ERIKI

Now and again you'll chance upon a cracker of a restaurant. In offering that holy trinity rarely found in Indian restaurants - excellent service, delicious dishes and a good atmosphere - ERIKI's one of them. You'll find it in swanky Swiss Cottage, close to the tree-lined neighbourhoods of Hampstead and St John's Wood. Spicy by nature and by look, ERIKI's decor is a sophisticated fusion of traditional imported Indian furniture and contemporary western finishes aka brightly coloured walls and gleaming white plates. Above all else, what marks this Indian out is the food. An impressive range of skillfully prepared dishes means that vegetarians and non-vegetarians are spoilt for choice. If you're after signature dishes, opt for murgh xacuti, a rich chicken curry with individually roasted ground spices from Goa, koh e rogan josh - a classic Kashmiri lamb curry, or from the a la carte menu, dum machli reshad, which is oven baked whole sea fresh grey mullet marinated in true Goan style with Kashmiri mirchi, garlic, shallots and palm vinegar. You could even go the whole hog and try a special Indian cocktail.