Mumbai Thistle — Restaurant in Scotland

Disappointed by Lack of Authenticity at an “Authentic Indian Restaurant” in Inverness

We recently visited this Indian restaurant in Inverness, which promotes itself as offering an authentic Indian dining experience. Unfortunately, our visit didn’t quite live up to that promise.

We began with dosa, which was probably the best part of the meal. The dosa itself was crisp and well-prepared, and it was nicely served with a medu vada, which was a pleasant touch and not something every restaurant includes. However, the accompaniments fell short. The sambar was not actually sambar, but more of a plain dal without the signature tangy, spiced flavour. There was no red tomato chutney, which is typically expected with dosa. Instead, there was a bland coconut chutney and a mint (pudina) chutney—neither of which were particularly impressive.

We also ordered a Mysore masala dosa, which traditionally includes a spicy red chutney spread inside. What we got was essentially a regular masala dosa with some chilli powder mixed into the potato filling—not a Mysore dosa in any meaningful sense.

Next, we tried the chicken biryani, which seemed more like a kebab biryani. While it came with some fried onions on top and had a nice presentation, the rice was nearly flavourless—just coloured rice without the depth of spices one expects from biryani. The vegetable pulao was similarly underwhelming, more like red-coloured rice with mixed vegetables, lacking any real seasoning or aroma. However, it’s worth noting that they did serve papad (paparam) with both the biryani and pulao, which was a small but appreciated gesture.

The pav bhaji was especially disappointing—it included chola (chickpeas), which is not part of a traditional pav bhaji recipe. When we asked about it, we were told the dish was adjusted to suit local (Scottish) preferences. While adapting food for local tastes is understandable, replacing core ingredients while still calling the dish authentic is misleading.

The mango lassi was refreshing and enjoyable, but overall, the food lacked the authenticity and depth of flavour that you’d expect from a true Indian restaurant.

In conclusion, while there are a few thoughtful touches—like the medu vada with dosa and papadam with mains—this restaurant falls short of offering an authentic Indian experience. It may be suitable for those new to Indian cuisine, but for those familiar with traditional Indian flavours, it’s likely...

Very disappointing experience please do not visit if you are an Indian or are looking for really authentic Indian food. We ordered vegetarian thali and chicken chettinad along with bhel puri and medu Vada. None of this was even slightly good Starting with bhelpuri it was basically a cooked rice which was served with some sev. We couldn't even tolerate two bites of this Medu Vada was good but was served with sambar which was really horrible and chutney which was completely underdone. Chicken chettinad the curry was good but lacked flavour the chicken was just boiled and cooked but had no flavour at all The flaky Kerala paratha was not good at all it was under done The veg thali gave a huge amount of food but all of it unfortunately was tasteless. The quantity is more than enough for one person but what it actually lacks is some flavour and some good taste The Currys in the veg thali were all very dry and looked old and not fresh at all. I think it is unfair to the Indian cuisine that this food is served under its name especially with the name of Mumbai. In my opinion if you are diving into any cuisines you need to at least spend some time to get to know it and then try and cook as much as you can close to the original dishes The manager and the waiter were not paying attention and we had to scream from our tables all the way to the reception to tell them what we wanted or if we needed any help or if you wanted to order it lacks professionalism...

After reading good reviews decided to give it a try. Very disappointed. Restaurant wasn’t full and service terribly slow. One meal brought out 10 mins before the other which was very odd. Drinks arrived long after ordering. One family left before their food arrived We chose Dosa x2 and the fillings were so stingy , one had a few mashed potatoes which were greasy and flavourless and covered in chilli paste with the dosa itself burned to a crisp so unless you enjoy eating chilli paste from the jar, this was inedible.both came with cold lentils which had a very strange aftertaste. The homemade paneer was rubbery and tasteless and only a couple of teaspoons into the dosa. Also ordered chicken pakora on the server’s recommendation but these were so dry we had to cover in the sauce just to eat. No flavour to the pakora batter. The staff were trying their best and offered a discount at the end , but offered no explanation or customer service throughout the visit just after asking to pay. The front of house were preparing food along side taking payments and clearing dirty plates, no hand washing was noted and seemed very weird for front of house to be cooking and preparing food at a restaurant, not a takeaway. The food was less than takeaway standard with restaurant prices. We felt bloated and sick after eating, not enjoyable at all and honestly felt we had been ripped off. It’s sad when going to a restaurant is such a...