Restaurants

By Roopa Gulati

If you're used to tucking into soggy chips and high-street kebabs after a gig, the O2 is a refreshing change. Its post-concert dining options are remarkably civilised; around two dozen restaurants, cafés and bars flank the slightly kitsch 'street' under the dome. The latest of these is Raan, an Indian restaurant run by Iqbal Wahhab formerly of Cinnamon Club fame.

Raan dresses up north Indian flavours with a smart tandoori grill on the first floor and cool bar at ground level. This is no hushed, fine-dining retreat: we're talking disco beats, blue-hued lighting, a glassed-in kitchen for kebab action, plus a plethora of decorated pillars.

The menu is mainly smoky rustic staples. Main courses impressed: lamb chops, steeped in gingery yoghurt, seared until charred on the outside, yielding to succulent meat below. Equally satisfying, grilled garlicky mushrooms and cubed paneer, coated in a whisper of gram flour batter, worked well with zesty tamarind sauce. Gold star went to the Punjabi truckers' favourite - black lentil dal accompanied by marvellous flatbreads.

The starters, though, were mediocre: roasted root vegetables let down by lacklustre marination, undercooked baby potatoes, and an afterthought of carrots and leeks. Neither were we convinced by a leafy salad dressed with harsh mustard oil, an omnipresent feature of every order.

Friendly, attentive service was a high point. Given time, the chefs should also find their feet, and it seems likely Raan should have a longer lifespan than the Millennium Dome.

Time Out Issue 1940: October 24-30 2007