Mimmo La Bufala — Restaurant in London

My word. Where to start? I have been coming to this place for a number of years now and without fail it has delivered on excellent Italian cuisine, paired with friendly and efficient service. The location facing the heath is great. It forms part of the heart of the village, a local gem.

But after the mayhem of tonight’s dinner, I find it difficult to reconcile that picture with the latest sad turn of events. Service was absolutely atrocious. The place resembled a market hall. There were staff members carrying around food that had no destination; they brought us dishes on more than one occasion that we had not ordered. When we asked for clarification on what was presented to us, they had no clue what it was they were giving us or for what table it was destined. They didn’t know a risotto from a gnocchi.

The male waiters particularly were monosyllabic, sullen and unfriendly. They required constant prodding and cajoling from the senior members of staff, and spent more time standing around carrying trays of food than actually bringing it to tables. The rest were running around, arguing amongst each other, complaining in front of diners at the stress and seeming not to have a clue what they were doing. One poor waitress my companion found crying in the bathroom. She served our table teary and puffy-eyed. At one point, she became entirely unintelligible, almost breaking down at our table in stress and anxiety. She said it had been like this every day for 3 weeks.

I overheard the supervisor outlining the most basic instructions to one waiter in particular. He didn’t have a clue what his job was or why he was there. When we came to pay, and explained we wouldn’t be paying service, the girl at the register asked us, the customers, how to deduct this charge from the bill!

We were seated near the entrance and could observe the constant stream of people in and out. Some could be heard complaining to the staff at the terrible service and long wait times, others came in to ask for their tables (they had made reservations). More than one group of diners were forced to shuffle from one table to another during the two hours we were there. I have no idea why.

I have no idea what has happened to this formerly wonderful restaurant. It is clearly related to the change of waiting staff, but really it doesn’t matter. When you look around a restaurant and see unhappiness on every face (diners and staff alike), hear only disappointment and a wall of frustration, watch the queue of waiting patrons grow and grow, something has gone seriously wrong.

Unfortunately I see many similar reviews here. Not...

Mimmo la Bufala is one of the best restaurants London has to offer. It's a real pearl in fact, with a real family business atmosphere where you feel welcome, surrounded by incredibly helpful staff who perform an impressive personalised, high level luxury customer service in a very warm way. When I paid a compliment to the owner's daughter Paula she said "we are all like a family here". That is very sweet. The atmosphere is very cosy yet chic. From the main floor with multiple tables each covered with a fresh, snow white table cover, finished with a romantic tea light you can see the kitchen through the glass window where all the magic happens. You feel very confident about the food being handled and cooked properly and with care because it's all visible. The other side of the floor is completed with a beautiful bar decorated with azure mozaic tiles and lights gently illuminating the floor. There is another smaller floor by the entrance with several tables and a few tables outside. And the most important -food! The food is absolutely beautiful. Served at the right temperature and as fresh as it can be, made from scratch. I was having a special starter of bufala mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, rocket olive oil; main- Fresh Seabass alle zucchine; side- roast potatoes and a chocolate tart for a desert. I can not say what I enjoyed the most because everything was just perfect. You would think simple roast potatoes is something you can cook by yourself. Yes, you can, but these were just perfect. Not too greasy, with a very pleasant garlic taste. The Seabass was so soft, it was melting in the mouth, but the zucchine on the top was crunchy. I am so thankful to my colleague for showing me this wonderful place and my friend who I took here today was very impressed too. I would definitely recommend Mimmo la Bufala to all the good people who want to enjoy great food, luxurious atmosphere and experience warm yet highly professional...

What a charming, warm and friendly experience!!! After spending the day celebrating my birthday, my friends and I had the challenge of finding a restaurant in Hampstead that would suit us all. It wasn’t just due to availability but also dietary requirements, tastebuds and customer service expectations as we were very disappointed by another place that had such an unpleasant service after being there for ten minutes, we decided to leave.

My friend found Mimmo La Bufala here on google maps. From the moment we arrived, we felt the welcoming warmth from every staff member, proud and happy with a positive vibe! Susy was our waiter, he was funny, charming and attentive -my brother ordered an Espresso Martini, which isn’t a drink from their selection, and instead of being told no, they asked how he would like it prepared and he absolutely delighted with the version they made for him! As for the food, ohhh there’s nothing better than having a “homemade” meal!!! Everything was delicious and the portions were much larger than your usual serving. Another thing we appreciated so much about this charming restaurant and their staff, is that they made us feel welcome the entire night, we stayed for quite some time and even though it got really late they never made us feel the need to order more or rushed to finish up and leave. Oh and Susy somehow gave me a nickname during the evening they used it whilst singing me happy birthday hehehe! It was such a lovely experience, it made my birthday feel even more special. Grazie mille Mimmo La Bufala, I will return soon for sure!!! La...