From the outside, Kashmir – tucked away on a side road off Putney High Street – looks like any other local curry house. But its appearance is deceptive. Once inside, it bears no resemblance to a classic curry house whatsoever, neither in its bright, modern decor nor its cuisine – in fact, Kashmir claims to be ‘the only authentic Kashmiri restaurant in England’.
The experience begins the minute the waiters bring over a bowl for you to wash your hands in – a nice touch that starts the meal with a sense of serenity. Then there’s the red leaf icon on the menu, which indicates that a dish is entirely Kashmiri. For us, it was an obvious choice to go for these, and we think it should be for you, too.
We started with onion bhaji, prepared in the authentic Kashmiri way – deconstructed in smaller strands, rather than mushed up into a ball, with the end result of something both soft and beautifully crunchy.
We also tried the kabargah – full-flavoured lamb ribs boiled in milk then deep-fried with Kashmiri spices – and another winner of aloo tikki chaat, pan-seared patties of mashed potatoes stuffed with lentils and served with yoghurt, tamarind and mint sauce.
Other hits included murgh tikka lababdar, the owner’s own butter chicken recipe which was best-in-class stuff, while the rich and creamy black lentil dal was perfect with crisp and chewy garlic naans and spice-laden Kashmiri pulao rice.
That said, not everything was quite that good. Juicy rista (dry-spiced minced lamb balls) were overpowered by the intense flavour of the spices in the gravy; the lamb in the lamb rogan josh was a bit dry; and the kokkar dhanwai korma (chicken and coriander cooked in yoghurt) lacked depth of flavour.
Everything is served with a smile and a word of welcome advice on what to order from attentive and friendly staff. Best of all, the food is delivered with precision and passion at a very reasonable price point. There’s more to this neighbourhood restaurant than meets the eye.