While there may be no shortage of Indian restaurants in and around Ealing and its seven towns, one which offers reasonably priced and decent food is always going to be popular. Only opened for a couple of years, Indian Villa, located in Ealing Common on the site which formerly housed the popular sushi bar Atari-Ya, is no exception.
It’s well worth trekking over to Ealing Common to dine out at this tiny but excellent establishment, which serves a range of Indian menu staples alongside some bolder, more original options that I haven’t before seen on a menu.
The weekend is a good time to visit as they offer a Sunday buffet during the day, although we visited on a Saturday evening, with the restaurant welcoming a decent number of eat-in customers while doing a roaring trade in takeaways. The place has been redecorated since the Atari-Ya days in warm and welcoming tones, with the paintings on the wall and sporadic greenery giving it a modern, Mediterranean feel.
We took advantage of a special offer via restaurant booking app The Fork which gave my guest and I half price off all food and desserts.
The staff could not have been more welcoming and helpful during our visit, recommending dishes off the menu for us (we were particularly grateful for their suggestion of the Chef’s special Potatoes 65, potatoes cooked in a tangy sweet chilli sauce) and ensuring we were well-stocked for drinks, poppadoms and other treats.
We initially ordered starters of salmon tikka and an unusual paneer dish with pineapple, something I had never seen on an Indian menu before. The paneer was beautifully grilled, served in slices with big chunks of pineapple which tasted fresh and sweet. And while fish on an Indian menu can often disappoint, the salmon was delicious, served in a green coating which packed just the right level of spiciness without overwhelming the flavour of the fish. Both were served with a generous portion of salad in what tasted like a tamarind dress, and both would easily have been a meal in themselves despite being starters.
Despite feeling full already we pressed on with Tarka Dal and the aforementioned Potatoes 65, along with one of the best peshwari naan breads myself or my companion had eaten in a long time, warm, fluffy and full of a tempting orange-hued coconut paste which gave the perfect sweet contrast to the rest of the food. The dal was equally good, packed with lentils and flavour and a hint of chilli, while the potato dish was an unusual but excellent addition to the meal.
Of course dessert was impossible to resist, and we shared a bowl of what was billed as mandarin and chocolate rice kheer – an Indian rice pudding. There was little hint of the promised mandarin while the chocolate turned out to be sauce drizzled over the top – but it was no worse for that, the dessert also offering tastes of coconut and pistachio in among the rich, creamy rice.
Drinks are also reasonably priced here, with a medium glass of red coming in at £4.70 while Cobra beer is also available either in bottle or on tap. Some Indian wine would have been a great accompaniment to the meal – and there are some great ones out there – but the Argentinian Malbec I had worked just as well. And for those wanting something non-alcoholic, you can get a decent range of reasonably priced soft drinks also.
Our total bill including drinks which included the half price food, came to just under £40.
Overall, this was a great dining experience. Indian Villa is a small but welcome addition to Ealing Common – and it’s worth making the journey there even if you don’t live nearby.
Indian Villa overall rating: 9 out of 10
Indian Villa is located at:
1 Station Parade, London W5 3LD
Tel: 020 4537 0016
Web: www.indianvillaealing.co.uk
