The French are famed for their exemplary cuisine and the fact that the Buddha Bar Restaurant is one of the most popular restaurants in Paris goes some way to explaining the excitement that the launch of the concept in London has already caused. However, you can’t underestimate the importance of a location either and Buddha Bar occupies one of the finest in the capital, tucked directly beneath Waterloo Bridge on the North side of the river.

The Venue
Quite possibly the chicest restaurant in the capital, Buddha Bar Restaurant is the supermodel of the London restaurant scene. A red carpet outside leads up to colossal red laquered doors beyond which lies a reception area where you can stock up on the restaurant’s own compilation CDs and surprisingly tacky T-shirts before making your way up one short flight of stairs and then down the other side into the restaurant.

The vast dining area is presided over by the venue’s namesake, a giant, gleaming Buddha statue and the low level red lighting makes for a seductive setting. The furnishings are formal - dark wood and lots of laquer whilst giant chandeliers consisting of several smaller red lamps hang overhead from the double height ceiling. Tealights twinkle around a lotus flower on each table and at the far right hand side of the room is a smaller, semi private dining room guarded by two statues and housing a couple of tables with banquette seating lit by illuminated miniature glass Buddha statues set into the walls.

The Atmosphere
Buddha Bar Restaurant prides itself on its style but it’s also lighthearted and friendly. Staff veritably beam at you, the in-house DJ sets the mood perfectly from mellow earlier in the evening to upbeat as the night progresses and there’s an in-the-know excitement that’s never intimidating until that is you need to use the toilets. Tucked away behind the giant Buddha statue that towers floor to ceiling, there’s no sign to denote their presence. Instead, a member of staff stands behind the door keeping an eye out for confused looking diners so that they can beckon you through and point you in the right direction which all seems slightly unnecessary to say the least.

Sadly, the low level lighting that works so well in the separate upstairs bar doesn’t replicate as well in the restaurant itself either. Whilst the aim’s clearly to create intimacy, it quickly becomes inconvenient when you are having to balance a candle in one hand and the menu in the other merely to be able to order your food – a situation that would easily be rectified by turning the lighting in the restaurant up slightly.

The Food
The menu is Asian fusion and skips from Chinese to Japanese to Thai. At busy times, diners are advised to order bento boxes but given the price (£42 for the Curry Bento Box and £58 for the Sushi Bento Box) you’re better off ordering from the main a la carte menu. If you’re prepared to wait and share your food that is. Apparently, the restaurant encourages diners to share their dishes which appears to be a fair enough principle until you realise the reason behind the encouragement is that the chefs can’t get the dishes onto the table at the same time. A concept that works well at wagamama when you’re paying around a tenner but one that grates slightly when the bill per head is over six times that.

That said, the starters are excellent. The wok fried salt and pepper calamari and frogs’ legs (£10) are spot on. The frogs’ legs as good as any you’ll find at even the finest Chinese restaurant in France – the light batter is crunchy whilst the frogs’ legs are plump and beautifully tender with a delicate flavour that isn’t overpowered by the batter. Similarly, the large pieces of calamari are superbly cooked and even the tentacles are really succulent. The Peking style duck salad (£10.50) is vast and incredibly tasty but it could do with more duck as it’s mainly salad. Disappointing given that the slivers of duck there are in the dish are perfectly cooked.

Unfortunately, when it comes to the main courses it’s clear that the chefs at the Buddha Bar Restaurant are still cutting their teeth at the London location. The roasted black cod with yuzu miso (£21.50) is disappointing and doesn’t even come close to competing with Nobu’s offering. Whilst the portion is generous the fish is tepid when it arrives and even eating quickly it’s practically cold by the time the dish is finished. The grilled Korean marinated beef with pickled bean sprouts (£26) is a generous portion but appears to be seared rather than grilled. If you don’t like your steak blue then this dish is best avoided as it’s perfectly cooked to these specifications and is incredibly tender. Sides arrive at different times and whilst the egg fried rice with prawns and vegetables (£8) is good value with several plump prawns scattered throughout the rice, the steamed vegetables (£8) are extremely overpriced for a couple of chunks of pepper, a few mushrooms, and a sprig of broccoli.

Thankfully, the desserts redeem the cuisine somewhat. The mango soup (£7.50) is a light, innovative dish which makes a refreshing palate cleanser at the end of the meal even if it isn’t the most attractive looking dish. A scoop of green basil sorbet sits in the middle of an orange soup of pureed mango and cream that achieves the sweet/sour balance beautifully so it’s worth ignoring the aesthetics of the cloying colour combination and just savouring the taste. The cheesecake with strawberry crisps and shiso (£8.50) is similarly inventive with the light, fluffy cheesecake swirled onto the plate minus the traditional biscuit base which is instead sprinkled over the top.

The Drink
If you’d prefer to keep with the Asian theme of the restaurant then stick to sake. Bottles from the Sake Superior list start at £38 for a bottle of Kikusakari Taruzake Akita Cedar Aged whilst on the Sake Extra-Fine list the most expensive bottle is Isake 19 at £699. There’s also a cocktail list that includes a small selection of sake cocktails of which the Sake Cucumber (£8.50) is the stand out.

As you’d expect to find in a French owned restaurant, the wine list is incredibly strong and refreshingly it’s not only reasonably priced but also includes wine from around the world. For red wine, opt for the Chilean 2007 Carmanere El Grano at £6 a glass or £23 a bottle. As for the white, the 2007 Colombard/Sauvignon may be the cheapest selection at £5 a glass or £19 a bottle but it’s also a fantastic choice to accompany dishes such as fish and frogs’ legs. However, if your budget is more splash the cash than shoestring there’s another section of the wine list dedicated to fine wines that start at £125 for a bottle of white Puligny Montrachet Premier Cru Les Combetter and rise to £2,450 for a bottle of red 1996 Chateau Petrus.

The Last Word
It’s early days for Buddha Bar Restaurant and there’s certainly no doubt that it’s a stylish affair that has the potential to combine all the best elements of a night out in one. Unfortunately, whilst the DJ, decor and drinks are exceptional, at these prices the food must pass muster too and there’s still a long way to go before the restaurant can compete with long established top end Asian restaurants in the capital. That said, the staff are keen to impress and there’s every chance they’ll be able to bring the food up to scratch given a few months. Until then, stick to the separate cocktail bar upstairs to toast the chic surroundings.

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