Best Indian near brick lane

Adam

Adam

Adam

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Joined
18 Oct 2002
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So I'm meeting a friend after work tomorrow for an Indian but not sure where to go. The last time I went to brick lane it was a horrendous experience, like walking past bars on holiday and being promised all kinds of stuff they didn't deliver.

I'm therefore happy to avoid brick lane or head specifically to a particular restaurant.

A couple of suggestions I have found from tripadvisor are the following:

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restau...389705-Reviews-Red_Chilli-London_England.html

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restau...44633-Reviews-The_Empress-London_England.html

Anyone have any other suggestions?
 
http://www.tayyabs.co.uk/

Tayyabs, just south of brick lane, hands down the best curry house around there. It's BYOB, there's a Tesco round the corner and its great. Have the lamb chops (or ask for a mixed grill between 2) for a starter and the dry meat for a main. Try and book if you can, you can wait for a table but its usually super busy so you will wait a little less if you book. It's a bit mad but the food is brilliant and you never spend more than £20 a head.

Have a look on urbanspoon for reviews, you will get a sense of the place pretty quickly.
 
Tayyabs is so overrated. I'm speaking as a local. It was nice one upon a time. But now, you go, eat and you get out. Waiters hover around you and customers get turned over like cattle, cramped seating etc. The only thing going for it is the bring your own booze bit - but you will not get much time to drink it.

Do not expect to be able to have a decent conversation in there or 'dine'. There are a few more opened up along that stretch and also have a wonder around New Road. Also along Commercial Road (running parallel to Commercial Street) there are a few more eateries with similar menus as tayabs..food as good and much more relaxed.

Tayyab was nice once upon a time, but now its all about turnover, fast food and one time customers that find the place from its long history. Competition has caught up around the area mind.

Having said all that, if I had to choose I would pick it over any Indian in Brick Lane itself - tourist trap. Just try and go when its not so busy.
 
I dunno, I was at Tayyabs Saturday and the food is miles better than standard Brick Lane stuff. Unless I've missed some?

Good food, crap service. Tayyabs.
 
I thought I'd report back having been to Tayyabs last night. Bit of a strange experience really. We waited over an hour despite being told the wait was around 20 minutes which was a bad start. The place is enormous, absolutely huge. When we were in the queue waiters were barging past us with meals and it was generally carnage.

The food was decent, we shared a mixed grill to start and the lamb chops were pretty good as were the small kebabs. We hadn't even finished our starters when our mains were plonked on our table. I went for a Karaachi chicken keema (blind choice which was pretty adventurous for me) which wasn't bad. The naan's were very nice as was the saag aloo. I tried my mates chicken tikka massala and that was very nice, wish I had gone for that really.

It made me laugh because the guy taking our card payment said they weren't even particularly busy. Crazy experience, not sure I'd rush back as I don't like to be rushed and have the table turned around immediately. 7/10 for me. Good value and decent food but not keen on the service/model of the place.
 
The service in Tayyabs can be absolutely horrendous but the food is good. I just get an entire mixed grill every time and don't bother with the curries. The mixed grill is the best thing about that place. The alternative is the rival - Lahore Kebab House off Commercial Road - as you can probably imagine the kebabs are superb!
For an actual Brick Lane experience Cafe Bangla is my place of choice. It's one of the few places that doesn't station waiters outside to haggle and they have some bizarre paintings inside, including one of Diana. What more could you ask for?
 
Yeah it's pretty crazy - I normally start cracking into my BYOB beers in the queue :p

It's definitely not a place for a relaxing long meal though lol, when I was working in London we used to just go straight from work for an earlyish dinner around 5:30pm or so which was normally much more relaxed and we were finishing up just as the queues were getting mental :p

Also top tip avoid Thursday nights which are often 'curry nights' for many groups.
 
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