Masala Grill, Chelsea

Masala Grill business card

This is the first Masala Grill in London, and it comes from the group who own Amaya, Veeraswamy and Masala Zone. It replaces the ever popular Chutney Mary, which has now moved to a swanky new spot in St James’s.

Outside

It’s not the easiest of restaurants to get to; slap bang in the middle between Sloane Square and Fulham Broadway. It has a beautiful and charming dining room though; we sat in the conservatory complete with huge tree and bunting – it felt like we were at an Indian village fete.

Inside

To start, crispy fried squid (£8) and the lamb seekh kebab (£9.50) both hit the spot but it was the dahi puri (£6), which were little crispy puffs served with a green sauce you had to pour in yourselves, which was the star of the show.

Squid

Kebab

Dahi puri

Lamb chops (£22), which are my favourite things in the world (Blacklock is the place to go if you’re the same), were spot on; moist flesh, crisp fat and proper chunky cuts. King size prawns (£23) certainly lived up to their name; they were a right old mouthful. The spicing was bold and anything but boring.

Chops

Prawns

Buttered chicken (£13.50) was rich and creamy with thick chunks of perfectly cooked chicken. Dunking the naan breads (we opted for plain and peshwari) in the sauce was seriously satisfying.

Buttered chicken

Breads

Puddings weren’t quite as special; the bebinca (£7.50), which is a Goan layered cakey thing and a salted caramel ice cream (£4) were well made but the strawberries with srikhand (£6.50), a type of strained yoghurt, had the oddest texture; a bit claggy for me.

Puddings

I don’t doubt that Masala Grill will follow in Chutney Mary’s successful footsteps. For the locals, it’s a charming restaurant serving really delicious Indian food. The staff are so sweet too; welcoming you in from the polluted main road like you’ve walked into their home.

4/5

I dined as a guest of the restaurant.

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