Vindaloo Vic

Definitive Reviews of London’s Indian Restaurants

Trishna 5

This is another of those trendy “new wave” or “modern Indian” restaurants that seem to be springing up all over London.

So in practice that means:

1) All the dishes will be very mild, so as not to upset anyone
2) You’ll pay about double (or more) what you’d pay at your local curry house

Trishna is not a bad place. The setting is very pleasant, and the staff are very friendly and welcoming.

Our starters comprised Nandu Varuval (soft shell crab) and Lasooni Sabzi Salad (a sort of vegetable and nut combination). Both were OK, but there was nothing remotely “Indian” about them.

But it was the main courses that really put the “bland” into Blandford Street. The Kori Gassi was a chicken curry with a very very mild sauce. And the Kasundi Jheenga Jalmuri was a tandoori dish made with “wild tiger prawn” – again pleasant, but nothing special.

It was a pity that the staff were in such a rush to get us through our meal. Courses were served in quick succession: aperitifs, poppadoms, starters, main courses, desserts – the whole process took just over an hour, meaning they could boot us out and free up the table for someone else.

And when we’re paying over £65 a head, I really don’t feel I’m getting a “quality dining experience”.

There are so many vastly better Indian restaurants in central London; I really couldn’t envisage a return visit to Trishna.