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Coconut Lagoon, 7, Goswell Rd London EC1M 7AH

Submitted by m on Tue, 29/08/2006 - 15:34.

7, Goswell Rd London EC1M 7AH

020 7253 2546

Indian restaurants. I suppose there are four main categories which cover the concept:

1) Local gravy houses that fling proprietary brand sauces over relatively recently cooked meat quickly easing your fifteen pints of lager through your digestive system.

2) Places where Indian/Pakistanis eat. Hot (generally a bit more spicy than us whiteys can manage) but cheap and generally brilliant.

3) Posh places with individual spices with top chefs with food totally at odds with what people eat on the sub continent.

4) Places like Coconut Lagoon.

We were deeply deeply disappointed with Coconut Lagoon. It apparently is the "Best of the Midlands". Yes, but this is London and AA Gill says everything outside London is "bilge". Dead plastic budgies and parakeets lean at forty five degree angles amongst the lush and overpowering plastic vegetation in this South Indian restaurant just recently opened in the Barbican.

Fawning toady waiters ask if its our "first visit" and then explain in heart-stoppingly tedious detail how the food is prepared and presented then spend most of the meal upselling - would you like some "nibbles"? A cocktail? Some wine? Our special bread to share?

Coconut Lagoon is awful. The food itself was alright but very expensive, but also lukewarm and in small portions. I can't be bothered to tell you what I ate because I do not want you to go there to waste your money.

And to cap it all - we asked the waiter if the "special lunch menu" was selections from the main menu. He said "yes". No, no, stupid Spies no. You see the thing is that, even although it was lunchtime, we should have ASKED for the lunch menu. This cost us a fortune. Do yourself a favour and avoid this place. M

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