Giraffe

First impression… My fiancé and I walked into this place 2 minutes before opening. The waitress stated that they aren’t open until 11 am (remember we were there 2 minutes before 11). We told her fine, but she seated us anyways. Once seated we looked to our left and there were customers already seated… eating. Whatever the fuck that means. We ordered the full brunch which was ok. Nothing fancy, just good enough for us hungry folks. Other than the odd/​somewhat crappy service, everything else was ok.

We went for desert only. Great service, location & setting, the food was ok too but nothing overly special.

Eh. This is a tourist trap. London is full of amazing restaurants. This is overpriced for mediocre food.

Where to begin… our experience started off well when we walked in the door. We were immediately greeted from across the restaurant by the bartender, and a server (Chris, I believe) sat us and cheerfully took our drink orders. We spent a few minutes looking over the menu, at which point an Eastern European woman marched over and asked us what we wanted to drink. We let her know someone had already taken our order, at which point she left without a word. After our drinks came, she returned to take our food order (clearly Chris has been covering her section of tables, as she had been nowhere to be seen until asking about drinks). Our food arrived in a reasonable time, and our waitress once again disappeared completely. She did not return to check on us or get us more drinks, except to offer dessert and clear our plates about 10 minutes after we had finished. Once we declined dessert, we were completely ignored, and had to flag down the bartender for the check. A word of warning, there was an included «optional» gratuity of 12.5%. Food was okay at best, service was awful.

Appetizers and drinks after the show… nachos, not bad (and we’re from California, so we know!) :) — crunchy shrimp, spicy chicken strips all devoured. No draught beers, though listed on menu. Service was very friendly, even though we arrived about s half hour before closing on a Wednesday night. Overall, a solid experience.

The food is great. No doubt. The reason for my high rating, however, is not just food. My partner and I were in London for a few days and visited a variety of restaurants over a period of seven days. And we’re really disheartened with the quality of service at most restaurants in London. However, this was the first restaurant, where we were asked more than once on how he food was and manager even stopped by. I would rather spend my money where the customer service is good or not eat out at all. And Giraffe definitely did not disappoint us with its service!

Service was quick — we got seated and could order or food swiftly which was great as we were going to the theatre. The hamburger was really nice, nicely served with tasty condiments. The grilled salmon was not as good, well cooked but mainly the miso rice was pretty tasteless and too sweet to my taste.

I’m a regular visitor to Giraffe, and especially to this branch as it’s really handy for work. Especially like going during bar buddies, as you can get some great half price wines and cocktails. Had the herby chicken bun less burger today, which is essentially a grilled herby chicken breast, but was really tasty. Came with a lovely fresh salad with included one of my faves, edamame beans. I added a side of sweet potatoes fries, simply because Giraffe do them so well, making them an unresistable addition.

We ate here on a Sunday night, and we were seated right away at a high row of tables (not my favorite, but my children enjoy them). They had good drink specials for kids and adults, and the food was fine but not thrilling. It was family friendly and reasonably priced, but I wouldn’t call the food memorable.

We arrived at Giraffe around 7pm on a Wednesday. I was surprised to see how busy it was. Luckily, our party of 3 was seated right away.
I chose the steak sandwich that came with fries, and my sandwich was delicious. The bread was nice and toasty, the steak was a nice medium well, and the blend of arugula and mayo was perfect. The sandwich also came with caramelized onions, but my dislike for any type of onion had me scraping it off right away.
My companions both ordered the chicken schnitzel that came with an arugula salad and either mashed potatoes or fries. The chicken was breaded and flavored with garlic butter. It was good, but a little too buttery for my liking.
We ordered 2 different desserts: the chocolate mousse crunch and the apple and cherry crumble. I LOVED the chocolate mouse crunch! It was rich while still being light and airy. The crumble was also good, but the apple and cherry portions weren’t as flavorful as I expected. The crumble on top was delicious. It wasn’t your run of the mill crumble made of flour, butter, and sugar. This had oats, raisins, slivered almonds, and hazelnuts.
I would give this place a 5 star for food, but since the service was so slow, I’m giving them a 4 overall.

I went here with my boyfriend at about 3 pm on a Friday. It wasn’t busy, the food came out quickly, and they had a decent amount of vegetarian options.
We chose the bruschetta bites, delux falafel burger, and phod malay noodles. For a £10 burger, I’m glad it was as good as it was. Not dry, plenty of toppings, and the choice of sweet potato fries, rather than the regular. My boyfriend ordered the malay noodles, which were too spicy for me. But he seemed to enjoy them and said the flavor reminded him of samosas. The bruschetta was yummy, although a little wet and cold by the time we returned to our hotel (as expected). Lots of toppings though, which was great.
I noticed another review saying they were upset that it wasn’t a specific type of cuisine served, but that was honestly my favorite part. We were able to get asian noodles, Italian bruschetta, and a burger in one location. It’s like a delicious, vegetarian sampler!
Overall, there were great vegetarian choices, and we would be happy to return!

Went to Giraffe after a long day of touring and it was great. Sesame Chicken and Pot Sticker appetizers were great. Jerk Chicken and Thai Salad were fantastic. Server and manager were super friendly especially to my daughter who is a giraffe freak.

I went to Giraffe on a recent trip to the UK, during which I traveled alone. I was looking for a place to eat before my show. This place was great and laid back and I didn’t feel awkward eating alone there. My steak sandwich was absolutely delicious and so was my drink (which was 50% off during bar buddies)! My waiter was really friendly and attentive and even took some time to chat with me about where I was from. Even though the place was getting busy as I was finishing my meal, they weren’t rushing me out the door.

Giraffe is a chain restaurant that can’t seem to really decide what type of cuisine it would like to offer. To start with, the name suggests absolutely nothing about the cuisine. An English word, a long necked animal. Your guess is as good as mine.
I’ve only ever eaten at a Giraffe twice; once in Heathrow Airport with my parents and the other time at this one here. Neither have been particularly pleasant experiences. The menu offers things from fish and chips, to BBQ ribs, to an asian inspired duck salad. Again, what cuisine is this? I ordered the BBQ ribs, as did my friend Maria and my friend Oscar had the Haddock and chips. It was meh. I didn’t finish my ribs as they were incredibly sweet, the sauce was verging on caramel-​y, and it was so filling.
My main qualm about this branch is the staff. They were rude, dismissive, quite clearly not interested in serving you, and had to ask multiple questions about things we ordered after we’d ordered them. They also, in a chain restaurant selling painfully mediocre quality food, added the 12.5% service charge to the bill. I won’t even begin to describe the look of anger and disgust on our waitress’s face when we asked if she could take the service charge off.
I’d advise you head elsewhere.

this place was okay. across the street from our hotel so we had to check it out. the fries were very good or chips whatever they call them over there. delicious. the burger not so much. I was very happy they had cranberry juice on the menu though! never see that on a menu besides in a drink.

Needed to find a quick place for lunch before the matinée of Wicked (which is just up the street at the Apollo Victoria Theatre). Initially I suggested we go to the tried and true Le Pain Quotidien, but as I was waiting for my mom and dad to arrive I peeked at the menu next door. I saw that Giraffe had a number of vegetarian options, decent drink list, and looked empty enough where we wouldn’t have to wait. While I do love Le Pain Quotidien, I figured why not try a new chain?
I got the Mezze with Warm Naan (hummus, tzatziki, baba ganoush, brown rice salad, tabbouleh salad, vine tomato & preserved lemon tapenade, falafel & oregano halloumi skewer). A delicious assortment of my favorite Mediterranean things, all on one plate. Awesome. My sister got the Mozzarella, Pesto & Grilled Veggie Focaccia, my mom got the Butternut Squash, Bean Chilli & Melted Cheese Quesadilla, and my dad got the Farmers Market Vegetable Burrito. I didn’t try any of theirs, but they all loved what they ordered, my mom especially. The burrito is quite large, so if you’re really hungry I would suggest ordering that.
I’m giving Giraffe 4 stars instead of 3 because not only is the food great and there are plenty of options, but it is CONSISTENT. We had a bit of time to kill before our flight home, so we tried their location at Heathrow, and everything was just as good as the first time.
Knowing what you can expect makes a chain worthy of my time– I wish Giraffe had locations in the US!

I know the food choices around Victoria are limited, but I thought Giraffe was a pretty good find — especially if you’re hunting for food a little later on in the evening! It’s a chain, but still has a lot of character all on its own. We were eating pretty late, and this was one of the few decent-​looking places still open for dinner.
They have a pretty good deal where you can get a starter and a main for under £I0, though the choices are limited. I wasn’t feeling any of those and had the rump steak sandwich with chips instead. The steak sandwich was huge! Even though I was starving, I only managed to finish a tasty half.
Our waitress was really friendly and our food arrived promptly, so even though they automatically put a service charge on the bill, I didn’t mind so much (I guesssss).

I had a meeting at Giraffe and I asked one of my coworkers what they thought about it.
«Oh god, I’m never going there again,» he said.
«Why?» I asked, suddenly terrified.
«Too many kids.»
Too many kids? At a lunch spot that serves alcohol? Really?
Yes. Oh god yes.
I walked into this quaint little café and was thrown backwards by a wall of noise. Woah! This place is bustling with energy and sound, and not in that great lively kind of way but in that, «I can’t hear myself think,» kind of way. Ouch.
They do, however, have a very nice patio and the sounds of the city drowns out any sounds of children. I sat out there and had a very nice lunch.
Besides the noise, everything else was decent. I got a falafel burger which is just what it sounds like — a kebab but on a bun and it was really tasty but messy and fell apart easily in my hands. It normally came with regular fries but sweet potato fries were £1 extra and they were crispy and a great side.
Our waitress was cool and distant the entire time and it was kind of a pain to flag her down for anything. I can’t blame her though, it was insanity inside. I’m sure outside was her only chance for a moment of peace.
I was warned, now you have been too.

Giraffe can nowadays be found in many locations and I just tried the one close to Victoria Station. The food was very good, tasty burger, great salad and also a pretty good selection of both food and drinks. The food is not innovative or gourmet style but they deliver good quality dishes. The variety is also good so most people will be ale to find something they like.
Service was friendly and attentive. Food and drinks were also quickly brought to the table so all in all a good experience.

This was a 4 ½ star experience rounded up.
This casual and funky little restaurant was located right near the theater we were waiting to see Wicked at and we decided to get a quick bite before the show.
The menu was very reasonably priced and the staff was very friendly and attentive. I ordered the duck stir fry and a strawberry lime cider, which I’m officially in love with. My fella ordered the chicken kiev and an apple cider. All the food was fantastic and filling, the drinks were sublime. First time trying Rekorderlig Cider, but it’s addictive! My noodles were very light and flavorful. A great summer dish. My fella’s chicken kiev was lightly battered and had just the right seasoning and sauce. Definitely a thumbs up for the food!
I definitely recommend this place for a light dinner or drinks before a show or after work. YUM.

i really am not a big fan of giraffe-​i think the portions are too small, the staff is not very well trained and the food quality isn’t the best. i wouldn’t go again. also i do like kids but i find this place very often to loud and not relaxing