Aquavit London

We visited this restaurant on Sunday as a group of 4, we were allocated a really nice table close to the kitchen so we felt like we were part of the action at all times. The menu is obviously written in traditional names but the staff are on hand to explain and recommend great dishes. The food arrived and we were so delighted, its fresh ingredients are so brilliant, my beef was cooked to perfection and melt in the mouth. Staff were amazing throughout our visit and we have already booked to come back in a month. HIGHLY recommend this restaurant it is unique, fresh and a pleasure to have visited.

The food was amazing but the service could be better. We needed to remind everyone that we needed this or that. Not a deal breaker though. Didn't tarnish my experience at all, it's just that for a Michelin 1 star restaurant I expected the staff to be on top of things.

Well designed restaurant with a balanced menu and friendly staff. Delivered good value for money and . I would definitely consider visiting again.

We had a gorgeous brunch for 2, off the a la carte. 3 smorgasbord dishes between us and a main each. Presented beautifully. Simple ingredients. Unfussy. Staff were professional but not hovering.

Service terrible. No attention from waiting staff. Food delayed - clearly have a problem with staff quantity /quality. They obviously realise this as they took off service charge without me even complaining - it’s a pity because food is good and historically I have enjoyed going there. Will not go back

A great wintery spot.

Excellent food in a light airy atmosphere. Service was excellent.

We had the Pre Theatre 3 course meal and what a great option it was. Service with a smile from everyone and a truly wonderful experience, that we have not stopped telling everyone about. If you get a chance try this out, you won’t regret it!

great restaurant, amazing mid century/ar deco decor and the food always outstanding for the fish lovers. I would definitely recommend.

Starter was amazing,
Meatballs were nice but the gravy was too sweet and mash was quite salty.
Very worth it for the price

Anniversary

Wunderbar wie immer

Enjoyed my meal of crab and gravad lax(two starters) . Lovely breads. It was quiet as Saturday at 3.00. 13 year old with me was not estatic about his burger, he thought the brioche bun soggy.... I wouldn’t take him there again. But I enjoyed it .

Excellent meal. Everything was very good and most enjoyable.

Food was great. Ambiance very cool. Service was slow but they were very nice.

Aquavit in London's buzzing St. James's Market is consistently slick and efficient but with a warm welcome and cheerful service.
The Scandi look is attractive but some might find it austere. My companion and I find it comfortable and welcoming - there's space and a feeling of quality. Don't go to save money, but you will feel it's worth it

We had the pre-theatre menu 2 courses with a shot and glass of wine each. Excellent choice of starters and delicious mains! Presentation of food was impeccable. Service was very efficient as we had a theatre show at 7.30pm. We dined from 6.15pm. Highly recommended.

International, creative twist on the Nordic kitchen, a joy and a surprise to discover. Extra plus for the idea of "Nordic settlements" on the win list, including descendants of Norwegian, Swedish and Danish settlers around the world who produce quality wine. Chic and stylish without being posh.

amazing service and the food was perfect - great flavor and presentation. the cocktails were amazing as well. would 100% recommend.

Food excellent. Great value for money. Service very good too. Deserves credits

I have been an Aquavit fan for many years starting 20 years ago living in NYK. I was delighted when they opened in London with a more Scandinavia flavour and I have been going once a quarter or so since the opening. This week I went twice and while the food is still excellent the service has dropped markedly.
Inattentive and less informed staff. They serve the snaps ((aquavit) Luke warm unlike the newly opened EKTE (Bloomberg building) where they keep the aquavit in the freezer as any Scandinavian would do. They also continue to serve the snaps way before the food. Perhaps to sell more but not a scandi custom or even pleasant. This week, at the bar, they served my three smorgardsbord courses exactly at the same time and since two of them were warm by definition I had to eat one when it had cooled. I would be sad if this deterioration of what is very good food would continue to deteriorate and perhaps an influx of knowledgeable Scandinavians would add to the quality of the experience. I still rate them ok but if you try EKTE you fill find simpler cheaper but more genuine Cousine and more enthusiastic staff. Let’s hope for improvement!

Good ingredients simply prepared (in a Scandanavian style), well priced. Interesting cocktails. Good buzz, not quiet, but not so loud as to drown conversation.

Excellent food and great atmosphere. And a high selection of aquavit.

Service was poor. First courses can before we had even had chance to order a drink. Then came the bread which is a highlight at Aquavit but not after you’ve finished your man course. Wine didn’t arrive either until after we’d finished starters. Wine waiter didn’t know his own list. I had to show him that wines by the glass were also available by the bottle under the column headed bottle. He insisted twice they were only available by the glass!
Fire alarm went off and all lights went up.
Main courses delicious. Particularly the turbot.
Very slow on bringing bill.
Afraid aquavit has gone off the boil. Clearly staffing challenges.

Great restaurant; lovely food - nice ambience. Would recommend!

They food was ok nothing groundbreaking though. I would say average food, high bill.

Excellent food and great service

Beautiful ambience and fab food. Highly recommended!!

Probably one of the best value restaurants in this area - the pre/post theatre set menu has a small but brilliant selection of top notch dishes from the a la carte. Portion sizes are good and the wine choices are excellent. Great service - a real treat!

Great Service Friendly Staff Well prepared food! Love the decor and the china too!

Great location for a London meet up or pre-theatre matinee. The set menu is good value. This was my second visit and the restaurant was quite busy and the service was not quite as good as the first time I visited. However, I would still return as the menu choices offer the sort of lunch I enjoy.

Second visit to Aquavit and it didn’t disappoint. Delicious gravlax, matje, shrimp, meatballs and cod. Super service by the charming and very funny Robert. Only slight gripe is it took a LONG time from ordering glasses of wine for them to appear at our table. But it’s definitely my new favourite place in central London

great and authentic Scandinavian food with great selection of aquavit and real herring/ salmon/meatballs

We wanted to celebrate a birthday with Scandinavian food, so this restaurant was perfect. It's in a good location in central London. Staff was very friendly. Food was very good.

I will begin by making a fair comment that the food was absolutely outstanding. I had oysters and their homemade toppings/sauces to go on it were one of the best I've tried from across the world. The bread and butter was also comparatively of a high quality. The lamb belly and duck mains were both impressive also. I tried some red wine (from Portugal) and it was a great choice by the restaurant.

Unfortunately, and it is a huge unfortunately, the service is a complete let down. I was greeted and shown to my seat as one would expect. However, after asking if we would like water (which I accepted), the waiters repeatedly walked around ignoring my partner and I. There was one waiter who said he was new that did come along after a while and we asked if there was a set menu as advertised outside, he wasn't sure and said he will go and find out. We saw him check with his colleague and the pair avoided us for the next 20 minutes. I chased twice during this time. Eventually I had to get up and speak to the manager who assured me the service will be turned around. My order was finally taken and bread finally served.

The whole time, the same waiters were not providing much of a service at all. The new waiter did come over eventually a long time after we finished the oysters and my partner asked for more bread, to which he said "sure, I'll bring you more bread and butter." 20 minutes later, we find both waiters avoiding us again and we had to ask another member of staff for bread, who managed to serve it in 5 minutes.

The Food was definitely of a Michelin star level, the service unfortunately doesn't exist and frankly, a high street Italian chain provides better service than that. It was a complete shame because my partner and I were both thinking of recommending people to try them out - but not at the cost of 0 service!

Great service. Nice atmosphere and good food :)

Definitely going back~
Love the food, outstanding service and overall atmosphere.

Excellent food and attentive service. St. James’s Market is a lovely location, convenient to theaters but removed from street noise. Oysters were perfect with the aquavit pairing, and the duck was sublime.

Great! Best place in London I’ve ever been. Drinks, food and climate

We had a very nice diner with perfect service !! We will certainly come back !! Best regards Gunther & Kathleen