Review on Amaya

Billed as 'the Indian Bar and Grill', Amaya is the latest addition to the Veeraswamy/ Chutney Mary/Masala Zone stable. It struts its stuff in a prime chunk of Belgravia real estate overlooking Halkin Arcade, and trades on a celeb version of modern Indian cuisine. It's unashamedly ambitious and has quickly been lauded by the guides (a Michelin star in its first year), although the whole package comes wrapped in plenty of PR gloss.

The interior is dominated by a vast triangular dining area, extravagantly decorated with a riot of colourful murals, Indian statues, glittering chandeliers and coloured spotlights, plus a dazzling open kitchen where the chefs do their work. It oozes sleek, sexy glamour, and the aromatic, heady perfume of cooking wafts through the air.

An amazing array of dishes designed for 'gourmet grazing' are arranged in the centre of the table for everyone to share: eating with the fingers is expected. The cooking is based around three styles – tandoori, (clay oven), sigri (charcoal grill) and tawa (cast-iron skillet) – and the idea is to work you way through several items before finishing with a curry.

The kitchen doesn't care much for convention or clichés, so you might find rock oysters grilled with coconut and ginger alongside Vietnamese-style parcels of minced chicken in lettuce leaves with shavings of apple and coconut, or narri bara (a kind of lamb osso buco) rubbing shoulders with spotted grouper wrapped in pandan leaf with peanut and chilli sauce.

Biryanis, cooked in a pot with a bread seal, are as genuine, rich and comforting as you could wish for, vegetables fascinate at every turn and desserts include some crossover gems including 'chocolate heaven' (River Café's 'nemesis' with a twist) and grilled mango with passion fruit fool. Well-chosen wines, but Belgravia price tags.

Amaya is also featured in: Michelin Guide, Good Food Guide, Hardens, AA Guide

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Cuisine

Indian / Grill

Chef

Karunesh Khanna

Restaurant Opening Times

Lunch: 12.30 - 2.45pm
Dinner: 6.00 - 10.45pm (10.15pm Sun)

Accepted credit cards

Visa, Master Card, American Express

Online Booking Availability for Amaya

Facilities at Amaya

  • Disabled access
  • Private dining room
  • Private parties
  • Vegetarian menu
  • 100 covers
  • Family Friendly

Address

Amaya
Halkin Arcade
19 Motcomb Street
Belgravia
South West London
SW1X 8JT

Nearest tube station: Hyde Park Corner

Customer Ratings on Amaya

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Amaya Sample Menu

The unique culinary essence of Amaya is
threefold:

The broadest range and variety and of quality Indian grills ever seen under one roof using sophisticated marinades that add flavour and distinction.
The food is served as it is prepared. There are no conventional first courses or main courses.
The food is designed to be shared in a convivial fashion, and comes in tasting portions, 6-8 of these plates equivalent to a two course meal.

Amaya's food is prepared by the three core Indian grilling methods -

Tandoor, a really hot clay oven.
Sigri, which involved cooking over a coal flame.
Tawa, which is cooking or griddling on a hot thick iron plate.

The raw ingredients cover the panoply of seafood, poultry, lamb and game. These include lobster in the shell; king scallops large prawns, oysters, venison, and quail. Leg of lamb, duck and many others - each infused with a different marinade.

For the aficionados of royal kebab eating in India, where the culmination of the meal was a sophisticated biryani and curry, we also have a small collection of unusual curries and biryanis.

There is plentiful vegetarian choice, with over 12 vegetarian dishes including aubergines, sweet potato, baby pepper, corn, and broccoli. The Indian breads comprise a broad selection including a multigrain roti. The rice used for the biryanis is four year old basmati which has an incredible length and consistency.

Cosmopolitan desserts include a range of tempting, fruity and no sugar added.

Restaurant menus often vary from day to day, so the above should be treated as examples of what to expect in terms of cuisine and price.

Amaya Christmas Menu

Restaurant menus often vary from day to day, so the above should be treated as examples of what to expect in terms of cuisine and price.

Images of Amaya

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Virtual Tour of Amaya