Bam-Bou

Update 23 Feb 2012

Bam-Bou has got it right! A great mix of good food, a creatively-decorated historic venue with windows overlooking Charlotte / Percy St, and most importantly, staff that look after you! Go for the steamed dumplings for starters, spicy beef and Bam-Bou noodles, and their signature lime cheescake for dessert. And head up to the Red Bar on the top floor for a digestive!

This is my fav in Fitzrovia – good food with creative spices, loads of atmosphere especially on 1st floor, attentive staff that generally do look after the details and a bill that doesn’t break the bank. Nearby Pied-a-terre is in another league but Bam-Bou is a place to relax and enjoy food and friends.

We've been going to Bambou for many years now. We used to really enjoy it and were guaranteed good food, lovely cocktails and attentive service. Yesterday though was probably the last time we'll go. The service was shirty and soulless, the food bland (how can prawns in red curry not taste of anything and morning glory taste like it had been cooked in a vat of boiling salt), and the cocktails only average.

The venue is still lovely but what's in it isn't what it used to be. We've given it one star because we know it has been great - shame we'll never know if it improves as we're unlikely to go back.

We came over to London from Germany for a two-day business meeting, so my German colleagues and me, we went for dinner to the Bam-Bou. We sat in one of these nice private areas for group dinners. The decor and the atmosphere are nice and the service was attentive. I agree that the cocktails were not as good as expected and too expensive. But, apart from the expectation of the taste of "real asian food", I have to state that the food tasted really well. We ordered as many dishes as people we were and each of us tried each dish. When the dishes were served we weren't convinced, but finally we were full and happy with our choice. And the desserts were tasty as well :-)

Went here for pre-dinner cocktails with a group of girls. It's a steep climb to the Red Bar on the 3rd floor but the ambience and cosy seating areas are worth it. However- the cocktails here are acclaimed but newsflash- they're not that great. I know what a Margarita is supposed to taste like and it isn't that. They are very well presented but that's not enough of a decoy - they are just OK but not amazing. The half price offer Mon-Weds is good value though.

Good evening Vietnam! Beautiful surroundings, original Indochine art on the deep red walls, killer cocktails in the cosy top floor bar, Saturday night buzz and the food was......ok.

Came here for a private party, at which some friends had hired the top floor and arranged canapes instead of a more formal meal. I was mightily impressed by the service - the staff were so solicitous, friendly and helpful, and attentive without ever getting in the way or interrupting our gabbing.

Loved the decor and the intimate atmosphere, and the cocktails are delicious! Their signature cocktail, the Bam-Bou mixes vodka and fresh berries and slip down all too easily, although the £8 price tag might soon put a stop to your over-indulging. After a couple I switched to wine, and they had a decent-ish merlot for around £16, which I suppose is about standard (if not cheaper) than most places nearby.

The canapes were a selection of mini versions of some of their popular mains - honey-glazed chicken wings, beef in pepper leaves, dumplings etc. They all tasted good to me but I'll be the first to admit I'm anything but an expert on asian food so I'll happily bow to the knowledge of the other more foodie reviewers on that front!

Was taken here in July as a treat by my best friend. Had a wonderful time. Found the tables a little close together (1st floor [2nd to Americans] along the window) but really enjoyed the meal. We both had alcohol free cocktails called Hello Kitty, which were lovely. Food was plentiful and hot. Only criticism was a mix up with the desserts. I’m allergic to dairy, and was assured they had mango sorbet not mango ice cream. When it arrived it was clearly ice cream, but the waiter realised the mistake immediately, and it was whisked away and replaced with another sorbet. I’d return in a heartbeat

The primary appeal of Bam-Bou is undoubtedly its atmosphere and décor. The building itself is a magnificent Georgian townhouse, with a gorgeous central staircase that winds narrowly upwards. The dining rooms are decorated in a French Indo-Chinese style, and the lighting is warm, glowing and soft. Tables are close together, encouraging informality and a sense of a shared experience, but placed sufficiently apart to ensure there’s no excessive intimacy with people you don’t know. The food is a little less fancy - it’s a hybrid of Thai, Vietnamese and Chinese cuisines that adds up to something vaguely Oriental, but the menu is wide-ranging and interesting. The fish dishes are fresh, and the sauces and seasonings spicy and complex. There are numerous small dishes to encourage sharing. Bam-Bou is a very enjoyable experience, busy, buzzy and animated. It’s not about the food, it’s about the overall experience.

Cool place, great atmosphere…. I have been to the bar at the very top. We booked a cosy corner and it was a great place to meet up with friends! The drinks are reasonably price and there was a good crowd. We had a great time and there were various types of seating arrangement to suit individual! Overall… a great drinking place.

stop press! BamBou isn’t actually that expensive! Hurrah!

Came here for my birthday lunch with a couple of boys from work and we had a great time. Lunch was yum and I only freaked out slightly by the prices. Between £11 and £15 for a main. Some of them come with rice though so it might be better to stick to those and save buying a side as well.

Everything was perfectly cooked and served really well. It all looked so pretty! Peppered steak was yum, and so was the little bit of green curry I got to try. Rice was a little stodgy, but I know this is personal taste and not their fault I’m not a fan of sticky rice.

I wanted to keep the little dishes they served the food on as well. Everything about BamBou is so pretty. Very swanky decor that feels all sumptuous. You get very pretty cushions to sit on as well instead of just the hard wooden chairs.

Staff are attentive without being over bearing. There was a mix up when they gave us the wrong bill, but this was quickly changed with lots of smiling - and, made us feel even happier when our bill arrived. £17 for yummy swanky lunch isn’t too bad in my book.

I’m not sure I’d rush back, but it’s worth bearing in mind if you’re in the area. I’m going to be too busy trying every single other restaurant in the area…

Only been to the bar here which is right at the top. The last few times though - a rather rude woman has questioned whether we were eating and hesitantly allowed us to pass her and proceed to the bar at the top. Not had any problems at all before. Having passed the rude sentinel at the gates, the bar is a dark, cosy, comfortable, intimate place to have a few drinks. My favourite place to drink in the Charlotte Street area and highly recommended. Keep meaning to try the food too but have been scared off by the rude woman.

Great food, great decor, great atmosphere - especially when sitting out on the terrace and people-watching on Charlotte Street!

Highly recommended - make sure you try the chocolate spring roles for pudding!

You can do better for Vietnamese in London than Bam-Bou. The staff are not all that friendly and they sort of rush you through your meal. The food is perfectly adequate, but it doesn’t always come up piping hot, and I have had the same dishes better elsewhere.

I booked this restaurant as I was looking on The Ivy webpage and this came up as a sister resteraunt. It was ok - staff were friendly enough.

We were offered crackers and soya beans when we went in. As it was our first time in London we thought this would be complementary but they were added to the bill.

It felt a bit rushed as they were hovering over our table to clear it away and even took my plate before my friend was finished - very unusual. But all in all the food was nice and would go aga

Having only experienced this place at lunch, and with a pregnant colleague, I think we may have had a better experience than some.

Our meal was lukewarm at times, with less than adequate care taken with the food. In other instances, the food was excellent. Thankfully we were a large group and so many different dishes were sampled.

While it is a posh place to bring clients, I would hesitate to recommend it for a meal with friends. The posh interior makes you feel uncomfortable, the seats are not comfortable and the lower floor can be cold.

That said, some of the food was great, the staff were very helpful and the time we went for lunch we did have a great experience.

Appearantly this place is along the trendy places at the moment. It is certainly quite busy and as it is effectively on Charlotte Street, it attracts the right crowd.

Not sure what the french component in this french-vietnamese Restaurant is, but I am a real fan of vietnamese cuisine and Bam-Bou does not match what I have started to expect.

The beef in the lot (pepper) leafs for example: It was done alright, but why then serve it on boring salad ?
The summer rolls - one of the absolute standards - comparatively small and not nearly as delicious as they could be.

Take the sauces: We had 5 different dishes on the table, but everything came accompanied with the same sauce based on fish sauce. The other tastes and spices of vietnamese food: basil, coriander, peanut sauces were absent.

Highlight was the peppered beef: tender, spicy, great. But the overall relatively simple adoption of a great cuisine combined with less than average service and a higher than average bill leads me to: 3 stars only

Bam-Bou gets four stars from me based on past experiences and their bar (which is great if you can get in earlyish and nab a seat). My latest experience however was a three-starrer at best.

The reception we got felt a little bit cold and rushed and our table felt a little squeezed in even though it was relatively early in the evening (7pm). The service wasn't great at all, the waiter we got was very 'snatchy', whisking plates and glasses away with a little more force than was necessary, not really smiling or looking anyone in the eye and just being generally miserable.

The food was good: it's difficult to go wrong with steamed, spicy/salty edamame, and the twice cooked belly pork I had was incredibly tender if a little bland. And if you're going to give me a bowl full of meat and sauce and a bowl of rice and then a bowl to put it all in, then give me something more than chopsticks to attack it all with. I'm pretty sure that even veteran chopstick users have difficulty ladling sauce with them!

Their cocktails are great, but I can get them in the bar. I'll have to give bam-bou another chance soon, I'm hoping they (and the waiter) were just having an off night.

Review in one line - "Excellent food, nice ambience, passable service."

This Franco-Vietnamese restaurant in Fitzrovia gets rave reviews from alot of my friends and colleagues. Last night i had the opportunity to try it out. I had beef wrapped in pepper leaves to start with and then chicken and vegetable curry as a main. They encourage diners to share dishes, but a starter and a main is sufficient for one person. Most of the group thought the food was satisfactory, but agreed that it wasn't the best Vietnamese food in London. Tiger beer in a bottle is always a plus from me, so they win brownie points for this! The service was reasonably quick, but not particularly friendly. I didn't really feel exceptionally well looked after.

I'll go back, but i'd like to try a few more Vietnamese places in this area before i rush back to Bam Bou.

Good food, good service. Nice private areas for intimate group dinners