Sartaj Balti House

I have been using this Restaurant for about 8 years now and I have never had a bad meal there.

The food is always of the highest quality, it is very reasonably priced, the nan is the freshest and biggest you will ever eat and it is in a great location.

The staff are always very friendly and there is no waiting around for ages for the food.

I eat a lot of indian food and I would say this is definitely my favourite place, here's to the next 8 years!!
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Jamie
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Tuesday, October 07, 2008

i love this place, its one of my regular places i like to eat at. They do the best chicken tikka i've ever tasted, the nan bread is always more then enough, and the portions are resonable. i always get good service and they are friendly too.
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Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Sunday, May 18, 2008

We, a German couple and an English friend, visited this restaurant during lunch time yesterday. I had learned about it and the perfect and well-sized naan bread on the internet. Although my partner was not very keen on eating Indian we had persuaded him to give it a try. We all had the chicken tikka massala (two with mixed veg and one with spinache) and were delighted, especially with the naan bread - its size and taste were absolutely fantastic. The service was good and the waiter and I had a nice chat about the restaurant's and the naan bread's history. All in all, we had delicious food and drinks and were pretty satisfied, even my partner!
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adayinLondon - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Saturday, March 08, 2008

I am an American from DC, and we have a number of award winning Indian places in the area. Overall I would rate this place good to very good.

The service when I visited, late on a Thursday was excellent. I had meat samosa and lamb balti tikka massala. The samosas (2) were very good, but small.

The lamb was also very good, however it was not as hot as I would expect for a tikka massala as I usually get in the states.

I thought that the prices were very reasonable and it has a nice location away from the Covent Garden station. The total price for my meal and 2 beers was 22.50

I would recommend this place as a good non-tourist restaurant.
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J C from DC
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Thursday, July 26, 2007

So I must start by disclaiming that I'm an American, albeit a "foodie."

I lived in London for a year, and tried just about every Indian restaurant on the map. Without a doubt, Sartaj is the best Indian food I've ever had. Bar none. I used to eat there about twice per week. Upon becoming a regular, I was treated like gold. Instead of menu's, my server would check if I wanted "my usual" or something new that the chef would be happy to creat for me. I work in the restaurant business in New York City, and I eat out at New York's best kitchens practically every night of the week. In the 5 years since I lived in London, I've tried Indian restaurants in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, and many places in between, but have never come close to the consistently great experiences that we enjoyed at Sartaj. It's comfy, not pretentious, and let's the food do the talking. I recommend the create your own Balti, and make sure to include the chicken tikka. It's the most tender and succulent you'll find anywhere. Let Zagat and Michelin rave about Bengal Tiger (London), Spice Market and Copper Chimney (New York), and Anarbargh (Los Angeles). You've found the best hole-in-the-wall Indian restaurant in London. You lucky bugger. Bon appetit and happy eats...
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Todd - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 10
Friday, June 01, 2007

Went with a group of 8 for a friend's birthday. We ordered two mixed startes which were small and not meant to share (though this may be obvious to others...). The group enjoyed Kingfisher beers and very reasonably priced wine. The "baltis" were a nice touch but unfortunately very hard to share, we were under the impression that balti suggested a communal dish. The food was quite tasty and no one could possible go hungry with a family naan on the table. Though they charge 1 pound for the chutney/achar/relish accompaniment - they are very flavorful and worth the extra quid.

The most frustrating thing was the service. We were practically begging them to clear the table of used glasses, dishes etc, until we finally gave up and started stacking our used dishes at one end of the table. The waiter STILL took 5 minutes to clear these - unbelievable. The final bill was higher than I estimated and with no breakdown for the different charges, which made it difficult to know why the price seemed higher than expected (still a very good deal though).

That said, I would go their again with a buddy to get my own "balti" of curry and naan for the before 7 deal, but certainly not a place for a nice dinner or a date (nor a group).
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- View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 9
Wednesday, May 23, 2007

We went here before going to see Chicago on a Friday night and it started the night with a bang!

Prompt service, although not very chatty (and my Dad likes to chat) and pleasantly chilled, reasonably priced bottles of Kingfisher.

I had read the reviews on this site before booking a table - quick point, be sure to book because although there was only one other person in the restaurant until 7, it quickly filled up afterwards - and was "bigging up" the family naan. We decided not to risk it, and shared a plain naan between three. We didn't finish it.

The curries come served in an actual balti! Only reservation was that they cooled very quickly, and a hot plate would have been useful. However, the food itself was delicious (and only order 1 rice per 2 people. A lesson we learned at our peril!) three different curries, three very satisfied stomachs. WE were sad to see so much be returned to the kitchen but we had completely overordered! The restaurant does a great pre-theatre deal, something like any balti and unlimited naan for £7.50. Highly recommended.
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Kirsty, London
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 9
Thursday, March 29, 2007

When in town we try to make our way here for the infamous naans which are huge. We refer to the restaurant as 'The big naan curry house' to friends. Try as we do we still haven't managed to get through a family naan yet!!

top drawer
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food lover - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, November 21, 2006

The meal was very good. I was traveling alone so did not get to sample a great deal. Started with the appetizer sampler and all items on the plate were very good. Enjoyed the Lamb Rogan Josh though there could have been more meat. The naan was massive and just right. Prices were good by London standards and the service was very attentive. Prices were surprisingly good especially considering the proximity to Covent Garden. Have eaten at several Indian restaurants on my regular visits to London. This is the best so far.
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John Kost
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, September 12, 2006

Thoroughly enjoyed the meal with a friend; the food was excellent and prepared exactly as I asked. Portions were generous (the naan bread is gigantic) and the staff were pleasant and quick.

Only minor quibble was the price, but for the amount of food it wasn't too bad a deal. Would recommend ;)
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Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 6
Wednesday, April 12, 2006