National Curry Week (5–11 October) is the perfect excuse to treat yourself to fine Indian dining, and few London restaurants champion it as confidently as Colonel Saab. Executive Chef Sohan Bhandari effortlessly weaves royal kitchen recipes, regional street-food favourites and home-style cooking into a menu that is both innovative and seriously delicious.
Crowned the UK’s Best Indian Restaurant at the latest Indian Restaurant Awards, Colonel Saab opened its first site in Holborn in late 2021, followed by this second restaurant on William IV Street, just a few steps from Trafalgar Square.
Chandeliers And Charm
First things first. Before talking about food, we need to talk about the fabulous decor. Colonel Saab is named after founder Roop Partap Choudhary’s father, Manbeer Choudhary, known as ‘Colonel Saab’ during his years in the Indian Army, and the restaurant is styled as a tribute to the family’s travels across India.
Expect glittering Firozabad glass chandeliers, an eclectic collection of Indian art and artefacts, a bar and lounge, a mezzanine and two private dining rooms. It feels grand without being stuffy, ideal for a celebration, yet just as welcoming for a weeknight curry. Even the walk to your table feels like an occasion with unusual art and artefacts scattered around the restaurant.
At the Holborn restaurant, an antique bar, made by Asprey for the Maharaja of Patiala, greets diners on arrival, the main dining room lit up by a canopy of ornate chandeliers while 17th and 18th century Tanjore paintings and handwoven Persian silk carpets adorn the walls. At the Trafalgar Square restaurant, the main dining room is just as opulent, lit by a canopy of large chandeliers that give the space a warm, glowing feel.
National Curry Week
Now in its 29th year, National Curry Week 2026 is a nod to England’s favourite cuisine and the perfect excuse (if you need one) to experience India’s extensive range of dishes. Colonel Saab does it exceptionally well with a menu built on regional Indian influences with contemporary flair.
Cocktails With An Indian Twist
We started with drinks from a cocktail menu handcrafted to celebrate India’s diverse ingredients and traditions. The signature in-house Colonel Saab cocktail (Monkey Shoulder whisky with chai and coffee liqueur) made an elegant opener, while I enjoyed an unusual and delicious Kadhi Sour (gin, chilli, lime, fenugreek, coriander, yoghurt wash and pickled onion), created for the restaurant’s fifth anniversary menu.
Our Starters, Mains And A Showstopping Kulfi
To share, we ordered Zimikand & Beetroot Tikki and Banarasi Amrood Ki Chaat. The tikki is a twist on aloo tikki, the much-loved street-food patty. Here it is made with zimikand (elephant foot yam) and coated and pan-crisped Calcutta-style with beetroot. It comes with a lime chilli pickle, beetroot murabba (a sweet preserve) and a homemade kasundi, Bengal’s punchy mustard relish. Slightly spicy, it is vegan, gluten-free and nut-free, which makes it an easy crowd-pleaser for mixed-diet tables.
Sweet, sour, creamy and crunchy all at once, Banarasi Amrood Ki Chaat is a playful take on Varanasi’s street-food tradition. Beautifully presented as a guava cone chaat it is served with tamarind chutney, raspberry sauce and spiced cream and topped with crisp gram-flour noodles. A feast for the eyes and absolutely delicious.
For mains, we enjoyed Paneer-E-Pukhtan and Kozhi Thenga Paal Curry with rice and garlic naan. Paneer-E-Pukhtan is presented as spice-stuffed grilled paneer on a silky shahi pumpkin and tomato sauce with butter-poached vegetables and pumpkin seeds.
The Kozhi Thenga Paal Curry was our flexitarian ‘meat’ choice, a traditional Kerala chicken curry in a delicious coconut-milk gravy.
Then, as a fitting finale, came the prettiest kulfi I have ever seen. Mango Kulfi Falooda a cooling homemade Alphonso mango kulfi with raspberry crumble, vermicelli noodles, soaked basil seeds and fresh berries.
A Real Treat, Not Just For Curry Week
If you are marking National Curry Week with something more special than a takeaway, Colonel Saab Trafalgar Square is a polished, generous and refreshingly regional choice – and a reminder that some of the best curries are built on vegetables.
A Real Treat, Not Just For Curry Week
If you are marking National Curry Week with something more special than a takeaway, Colonel Saab Trafalgar Square is not only a polished, generous and refreshingly regional choice but also a reminder that some of the best curries are built on vegetables.
But frankly, this is not a restaurant to save for one week of the year. With its showstopping interiors, thoughtful cocktails and a menu that rewards repeat visits, it is just as fitting for a birthday, a celebration with friends or a pre-theatre dinner in the West End.
All dishes are clearly labelled (VE, V, GF, DF and NF throughout) so everyone can easily order according to their own dietary preferences. Vegetarian and vegan options are definitely not afterthoughts. Dishes such as the Zimikand Tikki, Falahari Curry Kofta, Gutti Vankaya (Andhra-style baby aubergines) and Corn Methi Palak Malai with vegan malai sit confidently alongside the meat and seafood. For a table where some eat meat and others don’t, Colonel Saab is an easy place to share, whatever the occasion and time of year.
Colonel Saab: The Essentials
- Address: Colonel Saab Trafalgar Square, 42 William IV Street, London WC2N 4DD
- Sister restaurant: Colonel Saab Holborn, 193–197 High Holborn, London WC1V 7BD
- Price guide: starters £11.95–£36.45; mains £18.95–£31.95; desserts £9.95–£13.95
- Also worth knowing: the Holborn branch serves an Indian Sunday Roast thali (£42.95 for two courses, 1pm–3.30pm), with tandoori mains such as paneer tikka – a timely tip ahead of National Roast Dinner Day on 4 November.
- Book: www.colonelsaab.co.uk
Disclosure: we were guests of Colonel Saab for this meal. As always, all opinions are my own.
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