Tamarind

Average food, average service, average atmosphere. Don't know how it's been awarded a Michelin star…my local Indian restaurant has better quality food than Tamarind…

The food is truly shocking. To think Michelin have given this place a star is an absolute travesty. Poorly delivered, poorly conceived, I would rather eat the same food and menu at Gaylord. Michelin —- wake up, this place is a nightmare.

I went there with my family just last week and was very disappointed especially after expecting one of the best Indian regstaurants in London. As starter I had a kebab cake which was very dry and not very tasty. The description in the menu is very mouth watering but the food does not match with the expectations. My wife had a type of chicken curry which tasted like burned meat. No vegetables were served with the main dishes, no recommendations were given by the waiters. Quite regular wines were overpriced. All in all I was expecting much more and having paid over GBP 350 for 5 persons I was very disappointed. I will not recommend this restaurant.

Very limited menu, £22 for lamb shank which was very fatty, the worst prawn curry dish I've ever had, I did complain and said the prawns were very rubbery and must be frozen and the manager and agreed that they were frozen and admitted they do use a lot of frozen ingredients, not what I expected from a over priced top class restaurant.

How good is this place! I took my sister here for her birthday and initially had reservations as i was worried it may lack atmosphere plus would it live up to expectations given there are a lot of decent indian restaurants in London. Fantastic is all i can say. We decided to share a starter of lamb kebab – moist tender lamb which was deliciously spiced for such a simple dish. Main was a shared traditional biryani which was more than enough for the two of us. We had non alcoholic drinks which were lovely. Overall the bill came to £75 for two which was quite pricey but the quality was much higher than anywhere else ive been in town. Service was also very good, very helpful, non intrusive waiters who were well informed.

Ive recommended this now to all my friends – well worth a visit for a special night out only because of the price but id go all the time if my waistline could take it!

Went to dinner at Tamarind. Greeted warmly and led to a 2-seater table down below. Even at 7pm, the place was almost full and quite a bit noisy. Clearly a favorite with the local business and office community. The starters were great – pappadums with 3 dips on the house. We had a sommelier (quite novel for an Indian restaurant) who was really good. The main courses were good but not outstanding. Overall, great high quality Indian food and atmosphere. Recommended!

Tamarind is definitely an ‘Old-Money’ joint and the interior design seems carefully deliberated over and not just conjured up to keep up with whatever trend was cool at the time. Our waiters are all dressed in slick black Nehru jackets and seem to glide effortlessly across the floor in ghost-like fluid motions.

To begin, we start with of assortment of grilled delights from the Tandoor oven. Giants prawn, ‘double’ lamb chops, tender chicken breast, enormous scallops and wonderful chunks of Monkfish. The prawns were meaty and delicious, coated in a lightly spiced marinade and charred to perfection. The chicken, scallops and Monkfish were all excellent examples of Tandoor-oven cooking, expertly cooked and beautifully seared on the outside but retaining all the succulence and moisture on the inside. The lamb was definitely my favourite, crusted in a marinade made with Indian paneer cheese, which gave it the most wonderful velvety-smooth coating and allowed the meat itself to remain incredibly moist and soft, so much so it was hard to believe that it was cooked in the searing temperatures of a Tandoor oven.

We follow with chicken Biryani, Kashmiri lamb shank, Kalonji aubergines and a basket of naan filled with dates and almonds. The Biryani is sealed with a layer of golden puff pastry to help steam cook the rice and chicken inside and the flavours were simply incredible and the chicken itself was juicy and moist, which I must admit was surprising considering it was breast meat and overall it was a huge hit. The meat from our lamb shanks were expertly taken off the bone at our table by our waiter. The lamb slivers were delicately spiced with Kashmiri chillies, bearing all the super-soft, gelatinous meaty goodness that you would expect from a slow-cooked lamb shank, enrobed in a rich and fragrant tomato and chilli sauce that was so thick and wonderful it was more like a chutney and was a perfect accompaniment to the lamb. The aubergine dish was also great, but could not be placed in the same league as the other dishes. Our date stuffed naan was exquisite. I can’t begin explain to you how something so simple could be so incredible, but we ate every last slice that was given to us. It’s a must try item as far as I’m concerned.

Indian desserts aren’t my favourite to be honest with you. Most are usually sickly sweet with far too much sugar and ghee, making them inedible for me. My guest being braver than I, decided to choose the Gajjar Halwa, which is a sort of fudge made with grated carrots and he absolutely adored it. I tried it and found the sweetness toned down, which made it far more palatable. I stuck to my preference of ice creams with a selection of Mango and Pistachio Kulfi and a wonderfully creamy rose petal ice cream that all suited me down to the ground.

Having had a shocking time at Trishna (another upmarket Indian) last week, I thought it was time to go back to one of the real pro's. Tuesday lunchtime, set menu of 2 courses for £15 (bargain!) or 3 for £19 (Indian desserts anyone?) and it did not disappoint. The lamb cutlets i had to start with were beautifully cooked, perfectly spiced and larger than what i was expecting. The main of chicken supreme was some of the best chicken i have had in a restaurant in a long time (normally they over cook it and its dry…but not in Tamarind). Service was attentive without being in your face, and the little extras of a pre meal taster and chocolate afterwards with the coffee added to the experience! Well worth going, especially as the set menu is available at both lunchtime and early evening.

I took my mum to Tamarind in late November. We had spent a great weekend in London and I wanted to treat her with something very special, and I couldn't have chosen a better place!

We arrived on sunday evening about an hour early, and were greeted in a warm and friendly way. I did feel a bit underdressed as we had been running around the city all day and were only wearing jeans and some boring tops, but the staff didn't seem to notice and treated us like royalty.

The decoration was beautiful and simple, very inviting and tasteful. We had a table in the middle of the restaurant, but even when it got full it felt spacious and comfortable. It wasn't noisy at all which is amazing since every table had been filled by the time we left.

The staff were there when we needed them, but they weren't interfering at once. They explained the menus to us and knew what to recommend and suggest. We had the taster menu for starters, having chicken, prawns and lamb. I have to say that the lamb was best I have ever had, it was just unbelievable. All the meat had a gorgeous taste and were very spicy and warm. The texture was perfect. You could feel the chicken disappearing in your mouth!

I had the lobster as a main course and really enjoyed it too. Mum had murgh pasanda with some extra spices at request, and both of our meals were almost too good to describe. I have to say that I 'm extremely critical when it comes to eating out, and there is not many I would rate above good. Tamarind exceeded all my expectations and is definitely one of my favorites now.

I also loved the way the staff were relaxed but very professional with their guests and enthusiastic about the food industry, I talked with our nepalese waiter about restaurants around the world, different ways of cooking the similar dishes in different cultures and he seemed very happy and even excited about the subject.

I would call this food very indian with a exciting, different twist. Some people may not like it if they are used to you typical mushy chicken tikka from the corner shop or tescos, but I truly believe this is as real as it can get.

They also had gorgeous Bordeaux wine on their wine list, and that just made things even better if possible.

We had the toffee pudding and tropical fruit sorbets for desserts, and needless to say, they were lovely. I'm not even the biggest fan of toffee puddings, but Tamarind is kind of place you can order anything and will love it.

The total price was around £160. Not the cheapest place, but definitely one of the best. Worth going and experiencing, and I'm glad to say I will go back the very next time I'm in London.