Prasad knows only too well the impact Michelin stars can have on a restaurant, having lost his in 2009, only to regain it a year later. That jump and Michelin's acceptance of Indian cuisine gave others more confidence and proved that getting a Michelin star was only a matter of time for Indian chefs at the head of their game." That set the benchmark and it's gradually increased. "The big breakthrough was in 2001, when Zaika and Tamarind both got their Michelin stars. "In the last 10 years there has been a huge transformation in the Indian restaurant sector," says Alfred Prasad, of London's Michelin-starred Tamarind restaurant. Where once was the Anglo-Indian food of the Raj - the kedgerees and mulligatawny soups, which merged British ingredients with Indian spices - and then the homogenous neon sauces of our curry houses, dumbed down for the mass British palate, we now have light, modern, sophisticated dishes that pay homage to Indian culinary tradition while using superior produce and modern cooking techniques. Given the UK's rich and complex history with the subcontinent and its food, it's perhaps only natural that we should now be the forerunners when it comes to Indian fine dining, boasting a wealth of refined Indian cuisine presided over by five Michelin-starred chefs (see panels). We ask their ground-breaking chefs how the cuisine came from corner curry house to being a frontrunner in fine dining. ![]() ![]() A lovely meal and afternoon, leaving only a proper evening tasting menu / experience to be had here, which I think will be absolutely worth doing.Indian fine dining in the UK has come a long way, with Britain now boasting five Michelin-starred Indian Restaurants. Service was a little inconsistent and needed some refining but was heartfelt and welcoming all the way through. The heritage of the cooking is set in a ‘crystal glass belgravia’ setting and the food did not dissapoint in anyway. This was a particualrly well done series of tapas sized dishes of Indian food from all regions of the country. It was also lovely to see the different cooking methods for an added element of theatre. Popadoms are not served owing to the establishment not wishing guests to become too full on these and detract from the main cooking which is perfectly logical. The black pepper chicken seems to be a proud highlight remaining on the menu since my last visit four years ago. Particular highlights were the chicken and coconut in lettuce and the care taken on the selection of rhubarb, tomato, peanut and rose petal chutneys. Just a shame that the execution wasn’t quite there today. This was obviously warmly received and I have to say both desserts were in fact utterly gorgeous and actually the stars of the show.Īll in all, another very pleasant series of dishes. The restaurant did however offer a courtesy dessert and dropped the service charge off the bill for the lapse. This shows that there was either a rushed or non inspection at the pass or simply not enough care put in to the presentation full stop. The service was very attentive and hospitable on this occasion however, the suprise was that after one hair was found in the rose petal chutney (which is careless) and this replaced, a second hair was found on the chili lamb. I felt the goats cheese salad was a little overpowered by the mandarin and that to make the dish better it could have had less of it and the skin removed – this sort of effort would be more synonymous with a 2 Michelin starred restaurant. ![]() Some repeat dishes on this third visit including the superb chicken coconut wraps and wonderful sweet and sour chutney to go with plain naans. ![]() Not a bad thing as it means most who go there are going for the food, which, thankfully is reassuringly well done. Drivers will often not notice as they pass by. Situated in a beautiful little enclave and tucked away from the main roads, you would not know about this restaurant unless you were searching the Michelin Guide or had heard from word of mouth (or me!).
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