Cote Avis 

Cote Wokingham was exceptional as always. Serena and team always on top of everything and the food, wine and service were excellent. We loved the new menu! Will return soon!

Visited today there were 4 of us. We had the set menu it was excellent and well priced service good too very cool and really enjoyed the food

Visited the Henley branch and was very disappointed. I ordered Plaice Frites,
Panko crusted fish fillets, crushed petit pois & housemade tartare sauce with free-flow frites
Sounded good but fillets is plural implying more than one. The one that was served was very small and it was difficult to find any fish within the thick crust of panko and when I did find some fish it was an unbelievable colour for plaice. It was brown! The peas on the other hand were delicious and service was pleasant. Don't think I'll bother again though.

One star only because zero stars isn't an option!
I visited Côte St Christopher’s Place on Saturday 11 July with three friends after a shopping trip to London. We wanted to finish our afternoon with what we expected would be a lovely dinner and a bottle of wine at a restaurant that has previously been reliable and consistently good.
The restaurant was not particularly busy, either outside or inside. Despite the warm weather, we chose to sit indoors to benefit from the air conditioning.
Unfortunately, the experience went downhill almost immediately. We stood at the entrance for around five minutes before anyone acknowledged us and showed us to a table. Once seated, we waited a further 15 minutes before having to ask someone if we could order a bottle of wine, some water and a large glass of ice.
Our bottle of Mirabeau Azure Rosé (£41) eventually arrived after another 10 minutes, but it was disappointingly warm. When we mentioned that it wasn't chilled as we would have expected, the waiter dismissively told us it had come straight from the fridge and merely added more ice to the ice bucket.
To make matters worse, the glass of ice was small and most of the cubes were frozen together in large clumps, making them difficult to use. We had to request more ice.
After pouring our own wine, we then waited another 15–20 minutes before anyone came to take our food order. By this stage, we had been sitting there for well over half an hour and had completely lost confidence that the food would arrive within a reasonable timeframe. We therefore decided to pay for the wine and leave.
When the bill eventually arrived, we were charged £51.70, which included a 10% service charge. When we asked for the service charge to be removed, the waiter explained that he was the only waiter working. Realy no sympathy with that situation, poor staffing levels are a management issue and should not become the customer's responsibility.
The service charge was eventually removed, although we still ended up paying £47 for a bottle of rosé, water and a thoroughly disappointing experience.
It's such a shame, as Côte has always been a dependable choice in the past. However, on this occasion the service was appalling, and judging by other recent reviews, we are clearly not alone in feeling that standards have slipped.
On a positive note, we found another restaurant just down the street where the food, service and staff were exceptional, and it completely salvaged our evening.
Sadly, we won't be returning to Côte.

Terrible ! Steak was cold and hard drinks were not what they were on the menu ?! When server got drink wrong added it to bill and also GUESS WHAT : £21 QUID SERVICE CHARGE ?!!!!! 220 quid for 2 small steaks a calamari two prawns and a few drinks ?!!!

Pretty awful really at Cote Clifton Bristol on Wed July 8th at 0810 for breakfast with a friend. The place was empty but it took quite a while for the only person there to take our order for two basic breakfasts. We must have then waited another 20 minutes to get our food.

Meanwhile the three outside commercial sized bins bins were emptied and to my horror they were then trundled through the restaurant into the kitchen area.

There was nothing special about my £15 breakfast, 1 egg, 1 sausage, a few mushrooms, half a tomato and a bread brioche, warm rather than hot on a warm plate. Tea was extra. My friend paid I did not see the final bill but I guess for two it was around £40. Compared with the 'Spoons' £3.19 breakfast deal plus £1 for unlimited coffee served within 10 minutes it was a rip off.

Friends told me since the takeover Cote had gone down the pan...in this case the frying pan!

We ordered the 'new' brunch burger which we ordered at 10.45am. We were told it was only served from 11.30am. We explained that that wasn't stated in the promo email we received,
Whoever took our order said he would check with the kitchen staff but that it should be fine to order earlier. There was no mention that it wouldn't be Ok. We had to ask where our food was. They made us wait 45 minutes for our breakfast, which coincidentally didn't arrive until 11.30am. It was far from busy either! Our son's order was incorrect and the buns were not brioche buns as stated in the email. False advertising or many levels.
We all agreed the service and the quality of the food was below standard. We won't be returning there any time soon, even though we have been going there for around 14 years and we had my husband's 50th birthday celebrations therel
We also went there for dinner recently and it was very poor. My son's order was wrong on this occasion too. Sadlv, when Gheorge and his team left, it all went downhill. Whoever you have working in your kitchen at Reigate needs a talking to, because you don't come down into the restaurant and walk past the customers you are keeping waiting for so long! Côte, I really hope vou take this feedback on board, as you have lost us as customers and we certainly won't be recommending you any time soon.

Good food, poor service!
Had good meal but trying to order dessert very poor service and that was from lady on front desk! Some staff wandering around or some on their phones, when finally got attention told to wait, so much for customer service when challenged she said had to see to someone else who had just walked in, forget that she had been playing with her phone and the customer who has been there for over an hour but suddenly she becomes attentive and vocal when I complained to another member of staff!
Cote you need to do some training in your Barbican restaurant!!

Had lunch at the Shrewsbury branch 6th July. Was given incorrect information by waitress which incurred us paying more than we should have done, even though the manageress informed her that she was incorrect,( unaware to us until later), whilst the correct information was not relayed to us, resulting in a higher bill than necessary. The pasta dish was lukewarm and on requesting parmesan it arrived when the meal had been half consumed and we were charged extra for it. Extra fries took ages to arrive as did my beer. I could go on. But at the end the manageress was very rude and unhelpful not wanting to admit fault. Then they had the check to add a Service Charge

Sent three separate messages to the Salisbury branch of Cote Brasserie. None were either acknowledged or answered. Customer service?? I think not.

We ordered the 'new' brunch burger which we ordered at 10.45am. We were told it is only served from 11.30am. Whoever took our order said he would check with the kitchen staff but that it should be fine to order earlier. They made us wait 45 minutes for our breakfast. Shocking service and came to £130 for 5 of us. No mention beforehand of how much the burger would be even though we did ask. We all agreed the service and the quality of the food was below standard. We won't ever be returning there, even though we have been there numerous times. There were only 3 tables when we arrived, so to make us wait almost an hour for a breakfast is just not acceptable!

I have been a frequent visitor to Côte for a long time and have historically enjoyed consistent quality, value and service, which is why I was particularly disappointed by my most recent visit. It feels as though the standards are slipping.

I ordered a medium-rare steak, but it arrived almost well-done barring a small hint of colour in the middle. I sent it back, and the server took the plate away. She returned shortly after to double-check whether I meant it was under or overcooked, which was quite surprising given it was so overcooked.

Matters worsened when she returned with the exact same piece of steak. It was now cold, and she informed me that the chef insisted it was, in fact, medium-rare. It is frustrating and mildly embarrassing to be dismissed when the error was so visually apparent. I've had steak a grade off before and I don't usually send back as I hate the waste. While I accepted the offer to have a new steak prepared, the delay meant my family had finished their meals by the time my food finally arrived. The replacement was very much rare (certainly not medium rare), but I didn't want any further fuss and I am happy enough with rare steak anyway.

The most disappointing part of the visit was the lack of any apology offered throughout the process. It was made out that I was just a difficult customer who was in the wrong. I would love to see a return to the consistent quality I have experienced here in the past, but on this occasion, the service and kitchen standards fell well short of expectations.

Cote Liverpool

June 2026
Booked meal for our Wedding Anniversary.
Asked me if it was a special occasion and mentioned Anniversary.
In the past received a complimentary glass of wine.
Cote no longer offers this. So why ask??
Panko plaice I looked forward to was off the menu. Not what you want to hear in a restaurant.
The prawn starter was fine.
Salmon instead of plaice tasted burnt as did the fried potatoes. ? The seasoning.. The sauce was not nice.
Three times of asking before I received my water.
Very poor salmon dish.
Service ok . Staff friendly.
Overall not a pleasant experience.
Had better meals here in the past.
Also their prices keep going up due to prevailing woes for the restaurant industry.

Visited the Tunbridge Wells Restaurant today. Had a lovely lunch with my husband. Thank you to Gabi for such great service. We will be back soon.

Fab service by Lyndsey! Thank you so much for making our brief stop very enjoyable. Great service and great food. Esher branch

Cotes is now overpriced poor quality small portions and rude uninterested staff. We spent £300 in Cotes Soho this evening and when we asked if we could have our loyalty card stamped the manager refused telling us we should have mentioned it before paying our bill. He was unhelpful and quite rude. I used to visit cotes a lot but since the takeover the service food and customer care has declined enormously I certainly won’t be going back and especially to the Soho restaurant

So pleased that you have actually listened to your customers over the last 8 months, since you changed ownership, and have gone back to the regular, popular dishes on your menu as from today.
Hopefully your reviews will once again be more positive. It would be a shame to lose Cote from the high street.

Another disappointing visit to Cote. Esher this time.
Manager of Cote Esher wouldn't accept a passport ID, which I had a photograph of on my phone, for my 18yr old to have a small glass of wine with a 3 course meal. Which was annoying but much more offensive than that was his aggressive response when I said that it's a government issue ID it's accepted by everyone, he replied '"WELL I DON'T!"

The Law: In the UK, it is legal for 16 and 17-year-olds to drink beer, wine, or cider with a table meal if accompanied by an adult. However, the adult must purchase the alcohol, and spirits are strictly prohibited. For anyone under 16, or for younger teens having other types of drinks, it is not permitted.

As well as the unnecessarily aggressive response to the I.D. was that some of the food was sub-standard. The chicken liver parfait is like slop and both people who had it didn't eat it. Dont bother ordering. It is no longer the delicious firm pate it was pre 2025. The king prawn starter doesn't contain king prawns and is swimming in oil. The crab starter and onion soup were apparently delicious. The main courses were good especially the sea bream. One positive thing is that instead of the new stodgy oven chips they tried they've gone back to proper French fries, which were good.
The desserts were ok but they didn't have the best one -creme caramel and they didn't have chocolate ice cream. The chocolate mousse, (similar to the liver parfait) is not firm enough and is served with salt, frozen raspberry bits, hazelnuts, olive oil and salty biscuits. It felt gimmicky and the extra bits weren't enjoyed by the 3 people who had them. The extras with the mousse are largely a waste of time and money and not eaten. The chocolate mousse itself was reported as ok.
In conclusion, having been customers of Cote for as long as it's been open in Wimbledon Village and then Cobham and Esher over the years, we are no longer confident of a good experience. The staff are not as friendly, the food is not as reliably good and eating out is so expensive it is an easy choice not to go. Sadly the changes in the menu and staff has made Cote an unreliable no go area. Not a success story for Steve Allen. Goodbye Cote.

Very disappointed with my recent experience at Côte Chelmsford and, if I'm honest, even more disappointed with the way the complaint has been handled.
I visited on 6th June and experienced poor service on arrival, a dismissive attitude from the manager, and food that was well below the standard I would expect. Credit where it is due, Ben who served me was excellent and deserves recognition.
I wasn't looking for compensation and simply wanted to provide feedback and hopefully restore some confidence in the brand. Unfortunately, this turned into a lengthy back-and-forth with the Guest Excellence team, with an initial £10 gesture which I felt did not reflect the experience or inconvenience caused.
When I explained that I would have little option but to share my experience publicly and with others if we could not reach a satisfactory conclusion, I was disappointed to be told that "we do not respond to threats". This was never intended as a threat, merely a statement that, after exhausting the complaints process, customers are entitled to share honest feedback and their genuine experiences.
Whilst a refund was eventually offered, the handling of the complaint itself has left me with little confidence in returning with my family, which is a shame as I had previously held Côte in high regard.
I hope this feedback is taken in the spirit intended and that others receive a better experience than I did.

Three of us ate at Côte in Shrewsbury on Saturday night because our favourite Italian Restaurant was full. Côte was quiet. We needed to eat quickly as we had a theatre booking about an hour after arriving. The meals arrived quickly and were delicious and beautifully presented. The portions were sensible. My salade niçoise looked and tasted wonderful. My husband's steak was perfect and our friend's meal was great too. The wines were enjoyed. There was nothing to fault with Côte. The standard was better than the branch in Birmingham that that I used to frequent. My only (very slight) criticism was that the service wasn't sparkling. it was polite, it was efficient and all that it should be other than being slightly flat and distracted. A little more warmth would have made the experience an 11 out of ten. Otherwise - well done, Côte. You've definitely earned our repeat custom.