Forum Topic

Personal restuarant recommendations in Ealing

We have built up a small selection of restuarants that we use frequently in Ealing, and I though a thread of personal recommendations would be fun.Here are our top recommendations:Osteria del Portico (Italian): 7A The Green - very authentic with friendly staff. Standard menu but well executed, with special Sunday lunch offer.Okawari (Japanese): 13 Bond Street - popular with interesting seating arrangements! Lunch special is excellent value (exc. Sat). Ramen (soup and noodles) is good, as is the chicken katsu curry. Venue could do with redecorating but food is always consistently good and service fast.Karaam (Lebanese): 71 New Broadway - we favour the vegetarian set meal £30 for 2 inc. wine; the aubergine mousakaat is delicious. Not tried the kebabs but they look good although they seem to come with chips ...Silom Village (Thai): 57 The Mall - unassuming venue but the food is terrific. Chicken Satay is delicious, broccoli with garlic sauce sublime, and we also like the pad thai and singapore noodles. Always very generous and fast service even when busy (and despite there only being 2 servers - they are very industrious!).Please post your favourites so we can share the good times!Merry Christmas all

Matthew Brady ● 6859d48 Comments

I can endore the first and last but have never tried the japanese. For American we have enjoyed Starvin Marvin.

Graham Weeks ● 6859d

As a Thai restaurateur in the borough, I will refrain from adding my biased opinion :)

David Archer ● 6859d

The Polish cafe in The Grove where the select few had the last meet was very good.

Graham Weeks ● 6859d

Momento (Italian), Northfield Ave: Particularly good pizza (wood fired oven), nice salads, rest of the dishes pretty good too. Friendly service (even though staff turnover seems high).Maxim's (Chinese), Northfield Ave: Consistently good. Best sesame prawn toast anywhere (very thick helping of prawn). Sizzling chicken in black bean sauce also exceptional. Monty's (Indian), Northfield Ave: When (the now defunct) Flavours of India started up, it was the best Indian restaurant in the area, but Monty's (which had always been pretty good) responded by improving. Does the standard stuff very well indeed, helped by very friendly staff and a warm welcome.

David Fox ● 6859d

I've enjoyed Papaya on Northfields once or twice...

Kirsty Murdoch ● 6858d

My favourite restaurant is Chisimath in West Ealing.  I might have mentioned it once or twice ;-)  Other oft frequented places are Spice of Hanwell (near the junction of Drayton Bridge Rd and Greenford Ave), their new menu is excellent, La Siesta on Bond Street and Cafe Rouge on the High Street.My (grown up) children really love The Hare and Tortoise on Haven Green - it's their first choice for Birthday meals.

Jane Salisbury ● 6856d

Chisimath is one of our regular and favourite oriental restaurants in Ealing. We're particularly fond of their Singapore Laksa(flat rice noodles, seafood and chicken in a spicy coconut soup) and their steamed sea bass with ginger and spring onion slices(usually only £12). It's a very clean and bright restaurant, well presented tables with biggish spaces around. The staff are always pleasant and efficient. Oh and they do very reasonable lunch-time buffet service...about £5 a go...eat as much as you like. We've been using Chrismath for years now...it's one of the best oriental eateries in Ealing! Also, they do an excellent 'finger-buffet' party food service...it's excellent.  ;-)

Gerry Tan ● 6853d

Oh and Butler's Thai restaurant on South Ealing Rd is also very good!

Kirsty Murdoch ● 6852d

One of our favourite Ealing eateries is KARAAM, the excellent Lebanese restaurant opposite the Town Hall on the Uxbridge Road. Went there for lunch yesterday and had their Lahem Meshwi(lamb cubes on skewers with tomatoes, onions and mushrooms) and Warak Inab(vine leaves stuffed with rice and pine nuts) and a fresh Tabouleh(parsley salad with lots of mint and lemon) – a great change from the usual Christmas fare of the last week. They do an interesting range of fresh fruit juices too.Agree about Osteria del Portico(on Ealing Green W5 – next to Carluccio's), especially in the summer when sitting in their covered mews-type seating behind their impressive front gate – good quality and comprehensive Italian menu – excellent olives for appetisers. Have recently re-discovered GINO's restaurant(The Mall, Uxbridge Road, opp the Polish Church). High quality Italian with appealing white linen tablecloths and comfy seating – had escalope of veal and fegato(calves liver), both of which were brought in individual small sizzling copper frying pans in which they'd been cooked – brought and served at our table! Plus a selection of freshly cooked vegs. Quite a stylish place these days – used to be a bit ordinary and dull before – think it now has new owners. A good eating experience is Gino's – not too pricey either, which is a blessing!  ;-)

Gerry Tan ● 6852d

The Portugese restaurant OPORTO(opp the YMCA and TVU on St Mary's Road W5) is a very pleasant place for a bite. very reonably priced too. Nice seating outside under umbrellas in the summer too. Interesting tapas-style dishes and they do two different baccalaus(spelling?) - though a bit too salty for me and squid and other fishy dishes. Good selection of salads. Like their Portuges wines - well priced.  ;-)

Gerry Tan ● 6852d

Here I am on the forum before breakfast and hungry from reading Gerry's reviews. We are due 17 family to lunch here New Years day.

Graham Weeks ● 6852d

Sounds like feeding the multitude Graham!  Are you doing the cooking?  Or the washing up?  And what grace is said at the Weekes table?"Some hae (have) meat and cannot eat Some cannot eat that want it: But we hae meat and we can eat, Sae let the Lord be thankit"  ;-)

Gerry Tan ● 6852d

Where in Ealing would one go for a real slap-up Burns Nicht supper next month?  I really fancy some cock-a-leekie soup, followed by some chewey haggis, neeps and tatties and then some crunchey bannocks and cheese. Does any Ealing restaurant do this, with all the pipers anaw anaw and speeches and free flowing drams?  :-o)

Gerry Tan ● 6852d

Actually OPORTO do great breakfast too if that's what you're after!

Kirsty Murdoch ● 6852d

Agree Kirsty, OPORTO do some great 'brunch' items. If we've had a 'heavy' Saturday night party, we get up late a have a 'brunch' of fresh orange juice, ham omelette with chips and strong coffee, plus a copy of The News of the World(they have papers too) - delicious! Yes, we love OPORTO in St Mary's Road W5. Such nice people there too ;-)

Gerry Tan ● 6852d

I will help with the food and lead in washing up. Grace will be from seven year old granddaughter.

Graham Weeks ● 6852d

Richardsons"s do a good haggis if one has to do it DIY.

Graham Weeks ● 6852d

The Grange at Ealing Common is excellent - good service and healthy portions. Charlotte's on St. Matthew's Road is also very much worth a visit particularly in the Summer

Andy Jones ● 6846d

Happiness Garden Chinese restaurant is my personal favourite on Boston Manor Road.  A bit off the beaten track if you are used to Ealing Broadway but it's not far - eat as much as you like for £12.00 (or similar) but rather than being a buffet you choose from the menu and it's all freshly cooked.

Celine McElwee ● 6846d

Momo Japanese Restaurant in Queens' Parade, North Ealing is excellent and the set lunch menu is good value.Cafe Grove in The Grove has been mentioned - superb pancakes, best I've ever had.Joie de Vivre on the corner of Sunnyside Road and St Mary's Rd does some of the most interesting and tasty food in the area, Lebanese.For lunch time salads and sandwiches, eat there or take away, Farm W5 is fantastic. The mixed salad box to take way (choose your own salads) is a really satisfying meal.Charlotte's Place continues, sadly, to be a big disappointment. We'd given up for about a year because of the poor service and so-so food, but decided to give it another try for a recent birthday lunch. The service was slightly better, though not great, but the food was VERY disappointing. We could really do with a high-class restaurant in Ealing (come back Parade, we beg you). Charlotte's Place has the prices and the decor, but not the main attraction, the food.

C Gray ● 6846d

No posting of recommendations for good eateries in Ealing should happen without mention of the excellent WALPOLE restaurant(in St Mary's Road W5, near TVU). By day, it's a top rated breakfast and lunch establishment and on Friday and Saturday evenings it transforms itself into arguably one of the bestest restaurants in sunny Ealing. Run/owned by Louis who's chef in his well equipped modern kitchen and Wendy who does the front-of-house stuff along with a small team of excellent young waitresses/waiters. Imaginative and tasty dishes from 2 or 3 course menus – fabulous cocktails and good winelist – efficient and friendly service and always an excellent eating experience. Portions however are still too large IMO.OKAWARI continues to delight(13 Bond Street W5) – had Yasai Tempura(deep fried thin sliced vegs) to start...we went on to Tonkatsu Ramen(breaded thin pork slices) in noodle soup with vegetables and also some Ten Don(prawns tempura and veg). Nice Japanese staff – asked one of them what the word OKAWARI meant...it's Japanese for "an elegant sufficiency" or "no more, had enough" or similar – not a lot of people know that! I certainly didn't 'til I arsked!  ;-)

Gerry Tan ● 6845d

I agree about Charlotte's Place(near the Grange pub top of Warwick Road/Ealing Common)... half our friends hate the place and the others love it. Nicely done out now. The jury's still out for us, though we haven't completely given up yet. Funny thing that.  :-(

Gerry Tan ● 6845d

I love Okawari....(maybe bias because I love Japanese food)..Good value, good food, and very local :)

Joanna Dabrowska ● 6845d

Sushi Hiro just opposite Ealing Common station has to my taste the best sushi in London.  Better and much much cheaper than many of the places in town.Okawari is great too - lovely ramen - although I've yet to try their karaoke room.Papaya is exceptional, although their lunch deal has recently got a little bit worse, with a poorer selection and a quid more for the food.I'm hungry now...

Leon Markham ● 6844d

Reading these makes me want the return of lammas,com

Graham Weeks ● 6844d

"Papaya is exceptional..."Agreed Leon, we went yesterday evening and the food was very good indeed - we love that coconut milk taste in many of their curries and they have a great range of interesting starters. Used to go when they first opened(a few years ago) and found the food OK but smallish portions and their early service was rather poor. It's brilliant now and we like the way they've decorated the place and that there's plenty of room around the tables - do dislike "cheek-by-jowl" eating. We think PAPAYA is exceptional too.

Gerry Tan ● 6842d

Amen brother - Lammas.com had excellent restaurant recommendations.  www.london-eating.com is very good but it has absolutely minimal coverage of eating places in our own great borough.

Leon Markham ● 6842d

And another one - if you can bear to go as far east as Acton - North China on the Uxbridge Road (on the Ealing Common side - just by the bus depot) is amazing.  Some of the best Chinese food I've had - high quality, not too greasy and very tasty.  It's always rammers on a Friday or Saturday evening but well worth a visit.  For my money it's the second best Chinese in London, after the wonderful Yming on Greek Street in Soho.I really am getting hungry now.

Leon Markham ● 6842d

I have always been a fan of Zhi Noo the Persian restaurant near the crossroads of South Ealing Rd and Popes Lane. Have been going there for about 5 years now and had many excellent meals, the owner is very friendly and the food good and cheap. It used to be busy especially Friday and Saturday nights when there was live music but seems to be quieter now. The grilled meats are my favourites and the rice is the fluffiest I have ever tasted!!!

Ben Lavender ● 6839d

Best cook in Ealing is Claude at the Castlebar (near the firestation). He is french as is Abel who runs it.They claim their materials come from france too.They recently put on a 6-course tasting menu with a wine for each course, these werent small servings either. For under £23 it was truly memorable food. But keep this fairly quiet, we dont want the prices to go up.

Paul Gibson ● 6839d

I notice that there is a new Indian resturant in Northfields Ave. I think it is called Posh something or other? Has anyone tried it yet?

Susan Biddulph ● 6838d

Where abouts in Nothfield Ave please?

Gerry Tan ● 6838d

Gerry, it is Posh Punjab, which is where Flavours of India used to be.

David Fox ● 6838d

We went there a couple of weeks before Christmas - food was very good and the people were lovely.  They were still doing electrical work which resulted in a bit of disturbance - they gave us 25% off the final bill by way of recompense.  We also got free dessert as the chef was trying to decide which flavours of ice cream to have in.I thought it was very good indeed - although with Papaya on Northfield Avenue and Ealing Balti on Uxbridge Road, the competition is fierce.

Leon Markham ● 6838d

This is a delightful topic. May I veer slightly off message and ask about the best delis in Ealing?  I'm still searching for some really good salt beef. One of my favourite snacks is some warm salt beef...thick'ish slices...in a crusty roll with lots of mustard and slices of sweet pickled cucumber. Sheer bliss!  ;-)

Gerry Tan ● 6837d

Gerry....and next door to Nells, which is now under new ownership.. an Albania couple..who provide good cafe nosh.  Shepherds pie and fresh veggies is very popular!

Jim Lawes ● 6837d

Interesting!  Do you know if they still do excellent coffee?  How does the food compare to Anne's cafe?I always loved the coffee at Nell's but the food at Anne's - making hungover mornings even more painful.

Leon Markham ● 6837d

Fans of Monty's in Northfield Avenue might be interested to know that they've opened up Uscha on the Uxbridge Road.  I was there recently and had the most amazing Lamb Dansak, the lamb literally melted in my mouth.  It's also a lot quieter than it's Northfields sister.  Therefore a lot easier to get a table.

Mandy Reen ● 6835d

Charlottes is the best restaurant currently in Ealing in my view although I think the general standard is below places like Hammersmith and Chiswick. I have a soft spot for My Old Dutch simply because the branch in Fulham was one of the first restaruants I went to in London and Carluccios is consistently good.

Paul Cavanagh ● 6832d

"...they've opened up Uscha on the Uxbridge Road."Please tell us whereabouts on the Uxbridge Road? Thanks.

Gerry Tan ● 6832d

Hi Gerry, I have seen it, but not tried it. It is on a corner close to the Fire station. I am going to try the Posh Punjab tonight I think, will add my review if so.

Susan Biddulph ● 6832d

Uscha is close to the Castlebar pub, on the corner next to the little car park, I think it used to be called the Ealing Cottage and then it was the Clay Oven for a while.

Mandy Reen ● 6830d

How was Posh Punjab Susan?

Gerry Tan ● 6827d

I notice that Chiswick now has a Michelin star restaurant. When will we in Ealing get such an eatery I wonder? Which one of our Ealing restaurants comes anywhere close to having one?

Gerry Tan ● 6825d

I believe that the chef at Charlotte's place used to work at Trompette.  There is a whole world of difference though - Ealing really just doesn't have anywhere to compete.  Charlotte's has been raising its game of late I feel, but they are still some way off having the kind of food and service that a place like Trompette can offer.And sadly I think, for fine dining, Charlotte's is the only game in town.  I've had some good food at the Walpole but they are VERY variable - we once ordered four medium-rare steaks and they all came out done differently.  You can't run a restaurant like that!

Leon Markham ● 6825d

Matthew, it is very sad that Ealing doesn't sport the sort of "good" restaurants that some of our neighbours do, but I have read the many recommendations and certaintly agree that they provide good grub.I'd like to add just a few more:Gastro Pub food - If you like the Grange, do try the Ealing Park Tavern - more like a food hall in atmosphere, but really worth it - lovely service (even with child) and the menu changes so often I've never had the same thing twice - sometimes that is a disappointment if I have thoroughly enjoyed something and would dearly like to eat it again!Lebanese food is a firm favourite of mine. Going downmarket from Karaam, do try the cafe Beirut on 145 Uxbridge Rd - they sent a flyer to my door early in Jan and I have been there once for lunch and used their takeaway service around 5 times since! Great Lebanese food, amazing prices, free delivery in Ealing, and their "Beirut Special" plate is 5.99 takeaway is amazing value, so great for lunch times.(PS. If you love Lebanese, you cannot miss Abu Zaad on the Uxbridge Rd in Shepherd's Bush, simply the best food, especially falafels I have ever had).Spanish: Don't forget Domingoes on Northfield Ave - they have been going for years, run by a Portuguese family. The service is impeccable - lovely ladies who run it like clockwork, the food is good. Calamari, stuffed peppers, broad bean stew, tortilla - mmm. A good friend of mine who is Spanish rates it, so that is my benchmark!Happy eating!

Melissa Davies-Wright ● 6824d

Sorry Gerry, didnt go. We decided to stay in and get a Bayleaves delivery, great as ever! would love to know what it's like though, just maybe will have to wait until January is over and I venture out again.

Susan Biddulph ● 6824d

Would there be any interest I wonder in forming an Ealing Dining Club?

Gerry Tan ● 6821d