Bloomsbury’s Malabar Junction

From the outside, Malabar Junction does not offer much. One could be forgiven for assuming it was your average Indian restaurant that would suit your usual Friday night curry revellers. This assumption would be vastly inaccurate.

On entering the restaurant you immediately realise that this is an Indian with a difference. Gone are the heavy red wallpapered or even velvet walls (an experience I have encountered before). There was also no ‘The Best of Indian Music Favourites’ stuck on repeat. Instead you are greeted by gentle classical music and surrounded by a decor that is light and modern with the main part of the restaurant being under a beautiful glass ceiling allowing the evening sun to shine through.

The wine menu lists a fine selection of different grapes and countries at very reasonable prices. There was even a flyer advertising a couple of bottles of Indian wine, which when tasted at the end of the dinner highlighted that India has a long way to go before it challenges the world of wine.

On ordering a bottle of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, we were informed that this was a particularly popular choice. At £18.50 a bottle, I felt that this was good value for a wine that offered strong passionfruit and melon flavours as well as very crisp citrus after taste.

My girlfriend and I opted for the mixed platter of starters which included onion bhajis, king prawn poriyal, lamb koftas and marinated tandoori chicken. The king prawns were particularly good with a mild masala spice and were very well cooked. The chicken too was well prepared and extremely enjoyable although my girlfriend found the bhajis a little dry.

For my main course, I opted for the chicken jalfrezi, whilst my girlfriend ordered the paneer makhanwala. The paneer came in a sauce similar to that of a korma or pasanda as the nutty flavours really shone through but it was not the tomato-based sauce we expected from the description on the menu which was disappointing. The jalfrezi had the required spice that I was after but without the chilli or capsicum being too over powering.

To accompany the mains we decided to be adventurous and move away from the usual naan bread. We chose instead a basket of Indian breads which included paratha, chapatti and poori. These were exceptional and were a nice change.

To end the dinner, we went for the pistachio Kulfi, a more dense un-whipped frozen dessert, and peppermint tea. The Kulfi had a lovely, strong, pistachio flavour which was a pleasant contrast to the well spiced food we had eaten.

In summary, Malabar Junction offers an upmarket south Indian experience showcasing both your standard Indian cuisine as well as some more unknown dishes with fish featuring high on the menu. It is a fun restaurant with a good vibe about it, however this is not the place you would go for a ‘lads’ curry night as the atmosphere lends itself to more of a family dinner or, in fact, a date.

Malabar Junction
107 Great Russell Street
Bloomsbury
WC1B 3NA

Tel: 020 7580 5230