Borneo Bistro in Sunderland

Love the food in this place, but the reason only giving 2 stars is because , as advertised they are supposed to be open for breakfast from 09.30, i have called three times now around 9.30/10 and never anything ready!! When you travel some distance and take time from your working day , you expect services to be available as advertised!!

I thought I’d try this Bistro as it got good reviews within the local newspaper plus it’s only 10 minutes walk from my home. Before arriving, I’d checked out their menu and what a selection! Dishes from a variety countries ranging from the Caribbean to Japan. I chose Malaysian style Beef Rendang (stewed Beef in spicy in-house curry sauce), savoury rice. The staff also recommended I try Malaysian style Satay Chicken Nasi Lemak (chicken fillet in spicy peanut sauce); so all this was place on my plate. The owner Kevin mentioned that I could have a tastier of the food to check that I found it suitable, rather than ordering and paying for something which I didn’t enjoy. I thought this was a nice gesture for customers, which seemed to fit with the whole, friendly atmosphere pervading the Bistro. As for my meal; both the Beef and the Chicken were very tender and tasted wonderful in their related sauces. This is a place that makes you feel welcome as well as serving astonishing tasty food. I would highly recommend either dine in, take away or order online for home delivery.

The food here is outstanding, so fresh and delicious, the owners are very helpful and happy to explain each dish, must do

Never been for a while but returned today, ended up going back in the same day. Everything delicious esp Lemon chicken it is divine. Passionate proud owner serving. Will definatley return in near future. Needs to be number 1 in Sunderland again on trip advisor.

After reading the amazing reviews, I had to try this place and I am seriously impressed! Was served by Kevin who I believe is the owner. Lovely guy, friendly and also recommended I try a few things. Had the chicken Penang, famous beef redang, some goat meat based sauce and rice. The portions are generous, the food is super super tasty that even my jumper wanted some as you can see in the picture. Normally I’d be upset to have stained it as it’s new but for this type of food, it’s water off a duck’s back! Haha I’ll definitely be back!

The food is unreal and the team are super friendly and lovely. Beautiful people and food! The ques are out the door whenever it reopens (Covid etc), people talking outside and getting excited to get their favourites. In the first week they went through a ton of crispy chicken! I hate KFC but now am a convert to the crsipy chicken and beef Rengdang. Out of everywhere I missed during Covid this was the place I missed the most!

At last- after a really bad fire which closed this amazing business for over a year . They had only just reopened when COVID 19 closed them again. The owners and Their amazing team have reopened in July 2020. Speaks volumes when people queue to pick up food. Absolutely Worth travelling for. Solo eating is amazing Kevin and his team will make you very welcome. Never a Lonely person here. 5***** Children always welcome- Kevin and the team love having children in. Eat in or takeaway. Different meals every day Best food in North East 5 *****

Been a visitor to borneo many times before but haven’t been for awhile, with eyes bigger than my belly yes I got a large takeaway oh my beef rangdan, chicken satay with roast potatoes it would of feed 2!!!! Plentiful beef chunks rangdan was tasty with a little spice the huge chunks of chicken in the satay was creamy and nutty the roast potatoes cooked with mushrooms were delicious. Definitely worth a try if your up to try real foreign food that packs a punch to your tastebuds 🤤🤤🤤 Well done all staff at Borneo yous have outdone yourselves again and I wish it to continue.

So pleased this has reopened. The beef rendang is to die for. The service is quick and help you choose with samples. Very difficult when you could eat all of it.

amazing food and service if you have left a bad review you dont know what your talking about and there is no pleasing you.

Revolting - virtually no vegetarian options and my colleagues Thai green curry was a revolting snot green colour which off-putting with a strange chemical taste - went in the bin so disgusting there are far better restaurants to be found

Amazing food, Curry Goat is Awesome, Beef Randang totally authentic, something for all tastes and a food lovers go to takeaway. People travel miles to eat and buy food from Borneo Bistro. When it’s Good it’s worth the journey. My advice is go and try the buffet taste everything ( staff are more than happy to give a small taste on a spoon) work out what you love then in future place your order in advance, if you don’t live local order what you like in a large takeaway container and take home put in the freezer for next time. It’s a no brainier really, be polite & respectful to the staff they are extremely polite to all customers. Kevin and his team take real pride in their food.

Amazing as always but even better now they have new dishes, the Thai red curry is lush, satay and beef randang also all the side dishes are lovely and my dogs new fave is the doggie ice cream great addition to the menu.

Absolutely love Borneo’s. Everything is so tasty! So happy that they are back in business! Their crispy chicken is out of this world! Everything is cooked to perfection! As always I will keep coming back, thanks Kev, keep up the hard work 💪🏻

Delicious food and excellent service. Staff served my food very clean. The lady who served me was patient as I had to change my order. Highly recommended. Looking forward to trying different dish here again.

Always busy, but well worth a short wait. 22 to 24 different dishes available each day. 40 distinct dishes (Borneo, Caribbean, Chinese, Filipino, Hong Kong, Jamaican, Japanese, Malaysian, Moroccan, Singaporean, Taiwanese and Thai)Personal favourites include the Rendang, Asado, Braised pork belly, Green Curry, Kaeng Phed Nuer, Kare-Kare, Nasi Lemak.

No idea what the food is like, probably canny. However, the goons who stand outside queuing are like zombies on their phones in peoples way who are trying to get past. Even worse are the imbeciles who park jutting out from Franklin Street corner on the double yellows so other vehicles can't get into the street. You may wonder what this has got to do with Borneo bistro, but surely the owners are aware of this, along with the fact that police were called for that reason over a week ago. It will only take a pedestrian getting knocked down, having to walk onto the busy Hylton rd to get around these parked vehicles and queues, for something to be done. Until then, Borneo will turn a blind eye and keep the till bell going.

Great to see Borneo back! Drove past a dozen times since it reopened and said to myself that I’d wait until the queue died down. After three days I realised that the queue isn’t going to die down so I went and stood in it! Delicious food. Lovely staff. Best wishes to Kev and his family. If you haven’t been then you really should. The food is fantastic.

Amazing news that this place has reopened. We love it here and it’s great to callinfor an afternoon snack with the children. Tasty tasty tasty

So glad this place is back up and running. Amazing food and service will be returning again and again!

I am so happy Borneo is back! Kev and the team are so lovely, always smiling and I wish them all the luck in the world. The food is absolutely unreal. Phenomenal. Crispy chicken is the best. Beef rendang is also special. Fried rice can’t be beaten. The menu is massive and the prices are unbelievable. Massive portions. I literally don’t know anyone who doesn’t like borneo.

It was my first time visiting here, on their open week. The queue was never ending - which filled me with hope that the food would be good. It went down relatively quickly and it was well worth the wait. Portion size was generous, and the food was lovely. We got it to take away. We will definitely be back.

I’m ashamed to say today was my first visit to Borneo’s, but believe me it won’t be my last. I was always one of those who kept passing and never calling in, but since it’s been shut and hearing how family and friends rave about how good the food was and how much they missed it, I decided today was going to be the day I lost my Borneo’s virginity..... oh, how glad I am I did.

Borneo Bistro has at long last returned and is as good as ever. A massive, daily changing variety of international cuisine all freshly cooked on the premises daily(and seemingly nightly due to the immense variety) and all listed on menu boards so you can choose your day to visit to know your favourite will be on. Beef, pork and chicken dishes, delicious noodles, rice and chips, as well as roast potatoes all available to eat in or take away in quantities to suit your appetite. Queuing space is limited, but you can marvel at the hand painted and airbrushed mural on the wall, and the quick and efficient staff do their very best to get you served as quickly as possible. Absolutely chocka today on his forth day open again.

Finally back open, food is amazing (especially the beef rendang and fried chicken). Price isn't expensive and the portion sizes are more than enough to fill you for the day.

Torally miss this place, find myself checking every week to see if its re-opened, you would of thought the owner would of kept us up to date with the progress borneos is making, his last comment was 'under construction' that was way back in march

Kevin runs this Bistro. His lovely Filipino wife's relatives do the cooking. There is a wide range of Chinese/Filipino dishes and some English available from just before lunch until evening. You select one, two or three dishes and your plate is heaped for you with your choices. Kevin's English breakfast is cooked to order and is excellent too especially his black puddings. This is available until lunch kicks off, when there is no time for the chef to cook it. However, he can be persuaded to do one for you when demand has slackened off a bit.

No point visiting at the minute as it is closed due to a fire. Will hopefully open again in the future as the food was amazing and we miss it.

Lovely building pleasant friendly staff not on top of you all the time but always around. Food delicious so good I get takeaway for special occasions when we cant get out. Cant praise food enough once had kebab which wasn't presented very well on plate but tated good.

Made very welcome well mannered staff would recommend it to anyone.there is a good variety of different types of food for a very good price

Fantastic selection of food to suit all tastes. Samples of food offered to ensure it suited purchasers taste for spiciness, etc. Every dish was oven hot, meat succulent and plentiful. Great service from friendly staff always ready to advise or suggest appropriate dishes. Take away was the most often sales but a small sit-in area was also available. Portions were large, good appetite needed.

been here quite a few times always lovely, restaurant quality, great choice for such a small place, gets extremely busy at lunch times, only minor complaint prices slowly creeping up since my first visit last year closed atm due to fire

Doesn't look like much from the outside, you might walk past it.

Just to let people know there was a fire at Borneo’s and it has been closed for quite a few weeks now. There’s no sign of any progress as the 2 properties either side have been affected too. Also I heard their may be an issue with asbestos.

A no frills little restaurant if you drove past you would see queues of people being served (and very quickly to). The food is authentic, the owner having spent many years out Far East with his Malaysian wife (I think). The food is delicious with a great choice, and not to expensive too. It is eat all you want for a set price, and believe me a couple of platefuls of different food will suffice anyone. There is plenty of room for parking on surrounding streets.

Called here Saturday because couldn’t be bothered to cook had noodles pork dobo and crispy chicken was absolutely delicious all fresh and not too expensive need to go backs d try all the other dishes on offer

Excellent service serving fantastic food, staff always welcoming and friendly. Giving advise on all the different meals.

Very over rated. People recommended this place and couldn't wait to try it only to be very disappointed with the whole thing. Very bland and only warm food and very over priced. Won't be going back.

Brilliant, affordable dining with great atmosphere and staff. The lady serving was very accommodating. As a vegetarian there was little on the menu for myself. Upon telling her this she asked the cook to make me my own vegetarian plate with sauce all for 6 pounds. Very lovely staff here. The meat dishes look pretty excellent too.

Possibly one of the best places to eat in Sunderland. The amount of different dishes available and the portions are great. The beef rendang is amazing. Would recommend

This place is so good we got them to cater at our wedding party! There is so much choice here, all of it delicious! The staff are excellent, and so friendly, really good value and generous portions, love it!

Highly recommended. Me and my friends went to eat there recently after church. We all love the food. The owner is very friendly same as the staff. We'll definitely come back.

So lovely took time to tell us what each dish was. All of it was beautiful we enjoyed our food I'm sure we will be back soon with the children, the owner (Kevin?) was really friendly even chatting with us about deadpool and putting the extra cans we bought onto the table as I walk with a stick it’s so helpful, it’s second time we have been and travel from Washington for the food which is easily said than done when all you want to do is sleep and often bedbound it’s so refreshing eating somewhere where you can feel relaxed, we went at 1:45 and still a steady stream of customers. I just wish they were closer as we love the food but waistline is glad!

Food always fresh+super tasting lots off choice.very generous portions.owner+staff very pleasant people.highly recommended

This would be ok microwaved. Personally I like food to be hot not just warm. The flavours were nice but I couldn’t get past the temperature and ended up leaving it.

Ive visited this place many times over the years and have the food is delicious and the variety is outstanding with a very friendly owner who is more than happy to describe each dish so that you have an idea of what your getting. If you havent visited here you really need to.

Everything you order from here tastes amazing high quality and authentic food, only hard thing is deciding what to have as all looks amazing, totally recommend a must try place

Amazing food and such great and welcoming friendly service. Staff very keen to talk through the dishes and let you sample. Hidden gem!

You have to try the Beef Rendang. The taste, portion size, choice and value for money of the menu is unbeatable. I've been here many times and never been disappointed. Always busy which speaks realms! Staff are very polite and friendly. Eat in or take away. Very popular over lunchtime. I’ll be back

Every time I go here I try something different and still loving every dish really friendly servers and great value

Telling ya now lads it's f*cking banging scran. All the builders gan in for their dinner and me n the boys are always popping in for our dinner on our college break. Crispy chicken there is just ooo aaaah mmmm. Lully. Absolutely lully. Geeza behind the counter, the owner, is a well sound bloke with a cracking smile. Them teeth are whiter than his shirt, pure pearlies. The lemon chicken as well, jeeeez lou-fkn-ise it's banging mate.

borneo is quality, that geez behind the counter (obviously the owner) what a bloke he is 5 star service with a 5 star smile, my G always making me feel at home. lemon chicken is a buff ting, always sick. 10/10 would bang

After many years of enjoying the food at Borneo Bistro, to this day I cannot walk past it without nipping in to get a little treat. Since I was not really hungry, I ordered a small serving of noodles with spicy West Indian curry sauce. It really hit the spot.

Found this gem on trip advisor. I was looking for a good takeaway while working in Sunderland. WOW!!!

Great staff and great service Had been recommended this place by a friend . The food is quite addictive and so tasty crispy chicken is unbelievable 5*

This afternoon was our first visit to the Bistro. We were welcomed by frendly staff into a warm clean and rekaxed environment. Very busy especially take away service. A wide range of international foods to choose from. We chose menu 2 which medium i think. The meal was lovely. We could not eat it all. We took the food left home with us. Lovely meal. We will definetely visit again. Thank you.

Come here often, food is honestly delicious! Very tasty and prices and portions are fair! Would definitely recommend

When a restaurant/café/takeaway establishment is full, so you have to squeeze into the waiting area to be served, its either because its very good or extremely cheap. In the case of Borneo Bistro, its both... Very attentive service, huge portions, absolutely "top notch" and authentic Malay/Thai food, cooked by ethnic Malay/Thai people. It is wonderful value for money, for instance just over £10 for a sit down "all you can eat" experience. Food is constantly being cooked and served freshly made. The take out meals are even cheaper. Very highly recommended.

Visited with a family member in late 2017. I first heard about this restaurant from a friend who highly praised it, so I was planning a visit for quiet sometime. I found the restaurant area very cold and a little uncomfortable, but it was kept clean and tidy. Take away option is also available upon request. There's a big selection of food all in one small area, and the girl on the counter was extremely helpful. The food wasn't as hot as it should of been. I was under an extreme impression that they sold alcohol but when we asked they said they didn't sell it. Overall I was happy, and I thought it was a different experience compared to other eateries in Sunderland.

Variety of dishes, always something to suit everyone, customer service is excellent, all food is delicious me n my family come here for take outs all of th time, u would not find a better place thn this

Just can’t recommend this place enough. There are too many dishes which are my favourite. Beef rendang, beef in black bean, Thai chicken curry, crispy chicken, egg fried rice and the noodles. Don’t take my word for it go yourself

the food is nice but way it used it be not as hot food quilty down to i was going for year the day it opened seen change but I no my food dry as well taste gone down but need to improve how it used to be nice but when u no u no

Just love the variety at Borneo. Something for everyone including the 'Mrs' who likes things much milder than I do..

Called in today for a take out while at work just what I needed to warm me up was delicious...

Always tender meats , succulent. Fresh. Lemon crispy chicken. Ribs, exceptional worldwide dishes. Variable menu caters for exactly what you...

Food hot and delicious, staff welcoming, loads of dishes to choose from spicy to mild so there is something for...

We were a little tired and had been hunting high and low for accommodation. Not knowing the area we ended...

You simply cannot get better curry got, rendang and sweet and sour anywhere else, especially at this price! Keep up...

Cannot fault the food from here massive portions and everything is so fresh the crispy chicken is delicious

I visited with my son today & will definitely be back... ive never tasted so much flavour in food... i would recommend the chicken in orange sauce (not sure what it was but it was unreal) a man called kev could not be anymore helpful... i usually like to be left alone but he was great

Love it here! Staff always have time to talk you through the menu. Also the food is made really quickly and I'm always very full after eating. Highly recommend borneos.

Estado aquí unas cuantas veces con mi esposa. Puedo resumir muy rápidamente. Si te gusta probar diferentes tipos de comida y diferentes tipos de curry. ¡Es increíble!

Only been here a couple of times but as a student looking for affordable take away food, Borneo Bistro is outstanding value for money. Never been able to finish one. The staff took the time to talk me through the menu, and even let me taste test some of the dishes. Would recommended to anyone!

The food here is exceptional. I can't understand the one or two negative reviews. The place isn't a restaurant it's just a down to earth bistro serving amazing food at a very reasonable price. Personally I wish they'd open a licenced resteraunt and open on a night. Keep it up Borneo

So lovely took time to tell us what each dish was. All of it was beautiful really enjoyed our food a little gem I'm sure we will be back

We went to this bistro few years ago just found it on trip advisor to write a review now.We loved the food especially the goat curry it was amazing. Haven't been able to find the same curry anywhere.I would definitely recommend this place I would travel to Sunderland just to visit Borneo bistro

Great food, really good price. Always get to take out and never been let down with food quality. Don't even care that they don't deliver, it's that good

Came here for the second time. The food are served buffet style which reminds me of lunchtime 'Mixed rice' that are typically seen in most southeast asian city especially Malaysia and Singapore, where you will have a portion of rice or noodles with 1, 2 or 3 sides. The food are tasty and flavorful, reasonably priced with large portion. I enjoyed the goat curry and lemon chicken very much. However, I am not sure if its alright for somebody who is health concious to eat here as most asian cuisine use too much salt and seasoning.

Been 5 years since I've been and nothing has changed food still great quality and reasonably priced too can't go wrong something from mild to spicy a deffinate place to go too worth going out your way

Visited for the first time last week after hearing good reports we were not disappointed the owner served us and he was very helpful the portions were more than adequate and extremely flavoursome Highly recommended

You have to try the Beef Rendang. The taste, portion size, choice and value for money of the menu is unbeatable. I've been here many times and never been disappointed. Always busy which speaks realms! Staff are very polite and friendly

Best food in the area and plenty of it....Only drawback we couldn't get a seat as it's so popular....

Fantastic food excellent service food is amazing loads of choice price is really good you can eat as much as you want on the buffet I found 1 plate was enough it is easy to find it on the main st passed the metro and when u get there it is easy to park in the st next to it

What more can i say than give borneo a 5 star rating food is 5*. Prices are fab for take outs or to eat in

Great place to stop by to grab some grubThey have everything you could want at a very reasonable priceEverything is very good quality cooked to perfection and the staff/managers there are so friendly and welcomingWill be back for my next hangover cure

Worth the try.Delicious choice of meals.Kept going many times with friends even though it was pricey but would be better if shared with friends the meal. The fried chicken and honey lemon chicken is the best among all the dishes.

Good quality tasty food at affordable prices. Take away and eat in facilities. Totally recommend you try it.

Love this place. Kev is amazing and a genuinely lovely guy. The food is one of the best I've ever had.

Always superb value for money.Greatb selection of cuisines. Only minor downside is that it's a shame it's not open in the evening!

i have eaten here many times and it is honestly one of the best places i have ever eaten. it is is really cheap for what you get. This restraint is the definition of soul food and i would recommend getting the lemon chicken it great.

I just had a smallish quick take away for a late lunch, ant the queue was out the door ! A great selection of about 12 dishes each day. I had Beef Rendang (I think !) and chicken jerk. Both were delicious, very tasty good sized portions. The choice of dishes varies daily & you can sit inside if there are any free tables !

This is such a hidden gem! A friend told me about it and I was stunned at how good the food is! Wish I lived closer as I'd get takeaways from here all the time!

Called in on Saturday after reading so many good review the food is reasonably priced and you do get good portions unfortunately there is very little flavour in the food and we found it a bit disapointing this was our first and will probably by our last visit to Borneo Bistro

Love ❤️ this place food is fantastic if you haven't tryed it yet I highly recommend it to anyone to give it a go

10/10 never fails sit in or take out plenty of sizes available always busy even the breakfast is lovely and the owner is very friendly and welcoming as are his staff

Grab your children and put on their sunday bests and head to borneos! This place is the bees knees of food outlets not just in sunderland but in the entire north east. After my first solo visit over 6 years ago i decided i would return with my family because there are so many positives about this place i had to let them experience this taste bud paradise. IT was so great, i decided i would take my wife here not just on valentines day evening but also for our 1st wedding anniversary. She was so impressed we plan to use borneos as a venue to renew our wedding vows in 10 years time. There are 4 generations in my family and all of them have experienced borneos; i really cant wait to introduce our 5th generation to the beef randang. One gripe is that the goat curry was too spicy for grandma Hinton. My 6 month old daughter |Ava-MArie adores the fried chicken. WE even bought a large box of it to take home and microwave for her tea the same night. She seems happy so what harm can it do? There is a famous saying: 'find something you love and let it kill you' so i intend to enjoy borneos to the very max. cya at 12 kev mate.Ali Hinton

Visited here for first time in Nov has heard lots of nice things and have to say good was amazing and a great price too will defo be back here

The food here is delicious, staff are lovely and would definitely recommendThey offer a pre order aswell to collect, lovely

Has to be the best lemon chicken I have ever had in my life!!!!! staff are great and so is the food.

I have been meaning to review this place for months but haven't got round to doing so. Absolutely love borneos...its original, great value and the food is fantastic. The staff are friendly and the place is always packed! (Which is sometimes a pain when it's raining outside and the que is out the door -but the sign of a good buisness!) I recommend it to everyone.