Southall London/ Bollywood?
Feb 8th, 2008, 05:48 PM
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Southall London/ Bollywood?
We will be traveling to London the last week of March, and my 18 year old daughter, a Bollywood devotee, is asking to visit Southall to take in some Indian culture. Any suggestions from Fodorites as to where we should go to eat, shop, etc. Is there a tube station which would be the best bet? Thanks in advance!
Feb 8th, 2008, 11:05 PM
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No tube: FGW overground train from Paddington.
Turn right out ofthe station along South Rd, and the Punjab hits you right in the face, esp on Sundays. No point in shopping recs: just follow the crowd.
You have to try Punjabi pubs like Glassy Junction in South Rd. Best known restaurabt in the Brilliant in Western Rd: better rated these days are the New Asian Tandoori (AKA the Roxy) on The Green and Palm Palace in South Rd.
Religion - just - pips shopping, eating and making money round here as a pastime. Apart from the tons of mosques and Hindu temples (not to mention Polish Catholic churches, and branches of such exotica as the Assyrians, which I think claim to be the descendants of the church St James established in Madras, and therefore predate by centuries johnny come lately Indian religions like Islam and Sikhism), you absolutely HAVE to see the Sri Guru Singh Sabha Sikh gurdwara in Havelock Rd.
Turn right out ofthe station along South Rd, and the Punjab hits you right in the face, esp on Sundays. No point in shopping recs: just follow the crowd.
You have to try Punjabi pubs like Glassy Junction in South Rd. Best known restaurabt in the Brilliant in Western Rd: better rated these days are the New Asian Tandoori (AKA the Roxy) on The Green and Palm Palace in South Rd.
Religion - just - pips shopping, eating and making money round here as a pastime. Apart from the tons of mosques and Hindu temples (not to mention Polish Catholic churches, and branches of such exotica as the Assyrians, which I think claim to be the descendants of the church St James established in Madras, and therefore predate by centuries johnny come lately Indian religions like Islam and Sikhism), you absolutely HAVE to see the Sri Guru Singh Sabha Sikh gurdwara in Havelock Rd.
Feb 9th, 2008, 05:30 PM
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Flanneruk, thanks for the advice. It sounds great, and thanks for the pub/restaurant suggestions! I'll pass this on to my daughter and have her figure out the rest of what we need to do...As we'd say here in the Southern USA, y'all are so helpful.
Feb 10th, 2008, 02:12 AM
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The Glassy Junction accepts both pounds and rupees.
It also has strippers on a Friday - whether that is a good or bad thing I'll leave to you (they're in a back room so you can ignore them if you want).
It also has strippers on a Friday - whether that is a good or bad thing I'll leave to you (they're in a back room so you can ignore them if you want).
Feb 10th, 2008, 05:02 AM
#5
Hey, thanks for the post, durhamnc (I live in Cary, BTW). This sounds like a good area to get my Indian food fix next time I'm in London (May). Last trip I ate at the Masala Zone in Covent Garden, which was good but not great.
Feb 10th, 2008, 05:37 AM
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Southall is easy to get to. There are four trains an hour from Paddington station via Ealing Broadway. It's in zone 4, so a travelcard for zones 1-4 will cover the trip.
From Southall station, either turn right along South Road, past the 'Glassy Junction' pub and the cinema to the Broadway, or left via The Green to King Street.
From Southall station, either turn right along South Road, past the 'Glassy Junction' pub and the cinema to the Broadway, or left via The Green to King Street.
Feb 10th, 2008, 08:25 AM
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If you're interested in "Indian" food, ther are four basic rules in London:
1. Avoid chains like Masala Zone or Tiffin Bites like a Bombay plague
2. Avoid anywhere in central London unless you've got hard evidence from a reputable source that it's one of the handful of serious South Asian places in tne centre
3. Above all, avoid Brick Lane, which is esentially where underpaid City employees (<£0.5mn a year) go to get raucous on spectacularly lousy food
4. Invest in the current Time Out Eating and Drinking. At £15 it's less than you'll pay for a plateful of battery acid and fluorescent colourings at most central London dumps, and is by far the most authoritative guide to mid-priced London restaurants that take our major national cuisines (Cantonese and Punjabi) seriously.
You don't need to shlep out to Southall for good South Asian. Just lok harder in the centre.
1. Avoid chains like Masala Zone or Tiffin Bites like a Bombay plague
2. Avoid anywhere in central London unless you've got hard evidence from a reputable source that it's one of the handful of serious South Asian places in tne centre
3. Above all, avoid Brick Lane, which is esentially where underpaid City employees (<£0.5mn a year) go to get raucous on spectacularly lousy food
4. Invest in the current Time Out Eating and Drinking. At £15 it's less than you'll pay for a plateful of battery acid and fluorescent colourings at most central London dumps, and is by far the most authoritative guide to mid-priced London restaurants that take our major national cuisines (Cantonese and Punjabi) seriously.
You don't need to shlep out to Southall for good South Asian. Just lok harder in the centre.
Feb 10th, 2008, 08:38 AM
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Again, thanks. The food tips are useful. We've got great Indian food here in North Carolina (we're right next to Research Triangle Park, which employs, among other folks, a large South Asian population), and even a bunch of shops selling bangles and Bollywood movies over in Cary, (where thursdaysd is from) about 20 minutes by car from Durham. I would definitely like to avoid the orange food coloring tikka masala!
So, we may go to Southall for the whole experience, and we'll definitely invest in the TImeOut guide to eating.
So, we may go to Southall for the whole experience, and we'll definitely invest in the TImeOut guide to eating.
Feb 10th, 2008, 10:07 AM
#10
"We've got great Indian food here in North Carolina " - I wish! Not agreeing with that is why I need an Indian food fix when I'm in England (where I grew up). True, there's the Biryani House (authentic on paper plates) and Saffron (more expensive but interesting) and I hear Raleigh's Royal Palace has a good buffet on Sundays. But I'd say we have some not bad South Indian places, and some only fair North Indian. Too many techie immigrants and not enough cooks, maybe.
Feb 10th, 2008, 01:54 PM
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I am an Indian food novice, but we have eaten at Noor Jahan on Bina Gardens and at the Delhi Brasserie on Cromwell Road. Flanner, do you (or anyone else) have any comments on these? FWIW, I liked my meal better at the Delhi B.
Feb 10th, 2008, 02:28 PM
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A bit of a tangent, thursdaysd, but have you tried udupi cafe and/or tower? I've heard from South Asian friends that they're pretty close, and for me (not South Asian), they've been good...But you're right, they are South Indian.
Again, thanks to all who have posted.
Again, thanks to all who have posted.
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