South Indian food is probably the world's best vegetarian cuisine, and at Radha Krishna Bhavan they certainly know their Idlis from their Uttappams. A splinter operation from the nearby Sreekrishna and aiming to capture the same mix of Indian exiles and local foodies, the menu is split into vegetarian and non-veggie options. Expect the usual delights, expertly cooked: Avial that is deliciously creamy with yoghurt and the same time tangy with tamarind and spices, light crispy dosai that are filled with perfectly spiced potatoes and onions, plus own made chutneys and pickles that are out of this world. Experts from Guy Diamond of 'Time Out' reviews Radha Krishna Bhavan. This is no new-wave Indian. The walls are papered with full-sized, '70s-style prints of sunsets over palm-fronded beaches, the furnishings are cheap. But the cooking rises far above the surroundings.
Please Note: You must book at least 2 hours in advance mentioning Tastecard to receive the discount. Failure to do so will result in the offer not being valid.
South Indian food is probably the world's best vegetarian cuisine, and at Radha Krishna Bhavan they certainly know their Idlis from their Uttappams. A splinter operation from the nearby Sreekrishna and aiming to capture the same mix of Indian exiles and local foodies, the menu is split into vegetarian and non-veggie options. Expect the usual delights, expertly cooked: Avial that is deliciously creamy with yoghurt and the same time tangy with tamarind and spices, light crispy dosai that are filled with perfectly spiced potatoes and onions, plus own made chutneys and pickles that are out of this world. Experts from Guy Diamond of 'Time Out' reviews Radha Krishna Bhavan. This is no new-wave Indian. The walls are papered with full-sized, '70s-style prints of sunsets over palm-fronded beaches, the furnishings are cheap. But the cooking rises far above the surroundings.
Keralian dishes are, of course the ones to go for. Thorans are the dry stir-fries of shredded vegetables, flavoured with curry leaves, mustard seeds and other spices; try the cabbage or beetroot thorans which defy any expectations of these dullest-of-dull ingredients. Of the wet curried dishes kalan is a favourite, the colour of turmeric with pieces of mango adding extra sweetness to the mild yoghurt sauce. Avial is as good as you would expect of this Keralian staple.
Then there are the dosais, idlis and dahi vadais - the breakfast and street foods of south India, which you now find from Drummond Street to Delhi. Of course, there are still chicken kurmas and lamb dansaks on the menu; but if you order these formula curries, you'll be missing out on some of the most interesting Indian dishes in London.
Please Note: You must book at least 2 hours in advance mentioning Tastecard to receive the discount. Failure to do so will result in the offer not being valid.
86 Tooting High Street, Tooting, London, SW17 0RN
L: " Really tasty and interesting food. Not your average Indian restaurant."
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Charlie:"Didn't feel like a big saving After ordering rice, poppadoms, drinks and naan bread the saving was minimal. The food was nice but average."
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ROSAMUND:"Great food and atmosphere Had an excellent meal here which was a bargain with taste card. Having said that, there's a lot of competition in tooting so it's certainly not the best curry I have had in the area. Does give some of the top south Indian restaurants a run for their money though!"
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Alison:"Gorgeous Food I've been eating here for 10 years - love the food, polite staff, great value for money even without the card!"
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Tony:"My first visit to Radha! It was a little wet so I did not want to walk around too much to choose a restaurant.
The first thing you notice is that the window is covered in various posters which in my view detracts from the appearance and makes it difficult to see inside.
The decoration is OK although somewhat cluttered. Its neither too bright nor too dark so about right.
The paper serviettes do give a slightly cheap image although they are probably necessary to keep the prices down. The table is also covered in a "paper" tablecloth.
There were about seven eating on a wet Monday evening. The service is fairly friendly but could be a little better. The Spanish house wine at £10.95 is quite good although we were not given the opportunity to taste it first which all good restaurants do.
The starters were quite good and reasonably sized. They took quite a while which gives the impression that they are cooked to order.
The main dishes were less interesting and they seemed to have run out of the coconut for one of them. After the size of the starters I thought they were rather on the small side. The plain rice was a good size though.
All in all quite a good place to go for a meal but it could be significantly improved by some simple changes like taking off the posters and some improvements in the service."
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