Great collection of wines! Food is good but one needs to be selective in what you order and you could end up having mixed experiences! Lovely ambience and well located in the heart of the London tower bridge road. Overall superb experience
Great food! Great ambience and lovely service. Will definitely be making another visit. Loved the steaks and cooked to perfection. Loved the platter as a starter too.
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The Vivat Bacchus restaurants, established in Farringdon in 2003 and London Bridge in 2008, are a celebration of rustic, robust European food, artisan cheeses and beautiful wines – with nods to the South African owners homeland cuisine sprinkled throughout their menu. The Vivat Bacchus restaurants are largely popular with wine and cheese fans given their amazing range of both, which creates an exciting atmosphere as you watch patrons swirling and sniffing glasses of their selected bottles and passionately discussing their findings & cheese pairings with their friends and the staff alike. The restaurants also offer an extensive menu ranging from A La Carte & charcuterie platters through to burgers, express lunches and plenty of options in their ‘grill’ section; always using daily sourced, quality, seasonal ingredients from highly regarded producers. Certainly my favourite feature of Vivat Bacchus has to be the gorgeously alluring climate-controlled cheese room (yes – a room full of cheese) and the wine cellar – both of which you can experience with an expert in each respective field (more on this later). The interior is nice – nothing overly fancy with basic wooden tables, exposed ceilings and dim lighting – and they also have a large outdoor terrace which was heavily populated the night of our visit.
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By contributor: Mr Vieri
Renowned for their fantastic selection of South African wines and cheese room, I was very excited to experience them both for myself. Upon arrival, you’re struck by the wood surroundings and understated mood lighting. It’s sophisticated but not pretentious. The staff instantly made us feel at home, and offered a great selection of white wines. We tried 3 and settled on a 2012 Meinert Chardonnay. Our sommelier was incredibly knowledgeable and her recommendation flawless.
Onto the food…
I wouldn’t normally focus on the entrees, but, the biltong is well worth talking about. Fresh and light, it came served in a small cup and didn’t last much more than about 30 seconds, it was that good. For a starter we shared the sourdough and mushrooms. Strong overtones of garlic were perfectly placed alongside the well executed mushrooms. Quite filling, so I’d only recommend if very hungry! The mains are very interesting; they offer a chance to explore some much lesser eaten meats from South Africa. I went for the ostrich steak (the leanest meat on earth) ideal for the waistline ;). It came with a side of veg and triple cooked chips, both flawless and the veg just the right side of crispy. My first time having ostrich which came in a biltong coating, it had the look of steak, but a taste somewhere around chicken. I had it medium rare as suggested by the waiter. I’d highly recommend giving it a try. The crocodile burger was very tempting, maybe next time!
The final coup de gras, was a trip to the famous cheese room where we went on a tour of Europe including England, Switzerland, Italy, France and Spain. Everything from soft English cheeses through to a lovely French blue cheese. The level of knowledge from the staff was top notch and we left with a list as long as our arm of cheeses we must buy in the coming months.
location: Next to london bridge tube station
reservation: absolutely necessary to make a booking. The place is flooded with people so you should definately plan ahead of time and be punctual for your meal
lighting and decor: pleasant and warm
food: the complimentary bread is really good and goes well with the wines they serve
Wine: they have a good collection of white wines
Dinner: The chicken breast is a little dry and i didnt find it too juicy. The lamb was well cooked and juicy. the sea trout was a smaller portion but good in taste.
service: friendly and quick
restrooms were good and clean
A CHEESE LOVERS HEAVEN!
The atmosphere is understated & romantic (it gets busy very quickly so you should book ahead) and everything I've tried here has been delicious.
The mozzarella on the bruschetta was amazing (and a perfect sharer between two) but nothing in comparison to the steak. It was INCREDIBLE with triple cooked hand cut fries and an amazing peppercorn sauce. So amazing, I didn't even think of the calories (which was lucky as I ended up eating a huge amount of cheese).
As a cheese lover, I am always on the hunt for the perfectly balanced cheese board but here, you get to go into the cheese room (prepare your nose well in advance) and sample and assemble your perfect board. It was very difficult though as every cheese was amazing (such an understatement). I would say waiting around for the chance to go into the cheese room is 100% worth it.
A great meal all in all, service was slightly wanting but the cheese more than makes up for it
Homing in on the main course grills – and taking advice from our helpful waiter – we both opted for a current special (check website or Open Table for latest promotions): 6 oz (170g) flat iron steak (rump/buttock) with triple fried chips and a glass of wine @ £15.00. Seriously good value; a seriously good cut of beef perfectly cooked (medium rare), and faultless chunky, crisp-coated chips.
Vivat Bacchus has its own cheese room (you can select your own cheeseboard with the help of a cheesepert) or you can pick a suggested (but adaptable) cheeseboard – British, French or Italian.
This cozy restaurant has left the best impressions! Hospitable hosts, delicious dishes, beautiful presentation, wide wine list and wonderful dessert. Everything we tasted melted in other mouths.I highly recommend to everyone! 🫠
The service we received was so amazing and we will definitely be back again.
Many thanks to Joy, Maria,Flori and the whole team..Staff are extremely knowledgeable and make great recommendations.They made us feel welcomed and gave us an amazing experience.
Great place to hangout, chill or go out on a date👍
Upon arrival, you're pleasantly greeted before you're seated. The restaurant is very easy on the eyes with its cheese and wine sections fitted into the decorative works. The menu is different from your everyday restaurant, including different types of meat. The steak was definitely valued for money, and the sea bream tasted perfect. Great service and care by the waitress who served us from 13:30 onwards. I'll definitely be returning to try a different course.
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OSTRICH steak with MONKEY gland sauce?
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Yes, you heard me! Vivat Bacchus is a South African restaurant mainly focused on meat and wine and you can find some real SA specialties there including Ostrich steak.
You'd be pleased to hear that the OSTRICH steak was absolutely delightful and we even enjoyed it more than their staple ribeye on the bone!
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The starters were equally amazing, BURRATA was extremely creamy and I never had it before with fruit. The Braai Broodjie Croquettes had a creamy center and were served with chutney.
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Don't miss the desserts and try their MALVA CAKE which is very similar to British Sticky Toffee Pudding. And of course, they specialise in wine, so make sure to have a glass. If cheese is your thing, you can pick yours in their cheese room too.
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Definitely in my top 5 dining experiences this year. Can't wait to go back!
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⭐️Overall rating: 9/10
🙌Recommendation: Ostrich Steak, The Braai Broodjie Croquettes, Malva Pudding
💰Cost: £78pp (without drinks)
🚇Closest station: London Bridge (or Farrington for the other branch)
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We tried:
Burrata, poached pear, jerusalem artichoke, toasted hazelnuts £11
Braai Broodjie Croquettes, heritage tomato, Mrs balls chutney £9.5
Ostrich Fillet 200g £29
Ribeye on the Bone 700g for 2, £77
Triple cooked chips £4.5
Monkey gland sauce £4
Malva pudding £8
Milk tart Creme brulee, cinnamon £8
I came here for a birthday dinner and it was nothing short of phenomenal! The food was delicious and the staff were extremely friendly and helpful, even went as far as to explain all of the items on the menu, thanks!
I would absolutely recommend and hope to return very soon. Every item was very unique and tasted amazing.
Great location, across from London Bridge train station at Hayes Galleria This is a lovely private place, just off the main road.
We had a wine 🍷 tasting session as part of a hen party.
It was really good, very enjoyable. A good selection of wines to taste, white, red, a sparkling blush rose and plenty of sparkling water to clean the palate in between.
The session included a selection of olives, nuts, bread, crackers and cheese.
The staff were lovely, very helpful and the wine sommelier was excellent!
The dinner menu, looked enticing and had wild meats to try such as crocodile. I had delicious sea bass, with greens and potatoes for dinner.
A very enjoyable time was spent here. I will definitely come here again.
Good food, good service (albeit slow) and nice vibe - the crocodile Goujon is interesting (and tasty), while the sea bream and the ostrich are quite good. Service was a bit slow, though the servers were lovely. Decor isn’t much but it’s got a nice vibe.
Had an amazing lunchtime meal. Food, service & ambience was fabulous. Great value for money & perfect location. So close to station! Florri looked after us very well!
Amazing place! The African cuisine is delightful. Last time, I tried the meat, but today I chose the vegetarian option, and it has been a real treat, just like it was last time. The food is amazing! The service is fantastic as well—very friendly and professional, offering excellent food advice on what to choose. Today, I was served by Viktoria, and she was fantastic. It was a great experience, and I will certainly be back. Thank you!
Last week we visited Vivat Bacchus in Hay’s Galleria and had a great time. The hostess (Natasha) looked after us all evening and was fantastic. Her recommendations were spot on and we tried a few starters and mains based on these. The food was excellent and we even went on a cheeky tour of the wine room. I recommend the ribeye steak, it was cooked to perfection.
Vivat Bacchus is a piece of South Africa in the heart of London. Highly recommend.
Pretty good restaurant for meats and wines. The 2-person steak was good, but the chicken was pretty poor sadly. Very friendly service
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