Restaurants

Upstairs, above a suburban shopping arcade, Pallavi offers a menu that digs deep into the regional cuisine of Kerala – half a dozen varieties of dosa and vadai, served with sambar and spicy coconut chutney, vegetarian thorans cooked in coconut milk and tangy fish curries, as well as meaty Anglo-Indian staples. Indian families come here to feast in a cosy dining room full of faded plastic topiary and colourful Keralan knick-knacks. We dived in with a chilli-laced, papery rava (semolina) dosa, followed by an excellent vellappam a hopper-like fermented rice and coconut pancake served with Malabar-style chicken curry. Then came fish moilee, a sensation of tender kingfish, coconut, mustard seed, lime and tamarind. Service can be slow, but food this good is worth the wait.

Time Out Cheap Eats in London Guide 2007