‘"Second only to Chez Bruce… and not that far behind!” – this Balham “beacon” remains a “good-value” and “professional” destination, where the “sure-footed” cuisine uses “carefully-sourced” ingredients to “great effect”, and the service is “attentive, personal and jolly"
Service -Exceptional, Food - Exceptional, Atmosphere - Very Good
The highest rating you can have and shared with only 33 other places in the UK! ’
Hardens Restaurant Guide 2012

‘For many years, Lamberts has been the best restaurant in Balham, but our most recent visit suggests it is rivalling - or surpassing - Chez Bruce as the smartest choice in south-west London. Service was solicitous and attentive as ever, purring along with the easy confidence of a restaurant at the top of its game. But prices barely rise above the level of 'smart neighbourhood place': about £7 for starters, £17 for mains, £6 for dessert.
For this, you get very sophisticated cooking. The sous-vide wood pigeon breast wasn't the pallid meat this slow-cooking technique sometimes imparts; instead, the rich flesh was tender and moist, nicely cut with the sharpness of accompanying apple chunks and hazelnuts. In contrast, line-caught Dorset char was pleasingly blackened on the skin, with the firm flesh resting on crushed Jersey royals with a slick of sauce vierge.
We've always found the meat and fish dishes imaginative, but this time it was the desserts that stood out, such as the tiny mattress-like wafers of own-made lemon marshmallow, sandwiching a scoop of strawberry sorbet, the plate peppered with fresh strawberry chunks. The drinks list is well chosen and reasonably priced, offering great wines by the glass or carafe.’
Time Out 2012

‘ Balham's Lamberts is a cool, minimalist-vogue modern venue and, whilst styling itself as a fine-dining restaurant, the atmosphere's relaxed and comfortable. It's a deservedly popular venue too, with a growing reputation for its fresh and vibrant food. No surprise then that the kitchen prides itself on using the freshest seasonal British ingredients, including organic produce, with the majority of meat sourced direct from farms and fish comes straight from day boats. The impressive, well-presented cooking takes a modern approach that suits the surroundings, with old favourites sitting comfortably alongside contemporary interpretations of classics; think British saddleback loin, belly and trotter served with kale, mash and apple, and a marmalade sponge pudding with vanilla custard .

’
AA Restaurant Guide 2012

‘"A budget alternative to Chez Bruce!" - this "relaxed" Balham local gives its stellar (and more ambitious) rival a respectable "run for its money", with "impressive", "well thought out" cuisine, "personal" service, and "ludicrously good-value prices".
Service -1, Food - 1, Atmosphere - 2
Highest rating in London with only 14 others.

Rated 3rd Overall for British over £45 per head.
1st Ledbury, 2nd Chez Bruce, 3rd Lamberts. ’
Hardens London Restaurant Guide 2011

‘This strip of road is, frankly, unprepossessing, but Lamberts is one of the best upscale local restaurants in London. The long room is restrained and unflashy, painted a muted yellow, with a velvet banquette taking up most of one side. Well-placed diner-style tables are set off by dainty flowers, and easeful art lines the walls. Staff are smart, smooth and unfussy; a wooden platter of own-made bread with seasoned butter and a bottle of filtered water are slipped on to the table as soon as you're seated.
Cooking is inventive and assured. Our starters were vibrant: cold carrot soup with pickled carrots and three bobbing islets of delicious walnut mousse, and exquisite peach and tomato salad with pine nut and sherry dressing. Just as good were mains of fallow deer with puy lentils and roasted violet artichokes, and rare-breed steak with fat chips and a salad of slow-roasted tomatoes.
Save room for the exquisite desserts. We enjoyed both our choices: crème fraîche and elderflower tart with a scoop of excellent strawberry sherbet, and a creamy peach parfait with caramelised roast peaches and rapeseed and thyme sable. The extensive drinks list offers a useful range of wines by the glass or carafe, as well as a thoughtful selection of whiskies. ’

Time Out Eating and Drinking Guide 2011

‘Lamberts...is close to perfection. There’s no fuss, no ostentation. Everything was quiet and understated. The walls are taupe, the banquettes made of soft brown velvet. The staff were efficient and entirely in tune with the diners — nothing escaped their attention, nothing was too much trouble.  The prices, as with the cooking, are perfectly judged. On a Sunday, a credit crunch-defying £20 gets you two courses; £24 brings three. The children can have a mini-roast for £4.50 or choose from their own menu. As with the adults’ fare, it’s all excellent quality, seasonal and British-sourced.’
Chris Blackhurst - Evening Standard

‘Over a very superior lemon posset pie, a plate of Neal's Yard cheeses (notably the Strathdon Blue) and final glasses of Muscat and white Bel-Air Bordeaux, we agreed that Lamberts was a discovery, a diamond in the rough, a pilot-light of classy cooking in the wastes of Balham High Road, and that Chez Bruce does indeed have a south London rival snapping at its heels. Next day, I looked at the Hardens guide again. In the list of the London foodies' favourite restaurants under £45 a head, Lamberts came second. How enraging to find that one's newest discovery has been well and truly discovered.......’
John Walsh - Independent

‘We had another excellent lunch here at Lamberts mid April. You can't beat the value - two courses are only £17 and three courses £20.
For the quality of the ingredients, the size of the portions and the top notch service, Lamberts is a head above many of the better known quality London restaurants.’
London Restaurant Review

‘I've seen this place and been curious about it for ages. Finally my curiosity caught up with me and a table for ... ’
The Little Welsh Eats the Big World

‘Clapham Common has its Trinity, East Dulwich its Franklins, New Cross its Chicken Cottage. Local restaurants... ’
Cheese and Biscuits

‘“Stunning value” wins acclaim for this Balham “gem”, which offers an “interesting, seasonally-changing menu” and “professional, friendly service”; it’s tempting to see it as “an alternative to Chez Bruce”, but cognoscenti caution that its aims (and prices) are less lofty.
Voted 2nd Best British Restaurant in London for over £45 per head ’
Hardens London Restaurant Guide 2010

‘ This restaurant is brilliant. The food is always superb. Really good quality ingredients and put together in interesting ways that seem to really work. Staff are great and happy to explain all that's on the menu. I think it's great value and has a nice atmosphere. I was there last night with a friend. We had a couple of bottles of white at £15 each - they were lovely. Depending on when you go they sometimes have a set menu on - it's excellent value.
Great place to go for a lovely dinner with friends, on a date or with family. A winner. I really recommend it.’
London-Eating.co.uk

‘There's nothing about this calm, understated place that's trying too hard, but it can claim with some justification to have become one of south London's finest restaurants. The cooking, on our most recent visit, was exceptional. Soft, supremely fresh breads with a little bowl of rapeseed oil are whisked to the table. To start, we tried a gorgeous melee of white fish and mussels in a strong, dark broth, as well as young May asparagus with an exquisite asparagus mayonnaise. Despite this, a main of seared scallops with saffron and fennel broth was probably the highlight; our feisty rump steak with béarnaise sauce was outshone by the accompanying fluffy chips. A melting treacle tart was the best from a short list of puddings. All this takes place in a long, unassuming room, with mustard-yellow walls, a few big blobs of art, dark-wood diner-style tables, plush seating, cascades of gladioli and a parade of young, glamorous staff. Glasses of vintage Chapel Down, a carafe of house red and coffees still kept the bill comfortably under £100 for two. Not surprisingly, Lamberts has a buzz brought on by diners who know they're on to a good thing.’
Time Out Eating and Drinking Guide 2010

‘We've been to Lamberts a number of times and it's always consistently good … For those of you that don't live in Balham, get yourselves down there either for dinner or lunch - it's worth it.’
London Restaurant Review

‘Lamberts offers reasonable priced first-class cooking in relaxed surroundings that forego the pretension of some London restaurants. This could be one of the best small-sized restaurants you visit this year - definitely worth the trip south of the river!’
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