La Porte des Indes

21-11-2008
Tom Cole, MyVillage  1576 

Best associated with a few pints and an intoxicating evening out, gnawing Indian delicacies has proven to be a lunchtime necessity as well as a drunken option especially at the aromatic Les Portes des Indes. So, on a cold and wet February day, Les Portes des Indes trumped the idea of investing in a mundane burger and chips.With its elaborate lunchtime menu, Les Portes des Indes is far from your cloned East End diner and routine dishes - this is more adventurous and unique.So what sets Les Portes des Indes apart from any other up-market Indian restaurants? First of all, walking into the former Edwardian ballroom, spanning two floors, we were immediately drawn into an archaic colonial feeling. With antique Indian artifacts adorning the dining rooms, alongside its 40 feet waterfall, Les Portes des Indes retains it European touch.

After a friendly reception we were seated in a great spot with full view of the restaurants decor covered with plants, greenery and traditional wall paintings. Once seated we were given exceptional poppadoms. After a few bites I ordered an array of cocktails, ones which were original and well balanced, such as their long cocktails, particularly the Meri Jaan with Jim Bean bourbon, Curacao, Ginger beer and orange) it's only downfall being the amount of ice, too little - a setback for a very experienced bar team. Also the Red Dragon cocktail was very moreish, but slightly synthetic, and not one to compliment my food. However, the real drinkable joy was the Monsoon, at 9.70 it was a delightful mix of champagne, Midori and green melon, a real thirst quencher.Drinks aside the food soon arrived in a friendly, easygoing manner. Ordering from the 'Beauty on a Plate' menu, it provides diners with a very detailed menu, highlighting the vitamin and mineral content per dish. An advisable and handy addition especially for the health conscious. With a menu offering a variety of pure juices, named the 'stress buster', quite apt for London commuters and their Detox and Weight Loss option, Beauty on a Plate covered every aspect for those with a regimental regime. For starters I had broccoli with cream cheese, which definitely showed off its French influence - perfect portion as a starter. The mains, black leg chicken, a French type of free range chicken was fantastic, but slightly meagre in size. The accompaniments of spinach with garlic worked really well with the sun-dried chillies, coconut and coriander. On the other hand, The Wild Salmon, Tandoori grilled steaks marinated with fennel, aniseed and chillies was explosive on the palate. It is quite often with Indian food I find that certain meals can overwhelm your taste buds with their spices and texture. But in this instance our selection was far from over bearing. Although the chicken was rather small I pushed back my plate very satisfied, readily awaiting the Belgian chocolate fondant with mandarin and green tea ice cream. Quite bluntly it blew my mind, plus I was with my colleague who had just quit chocolate, so unfortunately she had to endure a running commentary on how amazing it was whilst staring longingly at my fondant. All in all it was one of the best meals I've had in a long time. The service was friendly, the decor amazing and of course the food was superb. To put it lightly - 21st Indian cuisine as it should be, flavoursome, fast and healthy.

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