Kohinoor

June 2008

The entire review of Kohinoor’s could be summed up in a single word: good. Each dish is good, the service is good, the atmosphere also good. However, nothing seems to really exceed this level. Just as nothing is ‘average’ or ‘below par’, so nothing could be fairly called ‘very good’ and certainly not ‘excellent’.

The décor and faded exterior are probably the ropiest part but then it is a North Indian restaurant, an institution hardly renowned for their decorating prowess. However, otherwise, everything is, well, good. And that’s really nothing to be ashamed of. The majority of restaurants have at least one area that lets them down and Kohinoor’s all-round reliability is to be commended.

We ate a variety of dishes and the quality was very consistent in each. The mutton biryani boasted light, fragrant rice and reasonable meat. The tikka masala was a rich red and coated the tender chicken well. Our side dishes of palak paneer and sag aloo were also very tasty and by the time we had eaten the fresh garlic naan and spicy poppadums, the meal had totally filled us up.

The meal was served by several members of their very smiley and helpful team. The location on sweaty, dusty Jalan Yap Kwan Seng is hardly the most atmospheric in the city, however, it, like everything was still perfectly acceptable for a good, honest, North Indian meal. Matt Bellotti