Kricket, Soho
One of my favourite restaurants in central London is Kricket. It’s run by two English boys who went backpacking to India and came back knowing it was the food they wanted to cook. They use quintessential English ingredients and are redefining English curry. I’m particularly fond of their samphire pakora, which I think is genius. It’s salty. It’s spicy. It’s crispy. The samphire lends itself really well to the chickpea batter – it just works incredibly well.
Kricket, 12 Denman Street, London W1D 7HJ; kricket.co.uk
Gunpowder, Spitalfields
At Gunpowder, they use old Indian techniques, and they take inspiration from all across India, to create very good street-food-inspired small plates. There’s no starter, main course, dessert; you just order what you want. Not many restaurants would be brave enough to do an egg curry, which is quite an Indian thing, but they do, and they do it really well. In my book, it’s one of the greatest Indian restaurants.
Gunpowder, 11 White’s Row, London E1 7NF; gunpowderrestaurants.com
Potli, Chiswick
This is a very simple neighbourhood restaurant, but they have a lovely light touch and make some very difficult dishes that people often make too heavy. One of the reasons I go there is for the samosas, which I absolutely love. People might smile at that, but making good samosas is an art and they do it really well. It’s got that lovely atmosphere that you get at a local restaurant and it’s just a fantastic place.
Potli, 319-321 King Street, London W6 9NH; potli.co.uk
Quilon, Westminster
I’ve purposely not picked any of the big hitters in Mayfair because everybody knows about them, but there’s one very famous restaurant with a Michelin star that I wanted to mention and that’s Quilon in Westminster. They have an excellent daily set-menu at lunch which is very good value. The food is from Kerala in south India, and they do special menus on festival days. If it’s on, order the pan-fried fish which is really very good.
Quilon, 41 Buckingham Gate, London SW1E 6AF; quilon.co.uk
For more on Atul’s books and restaurants, go here: atulkochhar.com; to eat his incredible food go to Kanishka, 17-19 Maddox St, London: kanishkarestaurant.co.uk
