Potli, W6 9NH
- 020 8741 4328
- 319-321 King Street, W6 9NH (streetmap) (osm) (gmap) (bingmap) (streetview)
- potli.co.uk
- Mon-Thu: noon-2:30pm, 6pm-10:15pm; Fri-Sat: noon-2:30pm, 5:30pm-10:30pm; Sun: noon-10pm
Indian restaurant in Hammersmith, advertising itself as "an Indian market kitchen". They also do takeaway and delivery, with online ordering via Hungry House.
The walls are painted in bright block colours, and the flooring is a combination of artfully worn tiles and bare boards. Colourful scarves are knotted here and there, and a display of paraphernalia at one end of the room includes a cast-iron teapot, a wooden box of fresh ginger, pestles and mortars, and a tiffin tin. Wickerwork lampshades hang above varnished wooden tables set with wine glasses, linen napkins, and side plates. Seating for 35 or so is provided by a combination of freestanding chairs and a couple of curved banquettes at the back.
Kake visited on a Thursday lunchtime in January 2017. There were no other customers when I arrived around 12:30pm, and this remained the case throughout my visit. Music was playing quietly.
Some interesting-looking chutneys were placed on the table as I sat down, but removed again when I declined to order poppadoms. Tap water arrived on request, with unsolicited mint leaves and lemon slice already in.
I went for one of the main courses on their lunch menu: Kerala fish curry served with pilau rice, naan, salad, and "vegetable of the day" (£8) photo. Overall, it was a well-balanced plate, with just the right amount of everything.
The fish curry consisted of two smallish fillets, crisply fried in a gram flour batter before being drenched in a flavourful but slightly too sweet sauce. The salad showed decent knifework, and was nicely varied, including green pepper, carrot, radish, cucumber, and lettuce. The "vegetable" was fried spiced potatoes, which were pretty good. The naan was doughy in a good way, with a crisp underside. The pilau rice was fine, studded with cloves, cardamom pods, and other whole spices.
Service was fine, though it was clear that the person working front-of-house wished he'd had more to do, as he spent much of the time I was there wandering around the room fiddling with things. A 12.5% service charge was automatically added to the bill.
Accessibility: A tiny step to get in; more of a ridge, really. No steps to the toilets, including an accessible one with nappy change facilities.
See also:
- Photos of the menu as of January 2017: main menu, lunch menu
- Evening Standard review (Fay Maschler)
- Time Out review
- Andy Hayler's review
- The Arbuturian review