RestaurantsLondonCovent GardenWC2

survey result

Summary

£65
  £££
4
Very Good
4
Very Good
4
Very Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

“There’s a reason this chain has endured for so long” – its street food and curries are “so authentic”, “imaginative” and “such good value for money”: “you still have to go a long way to beat their thali deals”. Owned by MW Eats (who own the posh Chutney Mary, Amaya, etc), they sold off their Camden Town and Bayswater sites in the last 12 months; and in mid 2023 launched a stunning new landmark branch on Piccadilly Circus, in one of London’s most historic, but (in recent times) most-under-achieving restaurant sites: the magnificent, Neo-Byzantine, mosaicked chamber dating from 1873 that for many years was The Criterion (RIP). Innovations on the new site include breakfast, ‘Indian High Tea’ and late opening.

Summary

£60
  £££
3
Good
3
Good
4
Very Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

“I keep coming back for the reliably distinctive range of Indian dishes… when I’m pushed to try new things I rarely regret it” – the “always interesting menu” at these longstanding pioneers of street food and thalis delivers “very tasty grub in generous portions that’s good value for money”. It’s run by MW Eats (the family company behind some of the capital’s most prestigious subcontinental restaurants).

Summary

£49
   ££
4
Very Good
4
Very Good
4
Very Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

“Fabulous Indian street food and thalis” make the seven sites in this “exceptional” central London chain real crowd-pleasers, and they show no sign of running out of steam two decades after their launch in Soho. Far from it, by all accounts they have “really improved over the past year or so – the quality of the dishes is now far beyond where it used to be” – and “they are not expensive”. Ranjit Mathrani, veteran chair of the family company behind the group, plans to open more branches; they also own high-end restaurants Amaya, Veeraswamy and Chutney Mary.

Summary

£44
    £
3
Good
3
Good
4
Very Good
* Based on a three course dinner, half a bottle of wine, coffee, cover charge, service and VAT.

“Fresh-tasting food with distinctive flavours” and “unpretentious, tasty thalis” make this small London group (now in its 21st year) a “go-to chain” for its fans: “amazing value for such high-quality cuisine”.

For 33 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).

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Restaurant details

Highchair, Menu
No dress code

Masala Zone Restaurant Diner Reviews

Reviews of Masala Zone Restaurant in WC2, London by users of Hardens.com. Also see the editors review of Masala Zone restaurant.
Tim J
While prices have edged upwards, this conti...
Reviewed 4 months, 3 days ago

"While prices have edged upwards, this continuous to feel like good value in central London locations such as right by the royal opera house, and - so far at least - quality is definitely being maintained. Masala Zone has effectively become my benchmark for good quality, familiar and friendly (though modern) Indian cooking, and whenever I try new independent places getting rave reviews the first question is always "is this actually better than Masala Zone?". Nice also to see new dishes going onto the menu often enough to keep things interesting."

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Opening hours

Last orders: 11 pm, Sun 10.30 pm

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