Urban Turban
Above: Urban Turban
Urban Turban is the second opening from celebrated Indian chef Vineet Bhatia, whose first venture was the Michelin-starred Rasoi Restaurant in Chelsea. It is also one of the worst restaurant names we’ve ever come across: so cringe-worthy you’re tempted to add ‘I know it sounds ridiculous, but…’ before suggesting meeting friends here.
Locals have resorted to using nicknames – ‘Urb-Turb’ seems to have stuck for now – which, although not much of an improvement, must be seen as a positive sign, for who would bother coining names if they were not planning to use them? And so they should, for there’s plenty to like about this place. Not least its centrepiece bar, which is one of the nicest watering holes on Westbourne Grove. Beautifully lit and decorated in a bold pink flower pattern, it provides a striking focal point for a sexy room that also features lots of cosy banquette seating.
It all fits rather well with the excellent cocktail offerings and first half of the menu, which lists tapas-style dishes inspired by street food from Mumbai. The latter can be ordered as starters (perhaps followed by main servings of curry or biryani) but we were more tempted to share a larger spread over drinks.
Seafood proved the strongest suit. Both ‘gunpowder’ prawns and scallop skewers proved excellent partners for the house cocktail, in which sparkling wine and passion fruit complemented the delicately spiced food. We also liked the tandoori salmon, though there wasn’t quite enough of its delicious dipping sauce.
Meat dishes proved less exciting. But while we pushed most of our greasy chicken ‘lollipops’ to one side, there wasn’t a crumb left of the lovely green pea samosas. It’s not exactly Michelin-quality cooking but, although the little plates quickly add up, this is still a darn sight cheaper than the Rasoi experience.
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