Excellent food we need and good ambience the staff responsible is great for there customers the good there is no words I'm quite happy about that no words for that read more

If you ever have the yen to head to India, but can't quite scrape together the time or the funds... or maybe you've already been, but are in the mood to reminisce, I suggest you hop on the District Line and head to East Ham. There's a plethora of Indian stores and restaurants on the East Ham High Street (and of course, the requisite population of Asians to patronize them... if you're anything but brown, be prepared to feel like a foreign minority - I've been stopped and asked if I'm "lost"), but after you've poked around a bit, I suggest you take a right out of the East Ham Tube station and head up the street to the vegetarian Saravanaa Bhavan restaurant for a delightfully tasty and authentic Indian meal experience. What's really cool about Saravanaa Bhavan (and what makes it worth the trek) is that they serve dishes that you've never seen anywhere in your run-of-the-mill Indian restaurant... and certainly not anywhere in Central London. Visually, you're in for a surprise. There are incredible inflated pancakes, mammoth tubes of golden crepes-like things three feet long, little tin cups filled with a rainbow of curries and sauces that you've never heard of before. For a lover of Indian food, this is a veritable funhouse of new and fascinating curiosities... you will want to look and stare and ask a thousand questions, and then, order everything! They have a couple of platter options, and for a first-timer, I recommend that you get both (especially since they're unbelievably cheap) - that way you get a good sampling of everything on offer. Plus maybe order a mashed-potato-filled dosa, just for good measure. The service is okay. The atmosphere is better than what you'd expect. But the food is delicious; good quality and exceptionally well-spiced - plus you really can't trump the whole novelty factor of the cuisine. Just be warned, the locals like it too, so on a weekend night you could be in for a bit of a wait... but consider this a fantastic sign - you're dinner will be worth it. read more

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Vegetarian South Indian in East Ham. There are a ton of them. So what distinguishes this one? ... and don't ask anyone, ask only a South Indian. They will tell you that this is a brand name. It's not great food - it's just alright. But the kitchen is clean and the ingredients are relatively fresh. That's really all I am looking for in an East Ham restaurant - hence the four stars. The thaali is a great deal for £6.95. So what's the problem here? I think, it is focus. A South Indian restaurant trying their hand at Punjabi/North Indian cuisine? Maybe. But it doesn't work here. They should focus on what they do best. South Indian vegetarian cuisine. One star off for this point. They should be whipping more from the South Indian vegetarian kitchen - different kinds of rice - lemon rice, curd rice, tamarind rice, coconut rice, etc. The Pongal, which is a decadent rice dish with lots of ghee, and a popular choice, is served only on weekends. Disappointing. They also need to work on the quality of desserts. Much work to be done here. Another star off for this. I believe, overall, three stars is a fair non-inflated rating. A similar restaurant in a metro city in India would definitely fare better on food quality. read more

Saravanaa Bhavan - Indian Near Me - London, XGL

I live not far from East Ham High Street and so for the many years walking up and down the high street, I had no idea that a great place like this even existed, where have you been all my life?!?!?! Even my friend who lives up Maida Vale knows about this lovely little gem! Oh the shame. They make Vegetarian dishes taste ever so lush! Yup it's a vegetarian restaurant! So many South Indian dishes to chose from and dishes I have never even heard of, i wanted to order everything off the menu but instead I ordered Southern Indian Thali...it was yumm! Good quality of food at reasonable prices, you cant go wrong! read more

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Priya the manager is excellent. I have been around Indian food all my life, still cant wrap my head around how much on the variety stemmed from the diversity of Indian R&R (Religion and region). First let me say that I do not like English version of the butchered Indian foods, the chick peas, the overly sweet curry, or the diarrhea like tikka masala. Real Indian food is challenging, the over whelming flavor is like a jalapeno, it's supposed to scare you, get your attention, which leads to an enthusiastic experience of sharing the dish's with your friends. Saravanaa does all that, around the world they are spreading like bootleg dvd's and counterfeit purses. But who cares, when it's great, not pretentious, this is where taste buds lead you. I should take off a star for the long lines, but in my heart, I cant. read more

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Very over-hyped with unfriendly staff. They have a Jain Menu but they hardly care about it, I've had multiple experiences with Onions in my Dosa and Sambhar spilled over my food which contains Onions. I wish they had better service and courtesy. read more

Saravanaa Bhavan - Indian Near Me - London, XGL

India is a big place - one big deformed ice cream cone on the world map. Usually us Londoners tickle our tastebuds with the flavours of the top corners, where the Himalayan ice cream spills over the edges - Mumbai and Kolkata. But what about the cuisine at the bottom of the big fat cone? This is thousands of miles from the land of the kormas that we know so well, but fortunately it is excellently represented in this row in East Ham in deepest East London. Saravanaa Bhavan is the most famous and popular of the dining options here in little Chennai, as well as being pretty much the same in real Chennai back in Tamil Nadu. That's right - this is part of a Madras-based chain. Is this Southern India's answer to Nando's? Well, no... it's chicken-free for a start - Saravanaa is a vegetarian restaurant specializing in gargantuan mouthwatering Dosas as well as a plethora of interesting vegetable curries like gobis (cauliflower) and a ton of things made with paneer (cheese). It's cheap, it's busy, it smells great and it buzzes with locals enjoying the taste of their hometown. If you're new to this food and confused by the menu, then plump for the Southern Indian Thali - a circular lunch box of 6 or 7 curry samplers, along with two breads, rice, raita and a delish sweet creamy dessert (£6.50). It is such good value that the menu screams at you 'not allowed to share!'. Haha My final tip for a real culinary adventure is not to miss out on some Chinese food while you are here. Yes, you read that right... Saravanaa also does Indian Chinese dishes like Paneer Sichuan and Gobi Manchurian. Sure, they are about as Chinese as Nigella Lawson cooking a yorkshire pudding - but the Indians love them and after trying some myself I'm fully with them on this. read more

It's ridiculous how inexpensive this place is. You wont get 5* service, but you will get a huge meal, and fast fast fast service. I normally end up here when there is a large family outing (normally 10+ ppl!) and the bill usually comes to about £5 each! No, that is not a misprint! The food is good and filling, and the "ambience" is non-existence, but ambience-schmambience! £5! i've been here about 20 times in my life, and no doubt shall continue to do so. this particular branch doesnt serve alcoholic drinks, but some of the newer ones do. read more

If I can give this place a zero star I would! THE WORST INDIAN RESTAURANT I HAVE EVER BEEN TO! (and I've been to ALOT) The service was HORRIBLE! After waiting a good 30/45 min we got to order. Not like they were busy that they couldn't assist us. The place was empty. The employees were sitting there socializing with each other. And when they did come to take our order half the things we asked for they no longer offered and then some of the things that WERE offered were for dinner (we had gone for lunch). So menus were not updated. And after about an hour of waiting for food and drinking the hot water that was given to us when the food finally came it was cold. Tasted stale and looked like it had been sitting out for a while. All of us got sick after we left. The worst experience ever! Overall: -horrible customer service -not updated menus so no idea what you're ordering -hot water and cold food -long waits -stale food makes you sick cause its been out for so long Save yourself the torture. read more

Saravanaa bhavan is an international chain of South Indian restaurants with branches in the US, many places in London as well as the Middle East. I've been to a couple of the middle eastern restos and a couple in the outskirts of London and I am happy to proclaim that I am greatly impressed. They do maintain the standard of the food and the price points are quite low. I am a regular for a sunday brunch. The food is good on the whole - especially for what you pay. The dosas are a bit greasy but hey, you gotta eat the grease while you can right? The best part for me though is the filter coffee. Reminds me of my favourite coffee from back home in Kerala - from Indian coffee house (ICH). Word of warning though - if you are thinking of just quickly coming in for a dinner over the weekend, be ready to wait fr upto 40 mins in the bitter cold outside since these guys a super over subscribed ;) read more

Rude staff, floor being swept when you are eating, half of the dishes on menu not available. If there was an option, I would have given negative rating. read more

I had been searching for the same delicious, authentic south indian food that I get in California and was failed miserably in central London so far, and found that the same exact restaurant I used to frequent in Sunnyvale is in London too!! We ordered ghee idli and sambar vada to start with and a buttermilk drink--cool & refreshing! We ordered the set dosa and rava masala dosa and yummmy!!! they came with three sauces-- i loved the red one and the sambhar soup was warm and well spiced. We finished off the meal with two coffees, and can you imagine that the entire thing costed us £15???? Crazy - I am in LOVE with this place and cant wait to go back again :) read more

Best place to go for all sorts of dosas. Don't miss their great side dishes too, like chilli paneer, devilled potatoes and idli. Can be super busy on weekends so prepare for a wait. read more

We had heard that East Ham was a good place for Indian restaurants and we had a recommendation from friends to visit this restaurant. I am pleased that we did. It is a vegetarian restaurant, but that doesn't mean that the food is bland. I had the South Indian meals and my partner had the North Indian Thali. I would recommend both of these. Each had approx 10 different "tasting bowls" of various dishes. Mine had a huge poppadom in the middle and also came with rice that I could eat with the dishes. It was well priced and also filling. The restaurant was very busy when we went - there was a line for tables and it took about 15 minutes for us to get a table. But, I took this as a sign of the quality of the food. Even though it was busy, the service was attentive. I never felt that I was waiting for someone to pay attention to me. read more

I am very fortunate to live a short bus ride, or a longer walk away from some of the best south Indian in London, if not THE best, and perhaps in the whole country. I've been to a fair few in the last 2.5 years I've lived in East Ham but I'm not sure why it's taken so long to try Saravanna Bhavan. A large group of us went on a Tuesday night at 8pm and the restaurant was packed. It seems to always be busy, which says a lot in my opinion, and especially with groups of Indian friends and family. Apparently this restaurant is famous for it's dosas, which were huge and delicious with a nice amount of spice. Some of the group had thalis to get a mixture - the north Indian one seemed to be preferred to the south Indian one. I had a delicious and creamy paneer dish with a couple of rotis. It was a little rich, but if you're sharing dishes with others then it's a great choice. The mango lassis were spot on. My boyfriend didn't want the heaviness of a lassi but wanted the refreshing mango taste so went for the mango milkshake. It is actually made with ice cream so as heavy, if not heavier than the lassi, but absolutely delicious! The only two reasons this restaurant loses a star is because I prefer the food at two other local south Indian vegetarian restaurants and that I think they have too much on their menu. It's overwhelming. It also has Chinese dishes, which seems odd. They should stick to south Indian as it's what they do best. I'll definitely be back though. read more

This is a regular haunt for us. The food is cheap yet delicious and the service is fast and efficient. it's authentic South Indian food for a great price. The place is always packed and there are usually queues out the door. the takeaway is just as good and the staff are really friendly. I really couldnt recommend them enough! read more

Fantastic, authentic Indian food that is always perfectly cooked. Staff helpful and happy to advise as to what would be best suited to your tastes (and they don't just advise you to go for the most expensive :)) just don't go here if you're expecting meat! It's very reasonably priced. My advice: order the mango milkshake. And avoid the thali and north indian meal. Neither are anywhere as good as everything else on the menu and are considerably less good value for money. read more

This restaurant is my childhood. I've been going here ever since I could remember with my whole family, and sometimes just me and a couple of friends. Over the years they've made the food a lot less spicy, and even reduced portion sizes. Still really good food and authentic taste, but I only hope they try to become what they used to be like. The restaurant mainly appeals to Caucasians these days. read more

The best chicken diner pita I have had. Their lettuce and veggies were fresh with the right amount of sauce. Top off with additional chutney. We went here twice while in London. read more

I have been there and had my food.good quality of service. Enjoyed my time with friends. Important thing was that the staff were nice and asked for extra stuffs they didn't mind it. read more

If you love or want to try south indian food this is the place to go. A one stop shop for Idlis, Dosa and Vadai. I seem to favour and favourite the idli vadai sambar this is one things that i have most often or not have. Have i been here - a good couple of times. Value for Money - Oh yea. read more

I really loved this place until recently. I had an unfortunate incident after which I stopped going there. I took some of my good friends for a lunch at this place. We were about 15. Everyone enjoyed the food. Half of them weren't even Indians. They ate as much as they could, tried several dishes and we all left the place happily. But unfortunately the after effects were bad. 6 of my friends suffered a serious case of food poisoning. No one knows what was the cause, but 6 of my friends who had food from there had vomit, stomach ache, diarrhea and nausea. They had a hard time recovering for two days. I have reported this incident to them. And they were very kind and understanding and inquired more about what we had on that day and what allergies my friends could have had. And I have decided not to go there again or take my friends there ever. I will miss my South Indian filter coffee, but I'd rather die myself than get my friends killed. read more

Ordered Mango lassi, Masal Dosha, Sambar Vada & Navatan Pilau rice. Except Lassi rest all tasted shit. Pilau was just a mix of ordinary rice and Pnaple slices. Upon complaining he got it mixed with other couple of vegetables but there was no cashew or raisin in it. Vada was very small and hard in water like sambar. Dosha was filled with stale potato, onion curry. Highly recommend people to avoid this restaurant read more

Bad food (caused stomach upset) and bad service (served food with nuts despite having checked with the servers that the ordered food didn't have nuts). read more

Great, tasty and if you try healthy food.. Ideal for a Sunday brunch.. Paper masala , thriveni finished off with a filter coffee .. Service not brilliant but at these prices And quality of food- I don't mind really.. read more

If you want tasty, quick and cheap south indian food, this is the place to be. Its the best value for money in a restaurant that you can get anywhere !.. My wife & I go there and pig out for lunch and then takeaway some food for dinner. It costs less than 20quid. Service/ambience is so-so but it is fast. Its also a family joint, so be ready to get some screaming kids next to you. Its all worth it though as it reminds me of home. All this writing has made be hungry. I'm off to Saravanaa Bhavan now ! read more

This is a bit of a favourite of mine! The service is great! Always get a friendly welcome! The food is very reasonably priced and the food is great quality and delicious! read more

!!!Honest review!!! Food and service at east ham saravana Bhavan is awful and tastes horrible. Went to EastHam Saravana Bhavan on 15-Mar-2015 along with couple of friends. The service was pathetic and the food was horrible without any question. Never knew the recipes were different at each branch; which the waiter lied about abundantly. All four of us had stomach upset later that evening and turns out to be food poisoning, we have had such incidence before and thought that might be a one off, but this proved I was wrong. If you are really looking for a quality food and have a nice time with family and friends; Saravana Bhavan is not the right place. The worst South indian food I have ever had and the staff are ridiculous and treat you like a piece of shi*. Avoid this crap hotel by all means if you can. If there was a option I would have rated it -ve. read more

Great tasting food, just like its' original restaurant in India. Reasonable price. Watch out for its complicated washroom, though clean!

The worst service ever! I think the only reason people visit this place because Indians love to eat indian food....nothing else! The service is so slow am sure a turtle would win against them. For the number of tables they have enough staff but all of them pretend to be 'oh so busy'....u keep waving ur hand and they will go right in front of you without checking. We see the dosa is ready but by the time they bring it to our table it gets cold. They give drops of chutney. The last thing a south indian restaurant should be trying to save on is the chutney. I understand some ppl might be wasting it.but you can always check that. They take ages to bring the chutneys. The worst experience ever. And by the way I have been there many times coz my husband likes dosa. But if we had any other better option we will never go there.this place lacks all respect, please , thank yous to the customer.they behave as if they are doing us a big favour by giving us a table to sit and food (btw for which we pay) to eat. I wish the management does something about this. read more