Imli

If Sharwood’s is to be believed, whipping up a tasty curry takes 20 minutes and one pan. At Imli they have the same philosophy, but a very different method of going about it.

For a start, most of the menu is in the form of tapas. It is full of small, varied dishes that work as much as a map of India as a three course meal. It takes influences from all over the country, rather than the south-India dominated cuisine served in most curry houses.

Our platters cost around £8, which is brilliant value. It included several sides, a main curry, a field's worth of rice and, of course, a main curry dish. Being the sister restaurant of Tamarind, a certain quality of ingredients and cooking is to be expected, but I was blown away.

Every dish was unlike any other curry dish on any menu in any other curry house. The Papdi Chaat, a sweet yoghurt and wheat crisp salad, was worth the price alone. THe lamb fell apart on the fork and the potato and coriander cakes were refreshingly light compared to the heavier dishes.

Combining the philosophy of tapas and Indian food may seem unlikely but, as the head chef Samir Sadekar explained: Indian cuisine is meant to be diverse, and always shared. Although sharing is the last thing on my mind as I tucked in to our lunch platter, the point about having variety on your plate was well made.

I have been to Imli on few occasions and went back again on Monday 7th March with few friend how have never been to Imli before. Once again it was great food & the Service. Monday night and the Atmosphere was buzing. I liked there new Mix Kebab Plater it had four diffrent kind of Grilled meat with Black Dal and a hot Naan & it was great. My Friens tried Papri Chaat, Potatoes & green peas cakes, Mixed Seafood curry and the Lamb Rogan Josh and some Mushrooms with spinch . We all very very pleased with the over all experience. I will be going back for that Platter again.

The restaurant was bustling when we arrived and I had a refreshingly creamy mango lassi. The colourful canvases covering the walls and a bright orange colour scheme ( the colour of hunger incidently, or perhaps easy jet… ) certainly makes an impression!

Our waitress was lovely, and although I was initially sceptical about the tapas style idea, it actually worked well and certainly makes a change to CTM and Peshwari naan! Dishes come out when they are ready, so you get you your order in sections. The restaurant recommend three dishes per person, which is probably about right. The food was hot and fresh, and all tastey and flavoursome. The four if us particularly enjoyed Ragda Potatoe, the Stuffed Panneer ( which was a novel and lovely idea ) and the Spicy Squid, which is a favourite among customers. One very unnusual dish was the Papdi Chaat- tastey and very different.

The service was brisk, and a little rushed at times, but I guess you expect it with places like these. I wasn't mad for the flashy, modern interior. The food was lovely but twelve hours later and I feel there was too much salt. Would I go again? Perhaps. Time will tell.

We really liked the idea of a tappas style Indian restaurant, and still I think the idea has some merit. The food I found to be quite bland. There didn't seem to be much flavour at all, just a little heat on some of the dishes to make them interesting. One of the sauces tasted like the sauce you get on canned spaghetti. Not appetising at all. It was like something you'd get out of a jar. Over all the dishes just lacked any spark – though they were still ok to fill up on. The naan bread was terrible – cold and chewy. Not a sign of light or fluffiness.

The service was fine and the restaurant itself ok. The 60s and motown music was a little disorienting. Maybe the food would have tasted more authentic if the atmosphere was too.

I won't be visiting here again.

Imli is an interesting venue for me – as I work close by it's always a good choice for when I feel I need a little more than a sandwich at my desk. To be honest it's only a place I'd go for a quick and casual bite – the price to quality ratio being very good. The venues has a bit of a glam canteen feel to it and while not suitable for all occasions fits in perfectly for what I and my friends and colleague expect. Food is always tasty and quality consistent – Crispy fried squid and southern lamb being dishes I tend to return to often. If you need a bite during lunch or before heading off somewhere in the evening for the prices and comfort you can't go wrong. As mentioned service can be a little slow at peak times but not enough to stop me returning.

We ate at Imli the other week on a 2 for 1 offer for the tasting menu. Although I cannot fault the food nor the service, the meal lacked any sort of impact. The dishes were nice enough but only differed from the norm as being ‘tapas’, they were much smaller and only provided a few mouthfuls! If we had been paying the full amount for the meal (£14.95 a head), we would have felt cheated and certainly did not come away stuffed. When there are so many Indian restaurants in London to choose from, it is highly unlikely we will return here. Not an unpleasant meal in any way but certainly not memorable either.