Randomness Guide to London - Differences between Version 18 and Version 17 of Indian Veg Bhelpoori House, N1 9EX

Pure vegetarian, all-you-can-eat Indian buffet restaurant on Chapel Market just a short walk from Angel Station. As of September 2011, the price is £4.50 for all you can eat from the buffet.

According to a conversation Kake had with a staff member in April 2007, everything is vegan apart from one yoghurt dish; indeed, they have a sign on the wall inside stating that they are "Heaven for vegans". I also spoke to a chap outside who thoroughly recommended it and told me that he'd been eating there for ten years.

Bec comments: Cheap and cheerful, three different kinds of rice, lots of veg curry, dal, salad bar and fried stuff.

claud comments: As a student living in halls nearby I have taken advantage of this buffet on two occasions. The quality of the food is not impressive but certainly value for money, but since having been to bhelpuri houses in India I cannot stomach the thought of returning. Should be tried once, or twice if you didn't have enough time to peruse the signs on your first time. (Especially the one in the basement exclaiming, "Vegetarian food can be really ORGASMIC!!!")

lizw comments: As claud says, the signs alone are well worth the trip. Unlike some of the reviewers linked below, I found the staff friendly, helpful and efficient. As soon as you arrive, you are seated and given some cutlery, and then you can just help yourself. It's completely self-service, including the drinks, so you take what you want directly from the large refrigerated unit rather than ordering from a waiter. When you're done, you simply pay at the till on the way out, which was straightforward and fuss-free; I don't know how they were keeping track of what people took from the drinks unit, but it seemed to work. I was eating alone, and as various of the reviews say, it is a very comfortable place in which to do that. I really appreciated that brown rice was available, which is rare in London (my digestive system balks at white.) The food on offer during my visit consisted of two different kinds of coleslaw; various sauces; various fried nibbles and bhajis; poppadoms and plain naan; brown, white and piloa rice; dal; and three types of veggie curry - one with potatoes and peas, one with what I think was paneer, and one with beans and other veg. I ate the spicy coleslaw (nice), brown rice (as you'd expect), bean-based curry (okay) and dal (absolutely delicious - I had a second helping). I also had one of the Whole Earth sparkling juice drinks, which was £1.90 (clearly the drinks are where they actually make their money.) It was a no-frills, but pleasant experience, ideal for a quick and reasonably healthy veggie meal on the way to something else. The price has gone up recently, but still felt like decent value. I will definitely be eating here again.

See also:

• London Curry Addicts comments
• islington.org.uk comments
• The English Can Eat review
• It Ends With Dovi review
• Qype comments
• secretlondon's photos of the signs

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