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212 WestEnd Lane, London NW6 1UU
MissLively
last updated on 16-03-2009:
Being Asian from the Indian Sub-continent I was raised on high quality hot, spicy food which always had quite a kick to it from time to time depending on my mother’s moods and to what extent she used lemons and tamarind to liven our culinary experiences.
Over the years I have had numerous opportunities to eat out and sample an extensive range of cuisines and some have not been that brilliant. High quality spicy food no matter where it orginates from is rather difficult to find in our great capital city-London and unless one is prepared to risk spending a lot of money in sampling a lot of dishes in cafes and restaurants, recommendations are good way to choose a venue.
A few days ago I was visiting some friends in the area of Hampstead and they took me to this charming little restaurant that they had discovered by accident and one that I will visit quite very often as the food was superb.
The entrance to the restaurant was a bit confusing because you have to walk down the street level steps leading to the basement and hit the bottom of the stairs before you can catch a glimpse of the interior. If I hadn’t gone there with my firends I admit I would have missed it completely .
The restaurant is clean and decorated in a friendly and pristine fashion. It has a good sized bar,clean white table linen and a smattering of some elegant wooden carvings on the wall which although are nothing to rave about-gives the restaurant an aura of authencity and a charm of its own-which more than makes up for the fact that it has no windows.
The service and the staff were excellent. Within minutes of turning up at the door we were greeted by an affable waiter and we were shown to a well laid out table. I found the staff informative and ready to explain and give advice on what dishes to order.Orders for food and drink were taken speedily and efficiently and the waiters didn’t malinger whilst we were eating our food.
Regarding the menu I would describe it as extensive with something to suit everyone’s taste-especially if you don’t like very spicy food- the establishment is happy to temper it to suit any individual taste.
As there was four of us we thought we kick with a vareity of new ,classic and regular dishes so we could get a sense of what the dishes in the restaurant were like. Although they all the usual starters and dips we thought of avoiding them and chose things like paneer shashlik,seekh kebab,malai tikka and mint chops. This was followed by a main course of jinga pilau ( tiger king prawns) done to perfection served with a generous helping of basmati rice and my friends chose the ocean platter which consisted of smoked salmon tikka,stuffed squid,chargrilled tiger prawns served in aromatic lime leaves,sliced ginger and spring onion stalks. I sampled some of the fish and prawns and thoroughly recommend it; we also ate quite a lot of the lamb rogan josh which was fiery- exactly as ordered by and all of the dishes were served heat hot. We also gorged ourselves silly on the enormous range of stuffed nan breads, sampling every filling from onions,garlic,spiced vegetable and minced lamb.All this was washed down with copious amounts of Kingfisher beer and fruit juices.
So if you are in London and can bothered to find this place then I think you will have a really great dining experience. All the food was reasonably priced and the service was excellent and deserved a good tip.
4 people thought this review was helpful
106c Finchley Rd, London NW3 5JJ
MissLively
last updated on 31-10-2008:
ATMA-THE MEANING
Atma translated into English means the soul- this restaurant which is finely decorated with deep red walls,thick crispy white linen,comfortable deep black leather seating and deferential service is what fine dining is all about. The establishment has moved away from the traditional style of cooking,veering to something that is a lot more stylish they deliver it with aplomb.
I eat at Asian restaurants quite a lot and am really familiar with most of the regional cuisines from the Indian sub-continent,but I was not prepared for some of the unusual tastes that I experienced here.
On my first visit which was to celebrate a birthday I went for the tantalisingly delectable dish of crab koftas carefully cooked cooked in a smooth and creamy sauce consisting of just right combination of coconut and spicy cinnamon. The dish had the right amount of spice which added to all the flavours-because although I like my food hot piquancy wise-I don’t like the bitterness or the heat.
My friend had the buttery chicken which she said was awesome-it was a completely different from the run of the mill curry houses as all the ingredients had been carefully sourced and cooked in a tempting and elaborate manner. The roasted chicken pieces were cut into bite-sized chunks and the tomato and butter sauce has jut the most perfect combination of spices and seasoning.
We had all the trimmings like the Peshawari Nan,Persian Pilau Rice and marvellous vegetable dishes as well.
It is a low budget restaurant but I think it has a nice atmosphere,because the staff are very welcoming,they have an excellent wine list. An average meal would set you back £60.00 for two with house wine and the set menu is £24.50. I think if you eat there the first time then ordering the set menu is a sure way to get a decent meal.
3 people thought this review was helpful
5 Holland Street, Kensington, London W8 4NA
MissLively
last updated on 17-10-2008:
(updated on 24-10-2008)
I always wonder where to have my hair-cut as I don’t like going to the same hairdresser twice in a row.When I go to the hairdresser I always like to know what I am going get for what price as I don’t want anything to go wrong with the colour,style and lenght because the prospect of walking around London waiting for a style gone wrong to grow out can be embarrasing.If its a colouring disaster it could be worse-the effects could be permanent.
I thought these people who own one salon in King’s Road and another one in High St Kensington were quite good. They only charged me £24 .95 for a basic hair-cut and although it wasn’t blow-dried-it was still dried in a creative and stylish fashion The blow-dry would have added an extra ten pounds on top of the cut.The staff were friendly and make very light work of it all.The salon does have a lot of other treatment and they are worth checking out.
3 people thought this review was helpful
8-14 Southampton Street, Covent Garden, London WC2E 7HY
MissLively
last updated on 14-10-2008:
This shop is excellent for sports wear and specialist equipment. On my last skiing trip I actually bought a really nice jacket which is really warm and comfortable to wear. But the real reason why I wanted to mention this place was the fact that if you like climbing and live in London these have an indoor ice climbing wall-absolutely ideal for those wanting to brush up on their altitudinal skills or just go there for a thrill.
2 people thought this review was helpful
Green Lanes, London N4 2HA
MissLively
last updated on 14-10-2008:
Now this is a marvellous place to visit especially if you are into climbing but don’t have any real mountains nearby. Just because you happen to live in a built up city doesn’t mean to say you cannot climb a mountain,as you can always go for an indoor climbing wall which is a lot better because you don’t have to worry about the cold,icy conditions.This one in Green Lanes that I like to frequent used to be apumping station and some-one has put it to good use.
It has two big floors with first class equipment with varying degree of bouldering walls,a huge range of courses for all levels run by some very friendly women.
Recently the climbing opened up a new cave room with a scaleable ceiling. It is a membership club and the prices are a bit steep,but don’t let that put you off-if its something you really want to do.
4 people thought this review was helpful
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