A 'new school' Vietnamese restaurant located on Rye Lane in Peckham, London, known for its contemporary take on Vietnamese cuisine and a lively, casual atmosphere.
Lairai London is a hidden gem on Peckham's bustling Rye Lane, offering a 'new school' and contemporary Vietnamese dining experience. Known for its friendly atmosphere, affordable prices, and knockout cooking, it aims to provide a lively, social dining experience, encapsulated by the Vietnamese phrase 'lai rai, nhậu tới mai!' (casual drinking and snacking, drink until tomorrow).
Customers consistently praise Lairai for its delicious and incredibly fresh Vietnamese food, with many highlighting specific dishes like the beef tartare, papaya salad, and whipped tofu. The staff are frequently described as attentive, super nice, and happy, contributing to a welcoming and chill vibe. The restaurant is considered a great spot for group gatherings, offering good value and a decent selection of wines and Southeast Asian-tinged cocktails.
Additional Details
The restaurant's name and motto, 'lai rai, nhậu tới mai!', reflect a casual, social dining culture focused on enjoying food and drinks over an extended period. It's located in Peckham, a vibrant area of London, and has been recognized by the Michelin Guide with a Bib Gourmand for its good quality and value.
Lairai London operates with specific hours: Tuesday-Thursday evenings (6-10pm), Friday for both lunch (12-3pm) and dinner (6-10pm), Saturday for a longer service (12-4pm, 5-10:30pm), and Sunday for lunch and early dinner (12-4pm, 5-9pm). Weekends, especially Friday and Saturday evenings, are likely peak times.
Me and my Friend had such a lovely time, very attentive manager and staffs who were so busy and hard working all night non stop! We ordered a lot and I would recommend everything really but I love the salads in particular! The salad dishes were literally so good with different flavours layered abundantly! Vietnamese use of herbs is world class..the pairing was just fantastic🫶 I pretty much tasted everything everywhere all at once! The mussels sauce in the end gave me a kick with the baguette Well done to the Chefs! The Desert you got to try ClingyWrap Icecream 🍨that finished the night with a magic touch 🫶🫰Truly grateful ☺️♥️♥️🙏
We had a late lunch here and everything was soooo gooood!!!!
Papaya salad was big surprise. Delicious! And don’t miss the desert-creme brulle- yummy!
Everything was very tasty and the staff was helpful with order.
We will definitely come back!
Stopped by for lunch one weekend when in the area. I have a feeling this place is better if a few of you go, so that you can try a bunch of different things.
I had a couple small plates, a special (raw trout) and a rice. I also had a drink, I don’t remember the name but possibly a hibiscus with basil. They got the small plate order wrong (made too many) but didn’t charge me for the extra, that worked out quite lucky. The drink was not too flavoursome and was quite small for the price. The special was nice, again quite expensive for the portion size.
Service was ok, slow at times and not that attentive (same question asked a few times, then they didn’t remember the answer and did the opposite of what my reply was). One of the team members was more engaged than the other.
The venue itself is really nicely designed and quite stylish. It was very quiet when I visited which I think had an impact on the overall vibe.
All in all, yes I had a nice lunch, but I wouldn’t rush back. Recommend to go with a group to share multiple dishes but don’t go there ravenous because it seemed mostly small plates. Not sure if the weekday menu differs. Realistically more of a 3.5 stars if Google had “half” options.
Pretty sure this is the best beef tartare in London? I admit I haven’t tried them all but this was really sensational. The food is incredibly fresh. I also had the papaya salad with pig ear and it is worth trying too. I particularly like the cold red that they served with the beef tartar.
I like the simple and welcoming atmosphere has a very chill vibe and staff are super nice. I worked in restaurants and bars for years and places where the staff get on and seem happy to be there, you can really tell.
Toilets are clean nice selection of wines, good prices, what more could you ask for?
There's been a lot of hype around this place which usually makes me skeptical... But it was well deserved! The whipped tofu was divine, as was the fried sticky rice. Already planning my next visit to try everything else!
