I realize that there are probably almost as many Indian restaurants in London as there are in all of mainland Europe. However, would anyone here be able to recommend a good one in London near the Notting Hill-Holland Park area? I've been to the Bombay Bicycle Club, and it was fairly good, but I'd like to try someplace different. I'd prefer a place (how does one say this in a polite manner) where the vindaloo is as spicy on the way out as it is on the way in.

Thanks for any tips.

There are all sorts of Indian places in London... cheapie Brick Lane, more upscale like Amaya, Tamarind or Benares... also The Cinnamon Club. The Bombay Brasserie is another well thought of place with good weekend buffet. I'm sorry none are in the Notting Hill area. I have a feeling that if you tell your waiter you want ultra-spicy, the chef will throw in a load more of it for your vindaloo.

You can also ask on www.chowhound.com. The folks there are real experts on where to eat and what.

I'm afraid I can't help with Indian restaurants near Notting Hill - I normally end up eating Thai food rather than Indian in that neck of the woods (normally at The Market Thai, 240 Portobello Rd). My favourite Indian in London is the Sree Krishna on Tooting High Street. It might take you the best part of an hour to get there, but it's worth it. The prawn poori is the best I've ever had, and I'm rather partial to the fried chicken curry too...

My favourite Indian place in London is probably a 5 minute cab ride from Holland Park (southern entrance) and about 10-15 minutes from Notting Hill.

http://www.k-a-r-m-a.co.uk/

I've been to quite a few Indian places in London and this one takes the cake (or the papadom ) in my mind as good value for the money. As such, I tend to go there every couple months. Their xacuti is particularly good. Enjoy!

It would be about a 30 minute ride on the central line, but Tayyabs is definitely worth checking out.

No reservations, but the food is incredible. Blows the nearby Brick Lane eateries away by a mile. They're cool about BYO although I think they do Kingfisher beer etc, nominal corkage charge IIRC but the bill has always come as a pleasant surprise for the amount eaten and drunk.

Wingnut - that place in Tooting sounds great, and fairly convenient for us.

Another suggestion that may help the OP more would be to go further west into Southall. I'm afraid I haven't got any personal experience but have heard several recommendations from friends in west London that it's *the* area to go for good Indian food.

Tooting is famous for its Indian restaurants.. always worth a visit if one is nearby.

Another good choice in London in Moti Mohal which I think is on Great Queen St. near Covent Garden. I hear lots of good things about it.

Thanks all...keep the suggestions coming. The Thai restaurant mentioned sounds like a good option as well. While closer is better to where I'm staying, so long as the tube ride isn't too long, I've no issues.

I was there last night.. queue for tables went right outside.

Personally I didn't really get the point. They basically do one type of curry (with different contents) and a few different tandoori dry meats. Understandable if the curry is mindblowing, but we found it rather bland and flavourless.

It's true that a lot of the Brick Lane places are pretty bad, but some around the middle (ask for a discount, if the guy looks shocked and tells you no, then you might have a good place) have much more sophisticated and interesting curries, better customer service and much, much better value for money (~£8 for a real chefs special instead of £12 at Tayyabs for a large).

Moti Mohal on the other hand (noted above) keeps being recommended to me by foodie friends. It's on my to do list..

We ate at Moti Mohal last year and was very disappointed in the food, despite the very nice setting and it being quite expensive ( 140 GBPs which did include a bottle of wine, but not a Chateau Lafitte )

My favorite Indian is Cafe Spice Namaste near the Tower and there always the old standby Red Fort.

mike

deleted

I've heard people rave and rave about Tayyab and I just don't see it. It's decent, but I don't think it's all that.

YMMV.

It takes work, but there are a few decent places on Brick Lane - Preem (on the corner of Brick Lane and Hanbury Street) is consistently good and cheap. We found one called Muhib Restaurant (about thirty metres south of Preem on the other side of the street) which was also excellent. Most other places (and it feels like I've tried 'em all) are awful.

Zaika is awesome. My partner is Pakistani and he worships it.

Lahore Karahi (closer to Tooting Broadway station) is well worth the trip.

Tooting and Southall have the most authentic curries I've ever had in London.

Speaking of Southall, if you're up for adventure, it's about a 10-minute train ride from Paddington. Walk up and down The Broadway for some very authentic food. There's another Lahore Karahi there as well.

There are a few decent places in Bradford, but now's not the time...

My wife, daughter, and I took a few day trip to London a few weeks ago and our first night ate at Tayyab's. A friend who lives there took us.

It was fantastic. No reservations and there was a bit of a wait, but the food was superb and service was quick. And cheap!

fuzz

Im a very big fan of Chutney Mary on Kings Road. Outstanding, fairly high end Indian place. They have foods from different regions of India with the chefs to cook just the dishes from the region they specialize in. A really excellent place in my experience and Ive been there quite a few times, never anything but superb. Reservations are probably essential, especially on weekends.

Tamarind is the best. Maybe the best in the world.