The Penthouse

The Penthouse is very new open and I’m willing to forgive it a couple of things because of this but there are some glaring problems with this restaurant.
The staff, whilst friendly, give the impression of being under trained. There are little chef style table numbers on each table that scream cheapness. The bar staff also don’t seem quite confident enough on the cocktails. We were invited to go to the bar as we entered the restaurant but then rushed through to the restaurant as soon as we had our drinks in our hands. They weren’t particularly busy so there wasn’t really any need to rush us.
The décor is pretty naff. Along the walls is orange velvet bench seating with peculiar shaped black plastic chairs. These weren’t quite as uncomfortable as they looked but still screamed tackiness. The tables are also just on the verge of being too close together. It”s OK until they start serving the food to other tables, at which point the waiting staff have to get too close to you.
All this is a shame as the food was pretty good. We shared the chateaubriand, which was cooked perfectly with a good selection of vegetables. In fact, there was probably too much food and I would have preferred a little less on the serving platter.
To end our experience with the restaurant we had to battle with the lifts in the tower. They had a doorman posted by the lifts purely to try to get them to come to the restaurant floor. They are notorious for not working.