DESI PAVILION CANTERING — Restaurant in Leeds

I was excited by what this restaurant was offering, so I decided to give them a go. It was a disaster from start to finish. As I had the house to myself, I planned to have a quiet night in with my favourite takeout and a film lined up to watch. So I ordered a Gol Gappa Chaat, plain boiled rice and a Chingri Malai curry - a famous, classic dish of creamy prawns and my all time favourite so I was really looking forward to it. The guy who took the order was incomprehensible but the first issue came when I tried to pay by card. I got the age-old excuse, 'our card machine is broken' so would only take cash. I had 45 mins to rush down to the nearest cashpoint in my comfy home clothes! Second issue was when I came to eat.The Gol Gappa was nice but insubstantial for the money (Aarti does one much more substantial and for less money) and then when I took out what I thought was the Chingri Malai curry, I discovered that it was the wrong curry! They’d given me a Malabari Fish curry which, incidentally, was tasteless and bland and the boiled rice was coagulated and rubbery. The third issue came when I rang them to complain. I told them that the fish curry was the wrong one. At first they didn’t believe me and tried to argue it by saying it was the right order because the chef says he remembers defrosting the prawns! I said but it wasn’t the prawn curry that they put in the bag. Then they said I should have told them at the time but as I pointed out I didn't eat straight away and contacted them as soon as I was ready to eat which wasn't long after. To prove to them that it was the wrong curry I had to photograph and sent it - more waste of my time. I asked them to bring the correct one and they said they couldn’t do that because the kitchen was closed. They offered me a refund or the correct curry but they couldn’t deliver it till the next day! What they failed to understand was that my Friday take out was therefore totally ruined. In hindsight, I wish I’d taken the refund but I thought I’d give them a chance to make it right so I accepted that they could deliver it tomorrow (Sat). This is where the fourth issue came in: the time. I asked for it at about 7-8pm - normal dinner time - they said they couldn’t and it’d have to at 5pm. On Sat I rang to confirm the time and they said they'd deliver at 5.30pm which I reluctantly agreed to. The final issue came when the Chingri Malai curry was delivered along with another Gol Gappa which I had ordered and said I’d pay for. Gave them a £10 note; the Gol Gappa cost £5.75 but they didn't have enough change and were ‘very annoyed’ that I didn't have the exact amount. I pointed out that if you’re going to ask for cash on delivery then you should make sure you have enough change and not expect the customer to have the exact money! The owner argued this of course and kept saying ‘I’m trying to run a business here’ ignoring the fact that I was one dissatisfied customer. Whatever happened to the adage ‘the customer knows best’ if you want them to come back? Well...I’m never going back and, as it has been said previously, I think I’ll also stick with Aarti which is only about 200 mtrs away and that has a much higher quality of food and service for...

TLDR: Spilled food, ill next day and the only restaurant to ever give me a bill twice!

The curry tasted fine and the service was polite. Glasses and plates didn't get cleared very quickly, but it was one waiter working a Saturday night, and not a huge concern of ours.

When serving the main meal the waiter spilled one of the dishes into another on the table, making a huge mess, luckily of the table rather than myself or my guests. No problem, these things happen, they were nice about it, cleaned the table and recooked and reserved the ruined dishes.

There was lots of crashing from the bar and kitchen. I think a few items of glassware were smashed that night.

End of meal we'd spent £40 per person. It was early and we still had drinks, so we continued chatting. We were the last in the restaurant but we'd been assured we could take our time. After about 15 minutes, they brought us the bill a second time in an effort to move us on. This was at 21:40 on a Saturday night. I was not impressed.

We semi-expected to have some offer of compensation for the spilled food. They gave us "vouchers" as an apology, which were in fact just their January marketing offer available to all.

The next day I and another of our party were ill with queasiness/tummy upset. Possibly alcohol, but just as possibly food. I don't think we'll...

Annya (now changed their name or under new management) was one of the best Indian restaurants I have ever tried. I travel out of my way and pass many of the larger well known Indian restaurants, to eat here!

All food is freshly made to order. True 100% authentic home cooked food as it should be. (Without the added flavor enhancers like MSG and other additives that make you feel super thirsty and bloated!)

Fresh ingredients, full of exciting and interesting flavoroversightent choice of dishes on the menu, (despite the menu changing slightly, recently). The service has always been fantastic, family friendly.

Although it wouldn't hurt to smile and ask how the meal/food is.

The restaurant itself is spotlessly clean and tidy which really makes you feel at home. It's always warm and cosy with fitting music that isn't too loud or too quiet.

Pricing is very reasonable and the portion sizes are just right. Although, I have noticed a little less meat in my dish the last time I visited..I hope this is a one off oversight?

Other than the few small issues, I can't recommend this place enough for the amazing food and...