Café Spice Namaste

Near Tower Hill, this airy recycled 19th-century courthouse makes an unusual venue, but is well suited to Namaste's position as one of the UK's most innovative and award-winning Indian restaurants. The high-ceilinged interior is enlivened by sumptuous drapery and stained glass in saturated hues.

The menu ('Indian cuisine with specialities and influences from all over Asia, often with a European twist') reflects the inspired eclecticism of celebrated chef-patron, author and sustainability champion Cyrus Todiwala OBE. Provenance details abound, and the seasonal 'speciality menu' offered both Soay and Rhug Estate salt marsh lamb.

However, the Soay in a curry sauce was distinctly chewy and arrived in a vol-au-vent that could have graced a church hall buffet. House speciality guizzado de chorize javali - spiced wild boar chipolatas cooked in a rich vindaloo masala - was served with a bog-standard bread roll rather than the menu's usual toasted pitta. In a version of fish and chips, the coley had a pleasant spiced batter and the gently aromatic version of tartare sauce was a delight, but the fish, though nicely cooked, was riddled with pin bones. In summary, the twist was doing all the shouting, but the execution was far from capital.