Delicious Khana - North Indian Cuisine - yes the food is delicious

Problem
Where to eat in North West London? Indian - but not too spicy.

Answer
After sending somebody out to race along Hatch End Broadway reading all the restaurant menus (about sixteen restaurants) the person with the veto (the one paying) chose Delicious Khana. K h a n a is Hindi for food or a meal. So the name delicious k h a n a means delicious food or delicious meal.

The restaurant is easy to find. In Hatch End you might be able to park almost outside in the s l i p road. Arriving on foot, if you live locally or walk down from Hatch End station to the shops, cross at the pedestrian lights to the restaurants and shops beside the parking slip road and there is the restaurant.

After a few reincarnations, (previously as the Pizza and Prosecco bar) it now has Italian food on the back of the menu but also North Indian food on the front of the menu. Plus of course Prosecco on the wine list.

I do like the new decor, much more elegant, with white table cloths and napkins, two elegant white mock pillars dividing one wall into three. I chose to sit at the banquette along the wall - I like to have my bag beside me and not on the dirty floor.

While we waited up came the poppadums with a set of three condiments, a mild mango and what looked like yogurt. The poppadums were just right, not greasy and not so crisp that they shattered and scattered like confetti.

The drinks were just right, too. A very moderately priced Prosecco, or wine mixed with fruit juice to make the mango Bellini, which I ordered, nothing sensational but just right.

The starter I ordered was spinach and cashew nut croquettes, which came up as circular flat patties. Not over spicy. Not much taste of cashew. However, just right.

The three lamp cutlets were yummy. One cutlet was as filling as a normal meal. I was surprised when somebody told me to stop eating or at least slow down, because the main course was still to come. The starters made a main course in themselves - I had forgotten what we had ordered and thought the lamb cutlets were the main meal.

The main course was fish in sauce, a chicken dish, and a l o o gobi, potato with cauliflower. On the side we had white rice. A rice enthusiast declared the white rice was, "perfect, light and fluffy and flavoured - better than I can make it. Chinese rice cookers turn it into a sticky mess." I am a bread and potato person. I was glad to have a hidden piece of potato. Plus a peshawri naan, flat bread sandwich contained a yummy middle layer of coconut. Peshawar means from the Peshawar region.

We were by now singing the praises of a second course.

Delicious Desserts
For desserts we were offered some American-international desserts including red velvet. I could see my fellow diners' wary looks.

The invisible clouds overhead parted. The sun shone through. Real home cooked Indian desserts! R a s m u l a i, gulab jamun, kulfi. We immediately decided, three Indian desserts, three of us dining, obviously one of each of the Indian desserts, please.

By now I wanted water and a tooth pick, as well as the restaurant's business card. Whatever I wanted appeared fast and unobtrusively. The man in charge was Alan. He reminded me of the late, handsome movie star, Yul Brynner.

The kulfi was surrounded by red sauce. The dessert's owner tried it and declared was rose flavoured.

The gulab jamun had been heated. In the microwave we presumed. We should have said, "Don't bother heating the gulab jamun. We are used to eating it cold."

Our leftovers were packed up. Yes, Delicious Khana does serve delicious food and yes, we will go back.

Delicious Khana
435 Uxbridge Road
Hatch End
HA5 4JR
tel:020 8428 2052
delicious-khana.co.uk
Photos by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. Please share my posts.