11/4/2010

Can't compare to other places in London as it was the only Indian food we had, but we really enjoyed it.  Great luncheon service.  Nice menu to pick things from.  We would have gone back if we had more time.

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12/1/2010

Cafe Spice Namaste features decent Indian food, though it's not the best you'll find in London by a long shot.  The service is quite good and the atmosphere is pleasant, aided by the cheerful, tasteful decor.  The food, however, is nothing spectacular.  

It's a reliable place for a dinner out, but if you're looking for fireworks, look elsewhere.

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7/8/2009

I admit I was steered here not just by my love for Indian food, but because Cafe Spice Namaste was featured on an episode of "Queer Eye For The Straight Guy" which had aired about a year before my last vacation in London. Good thing I was paying attention and took notes!

This place is so fun and inviting. The restaurant is located in this great old building on Prescot Street. The decor is contemporary, lively and colorful. The whole place just has this great upbeat energy to it the entire time you are there. The staff is friendly and the service is very good.

The food is this great eclectic mix of Indian food with a twist of other Asian cuisines, as well as a sort of European fusion. I really enjoyed all the dishes I ordered. The only issue I really had was that my chicken was a bit dry, which was surprising as it was in a sauce...hmmm. The yummy breads we ordered made up for that though ;-)

They have a decent wine list as well - we found a great Shiraz on the list that paired brilliantly with our meal!

This place is definitely worth checking out and is an especially fun place to go with a group of friends or family.

Listed in: Fave Restaurants

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3/2/2009

The food: Pretty good but not great. The sweet naan which was fantastic.
We also had the murgh maharajah, chicken stuffed with pistachio and a Makhani sauce. Was delicious, but a little bit bland. If I'm going to consume that many calories in one sitting, I want to get to get as much flavor for my buck as possible.

We  tried the bamboo shoot, enoki mushroom and chickpea xacutti, which had a really appealing/unpleasant flavor. Not sure how to explain it, but sort of tasted like the air of a balloon. Wouldn't recommend it. We also had the starters for 2 which was really nice. I got the sense that their meats were probably their strong suit so we missed out, and their specials did look interesting.

The place: Was really big and nice inside. Not like the typical crappy Indian places nearby. Would be a good place to go with groups or work things. Very close to the City so that's good or bad depending on how you feel about these things.

I think this place is nice if you need a lunch out with the suits, but the food wasn't great enough to make my regular list. The menu was much more interesting than you'd find on Brick Lane, so it's probably worth a visit.

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26/9/2009

This place is pretty famous, so I made a special effort to go on my most recent visit to London. I love love love Indian food and the chutneys truly are the best you'll find anywhere. It's no surprise that the chef is known for them. But unfortunately, the other 90% of the meal was not so great. I got the pricey chef's tasting menu and the dishes alternated between bad and bland. Sorry, Cafe Spice Namaste, I wanted to love you, but living in the San Francisco area I have become very spoiled by excellent Indian restaurants! On a positive note, the service was friendly (especially considering we had a baby with us) and the atmosphere was festive, clean, and big--- it seems like a good place to go with a group.

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