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Bao Fa Garden (FKA Zen China), London,

Bao Fa Garden (FKA Zen China)

3.6
3.6
322 Reviews
£26 to £40
Chinese
  • Romantic
  • Great for scenic views
  • Good for special occasions
Zen China Restaurant is now changing its name to Bao Fa Garden Restaurant & Bar. It has been renovated and expanded with a new bar and open kitchen.

Bao Fa Garden is the same brand name restaurant in Northern China, which has over 100 years in history and has been awarded the oldest restaurant in China famous for its classic dishes. Bao Fa Garden Restaurant in London is now serving new classic fusion cuisine.

The interior has the atmosphere of an old country house drawing room, with views over the water to the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben and London Eye.

We believe natural ingredients are the most important: we use reliable suppliers - no MSG or colour additives.

Our new head chef has over 28 years experience, 14 years in Chinese cuisine during which period he won many awards & 14 years in classic fusion cuisine in Poland, England & Canada. You will be thrilled to see his creative culinary skills while you enjoy the delicious food!

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Unfortunately, this restaurant is not on the OpenTable booking network. To check availability, please contact them directly.

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Additional information

  • Dining style
    Elegant Dining
  • Price
    £26 to £40
  • Cuisines
    Chinese, Unspecified, Continental
  • Hours of Operation
    Brunch: Saturday & Sunday: 12noon - 4:50pm Dinner: Monday - Sunday: 5:30pm - 10:30pm
  • Phone number
    020 7261 1196
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Executive Chef
    Jinsheng Zheng
  • Catering
    Wines and drink receptions with canape. Buffet banquets.
  • Area
    Waterloo
  • Parking details
    Thereare a few car parks available on Belvedere Road: The closest is the Southbank Car Park which is just 4 mins from County Hall, and the Royal Festival Hall car park which is 6 mins away from us.
  • Public transit
    Buses: 12, 53, 77, 148, 159, 211, 341, 381, 453, 507, C10, RV1<br />Tube: Waterloo, Westminster, Embankment<br />Taxi drop-point: Belvedere Road off Chicheley Street.
  • Entertainment
    Occasional live Jazz bands, single or duo instruments, Modern and Classic Chinese bands.
  • Additional
    Banquet, Bar Dining, Bar/Lounge, Beer, BYO Wine, Cafe, Chef's Table, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Entertainment, Full Bar, Non-Smoking, View, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine

What 322 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

3.6
3.6 based on all time ratings
  • 3.6Food
  • 3.6Service
  • 3.7Ambience
  • 2.8Value

NoiseModerate

322 Reviews
  1. Theresa

    Chicago

    43 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    43 reviews

    Dined on 31 May 2018

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 4
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    First night in London and late dinner. They served well and the food was good! Wonderful location and great service!

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  2. PaulsCo

    London

    26 reviews

    5.0

    26 reviews

    Dined on 3 April 2018

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 5
    Our first visit and we loved it. I'm a big fan of Chinese food and have visited restaurants all over the world, including Hong Kong. The Beijing duck was wonderful and the soup that was made with the remainder just delicious, the presentation at the table by the chef was a lovely touch too. We liked the place so much we are going back on Friday with other friends. The full menu is much more varied than appears on their website and includes some great dishes.

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  3. Helene

    London

    6 reviews

    3.0

    6 reviews

    Dined on 23 March 2018

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 4
    Nice staff and beautiful views of houses of parliament / big ben / river. However food is pretty average so it’s expensive for what it is. Sizzlinf beef was delicious. Crispy duck was dry. Egg fried dry.

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  4. CR04

    Monterrey

    1 review

    4.0

    1 review

    Dined on 31 December 2017

    1. Overall 4
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 3
    Food was OK, the problem was the price. I don't mind paying much for great food, but it wasn't really what I was expecting. Nothing was bad, but wasn't great either. The lobster was overcooked, the fish had a lot of spines, and so on. Again, it was good food, but not for the price.

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  5. Michelle1

    London

    1 review

    1.0

    1 review

    Dined on 31 December 2017

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 1
    Terrible..we booked via Open table as it was in the city and my family wanted to spend new years in London. Was called up by a rude resturant manager who demanded we pay £ 900 for the booking. This was not mentioned on open table at time of booking. We ended up cancelling the booking and will never book here again. It spoilt our New Year plans in London and everybody including my two children were extremely disappointed.

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  6. BenL

    London

    2 reviews

    1.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on 31 December 2017

    1. Overall 1
    2. Food 1
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 1
    Very bad. At around 1pm on Sunday 31st December I received a call saying that my 5pm booking (same day) had been cancelled as they were now holding a New Year's party that would cost about £200 per person. For my booking they said that I could only move it to 3pm (before they closed). They should have had these details on Open Table beforehand. I then asked if they could hold my booking so that I could discuss with friends that I booked it for. When I called back they were unable to understand me and the conversation was a bit of a struggle. In the end I cancelled the booking.

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  7. OpenTable Diner

    London

    1 review

    2.0

    1 review

    Dined on 15 October 2017

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 4
    4. Ambience 5
    Food was ok and can be better. Really expensive for its portion. Not tasty enough.

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  8. Essem

    London

    71 reviews

    3.0

    71 reviews

    Dined on 12 October 2017

    1. Overall 3
    2. Food 3
    3. Service 3
    4. Ambience 2
    It seemed logical to dine at the Bao Fa Garden after a matinee visit to the County Hall Theatre. What can I say? It was okay I suppose. No particular omplaints from my party of four, that's for sure. But it wasn't great. It was all rather ordinary leaving us with some disappointment that it could have been so much better. At these prices and with this location we should have been bowled over - but weren't. I doubt if we'll return.

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  9. OpenTable Diner

    London

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on 5 September 2017

    1. Overall 5
    2. Food 5
    3. Service 5
    4. Ambience 5
    This was my first visit to this restaurant & I was very happy with the delicious meal served by very attentive staff and the manager who was at hand to see that all was well. My son & a guest from overseas enjoyed the lovely array of dishes including starters , scallop dumplings and vegetable spring rolls and our mains roast whole duck , chicken , aubergine & Tofu served with rice. which we shared were absolutely delicious with very large portions :) ( we only realised it when the food arrived ).The Merlot shared by my guests was great too. I would defenitely recvomend this restaurant to those who enjoy quality Chinese cuisine and excllent ambience & great view of the Thames. It must be said , the price was very reasonable too!!👍

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  10. SamanthaSarahMcCall

    London

    1 review

    2.0

    1 review

    Dined on 3 September 2017

    1. Overall 2
    2. Food 2
    3. Service 1
    4. Ambience 2
    My first impressions were not good, the pictures on the website do not match inside the restaurant, because it is old decor inside. I felt like I walked into the wrong place! The menu offers mostly pork options, hardly any chicken or fresh seasonal veg. The actual menu is tacky in plastic wallets, this doesn't make a good impression of a high end place. The ice-cream tasted like it had been in the freezer 2 years. The waiter brought out our food separately so some food was cold and some was hot, this is such bad service. They were hardly anyone around, we were left waiting to pay when another party came in to eat. Toilets had no tissue, I had to go back upstairs to ask for toilet paper! How bad! The toilet bins were over flowing and general mess - put me off my food. Overall this is 1/5 and I wouldn't go back.

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FAQs

Bao Fa Garden (FKA Zen China) is rated 3.6 stars by 322 OpenTable diners.

Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable.

Not available on OpenTable

Unfortunately, this restaurant is not on the OpenTable booking network. To check availability, please contact them directly.

Is this your restaurant?
Claim this listing
Google Map for Bao Fa Garden (FKA Zen China)

County Hall, Riverside Building, Queens Walk, Westminster Bridge Road, London, SE1 7PB

Additional information

  • Area
    Waterloo
  • Hours of Operation
    Brunch: Saturday & Sunday: 12noon - 4:50pm Dinner: Monday - Sunday: 5:30pm - 10:30pm
  • Price
    £26 to £40
  • Cuisines
    Chinese, Unspecified, Continental
  • Dining style
    Elegant Dining
  • Dress code
    Casual Dress
  • Parking details
    Thereare a few car parks available on Belvedere Road: The closest is the Southbank Car Park which is just 4 mins from County Hall, and the Royal Festival Hall car park which is 6 mins away from us.
  • Public transit
    Buses: 12, 53, 77, 148, 159, 211, 341, 381, 453, 507, C10, RV1Tube: Waterloo, Westminster, EmbankmentTaxi drop-point: Belvedere Road off Chicheley Street.
  • Payment Options
    AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
  • Executive Chef
    Jinsheng Zheng
  • Entertainment
    Occasional live Jazz bands, single or duo instruments, Modern and Classic Chinese bands.
  • Additional
    Banquet, Bar Dining, Bar/Lounge, Beer, BYO Wine, Cafe, Chef's Table, Cocktails, Corkage Fee, Entertainment, Full Bar, Non-Smoking, View, Weekend Brunch, Wheelchair Access, Wine
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  • Terms of Use
  • Impressum
  • Cookies and Interest-Based Ads
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