LHA Paddington

The reception staff were always friendly, polite, and ready to help. Syed deserves a mention too, he was so helpful, always greeted everyone positively, and made it easy to communicate with him. Barry kept management organized and made sure things ran smoothly for everyone. My room was comfortable and in great condition, and the welcoming, well organized environment made day to day life convenient. The chef also did a great job, with tasty meals. The staff’s attitude and the way the place is managed made this a very good stay, and I’d recommend it.

The meal setup was hard to make sense of. Meat dishes had to come with a first course, and if you asked for chicken, you had to ask whether it came with pasta or rice rather than choosing yourself. You couldn’t simply take dinner to your roommate either. You had to leave a named container at reception, then collect it there already filled with the first course, main, and dessert all together. Getting a container meant waiting until the end of the meal, when most of the food was usually gone. If there were ten people who needed to eat, I’d expect food for all ten. I follow reasonable rules for living together, but these didn’t make sense to me. I paid £222 a week for a bed in a shared double room, and the room was extremely tiny. There was space for two beds, a bedside table, and one wardrobe door, with no chairs. The carpet was very dirty, and I don’t think the room or bathroom had been cleaned before I arrived because the previous tenant’s shampoo sachets were still in the shower. It was dusty and dirty throughout. I ended up buying a vacuum cleaner, sponges, and detergent to deal with it. The meals themselves were fine if you could adapt to the rules. I’d planned to stay until July, but changed my mind. It wasn’t a great experience, what a shame.

The location was nice, and for the price I was grateful for both the accommodation and the food. The meals were comforting and tasty, with good options. I especially liked the mushroom soup. The chef was really kind and friendly. Definitely worth the price.

The room was uncomfortable and the air conditioning didn’t work. Reception was rude and didn’t offer any help. The photos also gave a different impression from what I found. If you’re looking for comfort, don’t come here.