Mela @ Shaftesbury

oogywawa

Above average Indian in Central London 30th December 2008

2 found this helpful

The heart of Theatre Land is packed full of sub-standard restaurants ready to flatter to deceive the uninitiated. It's reassuring therefore to discover a safe pair of hands in Drury Lane in the shape of Mela.

A group of us descended on this bright and lively purveyor of all things Indian on a quiet Tuesday and received cheerful attentive service and good tasty if not stratospheric assorted curried fare.

The dishes were a bit schizophrenic in terms of quality - hence the 3* rating. Some were really exceptional such as the Jhinga Hara Pyaz Masala, which was wonderfully fresh and pungent, whereas the standard Murgh Jalfrezi or Makhanwala bordered on the mundane. The strength ratings were misguided as well - my dish, described as "very hot" didn't even nudge the lower extremities of what could be described as Madras hot.

All in all though a thoroughly agreeable visit and tasty food. If serious gastronomy is the raison d'etre however, then there are significantly better places within just a couple of tube stops.

bristle

Food is good, but staff could try harder 12th September 2008

0 found this helpful

Not a bad place to have an authentic Indian meal, but by no means my favourite curry den.
Mela has gone for the more popular, brighter, open style - gone are the cosy, dim corners of yesteryear. There is bright, 'Indian' artwork on the walls.
It is well worth seeking out the special offers and meal-deals that Mela's owners use regularly - that way you end up paying a fair price for a good Indian meal in the heart of London.
Overall, the style is a bit bland - too many 'fused' flavours, not enough distinction.
To give them credit, the Mela gang finds it tough going in this location, yet they persevere. The surrounding streets used to have an awful drugs problem, with blatant crack dealing under your nose.
Once inside, however, the warmth of the Indian sub-continent takes over and after a few btls of Cobra you've already forgotten what Shaftesbury Ave is like.

Sarah_W

Superior West End Indian 21st May 2008

5 found this helpful

I used to come here quite a lot but had almost forgotten how much I liked it until last night when a friend suggested Indian and I remembered it again. It's in a great location on Shaftesbury Avenue, just off Cambridge Circus and perfect for the theatre district (and indeed there is a pre-theatre menu on offer, though I've never sampled it). The décor is definitely a cut above most Indian restaurants, with interesting pictures and artefacts - just the sort of thing I'm often tempted to bring back from trips abroad.

The food too is more imaginative than the average, though there are some traditional favourites. I particularly like the emphasis on fish and seafood. Last night, for instance, we shared my favourite starter of fried whitebait with a spicy coating and served in a poppadum basket. We also shared a serving of Murgh Kalimirch - pan-grilled fillets of chicken with crushed peppercorns,sesame, curry leaves and mustard seeds. For my main course I chose Jhinga Kalimirch - prawns which, despite the name, were NOT cooked in the same manner as our starter but instead stir-fried with curry leaves, roasted moong lentils,freshly crushed black peppercorns, onions and bell peppers,topped with grated coconut. This was really delicious - spicy but with a real freshness to the sauce and the slightly crunchy peppers. My friend meanwhile enjoyed her lamb rogan josh, which unlike elsewhere was a lamb shank served on the bone. We accompanied these with a shared portion of pilau rice and a bottle of one of the three white house wines, a Pinot Grigio. No room for dessert, and we paid a reasonable (for this quality) £61 with service for the two of us.

Other dishes I've enjoyed here include the tandoori salmon tikka - a great alternative to the ubiquitous chicken.

If I have a criticism it is that last night at least the service was a little over-solicitous, and towards the end of our meal we felt a bit rushed. Admittedly the restaurant was full and they were probably keen to clear our table for possible customers, but we were equally keen to finish our very nice wine! But don't let that put you off going, as this really is a great place in which to experience something akin to real Indian cooking.