Caribbean Scene

Caribbean Scene Royale came highly recommend from a trustworthy source. So I was lead to believe it would live up to the hype. Unfortunately I encountered massive let downs one after another.

It was a great day in London, sunny & warm. So I was not surprised to see the mass of people sitting by the sea side enjoying a meal and the smell of the BBQ with tunes booming from the restaurant. Opting to take a table inside instead to avoid the half naked sun worshippers we were surprised to see not much going on indoors and was fooled into thinking we would be seated immediately. After being bounced around from the front door to the bar to a table not yet ready and back to the bar, about 30-40 minutes later we were finally seated. Another 30 minutes later we were still talking to each other ad salivating over the menu in hopes that our waiter would show up before we grow old.

Orders finally done I stepped away to the restroom. Shock and horror met me as I opened the door. After a balancing act in hopes of not touching anything I was able to runaway from the unexplained filth.

Another length wait, our drinks finally showed up. My order was incorrect. Appetisers showed up 20 minutes after that.....false advertising. What was on the menu was not exactly what we received. A n explanation and back and forth ensued between ourselves and the waiter who was visibly upset at us. He promised to fix it and get my drink, finally, hey I only asked three times. Another 45 minutes and dinner started rolling in, oops my food was room temperature. Still waiting for that drink by the way.

The drink finally came food returned warm and finally a gold star for taste! Yummy yummy yummy!

We requested to meet the manager and was surprised to see the owner as well, who both apologised and offered us some perks to return despite the troubles.

Pros- great food!! Nice owner and manager with good intent. Decent decor and vibes.

Cons- avoid if crowded as crowding is an excuse for poor service and below health department standards on hygiene. Staff need to represent the good nature of the owner.

Would I return? No I wouldn't go out my way unless I lived next door.

Recommended? Yes the food is worth a try and it may have just been a bad day for Caribbean Scene.

My one and only experience of Caribbean food an dit was a damp squib. These guys are tremendously expensive for what it is. They do say they have won some awards for great food but I am not convinced.

We had a Jerk chicken after much waiting and then some more waiting. On the whole, the fact that the place is very close to house notwithstanding (I live right across the docks) there is very little else to look forward to with this place for me.

This restaurant is near the Excel centre in London. As such it is good for conference visits or for exploring the Royal Docks area, (Other attractions include for example the Barrier Point park).


The restaurant is a Caribbean themed restaurant and apparently has won the UK's award for best Caribbean restaurant 06/07 and 07/08. In addition it is quoted that the head chef is ex-Ivy.


Inside the restaurant is well decorated and pleasing with a seperate cocktail area and quite a few staff. The menu is not too large and service is quite quick. There are a few TVs around and I think they also do live music some nights.


My financee and myself went here perhaps four months ago as an off-the-cuff thing as it is very close to where we live.


She had a crab dish which is where I'll focus my review on as my dish (Jerk Chicken) was fine. Her dish though was not great, she didn't think it was too fresh to start with and then felt quite bloated/ill the evening and the next morning. I'm not sure if this was the crab or something else though.


On an overall basis though as you can tell from my short description of the food I didn't feel that it was anything very special. When we went the place wasn't busy and this should have allowed the chef time to make the food great, however her crab and my chicken were distinctly average which was a pity as the atomosphere was good.


The cocktails are good, but at this price and also the location being not that near most people I wouldn't recommend 'Caribbean Scene'

This restaurant is supposed to be the best Caribbean restaurant in the UK. Hmmm. Really good food but really horrible service. It took over an hour after our order to arrive and when it did arrive it was cold. There were a number if other complaints but it doesn't matter. I won't go back.

Not somewhere I wished I had spent my birthday dinner and £25/ head.. Food was interesting but the cooking and service did no justice..

The location is very good. The cocktails are good. But the food we had was not up to the mark.

I dined at caribbean scene near the excel 2 saturdays ago with a few business partners. the restaurant is easy to find once you find a road to excel that is not closed becuse of building construction. we had a good visit. the atmosphere is very cosy and warm. the scene is lovely especially when it gets dark. the staffs were very pleasant our waitress abbey was very professional. i had the curry goat and it was lovey, the other two members at the table had enjoyed their oxtail and jerk chicken. the foods were nicely presented and the service was quick, but we got there about 5:30, and the restaurant was not busy, just a few other tables. but the manager siad they were fully booked for the night and they had a busy lunch, everyone was busy getting tidy up and getting the tables ready. we asked about the live music but she said they start later in the eveninig. I will be going back with my husband and the others on my team said they will be going back as well. infact next time we have to visit excel we will host our small business lunch meetings there in the VIP area.
the though the food was value for money because the portiond are quite large and they include sides.
the restaurant is clean and it is a lovely location and the the quality of furniture is high quality.

This was quite honestly one of the worst dining experiences I have ever had.
When we first arrived, we were initially struck by the extravagantly pleasant view of the river, then secondly the extravagantly unpleasant view of the prices. But no matter, it was a special occasion so we were happy to have something a bit fancy.
How wrong we were though: The restaurant understandably had very few customers and quite a few staff on, which you would expect to mean good service. The drinks order was made, and then cocked-up well actually, it wasn't accidentally incorrect, they just didn't have the beer we asked for so they just brought over some substitutes. Nothing too concerning, as I'm not fussy, but it was certainly weird though.
When the food arrived it was of very average quality, but very distinctly undersized portions. All except mine, a simple jerk burger, which didn't arrive at all. Again though, I'm hungry, but not fussy as I've worked in a fair few restaurants myself, and know that these things happen. When I asked them about it though, they said they were just doing it a bizarre lie to tell given that it's an open kitchen and you can literally see the griddle and the whole layout from my seat.
I then have the pleasure of watching them be told that they've forgotten my burger, to then carry on chatting, and forget about it all over again and this is the worst thing about this restaurant: however nice they may have been to critics, the staff here just couldn't give a hoot. The manager clearly hates her job and the customers she serves, and her staff are just aloof (excepting the barman, whom was actually a pretty friendly chap).
So it's 20 minutes later, the other three members of my party have finished their meals 15 minutes ago, and the chef after having noticed me again, is agonisingly assembling my burger. At this point, we're now running a bit late, and I realise that eating this burger with everyone waiting to go is going to be an altogether embarrassing experience. So I nip over and ask for it to go, (hoping to simultaneously make a point about the service one that went very much unnoticed) and so when it comes to the payment - which we are charged full-price for, burger and all - I am given my polystyrene container.
Whilst trying to laugh it off in the car, I then discover the biggest joke of it all my burger. We're talking sub-McDonalds Happy Meal here: two bits of bread, and a bit of meat. £10. Mayo? Chips? Couple of leaves of iceberg? Surely some onion? Nope, none of it. The meat was pretty good quality, I'll warrant, but that to me is not a burger, and The Caribbean Scene in Canning Town, is not a restaurant.
I hasten to add, this is not to be confused with the same restaurant in Stratford, which I'm told is actually very nice and the reason that this one was assumed to be a good call and a safe bet.
This is the only time I have ever felt I needed to review something, and I sincerely hope I don't need to again.