14 Best Indian Restaurants In London

If you google the national dishes of the UK, apart from the obvious fish and chips, the other dish that shows up is Chicken Tikka Masala. Yes, that's right, a very hardcore Indian recipe has found its way into the hearts of British culture and people. Naturally, a city like London, considered to be a melting pot of cultures would be home to a wide variety of Indian restaurants. Some of the restaurants below are considered to be the top Indian restaurants in London, include Michelini starred. Here are some of our picks of the best Indian restaurants in London.

Gymkhana

Ranking: 4.5
Price: $$$$
Address: Gymkhana, 42 Albemarle Street, Mayfair, London W1S 4JH
Telephone: +44 20 3011 5900
Website: gymkhanalondon.com

One of the first Indian restaurants in London, Gymkhana has reopened with its Michelin-starred Indian cuisine after being shut down for more than six months due to a fire. Despite a complete renovation, the atmosphere of the restaurant remains mostly unchanged: it is sophisticated and takes its cues from the gentlemen's clubs that were common in British-colonial India. It was named the best Indian restaurant in London in 2014. You can enjoy char-grilled food, curries, and roasts from tandoor ovens.

Recommended dish: Muntjac biryani, pomegranate and mint raita
Indian restaurant in London best for: Fine-dine Michelin star restaurant

Gunpowder

Ranking: 4.4
Price: $$
Address: Gunpowder, 11 White's Row, Spitalfields, London E1 7NF; 4 Duchess Walk, London SE1 2SD
Telephone: +44 20 7426 0542 (Spitalfields); +44 20 3598 7946 (Tower Bridge)
Website: gunpowderlondon.com 

Gunpowder makes the cut for almost every top Indian restaurant in London list. Nirmal Save, a former chef at Mayfair's Tamarind, is the owner of this little family-run eatery, which forgoes bloating bread and sauces in favour of a menu of roughly 20 dishes from all over India. Excellent vegetarian options include sweet spice-grilled mustard broccoli, along with the chargrilled tandoori chicken and Kashmiri lamb chops. There's also a branch on Tower Bridge. So no wonder Gunpowder is considered one of the best Indian restaurants in London.

Recommended dish:  Aloo chaat
Indian Restaurant in London best for: A laid-back evening ambience

Kutir

Ranking: 4.6
Price: 
Address: Kutir, 10 Lincoln Street, London SW3 2TS
Telephone: +44 20 7581 1144
Website: kutir.co.uk 

Former Trishna and Jamavar chef Rohit Ghai's first solo venture is a stylish townhouse restaurant with a lot of polish, hidden away on a small backstreet off the King's Road. Often called one of the best Indian restaurants in London, Kutir has always been a people’s favourite. Seafood is incredibly delicious, with upscale specialities including pan-fried sea bass with curry leaves and coconut, salmon tikka, and soft-shell crab with chickpeas and tellicherry pepper. Choose this restaurant for its cosy ambience, luxurious décor, and consistently excellent food.

Recommended dish: Signature expedition 
Best Indian Restaurant in London for: A tasting menu for Indian cuisine and instagramable restaurant

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Kahani

Ranking: 4.5
Price: $$$
Address: Kahani, 1 Wilbraham Place, Belgravia, London SW1X 9AE
Telephone: +44 20 7730 7634
Website: kahinilondon.com 

Kahani, a solo project from Peter Joseph, the former head chef of Mayfair's Tamarind, gives the option of tiny quantities for most dishes, allowing you to joyfully maraud about the menu and try a bit of everything.
Try one of the smaller dishes, such as the soft-shell crab with smoked tomato chutney seasoned with Mangalorean, or move up to something larger, like the slow-cooked lamb shank with Kashmiri spices. It's a knockout when it comes to contemporary Indian cuisine. With such a reputation, no wonder it's considered one of the top Indian restaurants in London.

Recommended dish: Nigella seeds and wheat crisps with marinated tandoori broccoli
Best Indian Restaurant in London for: Small Indian plates

Bibi

Ranking:4.6
Price: $$$
Address: 42 N Audley St, London W1K 6ZP
Telephone: +44 20 3780 7310
Website: bibirestaurants.com 

Bibi is amongst some of the the famouse Indian restaurants in London. BiBi, located in Mayfair, takes its cues from traditional Indian cooking as well as renowned chef Chet Sharma's own experiences and ancestry. The location is a suitable rival to the glitzy hangouts around thanks to its opulent decor, which includes red-tiled kitchens, dark hardwood counters, checkerboard flooring, and paisley-patterned chairs. Three portions make up the menu, which is meant to be shared. Seven or eight small plates are the perfect amount to sample the restaurant's food fully. The restaurant rightfully takes its place in the top Indian restaurants in London. 

Recommended dish: Buffalo-milk paneer
Best Indian Restaurant in London for:  Fine-dine 

Trishna

Ranking:4.4
Price: $$
Address: Trishna, 15-17 Blandford Street, Marylebone, London W1U 3DG
Telephone: +44 20 7935 5624
Website: trishnalondon.com

Trishna has wonderful doors that open onto sidewalk tables for outside dining, giving off a neighbourhood vibe. The interior is bright and open, with white brick walls decorated with old Indian travel and movie posters and charming pastel china dinnerware. Trishna, a seafood restaurant with a Michelin star, is similarly fairly priced, particularly for lunch, with a four-course tasting menu costing just $35. Undoubtedly one of the top Indian restaurants in London.

Recommended dish: Makai saag and Aloo tokri chaat
Best Indian Restaurant in London for : coastal cuisine

Tamarind Kitchen

Ranking:4.3
Price: $$$$
Address: Tamarind Kitchen, 167-169 Wardour Street, London W1F 8WR
Telephone: +44 20 7287 4243
Website: tamarindkitchen.co.uk

The décor of Soho's Tamarind Kitchen, with its pomegranate-red walls hanging with shining brass plates, dark wood panels, and blue-striped banquettes, has a pleasingly jewel-box feel to it. The tandoor, hot griddle, and charcoal grills, along with all the delightful things you can flame on them, are the emphasis of a new menu.

It is one of the best Indian restaurants in London. Order small dishes of the hearty (yet meat-free) lotus-root kebab, tangerine-bright Kerala prawn curry, watercress seekh stuffed with onion raita, and super-tasty chargrilled seabass with coconut and chilli. Believe it or not you get the best curry in London.

Recommended dish: Chargrilled lamb chops 
Best Indian Restaurant in London for: A lighter and more upscale version of traditional Indian cuisine

Benares

Ranking:4.3
Price: $$$$
Address: Benares, 12a Berkeley Square, Mayfair, London W1J 6BS
Telephone: +44 20 7629 8886
Website: benaresrestaurant.com 

Benares is often termed one of the best Indian restaurants in London by critics and the general public. It received its first star under renowned chef Atul Kochhar in 2007 and has since impressed diners with its opulent portions of classic and innovative meals.

Recommended dish: Baked Malabar Scallop
Best Indian Restaurant in London for: A Michelin Star feast

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Tandoor Chop House

Ranking:4.4
Price: $$
Address: Tandoor Chop House, 8 Adelaide Street, Charing Cross, London WC2N 4HZ
Telephone: +44 20 3096 0359
Website: tandoorchophouse.com 

A good name for a slasher film. You haven't been to a chophouse like this, so trust us. The tandoor-smoked and spice-infused meats here are to die for, and the industrial-style decor is more reminiscent of Bombay (via Dishoom) than Berni Inn.

This famous Indian restaurant in London serves everything, from the kebab rolls, nimbu masala fries, chicken chops, and excellent naan to the exotically adorned kulfi served as a cooling finish, almost every dish will have you drooling. Tandoor Chop House often ranks highly in the best Indian restaurants in London lists of food magazines.
Recommended dish: Dexter “dripping” keema naan
Best Indian Restaurant in London for: North Indian communal eatery

Dishoom

Ranking: 4.5
Price: $$
Address: Dishoom, 2 Kingly St, Carnaby, London W1B 5QB
Telephone: + 44 20 7420 9320
Website: dishoom.com 

Dishoom ranks among the top Indian restaurants in London. A posh brasserie called Dishoom is decorated in the manner of Bombay's former post-colonial Irani cafés. The food is the major draw, featuring pav bhaji, bhel (crunchy puffed rice with sour tamarind chutney), and biryanis (toasted white-bread rolls with a spicy vegetable stew as a filling). There are lines for tables because the black dhal and bacon naan are so well-known. It has branches in Shoreditch, King's Cross, Kensington, and Carnaby Street branches, although the Dishoom narrative actually started at the Covent Garden location.

Recommended dish: The Big Bombay
Best Indian Restaurant in London for: A fulfilling breakfast

The Cinnamon Club

Ranking: 4.3
Price: $$$
Address: The Old Westminster Library, 30-32 Great Smith Street, London SW1P
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7222 2555 ‍

The Cinnamon Club was one of the first eateries in London to provide contemporary Indian cuisine, and it is housed in the historic Grade II listed former Westminster Library. The eatery is well-known for its beautifully seasoned seafood dishes and traditional game meals. best Indian restaurants in London

Recommended dish: Butter chicken and Garlic naan
Best Indian Restaurant in London for: European design and Indian cooking

Pali Hill

Ranking: 4.5
Price: $$-$$$
Address: Pali Hill, 79–81, Mortimer Street, London, England, W1W 7SJ
Telephone: +44 20 8130 0101
Website: palihill.co.uk 

This restaurant is one of the Michelin starred restaurants in London. Pali Hill specialises in some of the best, most flavorful regional foods from all across the country and is named after one of Mumbai's oldest neighbourhoods. Enjoy the specifically commissioned Indian artworks that are displayed on the walls while sitting on the side-street terrace or cuddling up among vibrant pillows in the art deco-inspired décor.

Recommended dish: Lamb biryani
Best Indian Restaurant in London for: Vibrant Indian art

Soho Wala

Ranking: 3.4
Price: $$-$$$
Address: Soho Wala, 21 Great Marlborough Street, Soho, London W1F 7HL
Telephone: +44 20 7297 5568
Website: sohowala.com 

You may not feel like you are in London at all, and you might not feel like you are in India either, but rather that you are peacefully poised between the two, far from the frantic shoppers of Soho. This is because of Soho Wala's serene, unassuming presence. No doubt it is termed as one of the famous Indian restaurants in London by Londoner's culinary enthusiasts.

Recommended dish: Bhel puri with pomegranate and sev
Best Indian Restaurant in London for:  A glimpse of Indian unique charm

Jikoni

Ranking: 4.5
Avg Price: $$-$$$
Address: Jikoni, 19-21 Blandford Street, Marylebone, London W1U 3DH
Telephone: +44 20 7034 1988
Website: jikonilondon.com

Jikoni is a cosy restaurant with a menu that incorporates flavours from both Asia and East Africa. With its combination of wicker chairs, mismatched dinnerware, and tablecloths with Indian prints, it has the appearance of an artistic aunt's home.

Enjoy reimagined brunch favourites like tamarind and pineapple glazed bacon with fennel slaw and fenugreek waffles or a poached egg and pickled chilli cauliflower over caramelised pineapple pia colada pancakes.

Recommended dish: Shrimp toast Scotch egg with pickled cucumbers and banana ketchup
Best Indian Restaurant in London for: A spicy meal

Those were some of the best Indian restaurants in London that we think you should check out! Make sure to visit each of these eateries whenever you are in the area and sample a few of their specialities. If you wish to know more about things to do in London, head to our blog, 40 Things to do in London. We sincerely hope that this was helpful to you and wish you the best of luck as a student in London!

Wish to explore some other cuisines, head to our blog: Top 10 Italian restaurants in London.