Moti Mahal

Literally just left dinner at Moti Mahal and it was a really happy surprise how much we liked it. We are staying right across the street for our trip to London, and it is our last night so we decided to stay (very) local. We settled on Moti Mahal because we are Indian food lovers and have had one too many fish & chips.
Although a little apprehensive due to mediocre reviews and very few patrons, we walked in and ended up having a meal we both agreed was much better tasting, although lacking the décor of, our meal at Dishoom Covent Garden a few nights ago. We had 2 mains and 2 vegetable side dishes, as well as naan and rice. Our total bill came to 40 pounds, inclusive of a service charge. The food was delicious and came in big portions, and definitely fit the bill for our Indian craving. The place is a bit lacking in décor and the service was a bit slow, but overall we really enjoyed the meal and if we were staying longer, would happily return.
Do stop by if you’re near the area and needing some tikka masala in your life. Cheers!

Nice food and service. Good value for money and good portions too. You can eat a lot for 40GBP in total for two people with drinks and without compromising in quality.

Je né connais pas le Moti Mahal de Covent Garden, mais celui-​ci semble beaucoup moins cher et la nourriture y est excellente.
Les plats sont bons et bien servis, les assaisonnements sont parfaits. Estomacs sensibles, allez-​y en toute confiance.
Bonus: le sticker de notation d’hygièné est à 5÷5…
J’ai adoré, et j’y retournerai pour sûr lorsque je serai de passage à South Kensington.

Not real exciting stuff here. Don’t confuse with the other Moti Mahal, which is phenomenal. I did this and was rewarded with a not-​so-​good smörgåsbord of meh.

I had a great dinner here, located about two minutes from the South Kensington tube stop. Chicken tikka masala was excellent, really enjoyed it. The sauce was not spicy but very flavorful. The chicken was tender and soft. Sometimes you get overcooked meat that is hard, but not here. The sag panir was different from what I have ever had with small potatoes in it and a tomato clic on top, but it was tasty nonetheless. The naan bread was excellent and not at all greasy. Big bottle of Cobra beer was only 4.50, not bad at all. I would definitely return the next time I am in this part of London.

Chicken in the tikka masala was strange, as if a chicken and a sponge mated. People would see this little chap in the coop and whisper things like, «well well, thank Chanteclair, this little chick takes after his mother, and oy, what taste she has in men — what kind of chicken marries a sponge? After all, they’re bacteria ridden and inanimate.» Well if those bitchy as chickens could meet our little bird all grown up they’d see that, deep down, that beautiful little hen was a sponge all along. My wife ate half a bite and wouldn’t, no couldn’t, eat another because it was fucking spongy shitty chicken.
The lamb was fine, as was whatever else we had, but ugh generally shitty.

Definitely try this place out because the food is excellent. It is convenient if you are in south Kensington area.

Das Moti Mahal ist ein indisches Restaurant inmitten des Stadtteils Kensington in London. Leider kann ich nicht mehr als durchschnittliche drei Bewertungssterne vergeben, obwohl das Essen insgesamt in Ordnung war. Aber eben auch nicht mehr als das! Die Portionen waren sehr klein, sodaß man (=Mann) hier eher Angst haben mußte, ob man satt wird! Schmackhaft waren die Gerichte sehr wohl, aber eben sehr wenig und alles «drumrum» mußte kostenpflichtig extra bestellt werden, vom Reis über das Brot und alles andere auch. Und sowas geht eben kleinkleckermässig immens ins Geld! Die Räumlichkeit besteht aus einem einzigen lieblos gestalteten Raum, in dem man dicht an dicht sitzt und alles vom NAchbarn ausführlichst mitbekommt. Gemütlich geht anders.

Indian cuisine seems to be far more popular in the UK than the US. When we wanted Indian for dinner there were plenty of options close to our hotel. This tiny, restaurant is on a side street in the South Kensington neighborhood. They were busy and there was a 15 – 20 minute wait. There really is not any where to wait in the restaurant so we walked around for a bit and the were ready when we came back.
Everything is reasonably priced, especially for the area, but the portions were quite small. We were concerned we had ordered too much food but we ended up eating everything. We also had to order naan separately. I am not sure if it is a US thing to have the naan to come with? It seems odd to order it separately.
The food was wonderful. I am not a fan of eggplant and even this was good. The service was also good, they brought out each dish as it was done, rather than letting it sit.

Great Indian /​Pakistani Food!
South Kensington is not my preferred place in London to dine, I am not into paying extortionate amounts for average food. Here I was pleasantly surprised, great value and really good food.
Staff where very friendly, especially considering we scraped in through the door at the last moment before closing and where by far the last to leave. We never felt rushed.

I was a bit skeptical of getting a curry in South Ken (mostly about the price), but it was the ONE thing left on my friend’s London to do list and I’ll be damned if I was gonna drag ass to Brick Lane from V&A on a Sunday night.
It was one of 2 curry options that popped up on the Unilocal map, so we peeked at the menu in the window and were happy to see basics (tika masala, chicken korma) started at £7.95 and special dishes (chicken biryani, lamb buhna) were between £10-£12.
I’m not a big curry fan so went for the Butter Chicken and loved it. My dining mates also loved their dishes and we added a garlic nan and few cokes and made it out under £45.
Service was quick and friendly.

Delicious curries. I am terrible with names of dishes, but I got the almondy/​coconut one, while my friend got something spicier. Both were delicious. Also, the garlic nan was good, as was the mushroom rice (though it was obvious that the mushrooms were £1.25 exactly, looking at the price difference). Would definitely return.

According to the menu, Moti Mahal may possibly be some of the oldest Indian cuisine in Great Britain. If it is, they’ve done a remarkably good job in maintaining this curry house.
The publicity advertising their £9.95 lunch buffet drew me like a moth to a flame. Indian food + buffet + under £10 = win! Offerings included pulao rice, a little dried out naan, and both veg and non-​veg options. Extra points for a lovely saag gosht.
Add in the pleasant and attentive service, comfortable interior, and acceptable food and you have me smacking my lips in appreciation.

It’s just like visiting your favourite uncle at Christmas time. Our softball team takes over this restaurant once a year to celebrate our victories of the season. Even though we are quite loud and make speeches and give out lots of trophies eg: the person most likely to give the captain a cigarette in his hour of need, they still welcome us with open arms and fantastic service.
Just like most Londoners I know, I always order the same thing when I go out for a curry, Sag Paneer. So it’s hard to comment on lots of the dishes. However, it’s the best Sag Paneer in town and I should know as I’ve had a few.
This place is super clean, gives great advice if you don’t have a favourite, really attentive and are keen to get the smallest of details just right.
Maybe they have got it down to a fine art as the rumour is that it’s the oldest curry house in London, opening in the early 1950s.
Judging by the amount of locals that popped in to pick up a takeaway — this place’s reputation goes way beyond our softball team.
The boys toilet has white fittings and the girls has pink, this makes me happy.
They also serve up those big bottles of Tiger Beer which also makes me happy.