Ping Pong Dim Sum
45 Great Marlborough Street
London
W1F 7JL
uk
51.514005948153
-0.13945166380669
020 7851 6969
Ping Pong Dim Sum
Current
Avg. from 21 rates: 3.4
45 Great Marlborough Street
Soho
London, W1F 7JL
Nearest Transport: Oxford Circus
020 7851 6969
Ping Pong's first restaurant opened in London's Soho, architect David Marquardt and brand designer Niclas Sellebreten having developed an interior architecture and style that is contemporary yet respectful of the traditions of dim sum cuisine. Combining a sense of relaxed order with warmth and comfort, the restaurant possesses its own distinctive atmosphere, yet at the same time defines the ideal of the modern dim sum restaurant everywhere. There are now several branches across London.
Reviews for Ping Pong Dim Sum
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5
Ping Pong Dim Sum
45 Great Marlborough Street
London
W1F 7JL
uk
23rd June 2008
Ping Pong Dim Sum
ive never tried dim sum before but loved what i ate here , the resturaunt looked cool and quite a funky crowd
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3
Ping Pong Dim Sum
45 Great Marlborough Street
London
W1F 7JL
uk
18th March 2008
Gimmicks galore
Having heard my friends rave about Ping Pong and declaring it to be the best, I thought I should better give it a go.
Arrived hungry at noon with cousin Jacky at the Great Marlborough branch last Sunday. We decided to go for the Lazy Sunday deal where you can eat as much as you like off the menu - excluding the specials and signature dishes for £16.50.
Excitedly we started ordering off the menu - ticking off about 12 dishes on the dim sum sheet they give you. Soon enough they arrived - we asked them to come in two batches so as to clutter our small table.
Good points
- Ingredients, in particular the seafood and meat were very fresh. The dumplings are handmade unlike some Chinese restaurants.
- Service was good and friendly - although they first of all charged us the full price which we had to rectify
- Innovative dumplings - great choice of fillings
- Unlike a lot of chinese restaurants, they have lots of choice of vegetarians
Bad points
- Smaller portions and more expensive. Sticky rice came in 3 small wraps - and hardly any meat or prawns were in it
- Vietnamese spring rolls - tiny and burnt in some places
- Steamed tofu and wasabi - tasted really odd
- Choi sum came in a tiny little dish
- Tables were so close to each other - and people were seated right next to us even though the place was empty
- Pastry for the dumplings had a thicker texture and therefore stuck to the baskets
- Not sure about the glass for the tea - was too hot to hold it
All in all it was good to try Ping Pong, I think if you had never eaten dim sum in a traditional restaurant before you would think it was great. The place does look modern and sophisticated, the waiters in their uniforms blend in beautifully and little touches such as the golden teapot and the flower tea made the whole experince very pleasant -not what you'd expect from somewhere in Chinatown. I do give the Ping Pong team credit as they have pulled off a great marketing feat in promoting a cuisine that has been in the background for some time. Even the chinese restaurants have profited from the burst in the cuisine's popularity and started to serve dim sum later and later and places such as New World - have encouraged Westerners by hiring English speaking staff. Hopefully it will give novice dim sum lovers the courage to try the more traditional restaurants such as the Royal China chain, Imperial China and Phoenix Palace.
Bad points
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2
Ping Pong Dim Sum
45 Great Marlborough Street
London
W1F 7JL
uk
15th March 2008
all show - no go
Great concept but the food just isn't good enough. The décor, cocktails and staff uniforms are great but if you want good dim sum try elsewhere.
The food is prepared in a "centralised kitchen" (which is what I would call a factory) then delivered to the restaurants to be cooked. As a business concept this works well as it means smaller kitchens and more room for tables and paying customers, however, the food suffers. This chain was quickly established and the owner has already sold the business.
I guess it’s good to get people to try dim sum but there’s much better to be had in London.
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3
Ping Pong Dim Sum
45 Great Marlborough Street
London
W1F 7JL
uk
12th March 2008
nice lunchtime canteen
A bit like Chris I don't thing foodies would be overly impressed by the cuisine at Ping Pong.
I guess with such a name noone can take them seriously for a start!!
It's just a nice canteen for Liberty's shoppers and staff from local media companies.
It is great fun as a group, but ask to be sat downstairs on one of the round tables.
It's also perfect for a light girly lunch, you'll each leave around £10 lighter having had a good gossip and a giggle!
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3
Ping Pong Dim Sum
45 Great Marlborough Street
London
W1F 7JL
uk
20th February 2008
Fun, best in a group, decent value
The dimsum might be westernised, but it's still tasty, plentiful and solid value. Despite having a cocktail and a few beers around the table, the bill was surprisingly reasonable.
We went in a large group and it was definitely the best way to experience it, go nuts ordering a load of dishes and everyone can pile in. I'd second others' suggestion of not ordering everything at once - stagger it, not least because it is all more filling than you think.
The food is mostly freshly cooked, the steamed dishes all seemed especially fresh.
It won't blow your socks off or convert the unconverted, but if you like this kind of stylish Eastern eating you'll feel right at home.
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3
Ping Pong Dim Sum
45 Great Marlborough Street
London
W1F 7JL
uk
5th February 2008
Okay
Maybe I'm difficult to please, but I wasn't blown away by Ping Pong. Important things first: the cocktails were delicious, packed with fresh fruit juices and herbs, authentic but in my opinion too ice-y and lacking punch (perhaps I'm too much of a seasoned drinker).
The venue looks fantastic - all high ceilings and dark wood.. although the rather cramped seating arrangements, so common in these places, mean that eating here is very much a shared experience (in my case, it meant sharing a table with a rather amorous couple).
To me, there is something clinical about ordering food by just tagging meals off a list.. but it arrived quickly and tasted fresh. Dishes are between £2 and £5.. for three dimsum parcels, or a small bowl of noodles/soup. I'm not sure I'd consider this great value, it was enjoyable and fresh, but just not fantastic.. I was expecting amazing things and left slightly hungry and slightly disappointed.
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2
Ping Pong Dim Sum
45 Great Marlborough Street
London
W1F 7JL
uk
6th December 2007
Good food, shit service!
The dim sum is very westernized and inauthentic, but I think that they're just serving to their clientel. The place is clean and the food was very tasty for what it was. But it has to be some of the worst service I've ever experience in my entire life. I've been a couple of times ( I don't know why I keep going back ). Once, I asked for a fork 3 times and never got one. Another time, when I beckoned a waiter back to my table after he removed a dish I wasn't finished with and then he continued to be very rude, I refused to pay the discretionary service charge. He then threatened to do something to my food if I ever returned. I haven't.
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4
Ping Pong Dim Sum
45 Great Marlborough Street
London
W1F 7JL
uk
20th November 2007
Good Dimsum
It's quite Pricey and poor selection. The food however is very tasty and freshly made. Highly recommend their pork puff and sticky rice!
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4
Ping Pong Dim Sum
45 Great Marlborough Street
London
W1F 7JL
uk
10th September 2007
Yummy Crispy Prawn Balls!
There's not much left to add, really. Just that their service was as good as Paddington Street's. Oh, and that I can never get enough of their crispy prawn balls. Yummmy!
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4
Ping Pong Dim Sum
45 Great Marlborough Street
London
W1F 7JL
uk
28th August 2007
Yes Chinatown is close but it's all a bit neon lighting and wipe-clean tablecloths there!
Ping Pong is cool and funky, the dim sum is excellent (and good value) and the cocktails are stupendous :D
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