Ragam

Ignore the bright lighting and soul-destroying interior, and go to Ragam. Absolutely stunning Keralan food, served at very affordable prices - simple as that.
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wendy
8 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 10
Monday, October 03, 2011

These people should learn customer service.

Take away menu reads something nice and worth for price..but what is given is half of it.

When asked later on, says its only for eating in...and further goes to make useless excuses saying the menu was changed!

Such a rip-off! Stay away!
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Annoyed customer
1 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 0
Saturday, October 01, 2011

Have been going for years. Usually great but current cook is very disappointing. Food took a long time to arrive and was nowhere near as good as it used to be. Chappatis were hard and inedible.

Would have a better chance of getting meals to the table at the same time and properly cooked if they served meals in order, not latecomers first.
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6 Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 7
Wednesday, October 06, 2010

Ragam is a great restaurant - really tasty food, lovely service and such amazing value!! We eat out a lot and it's one of our favourite places to go.
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c
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 10
Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Not a run of the mill Indian restaurant, Ragam offers a good choice of dishes including lots not seen in other restaurants. This is not a fancy place (not for a first date!) but offers good cooking at a very reasonable price with friendly and helpful service. Customers are a mixed group : families, students, couples, friends. Wine from £10 per bottle, starters £3 - 4, mains £ 6 -8 means a good value, tasty meal. Recommended.
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Rob
8 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 10
Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Not much to look at and off the beaten track but this place serves up top drawer South Indian food. If you're the kind of person who needs to have a Chicken Jalfrezi or Lamb Rogan Josh, don't waste your time coming here and taking up a table. If you're interested in trying authentic home cooked style Indian food then it's worth a visit.

A masala dosai to start was not mind blowing but very good. We then went for a selection of dishes to share each of which was beautifully cooked and full of flavour. The stand out dish was the cauliflower curry, slightly crisped with caramelized onions and a sweet sauce. The aubergine curry was also excellent as were the chick peas (no houmous style mush here). The fish curry was almost as good as my mother's and the dahl was a banker. I cannot wait to go back there again and try some of the other dishes.

Service was functional and friendly - what else do you want, a massage? It's a curry house.

The poky room and paper tablecloths were, if anything, reassuring. To me there is nothing worse than a curry house pretending to be something that is not with prices to match.

We ate more than we should have done with some beers to wash it down and it came in under £20 a head. Job's a good 'un.
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A Siva
9 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 10
Thursday, April 22, 2010

Very poor attempt at an Indian restaurant. Simply do not understand the majority of comments here. Local place with zero atmosphere and surly service. Plain, basic unexciting and below par food.
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Al Kellar
1 Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 1
Saturday, December 26, 2009

My wife and I have been coming to this restaurant for three years. Food is delicious. Very delicate and efficient service. The environment is not glittering but you would feel just like at home. Our favourites lentil and spinach and chicken korma curries.
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Carlos
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 10
Friday, October 09, 2009

Modest little South Indian near Warren Street tube. Service and ambience both good. Masala Dosa and Meat Masala Dosa starters were both pleasantly spiced and tasty. Dal and Okra mains also good. Giving 6/10 for the food may be a little severe on my part but I only ordered simple stuff. Beer nice and cold - ideal for a hot day. Not an 'occasion' venue but ideal for decent reasonably priced eats. I'd definitely go back.
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Rex - View all reviews by this user
7 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Thursday, June 25, 2009

I don't care about the praise mistakenly heaped on Ragam by the Fay Maschlers and Matthew Normans of this world, but the food cooked here is decidedly not as authentically spiced as in Kerala. By that I mean Ragam's spicing is very mild to suit the Western palate.

That said, our Malabar Chicken sauce was fragrantly aromatic. PIty the pieces of chicken were on the ungenerous side. The Keralan Mutton Curry was more bone than meat (lamb). I wonder why the waiter eagerly recommended us to select the "on the bone" version. Rich sauce, though, was delish.

Unfortunately, the classic Masala Dosa - surely the test of any S. Indian restaurant? - was quite unremarkable. I am almost certain colouring is added to the accompanying chutneys and pre-prandial pickles. The far too smooth texture of the green and red coconut-based chutneys was also uninspiring and insipidly unspicy. The Sambar, though, was good (tho' more sweet than mouth-wateringly hot). As was the Green Banana Curry and Beetroot Thoran.

The most disappointing dish was the Spicy Fried Fish strongly recommended by the waiter for its spice factor over the Meen Poothi (baked fish in banana leaf). Spicy? My left foot! The sweet Beetroot Thoran was spicier! The spiced fish coating was thin and hugely lacked oomph although the flesh of the fish itself - kingfish - was v. tasty.

To conclude, I found Ragam's decor to be its sole saving grace. There is something quaintly charming (and nostalgic) about eating amidst the paraphenalia of a wannabe Kerala Tourist Board Office of the sleepy local branch (and not headoffice) variety.
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- View all reviews by this user
7 Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 6
Sunday, March 08, 2009