The Lantern

The Lantern used to be round the corner, where Puddleduck is now, and could be difficult to find. Now it is in the road opposite the Lotus hotel; the same road as Snobs, Casablanca, Deans, Castello and Joan's, so it is difficult to miss.

The light decor of the old premises has given way, first to dark blue, then to dark olive walls with complementary fabrics, offset by a bright white ceiling with ornate roses surrounding chandeliers. It is the sort of decor you would expect in a restaurant that you dress up to go to, although evidently not all diners appeared to agree. Some people wear smart casuals, occasionally some men wear a tie, but other men in the restaurant at the same time may be in shorts and vests. Clearly, anything goes, so this is one restaurant where you don't have to get hung up on what to wear.

The waiters are dressed in smart casual shirt and ties and the owner, Debbie, is evident much of the time, playing the tables in a want-to-be friendly way rather than in the style of a maitre d'hotel.

The menu is not huge, but it is extensive and varied enough. There is an Egyptian night every Thursday but for most of the week the menu choices are largely English, with one or two local dishes, such as a tagine. In addition, there are daily specials which are written on a blackboard. As in the old Lantern, the blackboard specials are not priced. If you were to make the lantern your regular restaurant there are enough choices to give you a reasonable variety of meals for a holiday-length stay. There are generally three desserts to choose from in addition to ice cream, and these are also written on the blackboard.

Prices are higher than just about anywhere in Luxor outside the hotels. Soup is LE22 and typical main courses, including tagine and curry, are around LE60: a steak is a little higher from LE65 - 70. Even an omelette is LE40. Desserts are all about LE25. Overall, the prices are significantly higher than at Snobs, just across the road, which may be considered as the obvious competition and a tad higher, too, than Puddleduck which serves comparable meals, and is just around the corner.

Meals are served in decorative modern cuisine style and by and large the food is very good. Once we returned peas and carrots because they were cold and the peas were very hard indeed. The waiter shrugged. We mention this only because one of the ways a good restaurant proves itself is by the way it responds when things don't go quite right. That wasn't the response we would expect. Having said that, the vegetables are usually fine, not overcooked and, although not home-cooking piping hot, at at typical restaurant heat.

All the main course meats and fish we have tried have been very good. Portions for the main course are fine and for the dessert courses are plentiful.

The restaurant is not very big but about 40 seats, possibly more, have been fitted in. The Lantern is very popular, so it is understandable that every inch has been taken up, but it does make it rather cramped. Some other restaurants, such as Casablanca, 7Days7Ways, Bon Apetite and Smileys are long and thin, and they also have seats that are close to each other 'back-to-back'. However, the shape of the Lantern is almost square and some tables are close 'side -by-side'. As a result, you can be sitting almost next to someone at the next table and quiet conversation can be quite difficult, especially if diners nearby are speaking loudly.

Overall, some very good meals in a disappointing environment. If the prices were more in tune with local competition, and with the removal of a table or two to give diners a bit more space, we would rate the Lantern much more highly. However, it seems to benefit from recommendations and repeat visits from an obviously loyal following, probably including a tour rep or two. With that on their side and with a sufficient number of holidaymakers who want some Englishness without being too worried about value, the Lantern doesn't have to try as hard as other restaurants. If that is what you want, you will be happy at the Lantern. Visitors who are willing to see what else Luxor has to offer will find equal quality, a better environment and better value elsewhere.

 

Review updated March 2010
Prices at March 2010