Bar Shu

I admit that after reading some of the reviews here my partner and I 'ummed and ahhed' about where to book for last Saturday night. It is important to us to have time to enjoy good food, to have a nice conversation and savour a nice wine at dinner. We eventually plumped for Bar Shu, however on booking a table for 8pm my partner was told we would only have an hour and a half. I called back and was told there had been a mistake, we would have only 50 minutes. Aftyer some negotiation we agreed to dine later but have the table for longer.

But once at the restuarant all was good, service was a little slow to start but got better. Now I like 'fine dining' but I don't like my glass being topped up, I don't like my conversation being interrupted all the time and I don't like the hushed tones that are often found in some starred restaurants - come on, its food, its supposed to be about having a good time, not about revering the chef and his/her skills. I think Bar Shu gets this balance right, its busy, there is a buzz about the place, yes food is just 'dumped' on the table but you are then left to savour and enjoy at your pace - food comes when it is ready to your table not left sitting on a hot plate and plates are taken away when you've finished it - what more could you ask for? the lady looking after us advised on our selection of dishes and even suggested we try the traditional digestif rather than brandy - it was certainly an interesting choice but worked wonders in helping all the food settle!

And the food!! This is like nothing you've ever eaten (unless I guess you are from or have travelled in Sechuan). The food is so flavoursome, the chilli and other spice flavours beautifully blended. Maybe the service seems slow at the beginning because from the moment you enter your senses are sent into overdrive by the smells, the pictures on the menu, the sounds of diners slurping the buzz of happy people. We enjoyed dried beef (succulent, delicious and with a gentle chilli that creeps up on you), pork rolls (crispy, aromatic little mouthfulls), and an edamame salad (cooling and refreshing) to start followd by braised see bass (pickled chillis so sweet and an amazingly piquant sauce that didn't kill the flavour of the fish), twice cooked pork (all the succulence of slow braised pork belly with the robust flavours of the best hams) and green beans with pork and chilli (exactly what it says on the tin!).

This is not one of your 'cheap and cheerful' china town eateries, although I am surre you could dine quickly and inexpensively on one of their 'street food' noodle offerings. However I think this is a restaurant I could develop an expensive habit of - my partner already has plans to return again and again to methodically eat every dish on the menu.
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Mel
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Monday, October 06, 2008

Had a great meal last night and, unlike many other reports, found the service friendly and helpful. We ordered lots of offal and "strange" dishes and our waitress remarked, when she saw how much we liked it - "you're not like most English people - they don't order things like that". She then brought us a complimentary dish of spicy mushrooms "as you are enjoying the food so much".

All in all, a delightful evening.
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david shamash - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Friday, October 03, 2008

On arriving at this restaurant, a visit prompted by the good food reviews, we discovered that our table had been given away 5 minutes before despite arriving on time. No matter the staff were apologetic and found us a table in the basement (which admitedly does not have the same atmosphere as the ground floor restaurant) in a private booth.

The restaurant provided a vegetarian dish free of charge to compensate which was a nice touch and we proceeded to have a fantasic meal selecting a various array of spicy szechuan fare. I can definitely recommend the fragrant Beef dish and the green beans with chili.

Staff throughout were friendly and we were not at all rushed out as other patrons have found. A good chat with the Manager about our recent visit to China was warm and met with some interest.. Really recommend this restaurant's food. It is a cut above any Chinatown restaurant I've been to across Shaftesbury Avenue and into the Gerrard St area.
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GeoffV - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Monday, September 08, 2008

Undeniably, the food at Bar Shu was good, but the level of service is far from being satisfactory compared to any other decent restaurant in town.

I arrived at the restaurant at about 9ish last night. Bar Shu was half-full, but the table lady put us to sit at the basement in a little space of table for 6, claiming that tables on the first floor were all reserved. However, when I went up for toilet on the first floor, the tables were still not occupied.

Secondly, the waitress serving my table was terrible. After my order, she questioned without any sign of politeness or kindness if I had ordered enough. I replied saying I would order later if that was the case. She returned with a grumpy look saying they probably would not take my order since they would close at 10:30pm (when it was only 9:15pm at that moment).

So food was served. And the waitress quickly said, " Oh, you’ve got time, are you ordering some more?". I was thinking that I had not even started eating, and you asked me to order more! I am an American size 0 for god sake.

At last, it was bill time. Somehow, the waitress said no card could be accepted at the basement, only cash. That is strange. While my boyfriend was checking the numbers, the waitress lost her patience waiting, and asked someone else to "escort" us to the first floor, claiming that it was by "politeness" to escort the customers. OK....Then we found out about the 12.5% service charge already included in the bill. The waitress (obviously the original one) said 12.5% was "normal" everywhere. Isn't it this included service charge the reason for the lack of service improvement at Bar Shu? I almost yelled out, " is everywhere's service this poor and I still HAVE to pay for it?"

There are certain things I like about Bar Shu such as the authenticity of Sichuan cuisine, the discount policy for students etc., but I think its service charge policy as well as the service quality is an area they should consider for improvement.
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Penny
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 2
Sunday, August 03, 2008

First things first, the food was fantastic...simply great. Atmosphere was lively and the staff looked very efficient with their ear pieces. However, the service was most atrocious and rude, which kind of dampened the whole experience.

A friend and I went on 10 June for dinner. Admittedly we took slightly longer to place our order (about 20 minutes because there is too much good stuff to choose from!) and felt rather self conscious after the waiter came hassle us for the fourth time. Our starters came almost instantaneously which was great. Bizarrely, the rice we ordered with our main course also came at the same time. The main course came equally promptly - still delicious with the rice which had by then got cold and stuck together in a big lump. The waiter then came round - not with the dessert menu - but to tell us that they needed the table back!

Go for the food - and remember to eat quickly!!
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Linda Leung
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Friday, June 13, 2008

We really enjoyed our meal at Bar Shu. We went for dinner at around 10.15 pm, after a play at the nearby Gielgud. It was quite full and people kept on coming and replacing any table that got empty. The majority of customers were Chinese and quite trendy looking. But the best was the food. Absolutely different from the type of Chinese food we are used to. We had a prawn and nuts and a pork belly dish and were both fabulous.

Moreover, service was very friendly. We will be back.
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Susana - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Five of us had a very enjoyable meal on Friday evening. Very interesting and appealing menu. Food was full of flavours. Service correct. Excellent decor. Trendy, young Chinese crowd. One of the best Chinese meals I've ever had anywhere in the world, including China.
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 8
Saturday, May 10, 2008

So, is the food at Bar Shu good enough to make up for the unfriendly service?

First off, the service is no way as bad as other reviewers have said. Sure, there's not a lot of love here for the customers but they do try.

The food did arrive very quickly, cramming plates onto the table before we'd finished the previous ones (is this normal?) but there was no effort to push us out in a hurry.

Although this could be because the place started to thin out at around 10pm. I'd arrive at around 8 to make the best of the busy and exciting atmosphere.

And people here are genuinely excited - the full colour menu is amazing and the food is incredible - even better than it looks on paper. However, for someone with a British palate, the food is extremely hot giving me 3-4 minute waves of endorphin-releasing pleasure/pain. Until you climb to the next level and the food tastes mild again. Then, BAM!! It happens again. You have to experience this!

Overall a very enjoyable experience. A bit of a novelty restaurant that’s worth paying extra for.
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 7
Monday, April 21, 2008

I come here again and again and think this is one of the best Chinese restuarants in London. I've been happy everytime and do not understand some of the poor reviews below.

First some reasons not to go to Bar Shu:

1) Do not go if a low price is important to you. There are many restaurants in Chinatown either cheaper or much cheaper than Bar Shu. This is at the premium end for quality, and you pay accordingly. (Cheaper main courses around £9, going up to £28 for things like whole sea bass).

2) Do not go if you don't like spicy food. Not everything in the menu has chilli, and the menu marks each item out of 0-3 on heat ,so you can order gentle dishes and needn't be suprised. However, if you don't like chilli, garlic and sichuan pepper, then there is probably little point in going: Sichuan food will not be for you.

3) Do not go if you "have what I always have in a Chinese restuarant". If you have a mental ticklist of favourites -- chicken & sweetcorn soup, crispy duck with pancakes, sweet & sour chicken, beef with black bean sauce -- and order them everytime, then look elsewhere. Bar Shu does not have the standard Chinese restaurant menu because it only does dishes from Sichuan province.

Do go if you like trying new dishes, like robustly flavoured food and are prepared to pay a premium (over average Chinatown) for a different experience.

The service is similar to service everywhere in Chinatown (which I think is fine, if not outstanding). Like at many other restaurants, the staff are all chinese, and sometimes can come across abruptly. People used to western nuance and attentiveness may (and clearly do in the reviews below) find this off-putting.

Atmosphere better than average for Chinatown.
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IH - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 6
Saturday, March 22, 2008

Another happy visit . This time just 2 of us. Attentive service, excellent recommendations and tasty food - and plentiful. I do not know why there are so many 'anti' reviews and I shall certainly continue to use tis restaurant.
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Jackie Worrow
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Monday, March 10, 2008