Rikshaw Indian Restaurant Norwood — Restaurant in London

Unfortunately I've had to downgrade my review. The chef needs to understand timings and how to make a consistent result. This could be a training issue. Lamb Mappas was frozen and reheated meat so inedible with zero flavour and portion was TINY like 5 small pieces of meat.. come on guys? chicken tikka starter was way too dry and overcooked... this is white meat taken to over 90C Which makes it dry and inedible. It can be pasteurised at 65c for 3 min. But even a small portion would be okay if it tasted good but these dishes were worse than Tesco ready meals and had zero flavour... Lamb was obviously not marinated and was dry and no flavour. Another dish was a bit better but not authentic.. Kerala paratha was oily Not soft. chef needs to really up his game to get to how it was when it opened. Service was polite but brought two stacked glasses and didn't separate them or pour. Didn't wipe table/change cutlery between courses and we had to do it ourselves. Cocktail looked and tasted different from last time.. So need to have a recipe with consistency. I do feel bad for the waiter as he's not a professional but doing it on the side and very polite and nice - but training could be improved. The Mappas was a 0/10. Unfortunately it is the lowest common denominator that leaves the memory... The food was so terrible the last time that I could not eat any of it... It was actually inedible. This saddens me as the chef is capable...

Ordered online for collection and ended up waiting 1.5 hours in total, which was disappointing. I placed my order through the restaurant’s website paying by card online, and arrived around 30 minutes later, only to wait outside for another hour before receiving my food. Amongst the collection orders, Just Eat and Deliveroo orders were being prioritised over mine, along with other people who opted to wait inside, despite clearly ordering after me. I’d advise against ordering through their website, as it seems like they only posted the order to the kitchen after I complained 45 mins in lol. A heads-up on the estimated collection time or an option to reject the order given the kitchen was too busy should’ve been given. Seems like the restaurant is clearly not able to handle both in house and collection orders on busy days.

That said, the food was decent — the Chicken 65 starter was the highlight, packed with flavour. The Butter Chicken was okay but a bit too tomato soupy for my liking. Staff were really friendly throughout, and the atmosphere inside looked lively and enjoyable, with in house diners seemingly enjoying their experience from observations. I’d be open to trying again — only with a smoother pickup...

I was invited to Rikshaw Restaurant in Norwood to write a story for my blog, so our lunch and drinks were complimentary—but I can honestly say this is one of the best South Indian meals I’ve had in London.

Rikshaw is a warm, welcoming spot that brings the flavours of Kerala to SE27. The team is lovely—friendly, knowledgeable, and clearly passionate about the food they serve. With their help, we tried various dishes, and everything was beautifully spiced and flavoured.

We had the Pazham Pori (fried ripe plantain), Cauliflower Chilli Fry, and Onion Bhajee—easily the best bhajees I’ve eaten.

For mains, we shared the creamy Cheera Parippu Thalichathu (lentils and spinach), slow-roasted Aubergine Bhaji, Avial (a comforting veg medley in a coconut yoghurt sauce), and Thoran (beans and cabbage stir-fried with coconut). We also had fluffy Kerala red rice, soft Appam, and flaky Paratha on the side.

To drink, we sampled a delicious Lychee Martini and a Mango Nirvana cocktail.

The meal brought back so many memories of my travels in Kerala. If you’re near Gipsy Hill or West Norwood and love South Indian food—or want to try it—Rikshaw is a...