Shaka Zulu is an iconic restaurant, bar and club bringing a taste of Africa to the heart of London.
Based over two floors, Shaka Zulu combines some of the culinary specialities of South Africa in its magnificent Braai restaurant.
The food of South Africa is often referred to as 'rainbow cuisine' because its dishes originated and are influenced by such a wide variety of multicultural sources, from the indigenous Zulu and Sotho speaking people of South Africa to immigrants from Cape Malay, Malaysia and Java.
Specialising in delicious home made biltong, pickled fish as well as some authentic dishes like bredie, bobotie, sosaties and of course the famous boerewors sausage but to name a few, we also serve the finest steaks and seafood in London.
For more adventurous diners and ex pats wanting a little piece of home, we also serve all types of game meat from Zebra, Ostrich, Springbok and Kudu straight from the spit or Braai.
To complete the experience, on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays we have our King’s Club in operation with DJs, music and dancing until 2am.
Shaka Zulu
Bar in Camden
7 / 10 from 9 reviews
Address
Stables Market
Camden
London
NW1 8AB
Stables Market
Camden
London
NW1 8AB
Telephone
020 3376 9911
020 3376 9911
Region
Camden
Camden
Category
Bars
Bars
Website
http://www.shaka-zulu.com
Opening Summary
Mon: 17.00 to 02.00
Tue: 17.00 to 02.00
Wed: 17.00 to 02.00
Thurs: 17.00 to 02.00
Fri: 12.00 noon to 02.00
Sat: 12.00 noon to 02.00
Sun: 12.00 noon to 02.00
Mon: 17.00 to 02.00
Tue: 17.00 to 02.00
Wed: 17.00 to 02.00
Thurs: 17.00 to 02.00
Fri: 12.00 noon to 02.00
Sat: 12.00 noon to 02.00
Sun: 12.00 noon to 02.00
Venue Facilities
Food Served
Disabled Facilities
Children Welcome
Credit Cards Accepted
Music Played
Live Music Played
Private Area
Shaka Zulu Picture Gallery
Main Braai Restaurant
All In London Review
Transport yourself to Africa for an unforgettable experience
There’s a reception area – with at least three hostesses at screens. They were friendly and efficient. I was told that my party hadn’t arrived and was invited to leave my coat at the cloakroom (£2). Then I was taken through tables and booths – all richly decorated in dark wood African masks and carvings and full of young, beautiful people – to the champagne bar.
The front of this is adorned with more carvings – African warriors – and on the end wall is a huge frieze of African animals with elephants dominating. The bar top is a sort of marble zebra pattern. A glass of Chardonnay whilst I wait is £8.50 and I am happy to sit in a prettily decorated armchair that has tiny mirrors embedded in it. There’s a small coffee table where I place my glass.
Then I take in just how big the place is. It’s huge – like a cave. And then I notice that we are effectively on a balcony and that there is a further – even larger – area below. Amazing. And everything – including the ceiling – is covered in those rich, dark carvings. Be warned that there’s no mobile phone signal here and I couldn’t get the Wifi to work.
My friends arrive and we ride down the escalator and are taken to our large booth. The table top is immense and intricately inlaid. Whilst we grapple with crocodile skin covered wine lists and menus, a man in a lion cloth appears and does a head stand whilst juggling. On the table behind a waiter is doing some sort of cocktail trick that generates bright flashes of flames. I join some of the girls as they visit the ladies. I pass a large bronze figure and on the floor of the ladies is a reclined leopard – again in bronze. The sinks are like baskets and it even feels African in there.
Back to the tables and some wine and water has been delivered. I study the menu. There’s a range of traditional choices (including beef steak), but the African game meats dominate – zebra, ostrich, buffalo, Springbok - all £25. There are vegetarian options such as the haloumi skewers (£15.50) and vegetable potjie (£12.95). I decide to be adventurous with my starter and select crocodile cigars (£14) which are battered and served with a spicy mayonnaise. It’s hard to describe the taste but the meaty texture had a slight fish undertone – delicious anyway. For my main course I opted for the snapper (£22) which was a generous portion and beautifully cooked. The side of fat fries (£3.50) went down well too.
I tasted my friend’s zebra – just like tender beef but with a hint of liver. It was a huge portion of three fillets. Those who had chosen ostrich or wildebeest were happy too. So the food gets good marks.
At this point, three wandering women in zebra outfits with rather tall headpieces passed by. They were dancing to the now rather loud club music and happily posing for photos with anyone who asked. It felt like I had been transported to the stage show of Lion King.
A couple of the group were smokers – so it was a bit of a trek to reach the exit, either take the stairs or the lift up to ground level and stand in the cold having had your hand stamped to allow re-entry. Good enough reason to give up. The upside was that as you walked back in you had to weave through the open areas that were now filled with people dancing.
Back at the table, the lights had been lowered and we were all bathed in a red glow and the music had become even louder. Conversation at this point became rather difficult so it left no option but to join the dancing. I was sad that I had to leave at midnight to catch my train but the rest of the group stayed on – the place stays open until 4am. There were still people arriving as I left.
It was a wonderful experience. Whilst the food wasn’t cheap it was well prepared and presented. And tasty. But the décor, ambience, friendliness of the staff, the entertainment, the theatre, the fabulous music, the dancing and that sumptuous rich décor that transports you to Africa makes it an unforgettable experience.
Reviewed by KimT
on Dec 11, 2013
Published on Dec 11, 2013
In The News
Shaka Zulu's South African Christmas
Come and join in this season's festivities South African Style at Shaka Zulu
Best For
London's most expensive restaurants
It doesn't hurt to push the boat out
There’s proof that Camden has shaken off its grungy image at the Stables Market, home to two of London’s most OTT restaurants: Pan-Asian Gilgamesh and South African meateaters’ favourite Shaka Zulu. The décor, which features huge wooden carvings covering the ceiling and walls and loud batik print on the furnishings borders on the ridiculous, and the menu has exotic meats like zebra, crocodile, wildebeest and ostrich.
User Reviews
Ashley
from London
from London
Apr 3, 2013
I don't why Shaka Zulu gets so much bad press. Every time I have gone there I have ad an amazing time. The atmosphere is truly unique and won't find anything like in in London, and the food is always top quality. Shaka Zulu is one of my favorite places in London!
Penelope
from London
from London
Feb 28, 2013
I have read a few negative reviews about Shaka Zulu on multiple websites and I feel like I must contest. I had a wonderful time here, filled with good service, food and music. Firstoff, we got there late on a saturday and were seated after only a 15 min wait (I was expecting at least 60 based on reviews). The food was great, although we kept it safe with steak. The decor of the interior is unbeatable, and after 11 it got seriously packed. a woman was even walking around with a live snake. I definitely recommend for the adventuous eater and partier.
Lucy Robbins
from London
from London
Feb 25, 2013
The ambiance of this venue is unbeatable. The club area is so much fun and the music is great. The cocktail list is extensive and the bars have everything. My food was great, but I have talked to others who have had different experiences. Overall a venue worth visiting just for its aesthetics and environment.
sylvislow
Oct 18, 2012
Had a wonderful time at Shaka Zulu. The food was really delicious and unusual...I love trying new things. The staff were very helpful when explaining the menu and the atmosphere was great. Decor of the place is insane but we all love it I will definitely be going back and bringing my friends. Defin
sylvislow
Oct 16, 2012
We went to Shaka Zulu for my friends birthday , we've had an amazing night, the food there is great, service is very good and helpfull . Decor of the place is just amazing , we cant wait go there again. We all love this place is the best place in north London.
smithers100
Jan 30, 2012
Not good at all. Really is quite poor, and I'm being generous.
The positive is that the inside is incredible; it's decorating with a South African theme and looks fantastic. The food service is also quite good. The positives then decided to stop. I went with 8 other people
We were lucky as we had heavily discounted vouchers, we found on the internet, but it still came to around £50 per head. We had pre-drinks on the top floor, the prices were ridiculous and the waiter didn't understand what we were saying. You go to the lower floor to eat. The menu is extravagant and sound mouth-watering. The reality is that the food is under seasoned, overcooked and lacks any sort of flavour. We had a variety of meats and they all tasted the same. We asked for medium, and got well done. Other in our party asked for rare and got well done. Some of our starter was inedible, and hard as a rock. Even the garlic tasted weird and was certainly not fresh. A really really poor effort. left us feeling like we had been short-changed.
I would not recommend this place at all. If you're spending such large amounts of money go elsewhere. Or spend it on the lottery, you have more chance of being satisfied. Utterly, utterly let down.
The chips were good.
The positive is that the inside is incredible; it's decorating with a South African theme and looks fantastic. The food service is also quite good. The positives then decided to stop. I went with 8 other people
We were lucky as we had heavily discounted vouchers, we found on the internet, but it still came to around £50 per head. We had pre-drinks on the top floor, the prices were ridiculous and the waiter didn't understand what we were saying. You go to the lower floor to eat. The menu is extravagant and sound mouth-watering. The reality is that the food is under seasoned, overcooked and lacks any sort of flavour. We had a variety of meats and they all tasted the same. We asked for medium, and got well done. Other in our party asked for rare and got well done. Some of our starter was inedible, and hard as a rock. Even the garlic tasted weird and was certainly not fresh. A really really poor effort. left us feeling like we had been short-changed.
I would not recommend this place at all. If you're spending such large amounts of money go elsewhere. Or spend it on the lottery, you have more chance of being satisfied. Utterly, utterly let down.
The chips were good.
deejay1
Nov 22, 2011
Had a great night there.
Food was good and the place was amazing.
Food was good and the place was amazing.
pecan68
Nov 12, 2011
Went there last Tuesday supposedly, as advertised, to an event hosted by Bruno Mars it turned out to be an absolute fiasco. We ended up waiting around for four & a half hours to see him, drinking over priced drinks and eating what at best could be called cold mediocre food whilst being repeatedly lied too the whole time by the staff & bouncers that he would be 'performing' shortly. He finally turned up at gone 12 promptly ignored everyone there whilst he sat with his mates drinking & then left after about 20 mins. The worst part is that Shaka Zulu are now treating everyone who has complained about the evening terribly. Awful place with rude aggressive staff, definitely not recommended
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