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LONDON | Le Bab Soho, near Carnaby Street, is among the wave of modern Middle Eastern restaurants with a massive following in London such as Berber & Q, Palomar, and Honey & Co. One of the founders, Ed trained in Michelin-starred restaurants whereas his partner, Stephen found inspiration in Middle Eastern flavours. Generally we associate kebabs with late night munchies after one too many pints after work but Le Bab has changed that perception. Characterising itself as a “kebab renaissance project” and located in stylish and reinvented Kingly Court, Le Bab serves up kebabs presented with elegance in space that’s small but feels quite open. It’s extremely popular so we suggest making a booking via OpenTable or be prepared to queue for some of the tables that are left for walk-ins.
The menu is concise with a massive flavour offering, helped along by the piece de resistance behind Le Bab’s extraordinary flavours, the charcoal-fired robata. Robata is Japanese method of slow cooking over hot coals. To begin we tried the 15-hour free range pork sharmwa (£11.00). Served on a flat bread, the kebab was also served with burnt cabbage pickle, golden beetroot, chili relish, crackling, and pork aioli. The presentation was extremely elegant but that was lost when you roll it up to enjoy.
Next we tried the chicken and egg (£12.00) which was filled with BBQ paneer, beetroot puree, crispy onion, charred beetroot stem, and curry mayo. Finally, we sampled the Lamb Adana (£12.00) which featured curry parsnip puree, parsnip crisps, and burnt pickled onion. In a testament to how good the kebabs were, we each finished our respective kebabs without offering our dining companions a bit.
We also enjoyed the fondue fries (£4.50) which were perfectly crisp and flavoursome. These fries were certainly the most elegant specimen of cheesy chips we’ve come across.
We toasted the evening with a bottle of Crème de Pinot from the Czech Republic (£29.00). It was very refreshing on an unexpectedly warm London evening.
Le Bab is the perfect spot to enjoy a moderately quick but freshly prepared meal. Our server was an extremely friendly Australian who didn’t rush us despite the queue forming outside the door. If you are thinking of a pre-theatre option in the West End that isn’t your stuffy prix-fixe this could be your option. For us, it was the perfect spot to catch up with friends for a bite before heading to Archer Street Cocktail Bar for drinks and dancing.
We will definitely be back to try some of the starters and the Pig’s Head, aptly included under the “Large Bab” section of the menu.
Le Bab
Top Floor, Kingly Court
London W1B 5PW
United Kingdom
Telephone: 020 7439 9222
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.eatlebab.com/
Open
Mon – Sat: 12:00pm to 3:00pm; 6:00pm to 11:00pm
Sun: 12:00pm to 7:00pm