Mumbai Delight
With the autumn weather turning the leaves, the nights drawing in and conditions getting bleaker, a Friday night OCC meet was very welcome to warm the soul. Appropriately, this month’s meet happened to fall on Diwali weekend so some hearty Indian fare was certainly in order. Would our selected restaurant of Mumbai Delight succeed in delivering?
Set on the South Lambeth Road in the residential area between Vauxhall and Nine Elms, the small establishment was somewhat dwarfed by the new tower blocks and skyscrapers built opposite. The venue accommodated about 25 diners and was already full upon our arrival. The OCC were sat at our table, given our menus and we waited patiently to place orders. And waited. And waited…. An ominous start for somewhere that was evidently popular amongst locals.
After finally being served and placing our orders (45 minutes for drinks and poppadoms to be delivered, 65 minutes for starters) the food started to come out. Was it worth the wait? Well, my portion of succulent and juicy lamb chops certainly did not disappoint. Full of flavour and perfectly cooked they were amongst the best that I’ve had the pleasure of eating. Service picked up and the mains came out after another round of drinks had been ordered, sufficient time to allow the starter to be savoured.
The portions were of a good size and thankfully we listened to the friendly waiter’s advice with our rice and bread orders. I opted for the chef’s signature Murg Hariyali Masala which I requested to have added spice and was liberally garnished with fresh green chillies. The chicken was moist and the sauce full of flavour with the added chillies giving a nice little punch. The table shared some tasty onion bhajis and a portion of Paneer Butter Masala which was smoky, smooth and beautiful. The coconut rice was good and the breads were lovely and fluffy and freshly cooked. I also sampled some of the lamb jalfrezi which again was tasty with perfect tender lamb, although the sauce was quite thick and had elements of goulash about it. Nonetheless, it was still very pleasant.
The bill for food and drinks (approximately 3 rounds) came in at £52.07 per person including service – worked out by the waiter, otherwise the OCC would’ve rounded up. With the quality of the food and the customer care we were given, it’s hard to argue against that price for value. It was a very good curry in a lovely little venue with a good atmosphere (when people had the decency to close the door fully). The poor start with the long wait for even poppadoms and drinks was hard to ignore but the overall experience was enough to redeem Mumbai Delight and make them worthy recipients of the OCC sticker of approval.
Customer Care -6.93
Service -6.57
Value -7.11
Quality -8.00
Atmosphere -7.71
TOTAL -7.27