Chakra Holland Street: Indian food

Sometimes a change of scenery is needed to get everyone excited, be it for a company or in this case, a restaurant. Chakra in West London have done exactly this and moved to a new location in Holland Street. Their new venue on Holland Street provides an intimate dining experience. the white walls and simple layout welcome you to a peaceful space.

Chakra brings fine dining to the Indian food scene and being near Notting Hill this restaurant does not feel out of place. Set on a nice road on Holland Street opposite the Elephant Castle pub this restaurants draw is their elegant menu. The menu appeals to your intrigue more than anything with crisp lotus, black cod, tiger shrimp and many others.

Spice Crusted Tiger Shrimp

The style here is like a usual curry club where you order to share. we were advised to go for a dish each for the starter and main. I was slightly cautious about this and ordered an extra starter just because it looked so good. We went for crusted tiger shrimp, clay oven paneer and tandoori chicken.

These starters were all so tasty but quite similar in flavour. The tandoori mix seemed to be on all and I wish I had sampled different flavours. I think three starters were a bit much too; it's always good to listen to your waitresses especially after you have asked them for help.

A new take on Mango Kulfi

For our main course we ordered just two dishes between us (as advised). For this we went for something a bit different than the usual and ordered Black cod, which was cooked in a clay oven and a Sweet Potato, Okra and onion salad. Two dishes you would not usually expect when going for an Indian, however they were very tasty. The different textures in the salad made it extra tasty and I am increasingly becoming a fan of okra. The Black Cod was light and delicate but had a different element, due to the fact that it was cooked in the clay oven. A hint of smokiness and a tender fish make this a good dish to share.

As a finale/dessert we had the chocolate soil and the Mango Kulfi. The Kulfi definitely stood out for its inventiveness and design. Usually Kulfi comes as a lolly pop style ice cream, this was completely different. Drinking from the tubes whilst gulping down the ice cream was an experience in itself and then having fresh mango on the side helped settle down the rest of the meal and evening. The chocolate soil was okay, I would not order it again but the name had enough appeal to make me order it. I would recommend having the Kulfi and Gulab Jamun when you visit.

I really enjoyed my visit to Chakra and was grateful for the invite. Good food with a relaxed and intimate vibe in the restaurant was nice. When you visit go for something a bit different as the chef here is aiming to impress. Expect good quality and good portions and be lazy after and get an uber home too. Live life and enjoy the ride.