Tabahi Karahi (Pakistani) – Hounslow
Tabahi Karahi is a ‘Traditional Karahi Restaurant’ situated in the heart of Hounslow that offers a varied menu.
While the cuisine is predominantly Pakistani, there’s also steak, shakes and “gourmet” burgers to be had.
With two lime-upholstered booths, and a comfortable waiting area nestled beside a non-alcoholic drinks bar, Tabahi Karahi’s large, spacious and modern looking dining area contains three wall-mounted television screens, and surprisingly heavy, solid wooden chairs and tables.
A large semi-open kitchen at the back completes the look of this fully Halal, 100 seater restaurant.
DRINKS
Virgin Mojito – Original & Pomegranate flavour £3.99 each
With a sweet undertone, these well balanced Mojitos delivered a super sharp lemony kick that had all three of us squinting in delight.
What’s more, the flavour was just as strong and intense 20 minutes later. Recommended!
THE GRILL / APPETISERS
Tabahi Platter £29.99 (Drinks not included)
Although the word tabahi roughly translates in Urdu, Punjabi and Hindi as “destroyed” or “ruined”, the term itself can, depending on the context in which it’s used, carry a positive connotation. In this case, it alludes to the Karahi on offer being so good that it’s guaranteed to “blow you away”.
With that in mind, let’s begin with their pièce de résistance – The Tabahi Platter, which comes with chips, £1.99, and a huge family naan, £2.99 (drinks not included), and find out if it really was “a Tabahi Karahi”.
Lamb seekh kebab (2 pieces) £2.99
In the end, these were so good that the only question we had was: why only two?
The smoky BBQ aroma emanating from these was only second to their deliciously flavourful taste.
These non-greasy kebabs – fairly well charred on the outside, but nice and soft and textured on the in – had a good bite to them, particularly the crunch of the onions, and were perfectly spiced enough to allow the heat to gradually build thereafter.
Butterfly grilled chicken £6.99
Moist meat and crunchy skin is all you want from any chicken; and with a delicately balanced masala rub that allowed for the anaseed, the first flavour to come through, to immediately give way to the subtle spices, this is one seriously good grilled chicken.
Masala Fish £4.99
Okay, so it looks strange and different; but, appearances are deceptive here.
What made this an interesting eat was the contrast between the crunchy, though slightly oily, batter and the soft fleshy fish on the inside. The entire thing had an addictive lemony taste to it.
This is definitely different and definitely worth a try.
Chapli Kebab £2.99
With a crumbly composition, this Chapli Kebab was certainly authentic in texture.
Unfortunately, it lacked any real depth of flavour and spice so distinct of such kebabs.
Chicken Wings £3.99 & Chicken Tikka £3.99
Chicken Wings were really well cooked. They were lovely with a solid spicy-lemony marination.
As for the Chicken Tikka, then these were well charred, succulent and soft, but not so soft as to lose that chewiness so familiar of a good chicken tikka. It also seemed to be marinated with the same chicken wing marination.
Lamb Chops £7.99
These chops were slightly on the thin and chewy side.
Despite being well grilled, the citrus flavour was a little too overpowering. Just needed perhaps a little more masala to counter all that lemon.
Coleslaw £1.99
An extremely creamy and crunchy coleslaw with a sharp, but lovely tangy edge to it.
As for the chips, then they were freshly cut and rustic in nature.
KARAHI
Chicken Tabahi Karahi – Q. £11.99, H. £17.99, F. £23.99
This deliciously creamy Chicken Tabahi Karahi delivered a powerful hit of instant heat that quickly and gently mellowed out to linger on the palate.
It has to be said, however, that we were a little taken aback by the £23.99 price point for a full chicken curry dish!
Nonetheless, an excellent curry underlined by the distinct yet harmonious interplay of spices.
Chicken Charsi – Q. £10.99, H. £16.99, F. £22.99
The masala base for this Chicken Charsi was strong and pungent, and pleasantly satisfying, with the spices and the flavour of the onion coming through well.
This was easy on the palate with the chicken being well cooked.
While one Lion considered this average, the others enjoyed the combination of flavours.
But again, £22.99 for a whole chicken curry?!
Nihari £8.99
With garam masala seemingly sprinkled over the top, be absolutely certain to give this a good stir before diving in unless you enjoy your throat being set on fire.
The lamb is incredibly soft – fatty in places and pink on the inside – and which literally fell off the bone.
An oily base with and a hint of lemon to it, the sauce was subtle in taste, but quite satisfying.
Haleem £7.99
Unlike other Haleems where the meat entirely dissolves with the lentil base into an amalgam, this remained fairly intact to ensure a good bite to it.
With a rich, creamy, thick texture, this was mildly hot with the distinct taste of garlic running through the background.
Not bad, but nothing that’ll knock you off your feet.
Family naan £2.99
The naan was huge and crispy, and a lot of fun to collectively pick at and enjoy the above karahis.
DESSERTS
Monster Oreo £6.99
This Monster Oreo both looked the part and tasted it too.
Thick and luscious, this vanilla and Oreo shake came topped with both the biscuit and a cake variation thereof – the latter being soft in texture.
More importantly, this was really well balanced without being overly sweet and sickly.
This deserves to be ordered with the main dishes.
Waffle-icious with Ice Cream £3.99
Ready made waffles are never a good thing, and the same was true with this wrongly titled Waffle-icious. The waffle bordered on resembling the texture of a cake rather than a waffle.
It would probably receive a better reception with kids with a far sweeter tooth than ours.
