Even three years after opening, it is still very hard to get a table at the Tamil Prince. And rightly so. The restaurant may be off the beaten track, located in a restored pub in Barnsbury, but perseverance pays off. Get lucky with a booking (they can only be made 28 days in advance for a venue that has just 40 covers) and make the visit. Diners won’t be disappointed.
Prince Durairaj is the man behind the venue, and he hails from India’s Tamil Nadu state – hence the restaurant’s name. The angle, however, is less food from southern India and more about providing comforting curries. Take Dishoom’s cooking style and put it on steroids – that’s what you get at the Tamil Prince. Even better, there’s none of the formality that comes from dining in a typical restaurant. Your author has previously lamented that there should be more posh pubs serving curry. There is little better than being installed on a bar stool with a pint and shooting the breeze while snacking on okra fries.
The Tamil Prince’s iteration of this simple dish was superb. Each fry was wafer thin, packed with flavour and pleasingly ungreasy. Onion bhajis were even better. A mint dip acted as a perfect foil to the fried goodness. Hat tip to the local who recommended these. We deferred to our server for her advice on the mains: lamb chops and Thanjuvar chicken. The former was, of course, the most expensive item on the menu. At £35 for four chops this, however, represents a relative bargain, particularly compared to the £69 recently charged at Ambassador’s Clubhouse for just a trio. They were also delicious. Prince’s secret is apparently to marinade the meat for over 18 hours in masala spices. All are homemade and roasted in-house.
No meal at the Tamil Prince would be complete without sampling the venue’s roti. Arguably one of south India’s most famous culinary exports, the venue’s version comprised a wad of buttery fluffiness. From our table, the open kitchen was in full view. Watching the chefs preparing the rotis can be a quite mesmerising experience. Come just for this.
We were delighted not to be rushed at any stage despite the less than two-hour dining window we had been given for our table. Also, don’t shout it too loudly, but by 9pm on a weekday night, the Tamil Prince was beginning to empty out. Save the hassle of competing for a booking. Turn up to eat fashionably instead. We will certainly be back.