West Bridgford town centre welcomed a new wagamama restaurant on November 1, the second one in the greater Nottingham area. Reporter Shannon Samecki went to give it a try.
After visiting the new highly-anticipated pan Asian chain, I was slightly disappointed with my experience to say the least.
Initially, there was a long queue to be seated as we arrived – which was not surprising because wagamama is extremely popular and nine times out of 10 you always have to wait outside.
It was evident from being seated that the restaurant had just opened because the staff appeared flustered, and new to the job with the occasional glass being accidentally smashed behind the bar.
As a lover of the famous Katsu Curry my food arrived lukewarm which although made fresh to order, this did not seem like the case.
Tables around us seemed to also have a similar experience with their food not arriving for a while or orders getting mixed up with other tables.
Quite a few customers could also be overheard complaining about the food and the service that went hand in hand.
Even the kitchen staff and head chef could be seen complaining about the servers not taking orders out quick enough and not being sure what they were doing with the huge influx of orders coming in.
The atmosphere was loud and hectic which mirrored the service.
However, despite the unorganised system, the interior was divine and you could tell everything was brand new from the tables to the toilets, in comparison to the corner house wagamama chain that has been there for 20 years.
Wagamama had previously planned to move into the unit in 2013 however Carluccio’s restaurant chain moved in instead.
Although, as of last year Carluccio’s as a company went into administration therefore wagamama was able to finally move in after an 8 year delay.
Overall, the West Bridgford wagamama chain could have a long life ahead of itself if the staff manage to overcome their teething problems and get into an organised fashion with the running of the chain.
