Cafe Bao in Camden - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

Excellent, subtle ramen very conveniently located for those awaiting a train at St Pancras. I was less impressed by the boa the restaurant is named for: enjoyable but not really worth the price. 5* secured by a superb, in-house dark beer that suited the beef perfectly.

Chicken came undercooked. Took ages to rectify. Staff were less than attentive and didn't bother to ask us if everything was OK with our meal. Ordered a double vodka in the vain hope it would kill anything bad in the undercooked chicken I'd swallowed. Had to remind the staff member that I had ordered it. I wouldn't mind if they were busy but they just seemed to be stood around talking to each other.

I should have worked it out from the rather dreadful website but this place is not for me. Don't get me wrong the food is fine but I booked in advance knowing that I'd need a late lunch snack when visiting an event at King's Place around the corner. Came into a loud cacophony of noise as the (no doubt trendy) designer had hard surfaces everywhere (no acoustic treatment anywhere) and a massive pile of dirty dishes and plates on the counter. Maybe the noise issue is by design to encourage you not to linger? It worked in our case as we won't be back. Made our selection after a bit of guidance from a member of (the mostly uninterested staff). 2 mains, two sides and two desserts. In the case of the latter 2 out of 3 were not available at 2.30 pm in the afternoon. Our side order of fries appeared about 20 minutes before the rest of the food; dilemma eat them hot or wait and eat them cold? Had to get the service charge removed at the end as we had had little 'service' in my opinion. Nor do they take cash, another reason I will not return. If you want to be locked into a digital, cashless world that's up to you - not me though.

My wife had booked a table - we were running a little late - no contact tel no but well looked after by Adam and his team - great service - didn’t mind waiting at bar for an available table as ours had been used - superb food and attentive staff in a busy lively restaurant - really seemed to care and loved the vibe and the food

We’ve been before twice. We sat outside on a warm day for lunch which was nice and the next time we were sat at a narrow uncomfortable bench. The baos were delicious but expensive and I wasn’t keen on any of the other menu items. For our latest visit I booked a table online, secured with credit card details. When we arrived there was no table available. We were shown three seats at the bar with a view of the kitchen where the dirty plates are stored. When we complained, we were offered a table outside but declined to take it as it was very cold and raining (no outside heaters). I simply refused to pay over £100 for street food with a view of dirty plates sitting on a bar stool. We went around the corner to German Gymnasium which was absolutely fantastic.

We visited Bao as part of the Lumina Food Study Tour and the food was incredible. Special mention to Charlotte as well who was so knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the food! Fantastic service and amazing food. The Horlicks Ice Cream Fried BAO was out of this world!

It’s a nice restaurant and is worth a visit if you are in the area. The bao buns were very good and the salted caramel bun was fantastic but a few of the other dishes were disappointing. Given that the menu is short, it was disappointing to see three dishes being unavailable. All in, I’d say it’s fairly expensive but I’ll give it another go, if I’m in the area now that I have identified the best dishes.

I had heard about a few of their dishes through friends and wanted to give this place a try whilst I was in London. It’s doesn’t disappoint! Firstly, start with a cocktail - they’re fab! The espresso martini is the best I have ever had ❤️ Then move onto a few bao - the beef short rib is heavenly. Next tuck into the beef rump rice and the yellow chilli chicken 🔥 Lastly, the Horlicks I’ve cream bun is adorable - a sweet and chewy treat!

First Bao dinner experience at this very nice taiwanese restaurant. I tried eggsplants and scallop for starter and several delicious shrimps and cod bao. The restaurant was very crowded but service was fast and check affordable.

Thought we would give BAO a go and to be honest we were not disappointed at all… service was polite and efficient.. food was fresh and tasty… especially enjoyed the fried chicken… overall a wonderful dining experience and great introduction to Taiwanese food for us

Visited with my brother on a busy Thursday evening. We had no idea what to expect and were pleasantly surprised. This is miles from a standard mandarin style Chinese but mostly very tasty. Portions look small, but it was filling. We had the set meal plus two starters and one desert and it was more than enough. Our waiter Adi explained everything, was attentive, refilling our water every time it was nearly empty and checked everything was to our liking. Would visit again.

This is my third time at cafe bao and it is now a firm favourite for food in London. I've also tried Bao burough. The food is beautiful, some dishes are a little expensive but the quality is very high! Three of us dines here and we all loved the maple fres so we had to order a portion each. The fried chicken is to die for, crispy and spicy & we also all loved the pickles so ordered a portion each, the price is a little high for the portion but they differ each visit/ I believe are made in house. The service is always good, it is always friendly and efficient the only downside for me is that the plates are always cleared away too soon/ whilst we are still eating. I love the style of the cafe, the wood paneling is beautiful. We will most definitely be back!

My wife and I recently dined at Cafe Bao in the Kings Cross area of London. We received a warm welcome from Adam, who was very engaging and did his best to find us the outdoor table we were looking for, at a time when the restaurant was otherwise very busy, and we showed up without a reservation. The wait staff was attentive but not overbearing; they were there when we needed them. The food very tasty; we had a few of the bao buns as well as the spicy fried chicken appetizer, which was excellent. Would definitely recommend for a solid casual dining experience in the Kings Cross area -- where there are now a lot of options, but this one stood out for us.

We stood at the door for 10 minutes waiting to be seated until a rather brash waiter came and told us it would be a 20 minute wait. Wouldn’t have minded except 1) he and other staff saw us waiting for 10 minutes and didn’t have the courtesy to tell us there would be a wait, 2) when he finally did, he was unapologetic and rather rude. I also saw multiple empty tables. Sadly, didn’t have the chance to try to food which looked quite nice.

Came here with a baby and my sister on a Sunday for lunch. We could see there were other families with children eating both outside and inside. We were seated quickly and the server was very kind and offered us a high chair. They took our orders promptly too. The bao were all soo tasty and beautiful! We shared three between us and the fish was our favourite. The congee was quite strongly flavoured but something different. The bubble tea with milk foam was delicious! The staff were great at giving top ups for water. I must thank the staff as they were so kind to us with a loud messy baby and no one batted an eyelid, they just smiled at us. I would definitely come back to this place. We had a great time!

This is a decent, efficient local cafe that delivers tasty Taiwanese/Asian food. For starters, I tried a scallop in an excellent sharp sauce and beef fritters, which weren't quite up to that level. The black fish bao was marvellous. And the chicken rice had plenty of flavour. Better than most lunchtime venues. Try it.

Visited with a friend and got the £15 set menu which we enjoyed and thought was decent value. There was only one vegetarian option in this, but it was still good and I enjoyed all three dishes. I could see how this could be very expensive if buying items individually as the bao buns are not very big but are quite expensive. I don’t know this genre of food well enough to say if it was authentic, but we enjoyed it. The only thing was the service could have been improved- the £15 menu is from 5-6:30, when we tried to order from it at 6:20 we got told it was no longer offered, then she had to check and then let us order from it. We then had to move table before we ate as they sat us in the wrong place, and a different waiter then gave us our order slip that we had already filled in, back to us to fill in (he then apologised!).

Lovely food and they managed to fit us in without booking on a Thursday night. Really enjoyed the baikon bao bun and the maple syrup fries, the fish bao was also really tasty. Service was very good. Only reason it didn’t get 5 stars is...

Even for a cafe, the portions are ridicously small! Bao buns had clearly been steamed too long as their texture was all stiff, more like a burger bun than a bao bun. It is a good concept, but taiwanese food it is not - I...

Good very quick service. Affordable food, but the atmosphere isn't as welcoming as the branch in Soho, so bear that in mind if going for dinner. The daikon bao buns are especially yummy.

The first floor is a smaller room that was really comfortable with a nice vibe, I prefer smaller dining areas that I can't get lost in. Servers explained how ordering worked in regards to quantities as it was our first time there. My partner and...

Modern Taiwanese blend to boa. Very pleasant service, the custard salted egg bao was good - perhaps if they offered a sweet version of this would be better. The bubble tea is served with milk froth - it’s nice, however I do prefer the classic...