Tried & tasted: Moti Mahal

In a city full of restaurants, those looking for a place that offers something slightly different sometimes have to dig a bit deeper to find a real gem, writes Molly Dyson. Moti Mahal claims to be the only restaurant in London equipped with a thatee (clamp) grill, which you can see the cooks using thanks to a huge window between the kitchen and dining area. Chef Anirudh Arora designed the menu based on his travels along the Grand Trunk Road, a centuries-old trade route stretching from Chittagong, Bangladesh to Kabul, Afghanistan. It features everything from traditional curries to kebabs.

My partner and I start our evening with Indian-inspired cocktails – mine a pineapple and peaches & cream concoction, his a mint julep with a twist of ginger. While the tasting menu looks tempting thanks to its paired wines, we’re feeling fairly confident in our ability to decipher custom choices following our waiter’s explanation of the dishes.

We start with a posh naan (flatbread) made with Stilton and black truffles, then share soft shell crab, pan-seared scallops and the house speciality, Gosht (butterflied lamb leg cooked on the signature clamp grill). For somebody who doesn’t usually enjoy lamb, I’m astonished at how delicious it is.

By this point we’re already second-guessing the amount of food we’ve ordered, but my rabbit braised in saffron and served with a yoghurt sauce looks and smells too amazing to pass up. My partner chooses chicken tikka because we’re told it’s “nothing like any version we’ve had before” and he’s not disappointed. We steal bites of each other’s curries and share a portion of pilau rice and one of black lentils, a personal favourite.

Our waiter can see that we’re running out of steam and suggests taking a break. After a suitable amount of time, he brings us a small portion of kulfi, a kind of Indian ice cream served on a stick. We’re not a fan of the honey flavour, but we have to remind ourselves to be civil when divvying up the chocolate, blackberry, pistachio and mango varieties.

With a private dining room downstairs, Moti Mahal is a convenient place to wow business clients with an authentic taste of India.

Moti Mahal, 45 Great Queen Street, London WC2B 5AA; 0207 240 9329; motimahal-uk.com