Antipodea Kew - London

Very overpriced and somewhat unfriendly service. The host didn’t even say hello to us before barking “do you have a reservation with us??” which we didn’t. Our order was noted down wrong and the wrong dish was brought, which was rectified fairly quickly but was awkward. I actually am still thinking about the prices and how outrageous they are for the quality, even in today’s market! The sweetcorn fritters in the photo are £16.50 and extra for the feta and egg! As we left nobody even said bye or thank you. We won’t go back.

I was in the Kew branch this morning to find just one waitress trying to take orders, clear tables, make coffees juices bring out orders. She was still alone 3 hours later. She was doing her best, but it is impossible for one person to manage an entire restaurant. It looked and felt abusive. Some customers were venting their frustration on her. I was a regular customer but I will not return there. Judging by their very high prices they can afford to employ sufficient staff, but choose not to.

Way overpriced with 15% service charge on top...evenings are a no go whilst lunch has better selection and better value. I'm still smarting from the £16.50 not-that-impressive salad.

Loved the cool decor. Nice furnishings and a light airy space. A comfortable casual feel. I visited first for an excellent cappuccino in the morning prior to visiting Kew Gardens (the coffee is much better here). There also were gorgeous cakes including an amazing lemon meringue pie. Pleasant, friendly efficient staff. I returned for lunch. The choice is very varied and their very modern breakfasts are available all day. I opted for folded eggs (a large portion of sort of folded very thin omlette), with roasted tomatoes and feta and smoked salmon sides. All were very generous portions. Their house rose was very good and well priced. I would definitely return.

2 of us chose the hake and crab cakes which were good. 2 of us chose the Lemak Laksa which were poor. I strongly advise the manager to remove this from the menu because the soup base was thin/watery, and needed more stock and coconut milk. It was missing tofu as described on the menu, which arrived when asked for, but was sour to taste! (Off! It was an expensive laksa and was a huge disappointment.