Tamila is a modern, elevated approach to the curry house, serving exquisite Tamil-inspired cuisine from Battersea. Tamila is the South London jewel in the crown of The Tamil Prince and The Tamil Crown, the go-to favourites for quality curry in North London. Unlike its predecessors, Tamila doesn’t make a pub its home, but is the group’s first bricks-and-mortar curry house, harking back to their roots as a stall at Hackney Bridge Kitchens.
Tamila is housed in a sweet, cosy spot on the Northcote Road, where stepping inside will hit you with the buzz of excited diners who’ve managed to bag a table at the most hotly-anticipated spot south of the river. The buzzy atmosphere is thanks to the intimately packed tables inside, encouraging a kind of casual approach to dining. The interiors are clean, pared back, with a light touch of sleek Indian inspiration.
Tamil’s menu takes inspiration from chef-founder Prince Durairaj’s South Indian heritage, featuring the vibrant and utterly delicious food from the Tamil Nadu. Snacks get things off to a flying start, with fried baby sweetcorn, onion bhajis, and a chicken lollipop and sweet chilli chutney. Things then move along into a selection of dosa - there’s a choice of chilli cheese, mutton curry, or masala dosa - and bite-sized poori masala.
Then for the main event, which comes in the form of tandoori and curries. The tandoori is a choice between a half tandoori chicken with a cooling mint chutney, or a sweet and spicy paneer tikka and pineapple chutney. The choice of curries brings a difficult decision between a dhal, paneer butter masala and a Chettinad lamb curry, to name a few. To mop things up, there’s buttery roti, or chewy garlic and coriander or kulcha naan.
Dessert ends things on a sugary high, with gulab jamun dunked in a syrupy sauce, mango lassi, or an exciting mango soft serve. To wash things down, there’s an equally explosive drinks list, with a selection including, but not limited to, a gunpowder margarita, Tamil negroni, or a Tamila lager to cool off the spice.