Travel with Angela Lansbury: Sri Lankan Restaurant Praba In South Harrow - For Moreish Masala Dosai, Apams (hoppers) and More

Friday, July 3, 2026

Sri Lankan Restaurant Praba In South Harrow - For Moreish Masala Dosai, Apams (hoppers) and More

Colourful Sir Lankan restaurant, Praba, In South Harrow

The Praba Sri Lankan restaurant is within walking distance of South Harrow station and bus garage. It is just before the South Harrow Baptist church. The area looks rather downmarket compared to Harrow On the Hill and other areas, but inside the restaurant it is quite elegant but reasonably priced. The name Praba comes from the sanskrit word for light, radiance, luminance splendour. Does the restaurant live up to its name.

Dancing Light Decor

Praba restaurant's overhead lights changing colour. Photos by Angela Lansbury.

Central ceiling decoration, changing colour. Momentarily disconcerting, even irritating. Then intriguing, interesting, attractive. Finally, forgotten when your food arrives. Meanwhile, look around.

The toilet is downstairs. Handy for those who hate stairs and saves time.

Indoor stairs lead upstairs. What is up there, we wondered.

Angela with masala dosai.

Masala Dosai

I ordered masala dosai. A huge 'pancake'. Filled with potato.

Dips

Served on a wide metal tray, like a thali, with three dips. White - yogurt and something? Red - tomato based? Darker red - spicy - red pepper?

Leftovers

When I asked for my leftover food to be packed up to take away, they gave me a round transparent box with a lid. Like to to pack my leftovers.

Later I commented to my husband, 'No risk of them forgetting and throwing it away. Or giving you the meal with missing items. No need to worry your food might have got contaminated.' (My husband says to me, drily, 'You can find something else to worry about.')

Service

The service was obliging although a bit erratic. They happily allowed three of us to all pay separately. They also said a group of us could come in after a meeting ended at 10 pm and order just drinks or desserts (having eaten earlier). And they were happy to let me take away the leftovers.

The menu could do with more translation. Apam is a thin pancake cooked and served in a bowl. An apam is also called a hopper.

The waiter got confused and gave one of my dishes, coconut apam, to another person who had three apam oreos. (Made with American oreo biscuits, which seemed very strange, but my club's President, who is Asian, ordered three of the oreo Apams.) So my friend got to pay for something extra. And I was not able to try out the dish which was new to me.

They were out of mango for mano lassi and could offer only sweet or salted lassi. So one of my friends ordered the sweet lassi instead.

I shall definitely go back. I loved the masala dosai. It was just right for me. Soft like a pancake. Not overcooked to a brittle crisp.

Leftovers Next Day

I had taken home the spicy dip which I had hardly touched. It was still too spicy, especially without the large helping of bland potato which I had had in the restaurant. So, at home, I added two tablespoons of yogurt to cool down the effect.

The test is, will I go back? Yes. I hope to try an apam. To get mango lassi. I might indulge in my family's favourite, gulab jamun (known to us from Tandoori restaurants which feature the cuisine of northern India.)

Getting There

South Harrow is on the H12 bus route from Stanmore via Hatch End, and Rayners Lane.

South Harrow station is on the Piccadilly line.