Making Waves

A new generation of Indian restaurants and bars is reinvigorating London’s dining scene.

- Khushbu Shah

ON A TEMPERATE SATURDAY NIGHT in London, I followed the host down the stairs to the packed communal table at Kricket's Soho location, one of three in the city (kricket.co.uk), to meet a friend. A playlist of Bollywood bangers and certified hits from the early aughts bounced around the restaurant, opened in 2015 by Will Bowlby and Rik Campbell, as the plates started to touch down at the table: super craggy and crunchy Keralan fried chicken topped with perfect circles of pickled radish and crispy curry leaves, a sweet-and-salty kulcha stuffed with dates and pistachios that easily could have passed for a more glutenous baklava, a comforting khichdi made with hunks of smoked haddock and a burst of corn kernels, and a thick slab of paneer swimming in a pool of creamy, tomato-spiked malai sauce. The robust menu drew inspiration from all over India: The fried chicken was from the south, the paneer from the north; the khichdi blended the flavors of several states. Other dishes found their origins in the coastal state of Goa or the street-food traditions of Mumbai.