Masala India — Restaurant in London

The food is average. The decor is dated. (horrid greasy carpets, too) The tables are wobbly. The service is appalling. The wait is eternal.

We booked this place on the day, they had space for 17 people at 6pm on their suggestion despite planning for 5pm. It hadn't registered at the time that a Saturday night shouldn't be this easy to book. We arrived early and strangely enough there was enough space for our entire party 3 times over, so they had the space to accommodate us at our preferred time. Nevertheless those of us who arrived early were seated and we requested menus and water, the waiter took an absolute age fulfilling this simplest request. I had asked on 3 separate occasions to see their menu. It became infuriating that when other parties arrived after us they received menus without any request. Having eventually placed an order, parched and still awaiting fluids again it proved difficult for them to process the order within a reasonable time. In fact the idea they have of sufficient time is so warped that one member of the party had to leave and we had to urge them to speed up the food as a takeaway. The head waiter, maybe owner, maybe manager as calm as he was, was actually unwittingly condescending. He claimed, and this would not be the first time that evening, that the food takes time to prepare from scratch. A fact we understood, but their estimates were nowhere near the time we got our food. We ordered a karak chai that came 2hrs after initial order, again hearing that the tea should be given time to brew and that 20 minutes was sufficient... We ordered @1845 Received 2040. Thanos would appreciate time lag of this proportion. Apparently it's unrealistic to expect food to be brought to the customer on time o a Saturday evening. I get the delay on ultra busy days, but we were the second party to arrive, prior to any major burden on the kitchen. The 'manager' front-of-desk guy simply reiterated that he understood our perspective, yet the reason was a, b or c; none of which corroborated with any sound reason. Now Tbh I thought I won't complain but the arrogance of blaming the customer for the restaurants shortcomings bothered me, he felt that complimentary poppadoms and chutney sufficed. Not a penny of the bill, not a complimentary invite (which we would have declined) zilch, except to sat "I don't know what it is with your party that you complain so much." The epitome of not seeing past their own nose, complaints arise from their inadequacies. The good was below average to OK but that service, omg no no no. 1*...

I just ate here and I’m at a loss for words with how good it was. I fear of being too honest about how good this is as I don’t want to give unrealistic expectations that can’t be met, but I’ve been eating Indian food for nearly 30 years across 100+ restaurants and this is without doubt my favourite already.

The menu isn’t your ‘standard’ Indian menu, which I liked. I tried things I hadn’t tried before, and it was all incredible. You’re encouraged to get a ‘tiffen’ which is essentially an Indian tapas, 4 small dishes which comprises of 3 curries and a rice/naan. I had this and ordered an extra curry because I had to try more, and genuinely couldn’t pick a favourite as they were all incredible. This never happens!

Aside from the food the restaurant itself was lovely, a nice front seating area you first step into, but there’s also a beautiful ‘outdoor’ (covered) area out the back which I loved.

Lastly, what topped this place off for me, was the staff, owner and chef. It’s a family run business, Shahaan (sorry if I spelt this wrong) runs front of house and his wife Rumy (again, sorry if spelt wrong) does all the cooking. This is proper Indian home cooked food! And their sons also help out with waitering duties.

Just the most perfect little place which I’ll be visiting for as long as I live in London, and be recommending everyone to go to for a...

I recently visited Masala India and tried their Mutton Biryani, which was reasonably portioned for one person and priced at £16. While it had a decent amount of lamb chops, the dish was tailored to suit British tastes and lacked the authentic spices and flavors I crave. Disappointingly, it was served without Raita (a side dish) or pickles, which are essential accompaniments to Biryani.

The side curry, made with potatoes, also fell short in terms of taste and authenticity. The service was subpar, with the waiter restricting my access to the back seating area and even physically blocking me, which I found annoying. When I asked for a reason, he mentioned that the back area would close at 10:30 PM, but it was only 10:05 PM at the time. I managed to get seated and finished my meal by 10:35 PM, but the experience left a sour taste in my mouth.

I intentionally chose to pay at the billing counter to avoid interacting with the arrogant waiter. Overall, I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone seeking authentic Indian cuisine. It seems to cater more to those who cannot tolerate genuine Indian flavors but want to try dishes with...