A genuinely exciting concept – Tamarind Tiger

WHEN money is tight, it’s the grab-and-go food shops that always feel the heat. High streets across central London are saturated with take-aways, often relying on office workers to turn a decent profit. A chunk of their customers now work from home; others are making their own lunches to save a few pounds.

Tamarind Tiger is a new player on the scene, offering their take on cheap and healthy Indian food. Their first branch in Baker Street, next door to an Itsu, a chain that cornered the market in noodly broths and Asian dumplings.

Directly opposite is a Pret a Manger – always reliable, but where a flat white coffee now costs well over £3.

Tamarind Tiger first opened before the Covid lockdowns. The owners also run the Copper Chimney at Westfield in Shepherd’s Bush, the first UK outpost of a successful restaurant chain in India that was established in 1972.

The food at Tamarind Tiger is designed to be more a fusion of Indian flavours than strictly authentic cuisine.

As you walk in, a drinks bar on the right serves masala chai, single origin Indian teas and coffees and cold drinks such as a mango cardamom lassi.

To the left, the fridge is stocked with wraps, tubs and salads. Grab a curried cauliflower or Kerala chicken wrap for £3.75; a bowl of chickpea curry with quinoa upma for £5.75.

The real action is at the back of the room, where eager staff dish out the hot food.

Tiger tiffins are a star dish: they fill a box with your pick of carbs, curries, salads and chutneys. I went for a layer of Sona Masoori brown rice with turmeric cauliflower, a beetroot and fennel salad and masala beef meatballs.

They offer fun ways to customise your creation. I added a handful of sliced chillies and zig zags of cumin yoghurt and spiced coriander chutney.

To try the full range, my friend went for their chicken tikka pao burger for £6.75: tender marinated meat in a soft bun with tomato chutney and a crunchy kachumber slaw.

Their Samosa Chat is a top tip: a textural explosion from two warm samosas on a bed of slaw and curried chickpeas, sprinkled with puffed grains and a dollop of tamarind chutney for £5.95.

At the check-out, it’s hard to resist their tantalising extras – from crisp lamb samosas to gunpowder spiced potato wedges.

It must be tough getting the balance of flavours right in a place like this. Dial up the heat and some people splutter; play it safe and others complain.

What you can’t fault is the sheer wholesomeness of the cooking. You can load up on pulses, wholegrains and fresh vegetables while the spices help ward off the winter cold.

The Tamarind Tiger concept is genuinely exciting, with Indian flavours in a grab-and-go style.

It has the potential to expand but fingers crossed – trading is tough right now.

Tamarind Tiger
13 Baker Street, W1U
@tamarindtiger.uk
www.tamarindtiger.com