Christmas lunch 25/12/12 This restaurant used to be one of Durban's great places to eat. No longer, alas. It has been a long time since I have experienced such poor quality food, service, and ambience. From the off, all the signs were of faded glory. We had high expectations for our Christmas lunch, having in the past really enjoyed our experience. Our table was booked for 12.30, but we were told that the room was not ready, so we had to wait. The wait was short, but in the middle of the Durban summer, the room was stiflingly hot - the airconditioning was, we assume, not working, as fans had to be brought in. When we were shown to our table, this was not properly dressed (missing table napkins, salt, pepper). We were not offered the choice of ordering alcohol. Eventually, after about 25 minutes, we were told that the first course was ready. This was laid on a small table, with no directions as to what the various salads and meats were. The selection and quality was uninspiring. Similarly with the main course; no idea what we were being presented with, unwarmed plates, and poor quality food was the order of the day. Some of the food was undercooked (carrots, for example) or just poorly cooked (soggy roast potatoes). Dessert was also a mixed blessing; unappetising and indifferent. Service quality was poor and indifferent; we were not consistently served by the same staff and it was difficult to attract attention. When we complained to the senior staff present, we were simply met with indifference, no apology, nothing. What a sad experience. Whatever you do, don't even contemplate a visit to this restaurant, particularly if you think that this is one of Durban's classic restaurants. It was - but is no longer. Do give it a wide berth.