Buddha Bar London (Restaurant)

Top 10 things we discovered about the Buddha-Bar London restaurant when we visited:

1) Within one of the most exclusive boroughs of London is situated one of the world’s most expensive apartment blocks, One Hyde Park, where many flats are worth more than £81million. Just opposite, under the shadow of temporary scaffolding, resides Buddha-Bar London.

2) This incarnation of Buddha-Bar is linked to the original world famous Buddha Bar in Paris.

3) We had preconceptions about the restaurant, due to the elite location: sky-high prices, reserved staff, pitiful portions. Thankfully, many of our presumptions were dashed at the door.

4) The waiter who showed us to our table was a toothy grin of a man who exuded friendliness. Unfortunately, throughout the entire meal we were served by numerous different people – one for pouring drinks, one for napkin folding, one for serving – which resulted in us searching high and low for the first waiter to thank him for his inspired food recommendations at the end of the meal.

5) We were met with a glass of champagne, for which we were eternally grateful. The tourist-clad pavements outside nearby Harrods aren’t the easiest to navigate on a Friday evening.

6) The food is described as Pan-Asian, or fusion. While a starter of papaya salad lacked excitement, tuna and salmon deep-fried sushi tasted unlike anything I’d ever tried before: crunchy, silky, smooth, indulgent.

7) We were so fond of the waiter’s main course recommendations that we almost swapped numbers with him and suggested a drink in the pub next door after he finished for the evening. The five spiced barbecued chicken was succulent and moist and dressed with fluffy rice and an unctuous sauce.

8) The prices were as we expected: eye-wateringly expensive. Platters of sushi for two people cost a generous £35, and mains averaged £20 a dish. This is a restaurant visited by the glitterati of Knightsbridge, and the prices made us mere mortals shudder.

9) The stately ‘old money’ exterior of the restaurant belies the décor inside. The lighting is almost obstructively dark, and neon blues, reds and greens dance on the walls. It’s perhaps not the ideal setting for a luxurious meal. However, many people visit not for the food but for the ambience.

10) Buddha-Bar London does a lot right: great food, attentive staff, ideal location. For that, I give it thumbs up. ...read more