London's curry houses

There are certainly many places to have curry of many kinds and nationalities in London.

I would like to point out a few we tried.

1) South Indian Vegetarian restaurant "Sagar", Còvent Garden. www.sagarveg.co.uk

I stumbled upon this place while walking around near Còvent Garden Royal Opera House.

The food was tasty. I had the vegetable kurma. It was a mild sauce with veggies in it. My husband had Aloo Gobi (potatoes and cauliflower curry). He liked it. Sorry, no photos taken.

2) Bangladeshi/British restaurant "Aladin", 132 Brick Lane, Spitalfields (East End of London in Tower Hamlets). www.aladinbricklane.co.uk

I ate here before (last year). It is one of many curry/balti places to eat on Brick Lane. The food here is good, however it is Anglicized Bangladeshi food, as many places serve on Brick Lane. We took a food tour of the east end of London and our guide said that the restaurants down here on Brick Lane modify the recipes for British tastes, meaning they add more cream and sugar to the recipes. Some Brits like their curry that way. I ordered a balti dish with chicken and spinach. It was good, but the spinach taste was so hidden under spices that I could not taste it properly. My husband's tikka masala was pretty sweet. Not so much heavy on the cream. Sweeter than he liked. Overall pretty good food, but not real "authentic".

3) Pakistani food at "Tayyabs".  83-89 Fieldgate St. East end of London, off of Whitechapel Rd. www.tayyabs.co.uk

This place is the real deal, authentic food from Pakistan. You have to know about this place to go and find it. It is off the main streets, back in the hood (near Muslim centers, mosque). I heard about it first through a Rick Steves podcast. Then one our guides (from street art tour in east end) mentioned it. It was fairly crowded even though we were there for a late lunch. The tables were crammed close together. This is the best place to eat. Our table was so full of food that to fit it all on the table was like doing a jigsaw puzzle. Even the waiter had to be creative to fit all the food on. We had 2 mains, 2 rice, 2 salads, drinks, appetizer sauces and naan - on a tiny table. I ordered the chicken karahi. The menu online is more detailed than the one they give you there. Apparently it is cooked in a deep pot (these karahi dishes). Sounds similar to the Bangladeshi balti pot. My dish had the spices of garlic, ginger, black pepper and green chili. It was a mild sauce and savory (not sweet). The red color of the sauce must come from tomatoes. My husband ordered the saag aloo (spinach and potato with chilies, coriander and garlic). He loved it. He could actually taste the spinach. The naan bread was large and delicate. I ordered a mango lassi (yogurt drink). It was delicious.

Here is a photo of all that food.

A full table indeed!

4) "Star Kebab House", 178 Earls Court Rd., London - near Earls Court tube station.

A wide variety of curries, dal, kebabs and more. I had the dal (spiced yellow lentils on rice). It was delicious. The spicing was perfect and mild. My husband ordered Channa ( North Indian chickpea stew with potatoes on rice). Also tasty. The prices are inexpensive. It is open late. We ordered takeaway. There is not much inside seating.

5) A big disappointment was the closing of my favorite Indian restaurant on Cromwell Rd. in South Kensington, the Delhi Brasserie. I had good meals there. Every time I went there were not many customers. A new restaurant (Iraqi) is going in that location soon. Another branch of this restaurant is in Soho at 44 Frith St. We have not tried this location. The menu looks the same as the one on Cromwell. I am assuming it has the same owners. Try this place too. Also called Delhi Brasserie.

You could eat your way through London just on curries. I might try one day!