Pasha

This place is boarded up and closed. Based on the reviews, I was excited to try it but it’s a no-​go.
(Just a word of warning if you are walking aimlessly looking for this place with no GPS like me. :))

Whilst Pasha deserves some love for wonderful North African décor and some decent if not stellar cooking, I think I need to give you some warning if you’re planning a big meal here. My complaints are issues that mean I’ll never go back, but if you think you’ll not encounter these yourselves, then please read some of the other more positive reviews after mine.
I took my team here for a big afternoon lunch and was supposed to get a discount for using a Taste card too. In the end, it still came to be quite expensive and the receipt left me feeling a bit ripped off. I didn’t want to ruin our afternoon by fussing so I left it on the day, but called back to complain the next day. The issues I had are:
1. They wouldn’t serve us tap water. Apparently it’s not good enough for drinking here but hey — they still cook with it! When called back about they said that they usually give customers bottled water and then offer to comp it on the house instead. Not for us. Dodgy stuff.
2. They were incredibly slow even though it was nearly empty for lunch. Clearly a tactic to get us to buy more drinks.
3. The receipt included a random £12 table charge that was never explained. I called back about this but they never answered that question.
4. I phoned back several times to complain and ask about the charges and water. First few times I was told that the number given is not actually Pasha but some person’s place where they do the booking from. Eventually I spoke to one person who said the tap water issue was an order from the owner, but they couldn’t explain the £12 charge. They always took my number and told me they’d call me back but they never have after 6 months.
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I’ve written nearly 900 reviews in 5 years for Unilocal and you’ll struggle to find me being negative and picky like this in more than 10 of my reviews. I’m not just having a rant here — I really wanted to like Pasha — I just don’t want other Unilocalers to leave here with the same bad taste that I did.

I will sit on the 3-​star-​fence with this one.
Pros:
— Beautiful ambience, with petals and candles everywhere
— Live belly dancing
— Delicious (if not immensely plentiful) starters
— Very nice mint tea at the end
— They didn’t rush us to leave
Cons:
— Pay £3 cover if you don’t get the set menu (£30 to £50)
— Pay £4 for one bottle of water
— Main courses for our group (one of 3 tables there) arrived in 2 batches, 15 minutes apart!
— «Dessert» was a miniature tray of mini-​bite-​size oriental sweets. Nice, but a miser’s portion.
I would like to say it was horrible, but I enjoyed the evening. My wallet, on the other hand, really didn’t. Food-​wise, you’re better off going to the Grand Bazaar in St Christopher’s place. The ambiance, however, was good fun and relaxing.
Guys, this is excellent for first-​date romantic ambiance, although I’m not sure what she’d make of the belly dancing!

Two words: disappointing and expensive.
Not even the belly dancing lessons delivered tableside could make up for the insanely overcooked and dry-​as-​a-​desert meat.
Return? I would not.

Went there on a Saturday evening with family, reserved a while ago, the place was packed.
The best thing about the place is really the atmosphere and the decorations (see MissGood’s review). We had some parties there so the place was pretty lively which made it more enjoyable for me, but not for the others who wanted to have a conversation.
I am usually asolutely against forced entertainment during dinner, but the belly dancer was absolutely gorgeous and the performance didn’t last longer than 10 minutes.
The food was good, but considering a 200+ GBP bill for four the place is pretty expensive given that the dishes are rather small. A guy on the neighbouring table almost started a fight over the size of his couscous dish.

Meat, meat and more meat. Vegetarians be warned, you can eat here but you’ll probably be put off by the «Mmmmmmm…» and «Ahhhhhhhhhh“s coming from your dining partners.
I came here with a group of people, some I knew well, others not so well. I thought the belly dancing entertainment would break the ice. It’s also a place that has be recommended to me over and over again but I was yet to visit. I will say the food is nice, some dishes lovely but they sell themselves on the entertainment and atmosphere and unfortunately that was lost as our group of 5 was squished into one of their cubbie-​holes at the back. By this I mean, we had a tiny private area with a small doorway where the food was served and we had very low seats. Being the little lady (in height not width) that I am, I could just about fit in but my dining partners struggled.
Anyone over the height of 5ft 6″ should not sit in these seats and it made for quite an uncomfortable evening. But as I said the food was wonderful, pricey but tasty, I just don’t think I’ll be back again soon.

Enchantingly beautiful décor. Decent vegetarian options. Reasonable prices. Friendly and attentive (yet not pushy) staff. You can smoke hookah here. And, yes, the bathrooms are exquisitely gorgeous.
On a Tuesday night, no one was in the upstairs bar area and there were plenty of tables available in the downstairs dining room.

For pics and more please visit me on:

Pasha is a posh Moroccan restaurant in Gloucester Road and it unfortunately did not impress me at all. Pasha and my relationship was off to a bad start as its website plays a very very annoying music which took me forever to switch off resulting in me being highly irritated. This would have been already enough to put me off Pasha forever, but I had to give it a chance: I needed a pre-​concert restaurant before going to the Royal Albert Hall and Pasha happens to be 50% off on Taste London. So there we go.
Using our taste London card we did not feel ripped off, even though we were not entirely satisfied with the food (yellow light). Paying full price however would have really really hurt (red light).
I have to admit I was impressed when I entered the restaurant. Everything is gold and glittery and beautifully decorated, bordering on kitsch with candles and lanterns and rose petals scattered everywhere. If they had just put the same attention to their food, this would have been a blissful evening. All the dishes however had one thing in common and this was exceptional blandness and I would have happily exchanged kilos of rose petals against a little bit of chili or some seasoning
Also the waiters did not quite fit into the concept of oriental palace. The young man did his best and was at least friendly, while the waitress was plain rude. There was no ‘please’ or ‘would you’ or anything else remotely polite but shouted commands starting with ‘lady’. I don’t think she meant to be rude (this is my belief in the goodness of human nature) and she is just in the very wrong job. I would recommend something for her without ANY customer contact.
We received some complimentary olives and bread. Olives were quite nice, the bread was not that great I have to say with one kind being too greasy, the other too dry.
We shared 5 different cold and hot starters between the five of us. I usually love the smoky flavour of the roasted aubergine purée. Pasha’s Zaalouk (5.50) was bland and unsatisfying. The deep fried baby squid (Makale Samak (6.25)) looked very much like Italian calamari and was not bad actually. It came with a chili coconut dipping sauce which I thought tasted great. I think this sauce might have actually been the highlight of a whole dinner of mediocrities.
The Saltaoun (5.95) crab and sweetcorn falafel were the lowest point: dust-​dry and completely tasteless, it was a very unsuccessful dish. I can’t say what the sauce was it came with as it also did not taste of anything at all. The beetroot salad (4.75) was interesting and I rather enjoyed it. The sweetness of the beetroot and acidity of the orange harmonised very nicely with the honey and cinnamon in the dressing. Kataifya Keffta (7.25), wrapped prawns with citrus avocado purée, were again rather mediocre.
For the main I had the S’csou Lalla Aicha (15) char-​grilled chicken breast on couscous. It was supposed to be marinated in saffron, lemon confit and ginger, neither of which tastes I could pick up. It was a generous portion and, even though the chicken was a bit dry, it was not bad as such. You would not call it exactly an explosion of flavour however, and eating it was similarly unsatisfying as eating when you have a bad cold with a blocked nose and you can’t taste anything.
The others shared the Sniwat Laham Meshwi (19.50) mixed grill of lamb, chicken, merguez skewers and tomato salad. This dish seemed terribly overpriced. The meat was ok but nothing special and it did not come with any sides.
I thought it was a shame that the food did not live up to the expectations induced by the exotic atmosphere and the comparably high prices. Whilst the quality of the ingredients did not seem bad at all, the complete lack of flavour was strangely depressing and I was also depressed by the rude waitress. In the end not too much would have to change to make this into a really decent restaurant, but as it stands at the moment I would not recommend it.

Beautiful.
Colourful.
Exotic.
Bland?
Not a word I was expecting to creep into my mind while eating here. I was very excited to visit this spot and the atmosphere and décor were running on all cylinders. But for a spot that has such a flavourful ambiance, I really thought the food would be on the same level, and even beyond.
I was pretty disappointed. The crab and corn falafel had a good consistency and crunch: texture ratio but even the sauce they were served in could not save them. The hommus I had read others rave about was tasteless. Our chicken entrees (sister got the Tagine Djaj and I got the S’csou Lalla Aicha) were cooked well and looked lovely… just zero taste. Even the broth served with mine couldn’t save plain chicken with plain couscous.
One bright moment was my cocktail, the Marrakech Express. Now this is the effort that should be put into everything here, expertly crafted and such a wonderful taste. In another life I’d have racked up a £40 bill on those babies alone and then passed out on a hand beaded silk throw pillow e_​_​e

Pasha possibly has the most extravagantly decked out bathroom I’ve seen in the last few years. Brilliant orange flowers floating in hammered metal bowls, a shiny silver urinal trough, decorative glass beads in the sink, utter opulence. And that’s just in the bathrooms! The rest of the space is equally decadent, with cushions and pillows adorning the many benches, subtly glowing chandeliers, and plenty of elaborate wood carvings.
Service mirrors the décor in this den of dining. As do the starter Mediterranean small dishes on the set menus, which is apparently mandatory for parties of six or greater. Cumin potatoes, hummus, and courgettes with yogurt all came out deliciously filling.
They might as well have ended the «feast» there — our grilled meat entrée was edible, at best. Though the presentation of cubed meat on heavy skewers was impressive, it was obvious without even picking up a utensil that virtually every last bit of moisture had been grilled the heck out of everything. What a stark departure from the dizzying heights of greatness offered up by our first course!
After that kind of sobering disappointment, even the deliciousness of refreshing mint tea, sweet treats, and savory nuts for dessert couldn’t help recover the experience.
Beautiful joint for some appetizers and drinks (hellooooo Ardbeg neat!). If you’re going for dinner with a group, I’d strongly advise steering clear of the grill feast, unless you’re a fan of gnawing on savory leather.

This restaurant is absolutely stunning, the décor is beautiful, it is so romantic, there were rose petals scattered everywhere, there are lanterns on the staircase and it is candle lit. There are small little cave like seating areas, and the décor is rich in deep reds, purples and gold.
Most bathrooms in restaurants never get much attention, but the bathroom in this restaurant is the nicest I have ever seen, it was candle lit with flowers everywhere and smelt beautiful.
The food was very good, I got so mesmerised by how beautiful the inside was that it didn’t feel like I was in London, I felt transported to another country. There was a belly-​dancer who was such a lovely lady and spoke to us a few times and got some of my friends to dance. They have some wonderful cocktails and the service is very good.
Downside: you can no longer smoke Shisha there, that really is the only negative side to the restaurant.

I want to review Pasha twice, but because I’m lazy, I’m only doing it once and splitting the difference. So the following are the two reviews I would write mixed into one, with my star count being the average of the two.
Pasha as a restaurant: 3 stars
Pasha was my first Moraccan cuisine experience last year and we loved it enough to come back this year. But, in the year’s stead, they made a bunch of changes that I don’t know were necessarily for the better. It used to have a regular menu, but now, you have the choice of 5 feasts, and a minimum of two people need to participate in the feast. The food is all delicious, although I don’t eat lamb so that narrowed my options considerably. It’s the best hummus I’ve ever had, bar none. The chicken varied from dry-​but-​flavorful to not-​dry-​but-​not-​great. The mint tea is awesome. The restaurant itself is cool, with main seating and several private «rooms» just big enough for the table of diners. The most important thing is that they have belly dancers coming around which is awesome. However, the service in general was terrible.
Pasha as a bar/​place to hang out: 5 Stars
The good thing about a business trip is that I don’t have to pay for anything, so I’m not going to let the fact that this night was incredibly expensive effect my opinion. Five of us went to Pasha to sit outside, drink and smoke hookas, and it was a perfect night. The flavored tobacco was fantastic, with the flavor coming through more than the smoke. The drinks were great – I had an espresso martini that was so deceivingly delicious I could have gotten into trouble from having too many. It was nice to sit outside and just relax without being bothered by crowds or badgering waiters, but they still managed to be on top of our drink orders and coal needs. Definitely recommend it for a nice night cap.

Had quite a lovely dinner here last night. Serving sizes were not huge but were very tasty. we had 3 of the starters, King Prawns, The lamb parcels and an aubergine dip. For mains I had the seared tuna and my fiancé had the lamb cubes. For me the tuna was cooked perfectly charred on the outside and raw in the middle however the better dish was the lamb which was so moist and tender. We shared a desert of stuffed dates with roasted almonds and this was absolutely delicious!
The décor was intimate and lit with morroccan style lights which cast a romantic glow everywhere. Rosepetals were scattered down the stairs and over the tables.
When we first entered we were presented with the set menu selection. We didn’t know that they did a la carte untill the people on the table next to us, told us that this was the case. So placing our order took a little while as we waited for the menu. One of our choices of starter was not available — the hollumi, and neither was our first choice of wine.
Bathrooms were cute (well the ladies’ was– can’t speak on behalf of the mens!) bowls full of floating flowers and candles.
When the dancers came out at 8pm the lights were dimmed and the music was turned up and it did make conversation difficult. Maybe this would have gone down better if the restaurant was fuller and people had a few more drinks in them however at 8 the place was a bit too empty. There were 2 different dancers one upstairs and one downstairs and they were lovely — managed to get a few people up and dancing with them also.
Service was good when we were there. The manager came to check on us a couple of times and the waitress continually topped up our glasses with the wine and water.
Overall a lovely — if a bit pricey — evening.

Pasha was dubbed as a Lebanese/​Moroccan eaterie which is why I was so keen on trying it out. We got there only to find that it was 100% Moroccan with a pitiful choice for Vegetarians. That meant no falafel which prompted my family to write it off immedately.
I (incorrectly) assumed the cold and hot mezze would be enough to fill us up as there were only 2 main veggie courses. The portions were fit for a mini me yet had the cheek to price for a grown up portion. The main course which was a Vegetable Tagine tasted like boiled water with a few carrots plonked in for a bit of colour.
The saving grace of the evening was the belly dancer that popped out of nowhere and taught people her moves. It livened up the atmosphere and she was pretty good at embarrassing other customers.
I have to say the décor felt very Moroccan and had a cosy romantic feel. So if you are taking a date that delicately picks at her food and doesn’t eat much (and you are happy to pick up a Maccy D post dinner)…this is your place.

Ambience was SO amazing — rose petals lined the dim, but candle-​lit place. Sit down in the small hookah-​reminiscent chairs or the couch. A rose petal was waiting for me on my napkin! What a cute touch :)
Food was really good too — I had the grilled chicken skewers that was served with rice. Their hummus was okay, but the chicken was really good and the service was quick and friendly.
Definitely would come back!

This is a great restaurant on all counts. Great décor, friendly staff. I seem to recall a great drinks menu and wonderful food.
Be sure to check out the belly dancers, they are really something else!

To what I can recall, I have never had Moroccan food. I have had Middle Eastern food, which is pretty much the same. Regardless, Pasha is posh and won’t cost you too many pictures of the Queen.
The atmosphere is very cool, something out of Casablanca or exactly what you think of when you think Moroccan. They even had belly dancers that would go around and try and teach all the girls to belly dance.
We did family style and ordered a ton of food. All of it was really good and there was no shortage in the food. We got one of the cool back corner retreats downstairs. These little nooks are probably the best seats in the house as they give you a good amount of privacy and a really enjoyable décor. They also have shisha available as a lovely after dinner treat!

Ahhh yes Pasha,
Probably one of the memorable places I went to eat on my first europe trip in 2007. Interior is amazing. We sat on the second floor balcony and had a nice all around view of the restaurant. I ordered a lamb dish and was very pleased. Service was excellent and the belly dancers were very entertaining. I recommend this place.

My mum has been here a few times and kept recommending it. Last week I finally managed to get to Pasha with my boyfriend and I can see why my mum is impressed with it.
The moment we walked through the door we were taken by the opulent interior which was like entering Alladin’s Cave. We arrived early and I had a lovely cocktail before being led to a cosy booth complete with cushions and rose petals.
The food was fantastic, my boyfriend is not familiar with Moroccan food but our waiter was really helpful. We ordered the Meshwi for two people– a delcious lamb dish with apricots, figs, dates served with cinnamon couscous. Unfortunately I did not have room for dessert but the table next to us had a fresh fruit platter which looked lovely.
I cannot wait to return to Pasha and I will be booking it for my birthday in February. I looking forward to ordering more tasty dishes on the menu. Pasha is a lovely restuarant with great service and great foodbuut probably the best thing is you feel like you’ve actually travelled to exotic Morocco instead of dining in Kensington.
Pasha is the perfect place for a different dining experience that you won’t forget.

superbe endroit orientale assuree

If its glamour, opulence and granduer you are looking for that special event or party or just a quiet dinner for two then the Pasha is the place to be.
The interior is like a miniscule palace out of the Byzantine era: shimmering. shining and glistening like a huge orb. As one of the diners you would have go through the most magnificent doubledoors into the lavishly decorated dining area.
But be aware the night-​time entertainment can make it a bit noisy especially with the live music and belly dancers.
As for the menu the main courses are the best especially delectable dishes like seafood tagine full of large prawns, scallops, mussels all tastefully eaten with your fingers.
Believe me its an experience in it self guaranteed to get your date off to a good start.