Arabesque Restaurant

Lovely family Meze meal. Excellent value, quality and service

Turned up and the place was closed! No signs on the door and wasn’t able to get through when I rang. Disappointed that I was able to even book the table if they knew they weren’t going to be open. Travelled all that way for nothing - shame.

Great for a pre-theatre meal. Just round the corner from Hampstead Theatre. Lovely food.

The food is very inventive,not the usual middle eastern fare. The service is great, especially since there was only one server for the entire restaurant.

Pleasant place to have a pre-theatre mezze, very close to the Hampstead Theatre and Swiss Cottage Tube. We will probably go again on another theatre trip.

Just had meze dishes, all delicious and very
generous portions.

Lovely gracious service and delicious food! Had the pre-theatre menu ahead of going to the Hampstead theatre, and it was fantastic. Would definitely go again!

We came here for a pre theatre meal on a cold winter night. Cosy and friendly place. We particularly loved the calimari and the very nutty baclava dessert was one of the best we had, big portions and nice teas. Overall recommended for a good reasonably priced meal.

Pre theatre snack. Selected our own mezze, and a glass of house red each. Charming owner/host. Plenty of warm pitta (thin, wrap type, not stoggy), and baklava bites gratis as we requested Bill. Great food, great value. A super local whether a quick snack or full meal.

Sadly the vegetarian mezze and taouk meals included factory made fatayer and lamb sambousak that were not home made as stated on the menu but very even and standard sized - just like bulk buy spring rolls that you buy from wholesale or freezer food retailers - same pastry and texture. Not at all appetising
Dips were good and the complimentary baklava very tasty
A real shame ; - (

We enjoyed a very pleasant meal after the theatre - the restaurant was very busy and we felt a bit concerned for the one person who was doing all the service! We weren't in a hurry at all so wasn't an issue and we really enjoyed the food. Think it might be worth their while to more staff on for a Saturday evening!

Early-evening meal. Space cramped and noisy upstairs, fairly comfortable downstairs. Food varied from delicate (e.g. squid) to bland (e.g. hummus). Portions quite generous. Modest pricing. Very convenient for Hampstead Theatre.

Tasty excellent pre theatre choice - friendly overworked but lovely helpful waitress!

Will be coming here again! My parents would love it!

good food, attentive and kind staff, relaxed atmosphere - great for dinner before going to the theatre.

Went for a quick pre theatre meal. Service was very accommodating even though it was very busy. We had a seat by the door which was very cold but hey offered us free items off the menu to compensate without being asked. We hade a mezze of starters but it was all tasty and very good value. Would go again

Lovely people, lovely food, lovely wine!

Five of us had a lovely meal consisting of a variety of mezze dishes.
It is a cosy restaurant with nice decor.
Good selection of food which was very good value.
Our waitress was very pleasant and helpful.

We sometimes come here after the theatre round the corner. The other night we were particularly late because the play ran over, but because we had booked, Arabesque were ready for us, we ordered quickly and our chicken kofte arrived quickly. A good bottle of Lebanese wine and we were done. We are always impressed by the willingness of the staff to accommodate us, the decor is pleasant, and the food is reliably good although never unusual - which is totally fine by us because that is why we keep coming back!

Very good food with Authentic Lebanese taste. Also the value for money

Recommended by a friend who is a local. Wonderful surprise!

A group of us sat in lovely cosy corner in the back of this brightly lit restaurant after afternoon theatre. I had the vegetarian mezze for one. They were kind enough to swap the stuffed vine leaf for squid which were the most edible part of the meal. The Tahbulah was almost inedible and more like seaweed. The Humus was sour. As I felt somewhat unsatisfied I bought a separate portion of Soujok (beef sausages) which was definitly not fresh or cooked in old oil. It was rancid. Other guests had plates of grill which they found mediocre.
I have eaten better middle eastern style food from greasy takeaways in London that are totally memorable by comparison, a Syrian take-away restaurant at the bottom of my street for instance.
Arabesque need to stick to fresh food with flavor. So much promise but I have eaten far, far better at half the price. Selling food that is not freshly prepared is unforgivable. Will not be visiting again which is such a shame because I go to the nearby theatre quite a lot.

The menu was very limited as they had no lamb available. I have enjoyed meze before at this restaurant but this time had a main meal which was just about adequate. We had booked a table for 9.15 which we thought was reasonable for Friday night and was a post theatre meal. However, we felt very uncomfortable as the staff were literally cleaning up around us and taking out rubbish, so felt the need to rush our meal. If the restaurant IS closing at ten I feel that they should not make post 9pm bookings.

We had an early booking and it was surprisingly quiet, however it filled up by the time we left. All good and not expensive. Parking relatively easy.

Great food, great value, especially for the area. Would definitely recommend!

Good food, good prices, pleasant environment, near the theatre!

Excellent and friendly service. Given lots of time to order and enjoy our meal. We had a great get together with friends in a warm and friendly atmosphere.

We arrived late at Arabesque, having informed them of traffic problems, and were seated immediately. There appeared to be only one waitress, and the restaurant was full. She was charming and efficient but there was no way she could cope with all the diners, most of whom were scheduled to go to the theatre next door. The food was so slow in arriving, that by the time we got it, we had about 7 minutes to eat.
The food was nice but we really couldn't enjoy it.
We were allowed to come back after the theatre to pay, and were given doggy bags and gratis baklava which was welcome.
I would recommend this restaurant, but only on the proviso that they hired more staff.

Good lunch and pre theatre dining. Tasty, varied dishes. Charming staff. Good value. Avoid the decaf cappuccino which is instant. They may do good Lebanese or Turkish coffee and of course tea.

Food, service, atmosphere excellent. Can't wait to return to try another dish.

Well cooked food, good service, pleasant atmosphere. NO LOUD MUSAC, hooray.

Highly recommended. Service was genuine, food was excellent (lots of it) and the prices were very fair, especially for London!

Really good variety of Middle Eastern dishes that combine for great meal. Excellent service.

Service and food were both great. Small family run restaurant which made it more special.

Saturday lunch pre theatre. Food so fresh & authentic. House wines good. Great value (& large portions!).

Friendly atmosphere, great service, huge portions and a good choice of dishes. A grilled spring chicken was overly salted but tasty. Divine nutty and not too sweet baklava-like pastries delivered before the bill.

As usual a very good meal and courteous and efficient service. Excellent value

Our first visit last Monday won't be our last. Delicious food, excellent service and very good prices - we had a pre-theatre meal, with grilled chicken cubes, various dips and salads and bread, followed by coffee which was served with small baklava. Service was very good and efficient, given that our waitress seemed to be the only one serving. Will definitely go back next time we are going to Hampstead Theatre.

Booked on line for 8 of us.
Must say, a real gem. The hostess was extremely attentive and helpful. We decided to get the large Mezze for all of us. Absolutely great food, really tasty and such good value for money.
Highly recommended!

We had a pre theatre meal and it was lovely; prompt, courteous service, food was delicious & location perfect.

A pre-theatre meal. Service very friendly. Food took a while to come and was ok. It's small, and certainly not quiet, but if a restaurant is quiet it usually means it isn't popular.