Champor-Champor

I love the fusion menu and the bohemian décor, it makes for a very romantic evening. My only criticism is the price but I guess that’s London for you!

The first time I came here (about a year ago), I absolutely loved it — sat at the mezzanine table, which was really cool and felt special, and all the food was fantastic.
I returned this week, and while it was still excellent, there were a few imperfections, hence the four stars rather than five.
I was using my gourmet society card, which meant we got buy one get one free on a 3 course meal, which is a great deal, though I think otherwise this is really expensive.
We had three starters between two of us because we couldn’t decide! I loved the crispy soft shell crab the first time I was here; while it was good this time, it was lacking a little something. However, I was blown away by the satay duck breast — beautifully pink and the peanut sauce was chunky and delicious. I would definitely choose this next time! My boyfriend was quite disappointed with the roast duck in a roti — this was filled with bland salad veg, which made it more like a lunch wrap than a delicate starter, and overpowered the duck.
I had a beef rendang for my main, which was tasty if not spectacular — I’m not sure I think it’s worth £16.95, though admittedly there was enough for me to take away some for lunch the next day. My boyfriend was delighted with his pork belly, which looked moist and luxuriant.
Like the crispy soft shell crab, I loved the Tom Yum Brulee last time, but this time it was a bit disappointing — the flavours were rather muted and not as striking as before. The plate was also piled with fruit that was a bit wet and unnecessary.
The restaurant itself has a great vibe and looks interesting, with varied art and ornamental details. Things are served very prettily in general — I like details like having the sticky rice in a little basket.

Cool ambiance, fun service. Overall the food is very tasty! If you’re looking for a relaxing, casual and tasty Asian fusion dinner, this is a great spot.
Green papaya salad ⁹⁄₁₀
Soft shell crab ⁷⁄₁₀
Beef rangan ¹⁰⁄₁₀
King prawn yellow curry ⁷⁄₁₀
«You’re welcome» (we heard that 100 times)
Haha

We were seated in the private room downstairs which was brilliant seeing as we were a big party. Although was slightly jealous when I went back upstairs to a buzzing restaurant which had a brilliant atmosphere, so like other reviews have said I would try to sit there next time!
The mains we had were amazing — highly recommend the red snapper which had some gorgeous (but spicy) flavours, plus the pork belly and the lamb shank looked amazing. Looking forward to visiting again to try some different dishes!

Outstanding! The duck starter is amazing. Very friendly and efficient staff. Cozy and exotic atmosphere.

Booked the mezzanine table for an anniversary meal, and what a night that was it seemed like the table has made our night perfect. Food was fantastic service was very attentive and the ambient of the restaurant is very quirky it’s like you’re not in London at all. Highly recommend this restaurant

I’m slightly disappointed with this place, although I might try again as it was recommended by a person who really knows and likes Asian food. We went at lunch had the aubergine dish and the laksa. Both were good but lacking a bit of charisma. There wasn’t enough depth or spice in either dish. Service was spotty as well. Proceed at your own risk…

Came here with a group of friends and were seated in a private room downstairs. At first this sounded like a great suggestion but the room smelled very badly of damp. This could be a nice room if it was cleaned up more. It’s also very darkly lit. The seating area on the top floor was much nicer but unfortunately was not sat here.
The food was ok– I enjoyed my main more than my starter. For my starter I had the Goat cheese parcels with lime dressing. It was served like egg-​rolls. I did not think the flavors went very well together so would not recommend. For my main– I had the Baked fresh shitake & potato edamame dumpling with Szechuan peppercorn sauce. I got this with a side of sweet potato mash with spring onion. The main was very good and flavoursome as was the sweet potato mash. It is not a traditional thai restaurant is meant to be a fusion of Thai and Malaysian. If I come again– will insist on sitting in the area upstairs as the downstairs seating area is not nice.

I had read the reviews and despite one bad one, the multiple positive reviews swayed me to give it a try. I can honestly say that I should have avoided the place. Although I do agree that the décor was nice and the waitstaff friendly, it cannot be called a Thai restaurant.
The lamb shank was ok, but it was more likely found in an English pub than on the streets of Bangkok. My wife ordered the prawn green curry but she received one king prawn on top of buttery /​cheesy potatoes instead. To top it off, I was served a beer in a glass that smelled more of detergent than anything else. I was presented a new one and had the same problem… So I drank out of the much more predictable bottle itself.
Again, the wait staff were very nice but the food was not. I would not recommend this place.

Very eclectic décor and menu with Malay influences on a variety of dishes. I had the confit duck with an Asian slaw and it was as well crisped as any confit duck I’ve had in Paris. The mango and papaya slaw cut through the richness of the duck very nicely. The starters of spring rolls were. Bit more perfunctory but still nice. My dream is to snag the private table for two on the balcony raised over the rest of the room.

Hmmm, what can I say about this place? The food wasn’t particularly great — my shiitake mushroom and pine nut soup thing was way too salty and gloopy. There must’ve been half a bag of corn starch put in there to make it so lumpy.
And the glutinous sticky rice I ordered to accompany it? It was raw and uncooked, which I thought was impossible to do in this age of rice cooker technology.
Overall, disappointed. It wasn’t cheap either! Though, I couldn’t wait to get out of there as it was boiling hot in there too!

Very interesting Malay restaurant. Great décor that in a way transports you somewhere entirely different.
Starters here are excellent! My scallops were out of this world, huge juicy things resting on pancetta and blades of fruit. They were exquisite and could only have been improved if there had been once in each corner of the plate rather than one on either side. I’ve never had scallops this good and I’ve eaten a lot of scallops. The soft shell crab ordered by my friend were simultaneously soft, juicy and crunchy. Delicious!
We had sizzling steak in a peppercorn sauce and prawns in turmeric curry. The steak was unfortunately a little chewy but the sauce was very pleasant. There were only two prawns in the curry, but they were vast, vast as in the tails were about 6 inches long and two inches across. To accompany this we ordered coconut rice and stir fried halloumi with chilli. The halloumi side was quite perfect, one of the best side dishes I have ever had.
We shared a phenomenal dessert, tom yum crème brûlée. The most fantastic flavour combination since Wagamama started making white chocolate ginger cheesecake. Just marvellous.
We washed this all down with a bottle of Albariño, which was OK, but a little on the sharp side and finished off with their filter coffee.
This place just narrowly missed a fifth star due to the steak texture and the loneliness of the scallops. That being said, I seriously recommend coming here. It’s a feast for the eyes and the mouth and a memorable experience.

A lovely place to eat after your visit to the Shard — definitely call ahead! We visited Champor-​Champor after an afternoon visit to the Shard as it’s right around the corner. We had a great dinner — tried numerous side dishes and vegetarian mains. My favorites were the grilled haloumi cheese and the banana curry. The tofu was also great! Every dish had it’s own unique flavor and it was a very reasonable price. A great find near London bridge!

Been here twice and one experience was entirely different than the other. When I went alone, I had a great time and great food. The service was okay. When I went with a larger group from work, the food was meh and the service was pretty poor. We kept on asking for water refills, drink orders, and when we attempted to share appetizers, they never gave us extra plates! Overall, I wish the service was a bit better to at least be on par with the food their serve.

This is one of these places where I left not knowing how to feel about it. Parts of it was great and others were just so bad that it should not at all be tolerated. Let’s start with on of the good things; The place has a nice relaxed feel to it and we were right away shown to our table but then the not so good things start. Waiter shows up and asks us what we want to drink which is great — only mistake is that we have not received any menus. Easily fixed — we get drinks menu and piece of paper that is some sort of seasonal menu for Christmas. That was not mentioned when booking and since we did not really find anything on the seasonal menu we wanted — asked the waiter if they serve the regular menu and receives an affirmative answer. Another waiter comes over and explains that two dishes are out. Unfortunately one of the dishes I wanted was on that list (the beef rendang).
Still after some contemplation we all manage to find something and orders, we also order drinks. Interestingly enough the beers that the menus states are bottles are just served in glasses no biggie but makes me suspicious. We also get some nice banana bread and spicy fruit salads while waiting for the food. Then the waiter showed up and told us (we were 3) that the dishes two of us ordered were actually not available and we had to order something else and also informed us that several other dishes were not offered either.
The problem for me now was that none of the dishes were things I wanted to eat, I explained that to the waiter that there is nothing I like among the mains any longer and they should really tell when booking if there is only a limited menu offered. He just shrugged and said that is the way it is. No offer to adjust any of the dishes and he was very annoyed when I instead ordered another starter as I could not find anything among the mains. There was actually not even any apology or any offer to do anything solve the situation — if I would not already have ordered the beer and some of that I would rather have left and gone elsewhere.
Food that we got was in general good but not fantastic, a lot of reuse of ingredients makes it feel a bit cheap. The lamb starter was the highlight on the evening. The pork belly was decent but nothing special. The venison rendang is better avoided while the duck starter is decent (but very similar to the lamb but the meat was not as good quality) and the goat cheese parcels were pretty decent.
May still return once they stopped the seasonal menu and then also be prepared for the bad service. In general the starters appear to be better so may only go for several of those to share instead.

I would give 4 stars for the enormous red cow affixed to the wall with its jaunty sparkling adornments. Or for the topless lady-​horse statue with impressively perky breasts that sat behind my table.
But, really, the 4 stars goes to the food. It was tasty and took some unexpected turns — creating an enjoyable, intimate evening meal. I particularly appreciated the number of vegetarian and vegan options on the set menu sat alongside steak and even ostrich.
The décor of the restauarnt — while quirky, interesting and at times risqué — only added to the 4-​star-​ness of Champor Champor. The only thing that let me down was the fact that you could only order the set menu (at nearly £30 for 2 courses); there was no a la carte option. After the bread, the canapes and the starter, I just wasn’t at all hungry for the main course, tasty and enormous though it was. That night, gluttony did not become me. And the vague feeling of gastronomic failure That overcame me did not for a wholly pleasurable dining experience make.
Still, Champor Champor was totally awesome. Come for the cow. Stay for the… cow*.
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*steak — that is to say, food. But there is steak on the menu, yes. You might have to pay a £3 supplement for it, though. And a £6 supplement for the aforementioned ostrich.

I’ve been there almost four times; so I might as well give it 5 stars, but here’s the problem.
The food has gotten increasingly pedestrian and the food tastes nowhere like what I remember it as when I went there the first time. The place looks nice, some amount of thought definitely went in there; but I could only tell after I could magically look beyond the intense scent of incense that blinded my brain cells.
While some of the menu is definitely creative, the meats don’t feel like the freshest. This I have felt on more than one occasion. One possible issue with quality is the inconsistency between starters and the mains. The starters are almost unmissable. The mains are a big let down after the starters.
Specifics: Try all the starters. The salmon/​kaffir wontons get five stars for innovation. Among mains, the black bream is something of a saving grace, and the lotus root/​artichoke Dauphinoise gets special mention for attempting a riot of flavours.
Despite my three stars, I would recommend going there at least once.

I was surprised at how inventive the menu was on the evening we went. I had an omelette type dish with basil ice cream which may sound like a horrible combination but it was fantastic. The space has great ambiance too — if going, I would try to secure the private table.
We had a ‘Taste’ card and were able to have our meal for ½ prices so I can’t say I felt like it was overpriced.

Easily one of my favourite restaurants in London.
This restaurant has been on this quiet back street behind Borough High Street for over 10 years. They must be doing something right. I find this place to be a total experience for the senses. The atmosphere is carefully controlled with incense burning, name cards on the table, and odd oriental objects scattered around.
The waiter asks casually about any food allergies or dietary requirements so as to bring suitable amuse-​bouches. I like this touch, and I’ve always been impressed with what is produced. As a pesce I don’t want to be offered meat, but don’t want to prevent my companions from enjoying it.
The menu items are inventive and always beautify presented. It is a good place to take risks. Don’t go for the «safe» option. You will get food envy when the other meals arrive. The menu is a set price, so the cost is predictable. It is not what I would call cheap, and wine will push the price up. But this is a special occasion restaurant and on that basis I think it is good value. The cocktails aren’t bad either.

As someone who grew up in Asia, any opportunity to check out a new malaysian or Indonesian restaurant is good fun. So off I popped to check it out a couple of nights ago; it was booked out at the time i got there so secured a reservation for an hour later (so pre-​booking is a definite). The ambience was fantastic so in the intervening hour spent in a nearby pub, we really were looking forward to supper.
The menu was really interesting. I would say that if you aren’t adventurous, this isn’t the place for you. The menu did not really have your standard Asian fare, and instead had fantastic things like ostrich for mains and carpaccio of pineapple with cracked pepper for desert (both of which I had). From the little tasting morsels at the start and through three fantastic courses, all of which was incredibly filling, it was a splendid evening. The wine menu was good, and there was a lovely little sauvignon blanc to accompany the meal.