Dabbawal

Yet again I find myself re-​visiting the Dabbawal pre-​theatre for a quick meal before going into festive mode to see the Nutcracker ballet!
We had booked a table for 6pm however arrived slightly late due to the bad weather (I believe Hurricane Kate is the culprit!) However, we were sat quickly and when telling our server we had limited time due to our cultural theatre trip it was recommended that we keep away from the signature curries as they take time to cook through.
We started with a bottle of prosecco (this is getting predictable now?) and opted to share the bombay bombs and hara chicken parchey to start. The bombay bombs were delicious filled with mashed potatoes and a homemade sauce they were incredibly flavoured! The chicken arrived looked a cool shade of green with a yogurt dip it was also delicious.
Next I opted for the burgh tikka makhani masala which was a butter based rich tomato curry with plenty of succulent chicken. With a side of mushroom pilau (one portion is enough for two really!) and a side of tandoori roti I mopped up every last bit of the rich sauce!
Competing the meal was the standard cosmo which I ALWAYS get when I go here as it has a nice twist on the original.
I must say the lamb railway curry is still my favourite however I am yet to try their signature Korma so watch this space!

I really love the food at Dabbawal and the kind of modern/​funky feel it has, in contrast to most Indian places. It has a lovely vegetarian selection with several paneer dishes that are a bit different. They’re really tasty. The poppadum dips are amazing, but they are totally tight with the portions. They need to sort that out.
However, the service at Dabbawal is pretty poor in my experience. I was tempted to knock off another star for it. You can almost tell when they’re eyeing up your table, and it’s all rush rush to get you out in time. Some of the staff are pretty hostile. I suspect they’re overworked or something. I’ve been three times now, and it’s always been the same. I’ll definitely go again though, the food is too good to miss.
I wouldn’t recommend for a romantic meal really, but it’s perfect for a fun evening meal with friends.

I feel like Dabbawal is one of those places that’s better in my head than in real life. I always think «Oh yeah, that place is great,» but then when I go I’m a bit underwhelmed. Can you ever just be whelmed?
My friend and I went the other day and had two big glasses of wine, and waited about 20 minutes for the water we asked for (and re-​asked for, a total of 3 times). We started with tasty poppadoms and chutneys, then got the Vegetable Samosa Chaat. If you are expecting samosas, you will be confused, because these are samosas sliced in half, sat atop spicy chickpeas, and covered in a variety of multicolored sauces. It almost looks like dessert. The samosas, once you can get to them, are fine, the usual Indian fare, but the stuff they’re smothered in gets in the way for me. Simple chutney to dip them in would be better. The spicy chickpeas were nice though. But I think that’s Dabbawal’s «thing» — don’t just do samosas, do ca-​raaaazy samosas! But maybe I just want samosas?! Should I have gone somewhere else for that? Perhaps.
Next, we shared the half portions of the Dabbawal Grill and Mixed Veggie grill, along with veggie pulao rice and garlic naan. The naan, first of all, is insanely good and covered in little crispy garlic pieces that will linger with you all night but it’s so worth it because wow. As for the rest of the dishes… meh? Maybe it’s because we just ordered mixed grills, but rather than the «holy crap there’s a lot going on here» feeling of the samosas, I felt there wasn’t much going on. The vegetables are covered in seasoning which would surely be a good thing except I didn’t like it and it made the veggies feel sort of weird in my mouth. Too one-​note, with the seasoning, like a thick dusting over everything that is too monotone and doesn’t add much to the soft, ordinary vegetables. One sad little piece of paneer to cut in half. The mixed grill was better, with some meats better cooked than others, but I’ve had far better mixed grills at Turkish restaurants in town where you get more for your money too. Still, I liked the lamb chop and kebab especially, though the salmon and chicken were good too. Prawn a bit tough.
It just isn’t quite what I wanted it to be. It’s like they’re either over-​the-​top bananas or they just do something a bit ordinary. I know they’ve got the capacity to do better, and maybe it’s what we ordered. I’m sure I’ll be back as it’s a fun place to go with a bustling atmosphere, and there’s tons more I haven’t tried. I just wish it was a little better than it is.

Absolutely delicious and highly recommended! Dabbawal offers tasty Indian street food served tapas style which for me is always a winner as you can sample more than one dish. I adore trying out different curry houses and this restaurant has delivered consistently high quality food every time I’ve visited.
The staff and service is fantastic! They are more than happy to share their recommendations and will to some degree alter dishes to suit your taste e.g. if you want a dish slightly hotter. The interior is very modern and minimalistic with a laid back atmosphere. I like the wine glasses… very funky, resembling a mini fish bowl! It’s the little touches that matter here!
As for the food… try anything and I doubt you will be disappointed. I particularly like the sweet potato chaat either as a starter or tapas dish– simple but divine! I’ve tried many different curries for a main course and you can really taste the spices making each one slightly unique. None of the curries here are ‘hot’ in my opinion but I tend to ask for a bit of extra heat from more chillies which does the trick without overpowering the dish.
My one and only complaint would be the proximity of a few tables to the toilet. This in itself wouldn’t be too much of a problem but when you only have one female and one male toilet, queues can generate pretty quickly which imposes on your privacy to enjoy your food. That said… I will continue to treat myself to this delectable food at all costs!