Woodlands Restaurant Piccadilly

Amazing food, good service, good bar. Drinks choice is very nice. Its our favourite place for indian food. Good rendering of the traditional dishes without losing the authentic touch. Very reasonably priced even been located at Piccadilly circus. Its my family's fav place too. Kids are also happy with different variety of tasty snacks. Very friendly staff as they take time to explain about food if you are not sure what to order.

South India food is subtle in its flavouring and gentle on the tummy. We had dhosas and a tandoori platter to share, and I had a tandoori pineapple for dessert with coconut ice cream. Lovely! All politely and discreetly served and modestly priced. £61 for two including a bottle of wine - excellent value for central London.

The restaurant was outstanding, the staff were very friendly and helpful. Meet all our requirements - most importantly the food was great. We had a celebration for 30th birthday - made it a great celebration. Well-done to all the members of staff.

After my not-so-thrilling 'Thriller' experience at the Lyric, I was in need of some nourishment and Google suggested Woodlands as the nearest vegan restaurant. Definitely worth a visit. Don't get frustrated by the slow service, chat a little, read your emails, make small talk and then about 25 minutes later you'll experience the best Indian vegan food ever. Excellent...

Delicious range of vegetarian curries, all dishes being distinctly flavoured and not tasting alike as in many curry restaurants. One dish in particular reminded me of curries I've eaten in India ( the mushroom curry I think....we had a few between us). Excellent naans too

Good option for Indian food. A medium spicy taste and for dosa craving 😃😋

A nice restaurant serving South Indian and North Indian food. The taste is near authentic, slightly adapted for the western audience. The Dosa is nice and crisp with generous amount of Sambhar. The ambience is decent. *They also have Jain options available*

+1

Mix of South and North Indian dishes, mainly street food. Easy on the tummy and tasty. Service not bad. The toilets need some tender loving care. Credit cards accepted including American express. Close to Leicester Square.

+1

We dint have to wait as we entered the restaurant as we had a reservation. We were attended to immediately. The food was great. Service was slow though. But otherwise the ambience is good. Location is quite convenient. Taking a star away since the steward was being funny. Also the portions are considerably small. Each person needs his own curry.

A decent place to have Indian food. The food quality is okay but on the flip side it is pricey in comparison to similar restaurants. Service is okay. Ambiance and hygiene is fine. The location is not wheelchair friendly. Easy to locate and lots of transport option near by. Restrooms available.

Good place for vegetarian and vegan. But very less portion. Not worth the money.

I liked the food but the price doesn't match the quality. Way too expensive for what we received. The place is ok and staff too but I won't go back. Such a shame since it serves all vegetarian and vegan food which is what I'm always looking for.

Food is good , but some items were clearly frozen and defrosted before being served. The place is small but they make most of it. Service is okay, could be more attentive. I don't understant why is so pricy , being a vegetarian. Other reastaurants offer better location and service at better prices.

Food is tasty, but portions are really small for the price. Staff are a bit surly. One waiter tried to hurry us out of the restaurant ("can we have the table back so other people can sit down?"), but then it took an age for anyone to give us the bill or take payment. There are better Indian vegetarian places around.

I used to love this place. They had authentic, good food. I hadn’t been for few years so was eager to get back when I was in town the other day. We ordered their “Batura” which was nothing like it used to be. This is meant to be a fluffy puffed up deep fried leavened bread but what we received was disappointingly not that. I don’t think it was even recognisable as a Batura. We went on to sample their their tandoori roti which my husband compared to whole meal pitta.... it is NOT meant to taste like that. Even the butter naan didn’t taste authentic any more. I am guessing they have a new chef and his/her strength doesn’t lie in Indian “breads”. All this would have been “meh” had it not been for the expensive bill at the end. The food simply didn’t match up to the price. Deeply disappointed. We won’t be coming back again.

Service was slow but polite enough. Timing of food delivery was inconsistent. Cashew pakora was unusual and tasty, but the saag paneer was mostly tasteless. Both tables across from me had problems with their bills and orders also, for what that's worth. Guess it's good for veg food in a pinch.

Authentic south Indian cuisine which is fresh and tasty and enjoyable. Attentive staff. However fairly spartan setting which is narrow and down some steps: feels more like a lunchtime café than a restaurant. Also fairly expensive for what it is (eg £21 for a Thali) plus 12.5% service is automatically put on the bill - and the waitress then gives you the card machine which prompts the unwary to tip yet more. A shame really, as the food is genuinely good: why do they feel the need to try and rip people off?

the food was generally ok, the samosa chaat stood out. The pani poori wasn't that great as it lacked the usual spice flavour of the water that goes with it, the daal and chutney for the dosa came out cold so we had to ask for these to be reheated, and the service was actually quite slow.

Not sure to recommend this place or not. Good options on the menu and lots of dosa varieties, however, the dosa was bland and ordinary and served with two or three spoon worth chutney. The samosa chat tasted good. Overall, if someone looking for a South Indian restaurant, you should keep your options open.

Having been to the Marylebone restaurant a number of years ago and liked it, was looking forward to coming here. The service was not very good at all. Very hard to get attention and waiter wasn't very descriptive when we asked questions about the food. The samaso chaat was just a single whole samosa not cut up covered in the usual chaat toppings. We were very disappointed with the size of both paneer dishes. The tikka masala was just 8 small pieces of paneer in plenty of sauce. The dosa looked big until you opened it and there was a measly amount of filling in it. 12.5% service automatically added to the bill.

+5

I went once and thought it was great so I reserved online and took a friend. From start to finish the service was a joke. They clearly had no record of my reservation, most of the waiters had no clue what they were doing. There was only one person who could offer any level of service and he was way too busy. This second time round I wasn't even impressed with the food. Won't go there again.

Excellent food spoiled by terrible service. Served the food and then didn't come back for a long time to check, we ran out of bread and had to wait for 25 minutes in middle of dinner to get bread with Kids. This is a business where courtesy takes you long ways and didn't see that much. They should have at least offered some discount on the bill as a kind gesture - 10% would have been 7 pounds which is nothing for them or us but the gesture would have shown care for customers. Food quality on the other hand was good

This restuarant has gone downhill. I have eaten here often over the years. it used to have really good fod. My last meal there a few days ago will, sadly, be my last meal there. The food is quite tasty, but nothing like as good as it use to be - Slightly soggy dosa, flat on the plate, not great sambar. And the staff are indifferent. It was packed soon after I got there and busy, so perhaps they feel that they don't have to bother too much any more. That was my impression. Very disappointing

Really disappointing. One of the worst services I've ever experienced. We found the staff very unhelpful, it almost felt like we were inconveniencing them every time we wanted to ask them something. We waited for a long time for anyone to serve us, drinks were forgotten and so we had to try and get the attention of someone which was near on impossible. When we wanted to pay we had to go and find someone as we could not get the attention of any waiter. The only positive about the place was the that food was actually quite tasty but I will definitely not be going back again!

Been to this restaurant many times and really liked it. Went today for the first time in about a year and it wasn't good. Service was terrible, the waiter had a bad attitude. The food came out at different times (10 mins between my rice and my main) dishes that were supposed to be mild were really spicy and dishes the were supposed to be spicy were bland. Something is very wrong with this resturant and it's staff at the moment. I hope they sort it out soon

Not a good experience at all. Maybe they are under new management? We had a table booked at 5:45 , eventually got our food an hour later having chased several times. We were told it was because of unexpected walk ins....but we had actually booked and placed our order well before other tables. Food was not as good as in the past. Understaffed so the waitresses were rushing around and they did not seem to know what the orders were which they brought to the table. Then we were told there were problems in the kitchen. So, all in all, very disappointing.

Disastrous service and pricey food. I had been here before and have to admit that the food is still tasty but my second visit was a great disappointment due to the terrible service. We had booked for a group of 10 and on arrival we were told that we had no booking. They later found our booking but as there was no table set we had to wait a while before our party could be seated. Our food took nearly an hour and a half to come after it was ordered and they kept messing up the naan orders (first they forgot it completely, then they brought a peshwari naan instead of garlic naan!). They couldn't even get the a round of tap waters correct... (Jug and no glasses, then glasses with no jug of water...). The food was good, especially the Ravi Dosa, but we had lost our appetite by the time it had arrived and the kids were going crazy from waiting. Each Dosa was also £9-12 which is much more than you would expect (I have had the same quality Dosa in London for cheaper). Two stars because the food is good but definitely not coming back again as it's not really worth it.

My food was okay but others didn't fair as well. Told manager twice freind's food was missing 3rd time asking someone else food was brought straight out while they cleared the rest of our plates. We were a large group. Manager said they delivered all the food we ordered and had to make an extra dish for him and therefore wasn't his problem. Other friend asked for pinor noir and rather than clarifying which one brought the most expensive. Mango chutney was rationed. Not a great experience for a birthday meal but there is plenty of space on a Friday night

Extremely bad experience.. Takes 1 hour to get food after placing order.... Portion size is extremelyyyyy small

Was really disappointed. The food was okay but the service was terrible. We were made to rush to place our order and made to feel unwanted. I am always hesitant to write a bad review but wanted to inform others. From what I've been told the other branch is a lot better

Poor service and the food was below standard. Ordered from the vegan menu, the cashew pakora didn't look like something you wanted to eat. The mains were under seasoned and lacked flavour. No one came to ask how the food was and we had to wait 20 mins for the bill. When it did come they had forgot to add the wine so had to wait longer for them to correct. £40 I regret spending.

!!AVOID THIS PLACE!! I wish I’d read reviews before coming to this restaurant. The food was okay, pretty standard indian cuisine but too expensive for what you get (small portions), however the service was shocking and ruined our experience. My main arrived 20 minutes before my girlfriend’s did and I had finished the small portion before her main arrived otherwise it would’ve been stone cold. I understand that a dish may take longer to make but it’s incredibly unprofessional to bring out a dish 20 minutes prior to another. As other reviewers have stated it took an age for tap water to be delivered to our table, we had to ask twice and when it finally arrived we only got half a glass each, which meant we had to go through the entire process again shortly. After our horrible dining experience we received the bill to find they had added a 12.5% service charge (I assume they do this as no one would tip otherwise), the owner seems much more focused on money than service. You’re better off going anywhere else.

Disappointing visit. I heard so much about this place, as it used to be such a known vegetarian restaurant, so was very excited to eat there. Sadly, the food wasn’t very good. The chickpea curry was ok, but the okra one was so unbelievably salty, I struggled to eat it. It was very oily as well. Agreeing with one of the previous comments, the tandoori roti tasted like a dry pita bread, no flavour what so ever and seemed stale. The portions were so small, the two of us spent nearly £30 (1 rice, 1 roti and 2 curries) and left feeling hungry. The staff seemed ok, although not very attentive. They didn’t mention that one of the dishes that the curry came in was extremely hot and I burnt my finger quite badly when I tried to pick it up. I won’t be coming back.

I don't like negative reviews but my experience was so bad, I regretted choosing to go there. Service was non-existent, when we arrived there was only one guy working there (I had the impression is was probably the owners son, who had no interest int he business) and the restaurant wasn't particularly busy, 20 mins after being seated and no one came to take our order, I had to go the bar to ask the waiter to come over and take our order. My fiancée was chocking and I asked him for water and there was no urgency! 6-7 minutes later, a waitress came to start her shift and she instantly got us the water. Service was very poor. The food was the biggest waste of money, we ordered poppadum's which arrived stale, we ordered the chilli paneer which had a bad gone off smell to it and it felt like it was reheated from frozen, the portion size wouldn't even feed a small child on 6 small pieces of paneer. we also ordered the mix grill for £13, which you only get 2 florets of broccoli, 2 florets of cauliflower, 2 mushrooms and 2 small pieces of paneer, not only is this a rip off, it was bland and tasteless lacked any flavour. I ordered a Salted lassi, which arrived sweet with jeera in it. Truly a disappointing, I would not recommend this place to anyone.

We went for dinner with our family. We ordered Dosa and Idly. Service was poor and food was bland. We had to remind the server to bring us water. Ambience was average. Food is clearly overpriced than many restaurants in London. Not worth giving a try!

Food was not bad and hence 1 star. Restaurant was full and we were a party of 5 who occupied the last empty table right by the main door. Soon realised what a terrible mistake it is. The cold air and the cigarette smoke was gushing in when ever some one opened the door. Also the door wouldn't close fully. We were just hoping to have food and step out asap. We waited and waited and waited for our food and after 1 hour, walked to the front desk as my two kids couldnt wait any longer and were a moment short of crying. The update given was, since we wanted our order together, it is taking longer but should arrive in few minutes. Who woudn't want their meal together on the table? 15 minutes passed and again walked up to follow up. Again was told 5 to 6 minutes and this time in 10 minutes we got our order. Not everything came together. That left us wondering if they missed it or it was still coming out. No update on that. Finally everything was there. We ordered a madras thali and idli was missing!! No one bothered to say anything. Walked up again and asked; Got a reply back that they ran out of idli batter and the chef must have complimented with some extra chutney. How crazy is that!! Since we just ordered what we plan to eat, we were short and asked if we can get a garlic naan instead and if they can make it quick. Thankfully, the waiter agreed and got it quick as well. So many things went wrong from their side. They didnt set an expectation that it would be an hour wait to get our food after order is placed. Didnt even bother to update until we walked up few times. They didnt warn about the cold air and the tobacco fumes by the door side table, inspite of seeing little kids with us. They didnt even bother to refill our water. Didn't bother to update that some food is missing from our order and ask if we wanted an alternative. Didnt ask if cared for a dessert. The moment we entered the restaurant, my kids saw the menu and wanted a sweet dish after their meal. Overall a very disappointing experience. Will never go there and will warn my friends who plan to visit london.

I was in London for 3 days as a tourist. This was most disappointed visit. Not the value for money. Taste was not upto mark. I certainly felt, like someone else has also expressed here, their treatment to Indians certainly questionable...I was not even given a bigger plate along with dinner, water had to be requested many times, taste was horrible, price was expensive...Sagar was a much better place to go.....sorry I don't want to endorse this place.

This restaurant is fooling the customers by charging high cost for a small portion of food. The portion of food is unbelievably less, not so Indian tasty & the price is damn highest in the world! The Delhi Thali & Bombay Thali worth of £19 come in the smallest Thali Plate I have ever seen. Just 1 tiny samosa in Samosa chat & many more with same quantity of food, shame on you. The drinks price is utterly high & comes in a tiny glass as everything else! Don’t go people if you want to quench your hunger else you will end up paying loads of money for no reason. For me & my friends, it’s a ripping off restaurant so please be careful & think twice before you go there. I don not recommend this place for any of my friends ever.

My South Indian other half and I have been here several times and always found it to be very authentic and tasty. However this visit was extremely disappointing! The Madras Thali was £19 and should have been very tasty and satisfying given the dishes included. However, it was very bland and not very hot (in temperature). The rice tasted "musty", the sambhar seriously lacked flavour and the three main elements of good sambhar were missing (the spices were not properly tempered, it smelled of undercooked lentils and there was nothing ghee!!). In addition the aubergine dish was greasy and though it looked like it might be good, again it was bland. A real shame as we specifically come here knowing what good food it is and we feel very disappointed and won't be back!

Portion size too small for the price. Too noisy. Supervisor miscommunicated the order and instead of receiving 2 portions of dosa we were severed One dosa cut into two and served in different plates.. However, we were charged for 2 dosas...glad to have not noticed it on the check. Chutney served with dosa was way too watery and did not have the authentic south Indian taste. sambhar was okish. Samosa and chole were good. I wouldn't recommend this place. I prefer Sagar instead. You get bigger portions for the price and authentic south Indian food with high quality of service.