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Summary
“Well worth a detour by car, bus and/or train to eat in this small restaurant near Tolworth” – “looking just like your typical, noisy curry house on a dual carriageway… except that it is fully booked every night”. “From pani puri to chicken Chettinad, the flavours are exquisite” with “a lasting intensity that can leave you punchdrunk”. It’s not utterly ridiculous to hail it as “the very best Indian food in the UK at any price point, and yet it’s still very reasonably priced compared with the Indian palaces of Marylebone and Knightsbridge”. Top Menu Tip – “the lamb chops are an absolute must”.
Summary
“The best-value for money inside the M25” is not a ridiculous claim for Sanjay Gour and Nand Kishor’s “crowded” (and some would say “boring”) suburban curry house “set in an anonymous row of shops, just off an anonymous main road between Epsom and Kingston”. The cooking (with some dishes “based on Mumbai street food”) is nothing short of “terrific”: “the flavours are so big that you may feel knocked out the next day!”. (“I’ve eaten in most of the renowned Indian restaurants in London, and Dastaan’s cooking matches or surpasses all of them…”, “This was our second visit only because it is a 200 mile round trip! And as previously, we were absolutely delighted with the food and service. You would have to travel far and wide to match the quality of the cuisine here!”). Top Menu Tip – “quail and duck kebabs are exceptional” and the lamb chops are “a must”.
Summary
“Ewell is now a foodie destination; everyone should come to be enlightened here once!” – Sanjay Gour and Nand Kishor’s “truly outstanding Indian in the ’burbs” has “a frontage and decor that don’t reflect its quality” but is “worth a long detour, be it to eat in or take away”. Few restaurants elicit such enthusiasm, which is inspired by the “always welcoming front of house team” and “wholly original dishes, which are far away from the usual predictable Indian fare”. “The level of flavour and the divine balance of spices in every dish puts Dastaan on a pedestal above just about every other Indian restaurant in the country, even those charging twice the price for finer dining!” Top Tip – “Their lamb chops are unbeaten!”.
Summary
“Perfectly executed north Indian food” from a pair of former Gymkhana chefs has made this apparently-modest, outer-suburban curry house a site of pilgrimage, despite its “bizarre setting just off the Ewell bypass”. “The food is in pretty much perfect inverse correlation to the location”, and “sets a new benchmark for Indian food and service” – no wonder it’s “booked solid”. Top Tip – “the lamb chops alone are worth the Uber”.
For 33 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).
Have you eaten at Dastaan?
447 Kingston Rd, Ewell, KT19 0DB
Restaurant details
Dastaan Restaurant Diner Reviews
"Top notch Indian food. Super flavours, best are the starters. Excellent value "
Prices
 Drinks |
|
|---|---|
| Wine per bottle | £21.95 |
| Filter Coffee | £3.00 |
 Extras |
|
|---|---|
| Bread | £3.00 |
| Service | 10.00% |
447 Kingston Rd, Ewell, KT19 0DB
Opening hours
| Monday | CLOSED |
| Tuesday | 5 pm‑10:30 pm |
| Wednesday | 5 pm‑10:30 pm |
| Thursday | 5 pm‑10:30 pm |
| Friday | 5 pm‑10:30 pm |
| Saturday | 12:30 pm‑2:30 pm, 5 pm‑10:30 pm |
| Sunday | 12:30 pm‑2:30 pm, 5 pm‑10:30 pm |
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