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Gilgamesh

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Review by Z…

With their delicious menu and their rave reviews online, we thought it was about time we crossed off, the critically acclaimed, Gilgamesh from our list. It was that special something that A and I craved, with just a day to go until Ramadan. Dragging ourselves past the many food stalls of Camden Market, making sure we didn’t spoil our appetites, we finally made it to Gilgamesh. You can appreciate the beautiful interior as soon as you step off of what must be one of the few escalators in a London restaurant. With unique wood carvings and (perhaps a bit too many) plants throughout, sitting below the retractable roof made it seem like we were lunching somewhere exotic, not London!

 
We knew exactly what we wanted and just over 10 minutes later, our food arrived…
 

Crispy Chicken Wings x6 (£8.50)

Giglamesh Chicken Wings

Half-a-dozen chicken wings, smothered in a marinade and sprinkled with sesame seeds, were the first to fall victim to our appetite. We were initially disappointed that our crispy chicken wings weren’t in fact crispy. However, that dissatisfaction didn’t last for long- nor did the wings! The chicken wings, coated with a sweet and sour marinade, exceeded expectations and made for a great starter. Recommended!

Tiger Prawn Tempura x5 (£15.00)

Tiger Prawn Tempura
Usually, when sharing a delicious serving of tiger prawn tempura- or any great dish, for that matter- both A and I reluctantly insist on the other to take the last piece, the same way you tell your aunties on Eid that you really, really, don’t want any money. Unfortunately, that wasn’t quite the case at Gilgamesh as the tempura was extremely average. Prawn tempura, in my opinion, tastes okay on its own, but really, is best served with spicy mayo. I still wish that
Gilgamesh didn’t serve their’s with soy sauce because it’s a combination that didn’t go well together at all.
 

Duck and Watermelon Salad (£14.50)

“Crispy duck with watermelon, mint, coriander and cashew nuts” – a salad sounding too refreshing to refuse on a hot summer’s day.
 
Duck and Watermelon Salad
Having read glowing recommendations of this dish in reviews we read prior to our visit, we were really excited as we watched it on its way to our table. And as soon as the salad was laid down, all of that excitement went, and you can see why, above. Gilgamesh had managed to make a salad that sounded delicious, look as unappetising as possible. The duck wasn’t crispy and tasted bland. The mint didn’t smell fresh. Only the watermelon was worth eating- something Gilgamesh didn’t even prepare themselves. Again, very disappointing.
 

Beef Bulgogi (£25.00)

We overlooked the fact that Gilgamesh don’t make their bulgogi with a sirloin cut, but instead with slow roasted short ribs. That meant that the beef bulgogi was essentially chunks of fat, with some beef, served with bulgogi sauce.
Beeg Bulgogi
It was a bit disappointing since the beef actually tasted quite nice together with the sauce and had been roasted to perfection: soft and not too chewy. But, for the price you pay for this dish, you would expect much more.
 

The final bill would’ve amounted to over £30pp, but with a Tastecard, it was just over £20pp. This is closer to the standard price for restaurants in London, but, considering the reputation Gilgamesh has built up, we left extremely disappointed with what they had to offer.

Giglamesh do have an extensive menu, so if you do choose to go, I would only recommend the chicken wings, from the above. If you’ve already been though, how did you find it? Did we order the wrong things?? They must be doing something right to have become so popular! Let us know in the comments below!

Ratings

Value 5/10
Service 7/10
Food 5/10
Atmosphere 7/10
 
Overall 6/10
 
Address: Gilgamesh, The Stables Market, Chalk Farm Road, Camden, NW1 8AH
Telephone: 020 7428 4922
Website: http://www.gilgameshbar.com
Closest Station: Camden Town or Camden Road
 
Halal status verified. All meats are Halal. We were told two desserts contain alcohol, so please clarify which ones do if you order a dessert.
Click to add a blog post for Gilgamesh on Zomato

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Comments

  1. nice post! I thought it was a bit overpriced for average food. The prawn spring rolls were good but otherwise the rest was average

    Reply

  2. I visited here ages ago when I was at university. Décor is absolutely stunning! But would agree regarding the food, it was ok.

    Reply

  3. I am currently sitting in gilgamesh and have been informed that only the chicken is halal, they changed this recently so please do not come and be disappointed like I am now :(

    Reply

    • Hi! Aaah that’s so disappointing :( Thanks for updating us on their recent change but sorry to hear that! I hope you tried the chicken wings! And if you’re up for another Pan Asian restaurant, then check out our review on Novikov which was really nice :)

      Reply

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