Malabar

If India was Italy, this would be a great little trattoria, albeit one specialising in dosai. Malabar does a great job of this southern Indian classic - crisp pancake with the addictive tang of a cultured rice flour batter. Vegetarians are well looked after with the likes of patti samosas (deep- fried pastry triangles stuffed with peas and onions) and wonderfully complex cauliflower bonda (dumplings) in a spicy chickpea batter. Chaat (battered spinach leaves and spiced yoghurt) is a great flavour combination but could have been crisper. In keeping with southern tastes, curries are hot, yet the individual spice notes shine through. Goat is served in the traditional way, roughly chopped and on the bone, with rich marrow oozing into a fiery, Kerala-inspired mappas sauce. Prawns balachao are fresh and crunchy, swimming in a pungent, onion-sweet red gravy. Flatbreads are a high point, especially gloriously flaky paratha and toasty naan. Also at Crows Nest