Star Rating

* * * * * * * * * *

Elephant God 

218 Hoe Street 
Walthamstow 

London, E17 4SA   map

Tel : 0208 521 5458
Web Site

In a word: outstanding. There are four things which go together to make a good restaurant: ambience, service, quality of ingredients and flair with cooking.  The Elephant God scores pretty high on all four, in my view.

We mostly prefer a take-away when we’re not cooking ourselves (so we don’t have to leave our beloved dog behind!).  I didn’t have a  phone number, so decided to call in and then wait for my order (15m).  The place has been thoroughly refurbished; the rather odd, cold lighting of the Cumin has given way to warm colours of rich orange and purple (see the website for an impression), with wooden figurines on the wall and a pleasing overall attention to detail.  Service was informally attentive – just comfortable.  The new owner “Naveen” was very ready to explain his background in the up-market hotel trade, and his pitch at “fine dining” in Walthamstow.  The couple sitting near me certainly seemed very pleased.  Of course a bit of the magic did evaporate as I trudged back down the High Street with my carefully-packaged dinner. It had been a bit more expensive than I’d expect for a take-away. Would it be worth the extra? Oh yes...

While most “Indian” restaurants are in fact Bengali, the Elephant God is indeed Indian, with chefs from both the North and the South.  The menu has a few familiar “faces” and also some more distinctive ones.  I’d chosen Kebab Selection for two, Adraki Murgh, and Lamb Pepper Fry, with the usual rice and bread accompaniments (Just over £30, including my beer while I waited).  The kebabs were very good cuts, beautifully prepared, and including an intriguing cut of filleted fish, with a dusting of green spice.  The Adraki Murgh had a delicious delicate sauce with tomato, balanced with hints of coriander and chilli.  The lamb was a dark and rich dish, with the benign and exhilarating heat which comes from really skilful blending of spices. Real quality throughout.

This place is really, really good, and my only hope is that it gets enough support early on to establish it securely as one of the borough’s best restaurants.  The menu’s on the website: www.theelephantgod.com. Warmly recommended (no connection).

Just to put this in context, I tried a Thai curry from one of the Hoe Street take-away-only bars a while back.  I’d asked what the difference was between Thai green curry and Thai red curry (apart from the obvious). She didn’t know. I suggested that someone in the kitchen might, perhaps? A few minutes later she came back with a shrug: “Doesn’t say on the tins.”

Philip Herlihy
June 2010