As a foodie, the invitation to dine at Paro Indian Restaurant was one that I couldn’t pass up, nested in London’s Covet Gardens on Wellington Street. There is nothing I love more than receiving invitations to review some of the best restaurants in the country and the best part was Paro Indian is the sister restaurant to City Spice, a restaurant I reviewed way back in 2019. I was excited to receive the invitation to review Paro Indian Restaurant and was very eager to sample the incredible menu.
One of my resolutions from last year was to attend theatres at least once a month, so when the invitation to dine at Paro Indian Restaurant landed in my inbox, I couldn’t believe my good fortune as I had a theatre visit already planned. Unfortunately for me, I did not know that the incredible Paro Indian Restaurant was in the same building as the prestigious Lyceum Theatre. Having visited the Lyceum Theatre previously to watch Disney’s ‘The Lion King’, I knew it would have been the perfect setting to first have a pre-theatre meal at the restaurant and then head to watch the show, definitely something to think about for my next visit.
Disclosure – we were guests of Paro Indian to provide an honest review of our experience eating at the restaurant. All opinions and thoughts shared are mine and my guest’s own.
Dine at Paro Indian Restaurant
Paro like its sister restaurant is another modern-day Indian restaurant that serves some of the best Indian dishes inspired by the streets of Calcutta. I have sampled my fair share of Indian dishes and I must say, every single established I have visited has given me something to remember it by, whether the taste, the look, or the feel of the place. Paro did not disappoint as it managed to tick all three boxes, from the time we entered the premised, I was taken back by how gorgeous the restaurant was (very Instagrammable), and when we entered I loved the vibe of the place and the dishes we sampled, were top notch.
Our appointment was at 12.30 pm on a Saturday which was perfect because they open for lunch from 11.45 am onwards and close at 11 pm. As mentioned, we had a theatre booking at 2.30 pm and we wanted to give ourselves enough time to eat, relax, and slowly make our way to Soho. When we arrived at the restaurant, we were warmly greeted, and as they were expecting us took us directly to our seats. From the moment we walked into the restaurant we were in awe of the beautiful decor, when you enter there is a bar on your immediate right walking past it through an archway to the main seating area which is nicely decorated with flowers everywhere.
The decor alone was giving the best vibes and there was something about the bar area that just spoke to me (probably the drinks but I digress) and the bartender was bad on the eyes. I feel like a lot of London restaurants want not only to be ‘Instagrammable’ but have something for everyone and Paro Indian has found the perfect mix. From entry, we were quickly seated and like our experience at City Spice, we were served a pickled tray and papadums which is always a hit for me. I will say that compared to the City Spice, the Paro Indian did not come with many options but the taste was still the same which is always a plus in my books.
When it comes to the mains, I opted for the seabass malaikari and my bestie chose the Lamb Shank because we wanted to try something from the seafood section and another from the meats section. The seabass was done to perfection, I loved how it broke off so easily and melted in the mouth. One thing I must say was the sauce was exceptional, it wasn’t your typical malaikari, the flavors truly popped and loved the taste of the sweet coconut. My bestie had the lamb which I sampled as well, I loved how seasoned it was with Paro’s 48-spice mix although I found it slightly spicy, my friend enjoyed it as she loves spicy dishes.
To accompany our main dishes, we had the stuffed peswari naan bread and basmati rice although I must say I preferred the stuffed naan bread over the rice. The portion sizes for both main dishes were generous, we were so full at the end that we didn’t need any dessert. As a dessert lover, this was unprecedented, and was glad we had about an hour to walk around to digest the food before seeing the theatre show. I still wished we were seeing a show in the same building as Paro and in that case, we would have opted for the ‘pre-theatre menu‘ that has to offer which I think is reasonably priced.
Overall, the service we received was really good, whenever I visit establishments to review, I pay attention to the service provided to others and not just us. Seeing how other patrons are being received, treated, and served gives me a better feel for how the establishment operates, and where possible, I make a point of revisiting the place on my dime to see if the service received on the day is the same the next time round too. Paro-like city spice never disappoints but I will note that, during our visit, we were ‘overly’ looked after (almost crowded) but it was nice to see other patrons receiving the same treatment.
If you are ever in London’s Covet Garden and looking for somewhere to eat then give Paro Indian Restaurant a try, you will get both cute pictures and a delicious meal at the same time. The food is halal but please note they do serve alcohol on the premises. Overall, we had an amazing time, we have been recommending the restaurant to our friends who have also loved their experience and the price is not bad for London.
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