Indian Restaurants in Waltham Abbey
1. Cinnamon Bazaar
Indian restaurant in
28 Maiden Lane - WC2E
“A fun place – great for a meal before a show… and the food is imaginative and good too” – Vivek Singh’s spin-off from the famous Cinnamon Club is well-supported for its “solid modern Indian cooking” at “relatively good value” prices for the West End. On the downside, service can be “disorganised” and the (“noisy” and “really packed in”) dining room “doesn’t really inspire” although “as it fills, it becomes animated with a buzz of excitement”.
2. Colonel Saab Trafalgar Square
Indian restaurant in Westminster
40 - 42 William IV Street - WC2N
“Such a shame not more people recognise this as a top Indian” – so say fans of Roop Partap Choudhary’s lavishly decorated venue in Holborn’s spectacular old town hall. “They seem to have observed the leading groups and copied the best bits” and the result is “really well-executed food” (if perhaps “with few surprises”). Last year, he also debuted in the large space off Trafalgar Square that was formerly Jones Family Project (RIP): “a well-designed if cavernous space” but sometimes “a little raucous due to its seeming popularity with big work groups”.
3. Cinnamon Kitchen
Indian restaurant in City
9 Devonshire Sq - EC2
“Bustling, noisy and delicious” – Vivek Singh’s City spinoff from his flagship Cinnamon Club provides a “fun” opportunity to sample some superior Indian cooking. Its newer Battersea stablemate is less commented on and a little tamer – but fans say the food is “every bit as good”, while both branches have outdoor terraces for al-fresco dining. A third Cinnamon Kitchen opened in Leeds in summer 2025 – the chef’s first foray ’up North.
4. Benares
Indian restaurant in Mayfair
12a Berkeley Square House, - W1
“Still setting the standard for Indian food” – this leading Mayfair subcontinental emerged from a major refit in January 2025 and has gone from good to great as a result. A sprawling modern space, up stairs from Berkeley Square, it’s always been a stylish destination that has sometimes struggled to generate much electricity ambience-wise. No longer: its new decor looks and feels “superb” and chef Sameer Taneja’s “incredible” cuisine is going from strength to strength with an “amazing new menu”. “Top of the line” in all respects.
5. Colonel Saab Holborn
Indian restaurant in
Holborn Hall, 193-197 High Holborn - WC1V
“Such a shame not more people recognise this as a top Indian” – so say fans of Roop Partap Choudhary’s lavishly decorated venue in Holborn’s spectacular old town hall. “They seem to have observed the leading groups and copied the best bits” and the result is “really well-executed food” (if perhaps “with few surprises”). Last year, he also debuted in the large space off Trafalgar Square that was formerly Jones Family Project (RIP): “a well-designed if cavernous space” but sometimes “a little raucous due to its seeming popularity with big work groups”.
6. The Cinnamon Club
Indian restaurant in Westminster
Old Westminster Library, Great Smith St - SW1
There’s no name outside so look for the carved stone lintel reading ‘Westminster Library’ when you visit this “fabulous institution” sitting “in the shadow of Westminster Abbey”. “Still great after all these years – Vivek Singh’s “posh Indian” remains one of the Top-40 most commented-on entries in our annual diners’ poll, and is also one of the most popular. The building provides a “very original setting” – complete with wood-panelling, leaded glass and book-lined walls – while transporting you to the subcontinent!”. It’s a “sophisticated” combination, with “classy” and “luxurious” cuisine providing “a paradise of fabulous flavours”, while “the buzz of happy diners gives a nice, comforting backdrop to one of the best meals you can have in central London”. (That is provided you don’t mind sharing the wonderful space with miscellaneous politicos and union leaders… “amusingly, it turns out that the new breed of MPs are just as keen to be fed here as the recently deposed mob!)”. Top Tip – “strong wine list, including a number of wines from India itself”.
7. Jashan
Indian restaurant in Hornsey
19 Turnpike Ln - N8
2024 Review: Nobody is entirely happy about the change of style at this “wonderful curry house” of more than three decades’ standing in Turnpike Lane, following a recent “facelift”, although “if that’s what they had to do to survive the pandemic, then fair enough I suppose – but we really miss the old place”. Some feel it’s now “essentially a large takeaway counter with the restaurant area tucked behind under glaringly bright lights”, while more positive types feel that overall it’s “still recommended for a quick casual eating experience, but not for a relaxed evening out as in the past”.
8. Indian Rasoi
Indian restaurant in Fortis Green
7 Denmark Terrace - N2
2023 Review: This cute family-run Muswell Hill curry house with a small terrace for outdoor dining prides itself on its Mughal-inspired north Indian cuisine, which goes down well with a local clientele.
9. Shahi Pakwaan
Indian restaurant in Haringey
25 Aylmer Parade, Aylmer Road - N2
This “excellent local” Indian in the low-key setting of an East Finchley shopping parade trades on its good-value tandoori dishes and curries.
10. Attawa
Indian restaurant in Dalston
6 Kingsland High Street - E8
2023 Review: This Dalston two-year-old from MasterChef: The Professionals 2019 semi-finalist Arbinder Dugal is a “very solid representative of the by-now-not-quite-so-new wave of modern Indian restaurants – probably the best in this part of town”. Named after the owners’ home village in the Punjab, it serves a short menu of tasty north Indian dishes.
11. East West
Pizza restaurant in Tufnell Park
135 Fortess Road - NW5
2022 Review: Adding Indian spicing to pasta and crispy Italian pizza explains the name of Devinder Singh’s Tufnell Park venue, which opened in Spring 2020. Early bird feedback suggests it's a concept that ‘has legs’.
12. Zaffrani
Indian restaurant in Islington
47 Cross St - N1
This “always busy” family-run Indian near Islington’s Almeida Theatre celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, and offers a good choice of “really flavoursome” fish and seafood dishes in addition to carnivore classics and regional specialities from across the subcontinent. “There aren’t many good Indian restaurants around here – this is one of them”.
13. Dishoom
Indian restaurant in Shoreditch
7 Boundary St - E2
“You’ll almost always find a queue of people waiting for a table and a palpable energy of excitement in the room” when you visit these “vibrant” and “exotic”-feeling Indian favourites, which “whisk you to Bombay and back”. Cousins Shamil & Kavi Thakrar started in Covent Garden in 2010 and their growing group has become the most commented-on business in our annual diners’ poll, complete with seven London branches, three outside town; their ‘Permit Rooms’ spinoff brand, and turnover of over £100m. The interior design, a homage to Mumbai’s Irani cafés, absolutely slaps – “wherever you sit it’s quirky” and even though the busy scene can become “a bit of a zoo”, it’s all so upbeat that “you leave feeling good about your meal and yourself!”. Dishes are “bursting with flavour” and served by “efficient” waiting staff “who know their stuff”. The menu is “deliciously different”, although so many Londoners have now sampled it that once-arcane items like the “legendary black dahl (so rich and filling!)” are now part of London’s culinary canon. And what better way to start a new day than with an “unbeatable bacon and egg naan roll” – a high watermark of dining out invention of the last 50 years that’s core to their “game-changing breakfasts” (“you will never want an English bacon roll again”!).
14. Paradise Hampstead
Indian restaurant in Hampstead
49 South End Rd - NW3
“Great food and service” have made this family-owned Hampstead curryhouse – now run by the founder’s son – a winner for nearly 60 years. It’s “always noisy and cramped”, but that hardly dampens enthusiasm. High-profile regulars are name-checked on the menu – the ‘Arctic murg’ super-spicy butter chicken is a tribute to the Sheffield rockers.
15. Dishoom
Indian restaurant in Kings Cross
Stable St, Granary Sq - N1
“You’ll almost always find a queue of people waiting for a table and a palpable energy of excitement in the room” when you visit these “vibrant” and “exotic”-feeling Indian favourites, which “whisk you to Bombay and back”. Cousins Shamil & Kavi Thakrar started in Covent Garden in 2010 and their growing group has become the most commented-on business in our annual diners’ poll, complete with seven London branches, three outside town; their ‘Permit Rooms’ spinoff brand, and turnover of over £100m. The interior design, a homage to Mumbai’s Irani cafés, absolutely slaps – “wherever you sit it’s quirky” and even though the busy scene can become “a bit of a zoo”, it’s all so upbeat that “you leave feeling good about your meal and yourself!”. Dishes are “bursting with flavour” and served by “efficient” waiting staff “who know their stuff”. The menu is “deliciously different”, although so many Londoners have now sampled it that once-arcane items like the “legendary black dahl (so rich and filling!)” are now part of London’s culinary canon. And what better way to start a new day than with an “unbeatable bacon and egg naan roll” – a high watermark of dining out invention of the last 50 years that’s core to their “game-changing breakfasts” (“you will never want an English bacon roll again”!).
16. Hoppers
Indian restaurant in King's Cross
Unit 3, Building 4, Pancras Square - NIC
“Tasty, freshly prepared Sri Lankan food in a fun environment” has spelled success for this trio from JKS Restaurants, which have done much to popularise Sri Lankan and south Indian cuisine in the capital over the past decade (a hopper is a street-food pancake). The original Soho venue is “vibrant and intimately packed (at times a little too much so)”, while the newer branch at Coal Drops Yard in King’s Cross has a terrace where “on a warm summer’s day, sitting at an outside table with fresh bites and a cold pint is just excellent”. Top Menu Tip – “the short eats – hot butter squid, lamb kothu roti, bone marrow varuval – are absolute knockouts”; the best-sellers are the hoppers and the dosa dishes.
17. Tayyabs
Pakistani restaurant in Whitechapel
83 Fieldgate St - E1
“You’re hard-pressed to spend more than 30-odd pounds per head, and the lamb chops are legendary” at this long-running Punjabi institution in Whitechapel, whose BYOB policy helps the wallet (“still the best value among all restaurants – not just South Asian – in London”). And it’s not just about the “filthy-good grilled meats” – “the aubergine and other vegetarian dishes really shine”. It does get “too busy”, though, and even some fans feel “you do now get hustled in and out” – so “don’t expect good service and you won’t be disappointed”.
18. Gunpowder
Indian restaurant in City
11 Whites Row - E1
Harneet Baweja’s 10-year-old Indian street-food outfit “just gets better and better”, with “innovative, authentic and well-spiced sharing plates” and “warm service”. The Spitalfields branch is “the original and best”; while the Soho and Tower Bridge follow-ups also win praise. Top Tip – look out for the ‘India Club’ events: one-off celebrations of a particular city, region or festival.
19. Lahore Kebab House
Pakistani restaurant in Whitechapel
2-10 Umberston St - E1
“A real staple of the East End curry fraternity” – this legendary no-frills Pakistani canteen is now in its fourth decade and “always a joy” – “the place keeps getting bigger but the food is always spot-on” with “authentic and ultra-tasty dishes” that “never fail”. Top Tip – “don’t forget to bring your own bottle!”.
20. The Halal Restaurant
Indian restaurant in Aldgate
2 St Mark Street - E1
2022 Review: East London’s oldest Indian (established 1939 in Whitechapel) briefly found fame in late August 2020, when it was reviewed by Marina O’Loughlin for The Sunday Times. Run by four generations of the same family – and with somewhat antediluvian decor – it’s not the place to uncover the latest in food fads; or as Marina eloquently put it: “it tastes like the past, deliciously”. Reports please!
View full listings of 103 Indian Waltham Abbey Restaurants
Popular Waltham Abbey Restaurant Searches
Waltham Abbey Restaurant News