Delhi Social

This was my second visit to Delhi Social since it opened in November 2023 on a busy street in Twickenham in a building that used to be a pub. As explained in my previous review, the head chef and manager were previously at Black Salt. The previous review also covered the wine list.

A pair of chicken chops was lovely, made from the thigh meat of the chicken and served on the bone. The chops were marinated in spices and then cooked in a tandoor. The end result was very tender meat that had nicely absorbed the spices of the marinade, served with mint chutney and a set of cooked onion rings (15/20). The fish pakora was also very good, a fairly simple dish of deep-fried pieces of tilapia, but with delicate batter precise cooking and a yoghurt dip on the side (14/20). 

Chicken biryani was good, with meat that avoided dryness and quite fragrant rice. It also had a quite lively kick of green chilli, which worked well. It would be nice to see this enclosed with a pastry case and opened at the table to retain the cooking aromas, but this was certainly a very good biryani (14/20). A spinach side dish was garnished with shreds of fresh ginger and had plenty of deep spinach flavour, enhanced with the spices it was cooked with (15/20). Kaacha aam prawn curry had carefully cooked prawns and a rich sauce flavoured with curry leaves, raw mango and coconut. I particularly liked the sauce, which did not use too much coconut and retained an excellent flavour balance (15/20). Aloo gobi was superb as it was on my previous visit. They have really nailed this dish, with the cauliflower and potatoes having a lovely texture and the mix of spices enlivening the vegetables (16/20).

The bill came to £64 with beer (and a cocktail) to drink and stacks of food. Service was friendly and attentive and there already seemed to be returning regulars just weeks after opening. The cooking at Delhi Social is of a very high standard and I highly recommend the restaurant.

Further reviews: 26th Nov 2023