Tandoor Chop House

Ever since my trip years ago to the northern parts of India, I have been dying to go back to see the beautiful mountains of the Himalayas and of course to try the local cuisine again.  Tandoor Chop House opened up in London bringing together the flavours of Northern Indian and the classic meats and specialties of a British chop house. This is the polar opposite to the food in Hanoi! This is a meaty meal filled with delicious flavors in a social and comfortable atmosphere. The clash of these two traditional cuisines brings this uniqueness and buzz to the restaurant as you revel and share dishes filled with Indian spices, sauces and marinates and the incredible prime cuts.

The Food

It was like being in a whole new world sitting in the dimly lit, cozy and retro like restaurant. The wooden panels, open kitchen and general interiors reminds of Dishroom, very old school. Perching next to the little tables lamps to search through the menu was a bit of fun, looking over the Snacks, Small Plates, Tandoor, Sides and Naans. I also remember some specials on the old school looking black board on the wall. The menu selection is relatively small but you can see each dish showcasing some pretty incredible Indian flavours!

Tandoor

I love the small plates approach where you can share and try so many different dishes.  We went straight for the Tandoor section and started with the Lasooni Paneer. This cheese dish was something I had a lot of while in India. It wasn’t something I was really aware of before going there but ever since coming back, any Indian meal I had, I had to give it a try! It was a nice cheesy dish, really well charred on the edges and just perfect going with the peppers and green mint sauce. The large chunks of the cheese was just mouthfuls of deliciousness!

House Tandoor Chicken

This was the dish on their Instagram page that first got my attention. Not only is it low carb ?, it also looked so yum! Grilled perfectly so that it is soft on the inside but just charred on the outside, the chicken was so flavourful with those Indian spices! The lemon adds a nice touch of citric flavours and the mint sauce again comes into play nicely. The sizing is perfect too!

Masala Boti Rubbed Ribeye

You normally don’t see much beef dishes with Indian food, so we were intrigued to try this rib eye. This was really well sprinkled with herbs and really juicy! The marinate rub was powerful and got on really well with the side dip. I like how it was all chopped up neatly and was well cooked. It is always hard with a rib eye but this was chewy but just firm enough. An interesting take with those spices!

Black Pepper Chicken Tikka

You cannot have Indian food in England and not have some form of a chicken tikka.  Their black peppered version was a nice alternative of this special dish.  It had these really distinctive flavours that was not very usual with a chicken tikka.  As with all the other meats, it was really well cooked, charred and delicious! Quite a unique one to try.

Sides and Naans

The butter naan as a side went really well with all the meats. The menu also had a green chilli, garlic and mature cheddar naan and a bone marrow butter naan.  All worth a try. Do be warned, they are huge!  Alternatively, you can have a refreshing tomato and smashed kuchumber salad!

All in All

This is not your typical Indian curry house. It is a chop house with incredible North Indian influences and flavours. The meat are top class, the spices incredible and the flavours awesome. The overall atmosphere was perfect for sharing dishes with a couple of friends and a few drinks (the red wine was awesome).  As they say, Tandoor Chop House is ‘A place to socialise over drinks and share plates of hearty, comforting food‘. I think my evening certainly fulfilled all of that!

Also published on Medium.