Begging Bowl or Ganapati?

[Sue]

I am digging deep and taking the lovely Nygel for a fiftieth birthday meal tomorrow.

Was going to go to Begging Bowl, where we haven't been yet, but googling brings up very mixed reviews.

Any thoughts? Can't afford places like The Palmerston, before anybody suggests it :)

May have left it too late to get a table at Ganapati, but we both like Ganapati, just wanted a change.

ETA: Unless things are different now at Ganapati? Haven't been there for several years ......

[camberlou]

I don't think you can book the Begging Bowl. I tried to go a few times but always told there would be a wait. They were nice about it, but meant it would get late. And yes, Ganapati is as good as ever.

[jimmyraj]

Begging Bowl is nice. Not the cheapest, but good food. Ganapati also very nice - similar price range.

[Sue]

Thanks both!

Yes I realised you can't book the Begging Bowl, so will aim to get there early if that's the place of choice.

Just thought if it was going to be Ganapati I would have to book, and possibly left it too late now. I think they used to have two sittings?

Will maybe try the Begging Bowl anyway - it will be disappointing if it's as bad as some of the reviews I've read, but I've also read some very good reviews, so I guess first hand experience is the only way to find out.

[feuerberg]

begging bowl has great service, always busy and food is tasty but the portions are small and you can spend alot! dig very deep!!

[Bellenden Belle]

I have been to Begging Bowl twice and both times have been hugely surprised at how much I've enjoyed it - partly because I too had read terrible reviews.

And I have left stuffed both times though I have always gone with three people - I think sharing dishes does tend to work better with a few than two.

It's not a relaxing meal out though - it has a fast table turnaround and you'll be table sharing with others.

[Sue]

Thanks!

[corinne R]

Begging Bowl is nice, serves well cooked fresh food but crowded, quick and pricey. Why don't you go to Brixton Village, a few beers at the craft beer co, dumplings at Mama Lans and then a Thai at Kao Sarn, you can book and it's BYO. A great fun evening out too.

[Jeremy]

I really like Begging Bowl. I'm not sure if the portions a small - they're sharing plates, not main courses. Some things are a little overpriced though, veg in particular.

[Sue]

Well, we went to the Begging Bowl and really liked it.

Excellent friendly but non-intrusive service, nice room with attention to detail, nice vibe, no hideous music - so that was all a good start, as was getting a table for two when we'd thought we would be sharing.

The food was head and shoulders, in fact whole body, above any other Thai food round here (at least that I know of). No comparison.

The food wasn't as hot (in either sense) as I was expecting but that was OK. The mix of flavours was good. I could have taken more chilli but I guess they've got to try to get the balance right for the majority of people.

Surprised to see razor clams and samphire (not in the same dish!) on a Thai menu though, so I guess it's Thai influenced rather than authentically Thai. Unless you can get those ingredients in Thailand?

We had five dishes between us and that was more than enough - with plenty of both sticky and jasmine rice, we were both stuffed. Probably four would have been enough, but I didn't want to appear mean given the occasion :)

The only dish we had that I didn't like was the beef green curry. There was nothing wrong with it per se, just the huge chunks of braised beef were not to my taste really. So Nyge had most of that :)

We also shared some condensed milk icecream. I thought that was going to be like kulfi, but it was nothing like kulfi, however it was quite yummy. Though probably a dish too far given our already stuffed states. Not to mention the pints of draught Meantime (was a little surprised they didn't have an option of Singha beer, but supporting a local brewery is obviously good!)

I didn't think it was overpriced given the quality of the food and the generally positive experience, and overall I'd give it a very solid four and a half stars. Sadly we're unlikely to go back due to our skintness - not in the immediate future anyway - though I'd like to try all the other dishes on the menu!

[Jeremy]

Glad you enjoyed it. I totally agree, the food is incomparable to other Thai restaurant round these parts.

[giantbears]

I thought the food at Begging Bowl was faultless but found the service to be really really bad. A bit pricy, but so is every new-ish place to eat round here.

Ganapati on the other hand is amazing, both food and staff are fantastic. I took my mum and dad there last night and they absolutely loved it.

[numbers]

I've been dying to try the Begging Bowl for ages, this thread has made me even more impatient.

The menu sounds incredibly delicious & well-thought out.

(PS - Happy Birthday to Nyge) :))

[Sue]

Thanks Numbers, I'll pass on your birthday wishes :)

Suprised you had bad service giantbears, we found it absolutely excellent.

On the other hand we got there quite early (can't remember the exact time but it was somewhere between 7 and 8pm) and it did get very busy later on.

But even when it was busy the service was very good, for us at least.

One of the five dishes did arrive after the rest, but it wasn't a big deal. In fact it probably wouldn't have fitted on the table if it hadn't done :))

[camberlou]

Finally made it here to eat a couple of weeks ago. The food was great and the service friendly and helpful.

We went quite late and didn't feel rushed at all as we leisurely made our way through all the dishes.

It was less expensive than I'd expected given the reviews, but definitely not cheap.

[lorraineliyanage]

The Begging Bowl are doing 10% off on Mon - Thurs if you have a free local loyalty card.

http://www.livelovelocal.net/listings/the-begging-bowl/