Jules H.
Rating des Ortes: 2 London, United Kingdom
We went in for some Dim Sum after visiting Tate Britain, but I would not recommend that section of the menu. Maybe their noodles are better, but we were not prepared to give it another try. The restaurant itself is rather nicely decorated and has a karaōke section.
Eaglen
Rating des Ortes: 3 Hamburg
Sehr aufmerksame Bedienung, unterschiedlich leckeres Essen(Grünes Curry sehr lecker, süß-sauer schmeckte nach Uncle Ben’s). Preise etwas gehoben, aber okay(10,50£ für günstige Hauptspeise mit Reis, dieser kostet extra). Schön und stilvoll eingerichtet. Weiteres Manko war, dass ich nicht mit Visa zahlen konnte, da die Technik versagte.
Heather K.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Half Moon Bay, CA
I was very impressed with this little restaurant! All of the food is incredibly fresh for one thing(which, I found, is a difficult thing to come by with English food. Maybe it’s just me, but I can only eat so much pub-type stuff!) and super flavorful. The staff was very friendly and attentive. The décor is awesome — done up with dark wood, red tones, and of course firecrackers, it’s very swanky and sets a lounge-type mood. There’s even a glassed-off karaōke room and I don’t know how they do it, but the soundproofing is so good that you barely hear it unless the door opens. We ordered mainly off the dim sum menu, and I highly recommend doing that if you come! The steamed dumplings are amazing, and there are plenty of vegetarian options. Also good is the crab and sweet corn soup. I have to say, I think they need to do a little bit of work on their wine list(the two wines I tried, a dry muscadet and a chardonnay-viognier blend, weren’t that great) and their bar is a little confusing(our friend ordered a vodka martini and they told her they couldn’t make one, even though they obviously have a full bar? WTF?), but they do have some good beers. Prices are very reasonable as well — I was expecting it to be super expensive but for three of us, it was only about 65 pounds — and we had a LOT of food. I’d definitely come back again!