The story
Amaya opened in 2004 where fashionable Knightsbridge meets elegant Belgravia, and has held a Michelin star since 2006. It is recognised as one of the most important Indian restaurants in the history of its genre, having created a generation of peers and chefs.
The restaurant’s theatrical open kitchen places the cooking front and centre, a design now fundamental in London dining. Here, the three cornerstones of Indian grilling are housed: the tandoor oven, the tawa (a vast griddle), and the sigri (a charcoal grill). These form the base for the finest meat, seafood, and vegetables, all cooked à la minute after being marinated in aromatics tied to India’s many regional cuisines. The result is vibrant, original cooking that, as The Michelin Guide notes, remains in the memory long after you’ve departed.
Drinks are equally rooted in the fruits, flowers, spices, and botanicals of India, with cocktails designed to match the intense flavours and striking colours of the food. Sunlit by day and seductive by night, the dining room is elegant and sleek, inviting guests to watch the masters of their craft at work. A luxurious private dining room, seating up to 14, offers a hideaway feel for larger celebrations or business gatherings.
Recognition
Ambience
Details
History
High quality cooking
Part of the MW Eat group (Veeraswamy, Chutney Mary and the Masala Zone mini chain), this classy Belgravia grill restaurant tucked down a passage beside the Pantechnicon has been plying its trade since 2004. Swathes of polished dark wood and seductive lighting create a contemporary, luxurious feel to the generously spaced dining room, which is bookended by a smart bar area and an open-to-view kitchen with tandoor ovens and tawa grills in full view. Several notches above your average curry house, it continues to tease and satisfy, experimenting with herbs, spices and ketchups via a line-up of bijou grazing dishes. Smoky and spicy jumbo-sized ocean prawns, fired in the tandoor are succulent, fleshy and spiked with ginger and tomato, while seared scallops are pearly pucks of similar stature in puddles of fresh coriander and coconut sauce. Oysters, crumbed and grilled, sit plumply in coconut milk (from whole nuts cracked open in the kitchen) with ginger, turmeric and chilli. Meat receives similarly impressive treatment: a marinade of spices and cheese helps to point up a beautifully tender black-pepper chicken tikka (with chilli paneer, date and sesame), while subtle spicing gives heft to a pair of juicy tandoori lamb chops, accompanied by puffed-up naan bread, glistening with ghee and showered in truffle. For a short season, there could also be chicken biryani with wild garlic, cooked in its sealed pot and opened at table to wafts of herby, garlicky steam. A typical meal might kick off with crispy cabbage and noodle salad with nuts, pomegranate and grapes bound by a splash of balsamic vinegar, while desserts are given an Indian twist – perhaps a miniature lime tart sharing the plate with a blueberry compôte infused with anise and a wobbly limoncello jelly. Service, led by a gracious maître d’, is quick and efficient. Contemporary cocktails mingle with a carefully assembled, spice-friendly wine list including almost two dozen selections by the glass (from £11).
3 Rosette Award for Culinary Excellence
Location
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