Canal Restaurant

We saw the buzz about Canal on social media so decided to try it. The staff were extremely friendly and helpful, although we found it very hard to get their attention post-ordering. Luckily the fantastic bartender took our order and made great suggestions! The cocktails are simply incredible and really shine. Having seen all the press and promotion around the quality of the pasta - we were extremely surprised to see the menu without a single pasta dish (and the menu online did not reflect this). Disappointing but we ordered a good mix of dishes. While we completely understand that new restaurants change menu regularly, perhaps making sure the menu online reflects the menu available would be great! The crab toast and peaches with stracciatella (although missing the walnuts as on the menu) were amazing! But the bream crudo had some oddly fishy flavour in some pieces and we were cautious to eat any more. The chicken dish with sweetcorn however was truly exceptional, we really enjoyed it and would come back just for this! Overall a mixed experience, we will certainly return once the menu stabilises!

We had a brilliant experience this evening. Particular highlights were the garlic smoked mussels on focaccia and nduja scallops, but the best of all was the bottle of house white, one of the best we have had, absolutely slipped down, crisp and perfect. Thanks guys and see you soon!

I was kindly invited by Dylan to come and eat at Canal - a spot I have been desperate to go to considering I’m local to the area. The aesthetic, design and atmosphere was 10/10 and the attention to detail was second to none. Perfect sharing plates and delicious wine and cocktails in a stellar location. This is what Maida Vale has been needing! Standouts are the mussel toasts and the seasonal tomatoes. I can’t wait to return.

This place has the potential to be so great, but unfortunately it’s still a bit far from it. I heard they opened recently so I hope they’re open to suggestions and happy to make some changes. Most dishes were just missing something. They were well thought out but always falling behind just a little. For example, the bread should’ve been served warm, slightly toasted. The pea dish was too burned on the outside. The aubergines were too crispy, would’ve been nice to have more “meat” on them. The fries were covered in salt. That being said, the peach and straciatella dish, as well as the tomato salad were delicious. I just expected all the other dishes to be at a much higher level of quality for a restaurant like this. If they work on really elevating their food, it would be a great little hidden gem with a great view of the canal. However, they desperately need to work on their service. We had potentially one of the worst services in recent experiences. The server forgot our requests multiple times, and just seemed too inexperienced and unbothered. That would’ve been fine, until they complained about the fact that we didn’t want to include the optional gratuity, and just flat up became extremely rude with us. Canal, fix your staff, elevate on your food, and you’ll be a great spot.

Beautiful spot by the canal. Unfortunately the food and service were underwhelming - it was also overpriced in my opinion. Our table felt ignored on a few occasions. Starters were better than the mains so many share small plates and skip mains. We tried tomato salad (nice), bream crude (nice), sausage (bad), ratatouille (ok) and peach (niceish). For mains we tried chicken (bad), monkfish (tiny and dryish), ribeye (meh), burger (ok) and pork chops (meh). They're new so hopefully they'll get the hang out it...

Opening night! We sat right by the canal, which could not have been prettier. All the food and drinks were wonderful, but the standouts were the trombetta courgette, chicken, and the cheeseburger (had to order two because it was THAT good). Will definitely be coming back!

Every detail of this restaurant is stunning. Food was sublime, the ribeye was one of the best steaks I’ve ever eaten. Drinks delicious and varied. Service sparkling with welcome.

Lovely interiors. Early days but staff need a bit extra training. We had one guy who kept handing dishes to us in our hand rather than placing them down on the table. Crab doughnuts and tomato salad good but other dishes were just okay. Weren’t sure about quantities so asked if we could order more if we felt we didn’t have enough - all good - but then when we came to order more they said they were too busy. Lights dimmed and music turned up as we were leaving just before 10 giving it a better vibe - I’d do it earlier!