Cosmo opened in Southampton in January as part of West Quay's newest complex. An authentic world kitchen, Cosmo Southampton offers a selection of food to take anyone's fancy. It is a casual way of dining to suit everyone's taste and I went along recently to try it out for myself.
Walking into Cosmo, it appears quite grand with lashings of orange and gold. Unfortunately, they didn't have our booking but they did manage to find us a table by the large windows looking out on the Old Walls of Southampton. Having never been to Cosmo before, I wasn't really sure of how it worked and there was no one available to explain it other then a friend I was with at the time who had been to a Cosmo before. I knew it was a buffet style experience but it's advertised as something a bit fancier than that and having never done the buffet thing before it was all a bit new to me.
It was busy for a Tuesday evening and everyone looked a bit stressed. We were told someone would be over to take our drinks right away but that took a good twenty minutes and we just went and got some food in the end until someone acknowledged us after asking a few times. There was no clear place where you could just get water either but fizzy drinks were readily available whenever you wanted them. It was almost as if asking for water was an inconvenience.
All the food was set out in stations and easily labelled thankfully but there was no labelling for vegetarian options at all. I was sensible and avoided anything heavy like pasta or fried food unlike the men of the group who got stuck in then fell at the third hurdle. I filled up on salad and sushi before trying some sweet and sour dishes from Chinese station.
There was a lot on offer I couldn't really eat while pregnant like the rare meat dishes and seafood but even if I could eat it, the crowd was so big for it, you'd be waiting for ages for it to be cooked. I just stuck with smoked salmon and cucumber maki as it was just the easiest option even though the sushi selection was pretty poor and empty until we went to take photos before we left. The best bit of the evening? The chocolate fountain. The dessert station was pretty impressive and I left plenty of space to eat all the marshmallows dripping in chocolate.
I'm glad I tried Cosmo but I much prefer a dining experience. This was your classic buffet with next to no service, pushy, impatient customers and food that was okay but had clearly been out a while. It just wasn't my thing at all, the website sells it as something completely different to what you actually get. Having read numerous reviews since our visit it seems I'm not alone in my opinion. The lack of service and wait for drinks regularly comes up. If you're not fussed on quality and just want quantity then look no further but I won't be heading back.
There was a lot on offer I couldn't really eat while pregnant like the rare meat dishes and seafood but even if I could eat it, the crowd was so big for it, you'd be waiting for ages for it to be cooked. I just stuck with smoked salmon and cucumber maki as it was just the easiest option even though the sushi selection was pretty poor and empty until we went to take photos before we left. The best bit of the evening? The chocolate fountain. The dessert station was pretty impressive and I left plenty of space to eat all the marshmallows dripping in chocolate.
I'm glad I tried Cosmo but I much prefer a dining experience. This was your classic buffet with next to no service, pushy, impatient customers and food that was okay but had clearly been out a while. It just wasn't my thing at all, the website sells it as something completely different to what you actually get. Having read numerous reviews since our visit it seems I'm not alone in my opinion. The lack of service and wait for drinks regularly comes up. If you're not fussed on quality and just want quantity then look no further but I won't be heading back.
Complimentary meal for the purpose of review - see disclaimer.