I visited an Indian restaurant in Kidderminster and enjoyed a near perfect dining experience
It’s a bit of a stretch to imagine travelling across the county to enjoy a chicken tikka.
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There are, after all, scores of Indian and Bangladeshi restaurants plying their trade and offering great quality, authentic food at prices that would more than cover the fuel.
And yet Wall 2 Wall, an Indian street eatery and cocktail bar in Kidderminster, is so well conceived and so well executed that it becomes worth the trip.
It’s near to one of the West Midlands’s many lounge bars, which are part of one of Britain’s most successful chains of the past decade. The Tappeto Lounge, like its stablemates, offer comforting, unfussy food at affordable prices in a comfortable space that’s conducive to good times. Little wonder they’ve sprouted like autumn mushrooms, with a vast number around the UK.
The relevance of that to Wall 2 Wall is blindingly obvious. While the latter presently has just two branches – one in Kidderminster and one in nearby Stourport – the concept is so damn good that it would be no surprise were it to go on to replicate the giant-sized success of the Lounge.
And here’s why. The idea behind Wall 2 Wall is deeply, deeply impressive. Rather than the old-school flock wallpaper that once dominated many Indian and Bangladeshi restaurants, or rather than the gaudy lights and cheap leather seats that do at present, Wall 2 Wall rips up that formula and makes eating Indian food fun.
It’s a riot of colour, as though the interior designer were on an acid trip at the colour printing plant. There are nooks and crannies in which couples, mates, or families can snuggle up to eat. There are good vibes – who doesn’t want to eat in the gastronomic equivalent of a kaleidoscope – and both service and food are exceptional. Oh yes, and it’s incredibly good value.
If decent restaurants are made up of the environment, the food, the service, and the value for money, so many are successful in just one or two of those four defining criteria. Wall 2 Wall, in contrast, gets it right for the lot.
The environment is exceptional. Located near to a riverside in built-up part of Kidderminster, it is unlikely to win any beauty prizes for best location in the region.
And yet step inside and it’s like being in another world. Guests are instantly transported to bazaars and fetes as the colours come to life.
