Indian Restaurant Guide

If you are looking for a fun and fabulous way to spend a night out with friends then going to a restaurant is one of the best options. You will get to enjoy scrumptious food, embrace a jovial atmosphere and catch up with those you are closest to – what more could you want? The great thing about living in the UK is that there are so many different restaurants to choose from and thus you could literally eat out at a different place every single night of the week if you wanted to (and could afford to, of course).

One of the most popular choices is to go to an Indian restaurant. After all, it is considered the most popular international cuisine in the UK. Nevertheless, the best Indian restaurants are those which serve authentic food, which originates from several different regions of India. A lot of people fail to look out for this and they end up going to a curry house where they are disappointed because they don’t get to enjoy the real thing. So, how can you look out for the best Indian restaurants?

Indian food and curry house food are two different things

Firstly, let’s put the biggest rumour of them all to bed. A curry house is not necessarily true Indian cuisine. In fact, curry houses in England are often more a replication of Bangladesh cuisine. Curry houses may not cook their dishes from scratch and may use substitutes, for example tomato ketchup instead of the traditional array of spices normally incorporated when cooking any type of curry. For a truly authentic style Indian dish, why not cook a curry from home. You can transform the way you prepare meals with a pressure cooker, and it should taste just as good as the real thing!

Authentic Indian food should be sourced from the homes and streets of India

If you want to get a true taste for India then you need to find restaurants that have sourced their recipes and ingredients from the homes and streets of India. How else would you expect to get the real deal? The best restaurants will incorporate an array of different dishes from the varying regions. After all, India is bigger than the whole of Western Europe, thus the food eaten differs from region to region. A good restaurant will reflect this. And your side dishes should encompass a lot more than naan bread and poppadoms. In fact, what you should actually be looking for is chapatti, Dahi Puri, Pau Bhaji, raita, and other tangy savouries that are actually eaten on the real streets of India.

Food should be cooked as it would be in India with spices sourced from the country itself

The only way to get the rare Indian spices is to source them from the country itself. The best restaurants will import the majority of their spices, including the likes of sun-dried mango powder, Karras flower, fresh chillies, and fragrant cumin. It’s a shame when restaurants do not take the effort to source these spices because it is impossible to create genuine Indian food in this manner. The best restaurants source their spices from India and create every single dish as it would be prepared in the country itself, and they train all of their staff to cook via traditional and authentic methods too.

What else should you consider?

You should take a look on food critic websites or subscribe to a food magazine. Reputable sources of information should feature food reviews from food professionals who know what to look out for and how to spot genuine and traditional Indian meals. Ask friends and neighbours for their restaurant recommendations too and seek out restaurants that have been around for a long time and carry a good reputation.

Restaurant reviews can also give you an indication of meal prices and value for money. When you search online you will find that a lot of restaurants show their menu but don’t always have their prices available, or they only offer a sample of their menu. It’s a good idea therefore to review a restaurant’s rating out of five to ascertain how expensive it is.

If you read the opinion of experts and broaden your knowledge regarding genuine Indian cuisine then you should be best equipped to find the best Indian restaurants.