Merchant City, Indian - Restaurant Guide

When it opened in 1996, the idea of ‘tapas’ for any cuisine other than Spanish was in its infancy in the UK and Monir & Smeena Mohammed’s cosy three-floor venue in the West End helped break the mould. It’s not as famous as once it was amongst our diners, but its dedicated fan club remains ardent: “the curries here are absolutely delicious with lots of unusual dishes to try. All so tasty and with vibrant flavours. The staff are so welcoming and the atmosphere upstairs is one of contented diners having a good time, many on long tables with silver candelabra”. Now with four spin-offs locally and with an Edinburgh branch.

2022 Review: “Never disappoints, even after four decades of being a customer” – a “Glasgow institution” (est. 1964) whose “consistent cooking” attracts “generations of families, all welcome”. The victuals touch on most of the flavours of the subcontinent, while the founder, known to all as Mr Ali, is a bit of a West End dining legend.

Nisha Katona’s Liverpool-based operation has two branches in London (Charlotte Street and Westfield Stratford) offering her “very tasty” Indian street food – “with the occasional hint of raw spice”. The Lancashire-born former barrister launched the business in 2014 and now has 28 outlets around the country, whose “enjoyable, authentic food” is “really great for a chain”.