If there were only three restaurants in London May 28, 2007
Posted by CamdenKiwi in : Cafes & Restaurants, London , trackbackIf there were only three restaurants in London and one of them was Rasa, in the Vegetarian Republic of Stoke Newington, I think I’d be happy (especially if another one was Cafe Koha in Covent Garden, and I still had my two pubs).
Lindsey is newly arrived from Parts North, wild, possibly pictish lands beyond the Watford Gap, and certainly well outside the safety of the M25, so it was with some trepidation that we ventured down to Euston and caught the number 73 bus. I think she’s catching on though, as she tells me she made it back from Oxford St to her home just north of here on a C2. The 73 is not what it used to be, since the last of the friendly little routemasters was replaced by something long and bendy, but it is warmer, if not less crowded. We wended our way through Islington and Hackney to Stoke Newington Church St, and the bright pink lights of Rasa, the best South Indian restaurant in London, if not outside India.
Rasa works best with a group of at least three, so you can share dishes and have a few to choose from, and Louise joined us. We started with the poppadoms and pickles, which are very different from normal curry house ones. I had a Rasam, the spicy pepper soup which is supposed to aid digestion, but is also very tasty and as hot as Thai Tom Yum. We chose three curries. Moru Kachiathu is made of green bananas and mangoes in a yoghurt sauce spiced with chilli. This is probably my favourite, sweet but also spicy, not at all cloying and good with the lemon rice. I had a variation of Baga Baingan, an aubergine curry in yoghurt and cashew sauce, at a Hyderabadi restaurant in a posh hotel in Pune once, and this is easily as good. Finally, we had the Cheera Curry of paneer in a spinach and tomato sauce, less heavy than the other two, and still delicious.
None of these were very hot, and we had a bottle of a South African Chenin Blanc with them, which was all right, though I’m never sure that wine is really the right thing with this type of food. It is perhaps better to steer completely clear of overpowering alcohol and just drink lassis or fruit juice.
There is another Rasa restaurant across the road, the Rasa Travancore, which has meat and fish, but the one time I went there, it was disappointing. Plain Rasa is well worth the trip.
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thanks for the review…I must check out those places…for more on Food and good restaurants in the UK come and read our Indian chef columnist who works at the Cinnamon Club and the Orrery…and who likes to write and photograph delicious food as well as spill some recipes…and insights into working with Gordan Ramsay and more…he just at at Heston Blumenthal’s acclaimed Michelin restaurant, The Fat Duck. Please do come and bring your taste buds…to
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