Dartford, Indian Restaurant Guide

“Cyrus and Pervin Todiwala have done it again, with the new incarnation of their bastion of Indian and Parsee food”, on the Royal Docks “just moments from London Excel and City Airport”. “After 26 years, they moved from the fringe of the City in E1 to Royal Albert Wharf E16” and “the food and the personal service remain of the highest nature”. “It’s just such original and delicious cuisine”, “especially on nights when Cyrus cooks Parsee (but it’s always good anyway)”. Unless you happen to live out that way, though, the new spot could be mistaken for “the middle of nowhere”: “we travel over two hours to dine here: the new menu is delicious, the themed evenings a joy… but I wish they were back in Prescott Street!”.

This contemporary curry house wins solid ratings for its food, with unusual chef’s signature dishes including a mixed grill of achari ostrich filet, chicken tikka and lamb chop. Family-run, it transferred to Chislehurst after a decade in Plaistow Lane, Bromley.

This Nepalese venue in Blackheath Village is popular with locals, who rate it “a cut above” standard curry-house fare. Ideal after a stroll on the common it overlooks.

This suburban subcontinental offers an unusual take on Indian street food, having been set up by three brothers keen to pay homage to their grandmother’s cooking, inflected by her travels in Africa and Saudi Arabia; its “authentic” recipes attract nothing but positive reports.

“A true neighbourhood go-to” – in her 20th anniversary year, Peckham food pioneer Clare Fisher is “still doing things with South Indian flavours that make the heart sing”. Top Tip – “don’t forget to buy a jar of homemade garlic or beetroot pickle to take home”.

“The original Pakistani joint” – this “perfect” East End pitstop of over half a century’s standing is as “cheap and consistent as ever” (and as grotty…). For “legendary” lamb chops, “the best ever dry lamb curry” and “amazing chicken tikka”, it can’t be beat.

2021 Review: Whitechapel Punjabi BYO that’s a real match for its better-known Pakistani competitors in the East End due to its “grilled meats at bargain prices” and other “fantastic, freshly made dishes” from the sub-continent.

“The grilled lamb chops are worth a visit in their own right” to this “affordable and ever-reliable Punjabi institution in Whitechapel” whose 500 seats are “guaranteed to be jam-packed on any particular evening”. “BYOB means it is even better value for money”.

2022 Review: East London’s oldest Indian (established 1939 in Whitechapel) briefly found fame in late August 2020, when it was reviewed by Marina O’Loughlin for The Sunday Times. Run by four generations of the same family – and with somewhat antediluvian decor – it’s not the place to uncover the latest in food fads; or as Marina eloquently put it: “it tastes like the past, deliciously”. Reports please!

“Innovative small plates pack a flavour punch” (“the lamb chops are some of the most glorious things ever”) at this “buzzy if rather cramped” Indian street-food trio, with operations near Tower Bridge, and in Spitalfields and Soho. Top Tip – “good, if limited, pre-theatre menu. Virtually no choice but, with tasty and large portions costing £22 for two courses or £25 for three, excellent value”.

“Hints of the Raj” at the Lalit Hotel Group’s flagship property in the UK (the group has sites across India), occupying “the old hall of a former grammar school” near City Hall (a big property, designed by the architect of the Old Bailey). Reports are not huge in number, but cite “attentive service” and “refined dishes from across the subcontinent”.

“Innovative small plates pack a flavour punch” (“the lamb chops are some of the most glorious things ever”) at this “buzzy if rather cramped” Indian street-food trio, with operations near Tower Bridge, and in Spitalfields and Soho. Top Tip – “good, if limited, pre-theatre menu. Virtually no choice but, with tasty and large portions costing £22 for two courses or £25 for three, excellent value”.

2021 Review: “Everything here is great, but I totally loved the paneer burger” – an alternative to the best-selling bhangra burger on the menu of these popular pop-ups, in POP Brixton and now also Vinegar Yard, SE1. After over ten years in the game, the business shifted up a gear in May 2019 with the opening (flush with £300k of investment having won BBC2’s ‘My Million Pound Menu’) of the new forever-home listed here: a 50-seater in Camden Town’s Stables Market.

“You really can’t go wrong with Dishoom”. Shamil and Kavi Thakrar’s phenomenal chain remains the most commented-on in our annual diners’ poll and its “bustling and loud, throwback, Bombay-colonial-era atmosphere” and “distinctively superior” menu – such a “novel variation from what you get in a typical curry house” – have given UK diners a welcome jolt as to what can be expected from an Indian meal. This includes their “Asian-inspired alternative to the usual ‘Full English’ breakfast”, which has revolutionised the start of the day for many folks. “Super-friendly staff do all they can to create a great experience”, which – along with the “delectable cocktails” – helps to underpin the “good vibes” that makes their ambience so buoyant. Perhaps inevitably, ratings for its food have slipped a tad in recent times from being exceptional to merely good, but the overall verdict remains that the overall package is “relatively cheap and always really tasty”. The ability to book is restricted at certain times and at certain branches, but “the queue is worth it!” Top Menu Tips – “stupendous black dahl”; “you could have their okra fries by the bucket”; “ruby murray is a must try”; “that bacon naan… with unlimited chai latte = heaven!”.

“Just amazing food bursting with flavour… and in generous portions” inspires very enthusiastic reports for Dayashakar Sharmar’s ambitious Dulwich Indian – “it’s so good for a local!” – and its small-but-dedicated fan club travel from across south east London.

An “open-plan kitchen” complete with fire pit is the theme unifying Neil Rankin’s four-strong BBQ-group, which takes all its supplies of beef, pork, lamb and chicken from Yorkshire farmer Charles Ashbridge. Despite some favourable steak suppers being reported, ratings took a further dive in our latest poll, continuing last year’s themes of “chaotic” service and a feeling that the overall experience can “promise more than it delivers”. Lack of value, in particular, inspires repeated gripes (“plates were minuscule at ridiculous prices…”; “we joked that you needed a microscope to find the portions…”)

2022 Review: Striking design and high-quality cuisine make it worth knowing about this nouvelle Indian cocktail lounge and restaurant, hidden away behind the Bank of England.