We last visited the Koh-I-Noor a couple of years ago, and then we wrote: "All in all, we felt that, on this sampling, the fare on offer at the Koh-I-Noor doesn't quite compare with that of the Bombay Brasserie [as it was known on our previous visit] at it's best."

Well, the restaurant has changed hands again, and while it's just as plush and palatial as before, the standard of the fare on offer has improved considerably. It's a little more expensive that of old, but the night we dined we enjoyed some of the best curries we'd had this year.

We started with papali chat, onion bhaji and chicken pakora. The Chaat, a cold potato and chickpea concoction, was a delight: lightly spiced and refreshing, a perfect entrée for the hotter dishes to come. The onion bahji was spicy without being overpowering, and a little lacking in onion, but enjoyable even so. The chicken pakora consisted of juicy chunks of chicken in a spicy batter. Recommended.

The main dishes were the highlight of the night. The best by far was the palak paneer, a medium-spiced dish consisting of beautifully cooked spinach and firm, tasty chunks of cheese; spinach is one of the easiest vegetables to cook badly in Asian cuisine - how many times have we been fobbed off with vapid, watery saag? However, my spinach dish was not of the same standard: the sarson saag being a little to salty and heavy on the asafoetida. The lamb masala also scored highly, an extremely rich and piquant dish consisting of good pieces of meat in a thick masala sauce. Likewise the murgh peshawar was raved over: "One of the finest curries I've ever tasted! Excellent chicken in a mild, fruity sauce. Mouth-watering!" The chicken balti was "Decidedly spicy, even though I asked for it mild. It was tasty and the chicken pieces were succulent." The kofti-e-khas consisted of spiced vegetable balls in a thin, but fiery sauce, an unusual but welcome dish. The lamb jaipuri was enjoyed: "Again, a good helping of meat, nicely spiced." All the other dishes were enjoyed, with not a dud on the menu. There were ten of us dining that night, and the place was quite busy, which might account for the fact that the service was not of the fastest.

Overall, an excellent meal was enjoyed, and we'd heartily recommend our readers to make a bee-line to the Koh-I-Noor.

(Dishes do not come with rice or chapattis, which must be ordered separately.)

The Bombay Brasserie is no more: in its place is the Koh-I-Noor. It's pretty much the same in terms of décor and atmosphere, and the curries are almost identical (though perhaps not quite up to the standard of the BB.) It's under new management, but has retained one of the BB's old chefs.

We visited the Bombay Brasserie a year ago, and then we wrote: "A bit of a mixed bag... It's certainly worth a visit, but isn't quite up there with the finest Asian restaurants in the city." Which is pretty much our verdict this time round.

The starters were very good. We had paneer pakora (£1.95), onion bhaji (£1.90), and aloo chana puree (£2.20). The pakora consisted of long strips of paneer cheese deep-fried in spicy batter, and were succulent and tasty, especially when covered with lemon juice. The onion bhaji were fresh, crisp and very spicy. The puree, a mild chick pea curry in a small chapatti, was pleasing, though perhaps a bit bland. Overall, though, a good if pricey selection of entrees. (And they came with free popadums and pickle tray.)

We were disappointed with the main dishes. My vegetable dahi (fresh vegetables prepared with yoghurt, coriander and ginger) was overcooked, and seemed to consist of just three vegetables: aubergine, courgette and carrot - and the predominating taste was of vinegar. The balti muttar paneer was described as, "Bland, uninteresting. While the peas were fresh and succulent, the cheese was diced into tiny cubes which were hard and tasteless." The balti saagh aloo paneer consisted of, "Juicy spinach and wholesome potatoes delicately spiced, with disappointing nibbles of paneer."

All in all, we felt that, on this sampling, the fare on offer at the Koh-I-Noor doesn't quite compare with that of the Bombay Brasserie at it's best.

Having said that, the restaurant was busy, and the curries were certainly not bad: we'd definitely recommend that our readers check it out for themselves.

(Dishes do not come with rice or chapatis, which must be ordered separately: chapatis 40p, plain rice £1.20, lemon pillau rice £1.85, nan £1.50, garlic nan £1.90.)

It was year since we last dined at the Bombay Brasserie - high time that we gave it another visit. Then we wrote of the restaurant: "Overall, we felt that the BB was not up to the standard of the similarly-priced Shah Jehan..." but, "if you're a devoted curry fan we'd recommend that you try the fare on offer..." Which is pretty much what we'd recommend this time around.

It's an upmarket restaurant, with superb décor, liveried doormen, and fast and friendly service.

We started with panir pakora (£2.10 - a 10p increase in a year) and onion bhaji (£1.80 - no increase). Again, we were disappointed with the panir - it wasn't real panir at all, but thin slices of hard cheese. The onion bhajis were better, very tasty and slightly oily.

I sampled a mixed vegetable ginger for my main course, and I was very disappointed with it. The dish was boiled to a much, very mild and, perhaps most damning of all, did not taste of ginger. The mixed vegetable achar was better; this dish was not overdone, and consisted of a good variety of vegetables fried with mixed pickles, coriander, tomatoes in Bay leaf juices. The balti sag aloo panir was rich and rewarding.

We finished off with excellent coffee which came with complimentary chocolates.

Again, a bit of a mixed bag from the Bombay Brasserie. It's certainly worth a visit, but isn't quite up there with the finest Asian restaurants in the city.

(Chapattis, rice, and nan do not come with the meals, and must be ordered separately. Chapattis 35p, plain nan £1.50, garlic nan £1.70, boiled rice £1.20, pilau rice £1.60.)

This Friday saw us sampling the curries of the up-market Bombay Brasserie - and a mixed bunch they were too. As regards atmosphere and style, the BB is onto a winner - if you like that sort of thing: liveried doormen, potted palms, brass and mirrors, piped Indian muzak and table clothes, etc... But did the curries cut the mustard?

We began with three rather expensive and disappointing starters: paneer pakora (£2.10), onion bhaji (£1.80), and bhagan (egg plant) pakora (£2.10). The onion bhaji was the best of the three, above average burger-shaped patties, acceptably spicy. The bhagan pakora contained almost no egg plant (but the batter tasted fine). Worst of all was the paneer pakora: for an exorbitant £2.10 we were given five domino-sized strips which contained not paneer, as advertised, but bits of a hard, rind-like regular cheese. A rip-off.

Things improved with the arrival of the main courses. The balti daal was very good, the lentils subtly and delicately flavoured with ginger and what might have been aniseed to provide a distinctive and appetising dish. The balti mixed vegetable paneer was not the best - the individual vegetables were cut too large, undercooked, and failed to combine as a whole. Thrown in were a couple of whole, and inedible, hot peppers. (The paneer, however, was the real McCoy - big squares of delicate, sponge-like cheese.) The balti saag aloo paneer, unlike the last-mentioned dish, was not swimming in ghee; the paneer was excellent, and MichaelH found that the hot peppers, once sliced thinly, made a pleasant addition to the dish. Our resident meat-eater chose a balti murgh paneer, comprising of large chunks of spiced chicken accompanied by satisfying squares of the aforementioned paneer.

We finished off with an excellent coffee at £1.10 per cup. Overall, we felt that the BB was not up to the standard of the similarly-priced Shah Jehan. We sampled two good dishes from four - but we talked with other diners who were more than satisfied with their meals. The service was very good, the menu extensive, and the atmosphere positively Raj-like, and if you're a devoted curry fan we'd recommend that you try the fare on offer at the Bombay Brasserie and form your own opinion.

(Chapattis, rice, and nan do not come with the meals, and must be ordered separately.)