Picture of Sambal Kitchen And Diner, HA2 8HR

Sambal Kitchen And Diner, HA2 8HR

Sri Lankan restaurant in South Harrow, part of a small chain (though the other branches are takeaway-only).

It's not a large space, but has a fairly open feel, helped by the fully-glazed frontage offering a view onto the high street as well as plenty of bus-watching opportunities. Seating for 50 or so people is provided by brightly-varnished wooden chairs at small freestanding tables, lacquered in stone-effect grey. A large mural of tropical leafy plants and palms covers one wall, and a couple of what look like original paintings hang on another. In the corner is a bar with bottles of spirits displayed behind.

Kake visited on a Monday lunchtime in July 2019. Arriving just after their opening time of noon, I was the first sit-in customer of the day, though others arrived while I was there — by 1pm it was about half full — and several people were also in and out collecting takeaways. Music was playing very quietly.

I ordered from the set meal ("Sri Lankan dinner") section of the menu, choosing parotta with aubergine prattel, katta sambal, and masoor dhal (layered flatbread with aubergine curry, chilli relish, and lentils; £6.50) photo. There were two parottas; they were competently prepared, and the right amount for lunch. The aubergine prattel was fine, though I'd have preferred the aubergines not to have disintegrated quite so much. The dhal was very good, and I'd order it again. The sambal was also very good; spicy, flavourful, and refreshing.

Service was fine. A glass of tap water was brought on request. No service charge was added to the bill.

Accessibility: Two small steps to get in, and two doors, one push and one pull. Another small step to the handwash area and toilets at the back. The ladies' doubles as an accessible cubicle, but access to this is very narrow and you'd be unlikely to get even the smallest wheelchair through.

See also:

Last visited by Kake, July 2019. Opening hours taken from the Sambal Kitchen website, April 2019.
OS X co-ord: 514209 OS Y co-ord: 186329 (Latitude: 51.564284 Longitude: -0.353690)
Last edited 2023-09-05 13:55:29 (version 4; diff). List all versions.