LDNReview
Included In
If we learnt anything from binge-watching The Affair and our secondary school debate team, it’s that there are two sides to every story. And that’s true for a lot of restaurants as well. For every tasty dish, there’s a waiter who seems to get their kicks from giving you the stink eye. For every shiny, charming setting, there’s a cocktail menu that reads like your shopping list the week you turned eighteen. And for every excellent, mop-clean Indian dish at Kama By Vineet there’s the fact that its setting causes a fair few problems.
Just like our mothers taught us, we’ll start with the good things first. The things that make it the kind of place you countdown your return to like you’ve got a monumental crush on their chocomosa. Yes, a chocomosa. In case you’ve never had to decode a celebrity couple’s name, that’s a chocolate samosa. It’s great. But still not a touch on their savoury chickpea chaat samosa. Or the pistachio lamb chops that come with a saffron mash we’d ghost a spud for any day. It’s the kind of meal where you already want to make another booking before dessert even hits the table. And you should, because everything from the rich butter chicken to the creamy lemongrass prawns are the kind of keepers you’ll perform a seasonal Piccadilly line pilgrimage for when you remember just how good they are.
photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli
But. Yes, the inevitable but. And it’s a big one. Kama By Vineet is a little 26-seater next to a bunch of other mini restaurants inside Harrods’ dining hall. It’s like a millionaires market where the prices are high, the oysters are cold, and the jaw-dropper ceiling is more royal crypt than restaurant hall. It’s sophisticated and surprisingly intimate once you’re seated, but the dining hall closes when Harrods does - a PG, pre-watershed 9pm. How are you expected to finish work, three courses, and a bottle of Chablis before Channel 4’s even allowed to show a single nipple? Last orders are called for at 8.30, and if timing isn’t on your side, you can end up playing favourites between the last of your peshwari naan and your dessert. Plus, running two floors to the closest toilet whilst Hulk Hogan’s clone shouts that “the shop has already closed” makes for a pretty shit digestif.
Now over to the defence. None of that would really matter if this was the kind of place that was easy to leave. But it isn’t. This is the kind of rich, pricey meal you want a solid, three hour sitting to celebrate, and then, fuck it, another mango lassi after that. You want to be able to enjoy it with zero pressure and no time limit over your head. You want to get comfy on the banquette seating and look like your own stomach is serenading you with Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien mid-biryani. Because that’s how tasty the food is. And if you come here for lunch, or can live with an early curfew because of that 7am jiu-jitsu class, you’ll have a fantastic meal. That’s not up for debate.
Food Rundown
photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli
Samosa Chickpea Chaat
Onion-Spinach-Cheese Bhaji
photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli
Pistachio Lamb Chops, Saffron Mash, Pomegranate Kernels
photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli
Coconut-Lemongrass Prawns
Butter Chicken
photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli
Lobster Chettinad Biryani
Garlic Naan
photo credit: Giulia Verdinelli