DARBAAR, LIVERPOOL ST

I feel like I've eaten more Indian and Sri Lankan food in the second half of this year than I've ever eaten before. With multiple visits to one of my new favourites, Kricket, and a few recent visits to the newly opened Hoppers in Soho (review to follow soon), as well as attending the re-launch of The Cinnamon Club back in September and Bombay Brasserie in October, and hosting my very own Indian inspired pop up for Action Aid's work in Syria, it's fair to say there's been a lot of curry in my life! Then a few weeks ago I headed over to Liverpool Street to check out the newly opened Darbaar, which is headed up by Abdul Yaseen who's launched his first solo project after over 10 years at The Cinnamon Club. Darbaar is vast. It has over 200 covers, and takes inspiration from the banquets of the Indian Royal Courts. The restaurant area is grand with a cosy darkness in the evenings, and rows of tables lining the room plus an open kitchen area where you can sit at the bar and look straight in. I love the lights, which looks like big, gold tea flowers, and hang prominently down the middle of the room.

The food at Darbaar is designed to be shared and the menu is made up of small bites (including Keralan shrimp cocktail with coconut), appetisers (king scallops with red cabbage or nawabi chicken pasanda with rock moss, for example), wood fired nanza (paneer bhurji or chilli chicken, caramelised onion and cheddar), the royal pot (a seasonal and hearty preparation, inspired by the dishes which were the iconic sharing feasts of the Royal Court), sides (rice, naans and vegetables) and chef's specials (including baked leg of rabbit on the bone with Rajasthani chilli and corn sauce, and spice crusted sea bass with shrimp and coconut sambal - wow!). Dishes range from £4.50 for small bites to £20 for the more expensive mains choices, though you can also choose the fixed menu - the menu Daawat, which is what we went for and comes in at £35/person for a table of 4 people. You get three 'light' dishes, followed by three 'mains' with sides, and three puddings - all for sharing.

We started with 'hariyali' date and samosa chaat -

 
Followed by tandoori style salmon tikka (at the front of the photo) and sufiyano lamb seekh kebab. Both were incredibly juicy and tasty, and I loved the sauce on the salmon. Be warned that portions here are large, so go slowly to make sure you have room for everything!

 
Mains included Kerala spiced shrimp, and Kadhai spiced paneer - which I adored. I would never normally order paneer but this had such depth of flavour and spice.

 

 
The naan was pillowy soft and so garlicky, in a good way, and the kaali lentil dahl reminded me of the dahl I know and love from The Cinnamon Club/Kitchen, which is a very good thing!

 

In restaurants where the dishes are so punchy it's hard to follow with pudding. And as I'm not a pudding person I would rather stuff myself silly with savoury dishes, rather than save room for sweet. I tried a little of the spiced carrot cake which was moist and delicious, but had eaten far too much of the previous six/seven dishes to eat anymore cake. However, if you order the Daawat menu you'll get the carrot cake, cardamom shirikhand (yoghurt) and lemon figs to finish off your meal. Then take your drinks through to the beautiful bar area before leaving, as it's a stunning space and the perfect place to relax and digest your food a little!

Darbaar is classy and elegant, and serves great food at prices which are less than you'd imagine for such an opulent looking restaurant. Great for a date (if you don't mind eating curry on a date), a working lunch or dinner, or to take family to. It's an impressive spot with food that matches up to the surroundings. More info, the address and booking details are on their website here.