We visited Burger & Lobster’s Leicester Square restaurant to try the Garlic Butter Fountain — and it’s festive chaos in the best way

Burger & Lobster is one of those London institutions that doesn’t immediately scream chain, despite its now sitting comfortably in that space. Since launching in Mayfair over a decade ago, it’s grown into one of the city’s most reliable “treat yourself” spots, the kind you duck into when you want something fun, unfussy, and reliably indulgent.

The Leicester Square outpost has been there for years, perched right on the edge of Chinatown. But we were there to try a returning seasonal favourite found exclusively in Burger & Lobster’s this festive season: a Garlic butter fountain flowing like a savoury fever dream. Unless Santa wants a heart attack, get those reindeer to steer clear.

A surprisingly cosy space in the middle of Leicester Square madness

Leicester Square is, famously, where chaos goes to breed. But step inside Burger & Lobster and the noise drops, the lighting softens, and it instantly feels more grown-up than you expect from a chain sitting between souvenir shops and bao bun queues.

The décor leans plush without tipping into try-hard; warm wood, soft lighting, and an atmosphere that feels buzzy even on a Monday night. It’s the kind of place where tourists, post-work Londoners and families can all coexist without anyone feeling like they’re in the wrong restaurant.

The service helps enormously. Staff were attentive without hovering (our favourite), the kind of friendly, switched-on hospitality most chains lose once they expand. One of the team even showed us where the bathrooms were en route to the table, which feels like the hospitality equivalent of turning down a hotel bed: unnecessary but appreciated.

The Garlic Butter Fountain: Festive, theatrical and absolutely not subtle

The main event, the reason we trekked across central London on a Monday, is the limited-edition Gargantuan Garlicky Showstopper (our name, not theirs): a towering, heated fountain of molten garlic butter surrounded by a full lobster, king prawn skewers, sourdough and fries. It’s available only until the end of December and starts at £110 for two people (£55 per additional participant).

And let us be clear: when this thing arrives, the entire restaurant takes notice. Heads swivel. Conversations pause. It has the same theatrical impact as when a birthday sparkler crosses the room, except this time it smells like seafood and garlic mischief.

It works better than it has any right to, thanks to the butter staying warm and flowing; the whole platter holds its heat far better than expected. The lobster stays tender, the prawns stay juicy, and you don’t get that sad, quickly congealing butter situation you’d normally get with a dipping bowl.

By the 20-minute mark, things start getting… texturally interesting (it is butter, after all), but by then you’ve eaten everything worth dipping anyway. It is absolutely a gimmick, but executed with charm and justified as a treat.

However, if you're on a small two-seater table, prepare for some creative plate-Tetris. This thing demands square footage; it's definitely not introverted and demands to be the star of the show.

The classics are the classics

The best part? Amid all the festive theatricality, Burger & Lobster hasn’t forgotten the basics. The burger is still excellent, juicy, salty, unapologetically classic, the kind of burger that reminds you chains can nail the fundamentals when they want to.

We didn’t bother with starters; it was hard to justify when there’s a volcano spewing out butter on the way, but we finished with the ice cream sandwich. It’s a menu staple, exciting in a “no one makes this at home” way, and absolutely unnecessary after the amount of seafood we’d just demolished, which is exactly why we ordered it.

Cocktails at chains can feel like a formality, but here they’re taken seriously. A whiskey sour arrived with options (bourbon or Scotch? Always a good sign), and the Cinnamon Orchard tasted like someone distilled every nice Christmas memory into a glass. The cocktail menu leans festive right now, which fits the mood of the whole experience, but there were plenty of classics making up an eclectic mix that can be enjoyed by everyone.

The verdict

Burger & Lobster’s Garlic Butter Fountain sits perfectly in that sweet spot between theatrical and genuinely good. It’s playful without being ridiculous, festive without being tacky, and indulgent without feeling like a publicity stunt.

It’s also secretly pretty great value if you consider what you get: a full lobster, prawns, fries, sourdough, samphire and enough garlic butter to bathe in (not recommended).

If you’re looking for a fun December night out, especially with a group, this is one of the most joyful, ridiculous and strangely delightful things you can eat in London right now. And crucially, it proves that even as Burger & Lobster grows, it hasn’t forgotten how to have fun while staying very, very good at what it does.

Burger & Lobster, 10 Wardour St, London W1D 6QF

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