London's top curry houses
Londoners rarely need an excuse to indulge in a curry. With the annual Brick Lane Festival beginning this Sunday (27 September) and stretching until October 10, we thought it was about time we gave some of the capital’s best curry houses a re-appraisal.
The festival, of course, won’t be for the fainthearted. There’ll be al fresco dining, food stalls and entertainers in ‘Banglatown’. If you can’t head east for the festivities, however, there are plenty of great curry houses spread around the rest of London to bag a brilliant biryani or a jawdropping jalfrezi. Let us guide you through our favourites...
Rasa
Rasa have two award winning restaurants that sit opposite each other in Stoke Newington's vibrant Church Street. Both serve Keralan cuisine from the southwest of India, but one is strictly vegetarian, the other serves meat.
The veggie option is a big hit with Louisa from Finsbury Park: “I think I must have tried pretty much everything on the menu by now and it never disappoints. I don't think I'll ever tire of Rasa - best Indian food in London!”
Indian Flavours
An award winning restaurant with a very different twist, Indian Flavour turns into a late night bar that serves drinks until 5am. As well as offering late night diners the chance to stay out even longer, the menu takes a number of unexpected twists that includes everything from home-developed dishes to standard Indian fare. Bahar from Walworth is clearly no stranger to a late night: “All the goodness and taste you expect. Indian Flavour fulfills this expectation.”
Chowki
Fancy tickling your tastebuds on a culinary journey through India? Chowki’s rotating menu takes in delicacies from different parts of the country, all served at wallet-friendly prices. The décor lends itself more to an evening visit rather than a lunch-time feast, but it’s a restaurant that’s very much on Chris from Warfield’s radar:
“The reason why I like this place is because the menu changes regularly. It's easy to get to and serves some really fantastic food based on all the different regions of India.'”
The Cinnamon Club
We’ve mentioned the Cinnamon Club once before on LBC (as a place to get a great cocktail), but Anglo-indian food is what this wonderful restaurant does best. It isn’t a place to visit on a budget, but the wonderful cooking is a gastronomic experience that’s an indulgence not to be forgotten.
“The menu choices are vast and the curried fish I had was amazing. Get the waitress to recommend something for you!”, advises Jossie from Hammersmith.
The Angel Curry Centre
Despite the name, this intimate restaurant holds around thirty diners in a relaxed and homely atmosphere. There’s no charge for corkage, so the BYOB policy is an attractive option for those seeking good food on a budget.
Most pleasing is the staff’s willingness to go above-and-beyond to get you the perfect meal. Greg from Radlett knows exactly what we mean: “If you're really picky, you can even specify how you’d like your naan cooked – from a bit doughy (with extra ghee, just how I like it), to extra crispy. If Carlsberg made Indian Restaurants, I'd still go to the Angel Curry Centre”.