Fantastic ambience and stunning food... definitely must have the naan, and everything on the menu is done well.
Book for a 5 o’clock seating before a show, or if you’re prepared to wait you won’t be disappointed!!!
I’m not sure about the “Jewish” food appellation though, it strikes me as more North African-Middle Eastern fusion with a few Mediterranean influences...
This is one place I swear by. Every single of my Londoner spells, I need to be here, wait for my spot at their kitchen table, perched precariously on those bar stools, for my taste buds to go berserk.
The naan-barbari, the monkfish chermoula, the octopus (oh-so-charred at the right spots), I could sing paeans all day.
Heard so many great things about this restaurant and it did not disappoint. Everything was so tasty but the most outstanding dish for the night was hands down the cauliflower. I cannot stress enough the importance of ordering this dish because this cauliflower was the best cauliflower i have ever eaten
Absolutely fantastic food! Highly recommend+++ Started with Jerusalem breads baba ghanoush and Harrissa, burnt and chilli (I could eat these all day!) Then cauliflower, chicken and mackerel. Win, win and win. No words to describe how amazing the food and the dining experience was!
A fairly recurrent motif in the London restaurant scene at the moment is the second restaurant effect. A new independent restaurant starts up, becomes successful and then opens their second restaurant. Sometimes, this is good – standards are maintained and it becomes (ever so slightly) easier to get a table in a hotspot. Sometimes, this is not the case, quality seems to get diluted as talent is spread a bit more thinly – sometimes a piece of string can only be stretched so far before it breaks. If the second try is successful (or even if it isn’t), the second location is now often followed by a third establishment and thus a chain is formed. I am of course not referring to those all those ramen and burger places that keep mushrooming up.
Think barrafina but go more middle eastern. Sat around the bar and eating good food and with the staff all wanting you to have a good time you could easily stay there all night. We luckily got a seat early otherwise we would have had to wait a while
This restaurant was on my list since it opened in June and I was not disappointed!I had to be there quite early on a Tuesday evening in order to avoid having to wait for a seat (at 6pm). It's quite a small restaurant, the seats are all around the bar and everything is shared so I would avoid going with a large group! The atmosphere is quite buzzing with the chefs cooking mostly in front of you and with fast and efficient service.
The dishes are all small and African-inspired, made to share and the restaurant has also received a Bib Gourmand!Everything we tried was delicious, bursting with flavour and spices, I would especially recommend the icre (fish roe dip). I will definitely be back to try the rest of the menu!
I LOVE The Palomar, so when I read that they had opened The Barbary, a new restaurant in Covent Garden it instantaneously jumped to the top of my list of must try restaurants. They don’t take reservations and all 20 or so seats are on the counter, around the kitchen. At Palomar, the counter...
Opened by the same people behind the hugely successful Palomar in Soho. It wasn't long since I had a really enjoyable and interesting meal at its sister restaurant Palomar
I was so excited about the opening of the Barbary given that the Palomar, its older sibling, is one of my favorite restaurants in London - to the point where I was sure I had created impossibly high expectations.
But the Barbary held its own and we had an amazing meal there. They've taken the fun part from the Palomar (eating at the counter overlooking the chefs) and extended the concept to the whole place, so you can only eat at the counter, and the whole place seems a little more intentionally bustling and noisy than the Palomar.
The food was just as amazing as the Palomar, with a menu of mouth-wateringly varied North African inspired dishes. They make it very hard for you to choose! So, we ordered as much as we could handle.
Meat and fish dishes were lovely and tender and marinated in just the right concoction of herbs and spices, while desserts were super rich and tasty without being sickly.
I will most definitely be going back. Repeatedly.
Of all the exciting openings lined up this summer, I’ve been most eagerly anticipating the launch of the Barbary. It’s by the same folks behind the very buzz-worthy Palomar – a tiny but highly-charged restaurant in Soho dishing up a cultural melting pot of a menu, rooted in the food of modern day Jerusalem.
The Palomar, the West End’s Jewish-ish restaurant of the moment, has opened a second site in The Seven Dials’ Neal’s Yard. While The Barbary’s menu is similarly eclectic, taking in influences from across North Africa and the Mediterranean Near East, it’s a much smaller venue that doesn’t take reservations. There are just 24 covers arrayed around a counter overlooking the small galley-like kitchen. If you can mount and unmount the stools without looking like a haemorrhoidal John Wayne, then you have more consummate grace than I ever will. Although the view over the small brigade-style operation is endlessly entertaining, the stools can be uncomfortable – especially if you have a voluminous Kardashian-style backside as I do. It’s all worth putting up with though.
Johanna Coraline Jensen
+5
I'm usually vegetarian/vegan and I made an exception trying out my friends meat dishes, and I was not disappointed. Worth doing! The veggie options were also amazing and I can't wait to come back. The staff were also super knowledgeable and friendly.
The desserts are to die for, I would just come back for that.
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So many good flavours here. We left the food choices to the bartender who was taking care of us. It was mostly great but felt too much as we had all the vegetarian mains together with a couple of starters and cold mezze plates for two people.
Here is the full list:
- Spinach Borani
- Za'aluk
- Jerusalem Bagel
- Barbarian Falafel
- Cauliflower Jaffa Style
- Grilled Halloumi
- Oyster Mushroom
- Fattoush Salad
They were all very delicious but we wouldn't order falafel and fattoush salad as they didn't feel very special. Bagel was amazing, a nice spice & butter touch to Turkish simit. Halloumi with the spicy sauce and the cauliflower were our favourites. If you want a meat substitute, chargrilled oyster mushrooms are the right choice.
Finally, we had Knafeh, which was the best kunefe I've ever had (including the ones in Turkey).
Atmosphere was really good as the kitchen is just in the middle of all the seating and you can see what the chefs are doing all night.
Seating was not good for us as the distance between our stools was longer than the others in the restaurant. And the music was a little irrelevant to the atmosphere. But other than these, very good experience.
Have visited The Barbary about 6 times and it does what it says on the tin - serve great food.
Albeit, in the last couple of visits, it has been apparent that the hosting staff could be a little more attentive, lower the music volume, and make sure that the orders aren't all served at once, as it made our party of 3, feel like we needed to hurry.
Something to also look at, is having a repeat customer identifier, such as marking their name on the booking system, or simply asking them when they arrive. It can make people feel welcome, and appreciated for coming back.
I'll visit again, to enjoy the scrumptious food, and hope for an improvement in the hosting.
Go and try you won’t be disappointed.
What a great meal with a very perfect service.
We had :
- falafels 5 pièces very generous size and absolutely delicious,
- Smokey aubergines very tasty with a nice kick of spices,
- hummus very very nice,
- tasty flatbread,
- mushrooms definitely worth a try,
- a must try the cauliflower so so delicious.
Nothing was average, we had a beautiful lunch.
Lovely to seat at the bar and watch how the food is cooked.
The staff is very pleasant and it was a very relaxing place.
Go and try, you can’t be disappointed.
Great flavours and intimate feel. Only regret is going for a small lunch so not having the opportunity to order more.
Everything we tried was very good. Salmon, Mushroom, bread, and tomato aubergine.
Jen was amazing, the whole team was amazing, the atmosphere and service impeccable. The food? Manna from heaven. Jen chose for us and she got it absolutely 100% right. We had an immensely delicious time and I can’t wait to take every one of my out of town visitors here!
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One of the best restaurants I’ve ever been to! I visited this place on one of my trips to London from New York and I’ve got to say, I’ve never had food this fresh, delicious, and within a relaxing and chill ambiance. I was skeptical to visit since I hadn’t had North African cuisine before and didn’t know quite what to expect. We were seated in front of the chefs and the manager explained all the items on the small but interesting menu. The manager was more than happy to, and with a lot of patience, explain the menu, so don’t be shy and ask if you’re not sure what an item is. As the orders were placed, food came out sooner than expected, which was great! The plates were small but that was actually beneficial to trying a little bit of everything. The breads were fresh and soft with so much flavor! The dips were bursting with flavors of so many spices and seasonings. One of the dishes had a seared fish tossed with onions and tomatoes- and let me tell you, the tomatoes were like none I’d ever had before, they were fruity, crunchy and so yummy! I usually don’t like tomatoes but these were beyond normal tomatoes and that says a lot. Fish was fresh and tender. I could go on about the food, but overall, if you want to try something new that will blow you away, go here! Bring a friend so you can try a little bit of everything! Great food, chill vibes, not too expensive and an experience you’ll savor!
The Barbary is an absolute gem. The food is incredible - the lamb tagine is my favorite, but everything I've tried has been amazing. The atmosphere is cozy and intimate, and the service is top-notch. I can't wait to go back!
Fantastic North African inspired food perfectly prepared @barbarylondon 💕
Everything was made with such skill and care; all right in front of us as the design is an Open Kitchen surrounded by counter seating so guests can watch their plates and breads freshly prepared. So yummy 😋
Great service from our server Maddie and the rest of the team.
And love the perfect vodka/elderflower/citrus shot to finish the meal Cheers to a wonderful evening
#Eatlocal
#SupportSmallBusiness
#bridgie_breland_foodie
Brilliant food and very nice service. Pricing is absolutely ok. Very nice atmosphere even though it’s in an area with lots of tourists. The Italian chef is cool!
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The Barbary
This small almost unassuming place has a secret, its amazing. The moment you walk in the staff are here to help, we were shown to our seats and given a small snack while we looked through the menu, if you have dietary needs the staff will highlight (or delete) the dishes unsuitable for you. Our snack was pitta bread fried in garlic (za'atar chips) and it was lovely.
We ordered and the very helpful staff offered suggestions, the plates are relatively small so this was very helpful. Because of the very intimate nature of the place we were able to see many of the dishes made and brought to those waiting, its quite nice to be able to see behind the curtain as it were and also very good fun to watch.
As our order started arriving we were treated to a wonderful taste tour of the menu, with lovely hummus and very tasty flat bread, then came the excellent Jerusalem bagel, and falafel. Both of which were beautiful tasting. And then came the Cauliflower Jaffa Style, this is my favourite thing, it is such an amazing flavour. So much so one if our group called it a taste education.
We followed up with desserts and each of the choices is faantastic in its own way. I can not fault the menu in any way at all its just excellent.
The staff are very attentive and friendly and were more than happy to chat with you if you wanted. Quite possibly one of the best places I've eaten ever.
STUNNING! Absolutely loved this place, the dishes were delicious, the vibes were immaculate, the staff had lots of great recommendations.
Strongly recommend trying the Grilled Haloumi, Bagel > naan, cauliflower, and ask for recs on the dips we got great suggestions
Delicious food always, great atmosphere and brilliant friendly and motivated staff. It’s always a delight to come and today was particularly pleasing as we were able to get a space at short notice rather than having to book weeks in advance. Absolutely one of my favourite restaurants.
Delicious food and excellent service. Our waitress helped us to decipher the menu, and her suggestions were perfect. Would recommend the falafel and the cauliflower.
Great experience to be sat watching the chefs cook too!
Absolutely love the food, service and vibe (although a bit overpriced). I was slightly disappointed as I had purposely booked the Barbary next door to try the menu but got seated at the main Barbary restaurant. Wish they told me that when confirming my reservation. Food was still awesome but I would have like to try the other menu as I had been to the Barbary before.
What a lovely experience. We had been to Evelyn’s Table and Palomar from this restaurant group before and were hoping the Barbary would be just as good and we weren’t disappointed. The service was very personal and friendly. Every dish was a highlight. Compact but fantastic drinks menu, the cocktails were refreshing. Kitchen counter seating provides a lot of people and kitchen staff watching opportunities. The only negative was the stool seat isn’t super comfortable.
Food and atmosphere was amazing
Specially pistachios hash cake , was one of the best cake I have ever eaten ( recommended by Alex )
Alex and Charlotte was really nice and lovely
This place never disappoints, my to-go place everytime I’m in London now! Recommends everything on the menu, and the friendly staff is always here to help.
A true gem of Neal’s yard. Great concept with yummy food and drinks, amazing selection of desert that many Middle Eastern/North African restaurants lack and also the most delicious falafel I have ever tried. Alex was an absolute superstar and with his menu knowledge helped me and my friend pick (and enjoy) the meals. Highly highly recommend!
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