Tower Hill, Indian Restaurant Guide

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.

The “stunning venue” of a Grade II listed former school hall (once St Olave’s Grammar School) – not to mention “friendly staff” and consistently “tasty” modern Indian cuisine make this a fitting flagship for the Lalit Hotel Group. One caveat: “it’s a really interesting building but the big hall and spaced-out tables can lead to a lack of atmosphere, especially early evening”.

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!