Masala King — Restaurant in London

We visited Drummond Street as a group of three with the plan to have our evening meal at Ravi Shankar, which is a well-known vegetarian restaurant in the area. Unfortunately, when we arrived, our experience took a strange turn.

As we approached, a man was standing right outside the restaurant next door. He stopped us immediately and started telling us his story — that he had worked at Ravi Shankar before, maybe even ran it, and now he had opened a new place just beside it. He kept repeating himself, asking us to come inside and give his restaurant a chance. At first, we were polite, but he kept insisting, almost begging us to enter. The way he pushed so hard felt desperate and uncomfortable, more like street-level hassling than genuine hospitality. We declined and said “maybe another time.”

We ended up going into Masala King, thinking we might still find a decent vegetarian meal. Unfortunately, the food and service were a disaster. • Food quality: Everything tasted cheap, rushed, and poorly cooked. The vegetables were not fresh, the curries were bland and watery, and the overall flavour was missing. Instead of the fragrant, authentic taste you’d expect from Drummond Street, it felt like reheated food with no effort or love behind it. For the prices they charge, it was extremely disappointing. • Service: This was even worse than the food. The same man who aggressively stands outside trying to drag people in seems to think his job ends there. Once you’re seated, there is little to no care given. The staff were inattentive, didn’t check on us, didn’t explain the dishes, and gave the impression that customers inside didn’t matter anymore. Their whole energy was directed at pulling in the next passerby. • Atmosphere: The constant push to fill the restaurant makes it feel uncomfortable. Instead of being welcomed to enjoy your meal, you feel like you’ve been tricked or pressured into sitting down. There was no warmth, no hospitality, and no sense of pride in the restaurant.

This kind of approach is damaging to Drummond Street’s reputation. The area has long been known for authentic, family-run vegetarian restaurants that actually care about food and customers. Places like Masala King, however, operate more like a tourist trap — dragging in people from the street, serving poor-quality food, and hoping they never come back.

Overall, our evening was completely ruined. We left feeling let down, unsatisfied, and wishing we had just stuck to our original plan with Ravi Shankar or one of the other established restaurants nearby. Masala King is not recommended at all — avoid it if you care about good food, proper service, and a...

We had a strange and uncomfortable experience at this restaurant. Upon entering, the waiter abruptly told me to shut the door. No greeting, just a harsh tone. The tablecloths were visibly stained, which didn’t inspire much confidence.

My girlfriend and I ordered a curry to share along with an appetizer. The waiter immediately questioned why we hadn’t ordered rice (which, we learned, is not included and costs £4 extra). When I said that would be all, he insisted that we had to order a main dish per person even though the restaurant was nearly empty. Reluctantly, we ordered a second curry.

Before our food arrived, the waiter offered us “Indian chips.” We said yes, not realizing they’d add £6.50 to the bill. Again, this wasn’t clearly communicated.

The food itself wasn’t to our taste, especially compared to similar dishes we’ve had at other Indian restaurants. To be fair, this could be due to a regional variation in cooking style, but we found it underwhelming.

What made the meal worse was the persistent, uncomfortable presence of the waiter standing behind me throughout. At one point, a chef came up the outside stairs from the basement kitchen and stared at us through the window. Deeply unsettling.

When we went to pay, the waiter asked if we could pay in cash. As tourists, we only had cards, which they reluctantly accepted.

Overall, we left feeling uncomfortable, pressured, and unwelcome. It seems they push customers to order more than they want and prefer cash payments possibly to avoid taxes. I wouldn’t return, and I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone. Save your money and eat...

From the start, things felt rushed and disorganized. I ordered a dinner set that allowed me to choose one starter and one main dish, but the options were quite limited.

The biggest issue was the communication. The waiter spoke so unclearly and quickly that I could hardly understand him. Without confirming anything with me, he chose the starter on my behalf — I wasn’t even told what it was. Then I had to wait quite a while before receiving both dishes together.

When the food arrived, I was genuinely confused. The portions were extremely small — I initially thought what I received was just the starter. I began eating what turned out to be the chicken tikka masala (which should have been my main), and it was very underwhelming in taste. I left most of it uneaten, thinking the actual main would follow — it never did. Both the waiter and I seemed equally surprised by the confusion.

To top it off, they added a service charge, bringing the total to £15. Honestly, the service was far from deserving of that. The waiter acted as if the restaurant was of a much higher standard than it actually was, which only made the experience more frustrating.

Overall, the visit was disappointing — from the communication and food quality to the service and pricing. I wouldn’t recommend this place, especially given the number of genuinely good Indian...