balti walla in Cheltenham

This place used to be so good, the food was always hot, perfectly spiced, decent portion sizes, it didn’t matter what day of the week it was or if it was eating in or a take away the food was excellent. What has happened? My food was cold, greasy, tasteless and massively expensive. This used to be the only Indian for me, sadly no more.

Food was ok. Staff were ok - did feel slightly like they were pushing us out of the restaurant at the end of our meal - taking away wine glasses for example. Atmosphere was ok pretty dingy restaurant.

Given how good this place used to be, we had high hopes but were sadly disappointed. Service was very good but the food was quite bland and stodgy.

A Bring your own booze restaurant that gives a budget price meal in basic but clean setting. A good choice of food and our meals were excellent.

This is Cheltenham’s best culinary secret. I’ve now tried several paneer dishes and each time I am surprised and delighted by the unique flavour of the sauce. Unlicensed and simple, the food is however high class (particularly if you like veggie food). Highly recommended.

Great food, lovely team and a nice place to eat. Took our own alcohol and no corkage charge so really cheap.

STOP 🛑 🤚 Do not book if you are in a large group they can not cope, items missing when you ask for them they say no problem but don’t come back. Tried telling me it was my fault when I paid ? Food cold when arrived and portions very small. They also did not check who had not turned up and charged the missing people’s food on to the bill. If your looking for a better place try anywhere but here.

Scammers on ubereats. Accepted the order so I was charged but cancelled it so I couldn't get a refund.

Large party we sat upstairs ! Very busy understandably but too busy Very very loud we could not hear ourselves talk ! Cramped in ! Food excellent service good but won’t be going on a Saturday night again ! Shame

Fantastic food . Excellent service.

Haven't been for a few years and not as good as I remember. There were 14 of us and another couple of large parties. Parts of our orders were missing, food was barely warm, atmosphere was just too load (not necessarily restaurant's fault). Although it's bring your own booze you're not allowed to take your own soft drinks. £2.50 for a small coke. Won't be going back.

Was looking forward to our Christmas meal here but ended up very disappointed. Not one for writing bad reviews but thought this was just. Didn't actually get what I ordered and was served 4 at a time, group of 40 and that's not a problem but my food came in a little silver Ash tray sized dish with 3 little bits of chicken, one poppadom and a little triangle of nan bread not the garlic one I ordered. Did complain to the guy serving us but just got ignored. My kids ate more when they were 5 years old in a kids meal. Had to find somewhere on the way home to get something to eat. I'm only 11 stone so it's not like I eat a lot anyway but this was ridiculous. I will and freinds will avoid this premises all costs in the future just daylight robbery. No information on nut allergies at the table either, not that I have an issue but many do and it's serious. Not happy as you can see.

We had a lovely meal here over the weekend and will definitely be visiting again!

Had a pickup takeaway. Food was on time and very hot. As a family we all had different items and all was very good. The order process was also good where they described the dishes we ordered. Will be back.

Not a great place for a relaxing dinner this time.. more like a madhouse.. a bedlam of noise from a group table with about 20 inconsiderate cackling people all trying to out-shout each other simultaneously, and another table with 4 shrieking women competing to be the loudest individual. The stark low ceilinged room without sound absorbing materials reflects and amplifies noise to deafening levels. We entered feeling quite relaxed but left with splitting headaches caused by this decibel onslaught. The managers should ensure that large noisy parties like this one are only accommodated if located in the upstairs room to show some respect for their other customers. We were assaulted by our experience at Balti Walla which is a great shame because the tandoori dishes with rice and naan that we ordered were top quality and the staff behaved impeccably. To escape the noise we wrapped the tikka and sashlik chicken and naan in napkins and ate them back at home, but we obligingly paid the £40 for this awful experience.

Great service, but 2 of 3 sauces were far too one-flavoured and the chicken was dry. Lovely nan breads and channa.

The team at Balti Walla were incredibly friendly and the food was out of this world. Best paneer I've ever had! Would highly recommend for a lovely evening out!

Very polite Very helpful and efficient atmosphere is always buzzing here so anyone want Indian food this is the place.

It's bring your own alcohol now, not bring your own drinks, just a heads up for any of you who've been going for years happily drinking your own drinks. Literally just alcohol. Every thing else you must buy. Seems a bit of a shame to penalise the driver of the group! The chap told us it's always been this, but it's the first time we've known. Aside from that service was great, food tasty.

Great food with being your own option. Prices are pretty good too.

Visited for a large group booking, food was fantastic and staff were brilliant! Recommended!

Lovely food always , busy place on weekends , great atmosphere , attentive staff . Take own drink which is bonus

Always a great night out especially with BYOB

Four of us regularly visit, typically on a Sunday as it is not so busy and we are flexible. The service is polite and friendly. It is clean and nicely decorated. The food has always been hot, and portions are fairly generous. Poppadoms usually fresh and hot. Prices reasonable and Sainsbury’s is two doors down for wine/beer. It can be busy (typically Friday and Saturday). A place where people linger which is nice if you are in, not nice if you are in a hurry (there are curry shops across the road and round the corner if you are) - a common dilemma.

Top class curry house, and great that they allow to bring your drinks.

First time back in a long time. Service was excellent the food was delicious and nutritious. Very enjoyable and a great selection. Price was acceptable and good value for money. . Would definitely recommend and can't wait to go back again.

Booked a table for 2 and attended 15 mins early We were told to wait and stood at the counter at the kitchen end, 4 other customers were in a similar position . We waited 30 mins then informed a table was available upstairs, after another 15 mins we left as there were about 50 young men having a good time and wife felt uncomfortable to say the least being the only female on that floor. We decided to leave, as we left I complained to a member of staff who didn't care/ too busy/ not interested etc, shocking. Moral of the story , avoid on Sat nights as really busy within this restaurant. Hoping owner will send me a £30 voucher towards next meal , but a tad unlikely!

It was ok but nothing special, there are better Indian restaurants in Cheltenham

Can’t believe this was our first visit and it definitely won’t be our last. Really impressed with the quality of food. We love Bhoomi on special occasions but we really enjoyed the food and atmosphere of a busy local restaurant on a Saturday night in January. The poppadoms were crispy and fresh and we loved all the accompaniments, chutneys, onions, raita. We had salmon and tikka starters. The salmon was cooked beautifully but would have preferred more flavour in the marinade. The Chicken tikka was tasty and cooked well. Naan and rice were excellent. Their version of butter chicken was really nice albeit just a tad too much coconut on a personal level. The chicken balti was the stand out the winner. The service was quick despite it being busy. We really enjoyed the atmosphere and byo is great especially after an expensive Xmas. Looking forward to our next visit already

Delicious food and excellent service. We have tried many Indians and this is one of our favourite! Dishes are always consistent and staff really friendly. Even better you can bring your own so it's very reasonable

Best Indian dish I've ever had! Mach Andhra prepared seasoned fish curry cooked in coconut milk, mustard seeds and curry leaves and lemon rice..Gorge!! ❤️

Love this place. Reliable flavours, fast and friendly service and a great BYO policy with no corkage charge. My favourite place to eat mid-week

Order a takeaway at 7pm they showed delivery for 7.39. At 8.15 I called to ask where my order was and they said they would call me back. 10mins later they phoned to say that they couldn't deliver because they didn't have enough staff. Surely they knew that when they took the order! Ordered from them in the past but never again. Very unprofessional!

Food is great but it can be a squeeze.

When the mixed plate starter turns up still frozen in the middle you know your food is not being freshly prepared. A long long wait on a very busy night. We were so disappointed and left.

Great food and good service, not rushed. One of my favourite Indian restaurants in Cheltenham with easy parking too

Went for a Birthday Meal food was fantastic not rushed and very pleasant surroundings staff were very attentive will definitely return thanks

Stopped for food at this restaurant, great welcome, very friendly staff, the food was amazing. Highly recommended this restaurant, will most definitely visit again when passing through Cheltenham

Left my bag here and informed them by email and telephone. They said they’d keep it for me. It’s only been a few weeks and I’ve not been able to pop in because they only open in the evenings and I also had a family emergency to attend to. When I rang to collect it they told me they’d thrown it. Who would throw a bag away that belongs to someone else and when the customer has already informed the restaurant. Won’t be back here in a rush.

Love this place. Food is great, service great, well established curry restaurant. Tried the tandoori chicken last time, not disappointed 🙂

Hour and half waiting for food and curry wasn’t good

Excellent food, served hot, happy helpful staff. All in all a wonderful experience

Venue was ok, but it being so empty should have been a sign. The food was so tasteless I thought I had COVID!

The restaurant was rammed and we sat upstairs on the bigger tables it's also bring your own alcohol. Some of the group bought soft drinks which we were told not to be left on the tables! I assume this is because the restaurant sells soft drinks. The curry was fine but I did find there was a lot of sauce and onions in the dish. There were no complaints from the group about the dishes in all a pleasant meal.

Visited here last Saturday with 4 friends, nice friendly welcome, although it was very busy we didn’t wait long to order, food arrived in good time, was all very nice and full of flavour, will definitely return.

Great service and food available, it was quieter which was nice. Staff were friendly and food was prompt. I'll be returning

Lovely, fresh food. Friendly staff.

Not the best... Peshwari Paul is a legend though

Great food and service. The staff was so accommodating! We’re out of towners and came across this place. It was busy and we took that as a good sign and it definitely was. The food was really tasty and they looked after us very well. Would highly recommend this place.

Very noisy on a Friday night and a constant stream of people going in and out to smoke. One meal was good, the other indifferent. The upside is being able to take your drink of choice and the bill.

Nice and clean restaurant, good menu and good value for money. BYO works well. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves at this venue - well worth another visit.

Good food, excellent service and BYO. What's not to love?

One of the best Indian restaurants for miles around!

Baltiwala were super helpful when we had to organise a socially restricted bday event for my husband a couple of weeks ago. We were down from London and they went out of their way to make our visit to their restaurant easy and comfortable. Food style was altered to suit our needs. We had the whole 1st floor allocated to us for our guests. A waiter was allocated to us for the whole evening. And we were noisy! Let us decorate for the event and byob worked a treat. Thoroughly recommend for the food and support by Moomin and his team!! Thanks Baltiwala!

Massively disappointing experience. Busy Friday night, table of 8 people and no attempt to even try and encourage customers to wear face coverings when moving round the restaurant. I can’t understand their cavalier attitude given the size of the fines. We left after our starters due to the environment, such a shame. I’d avoid like the plague, excuse the pun.

Really disappointed to see a group of 8 rowdy people right at the front of the restaurant (although justified as two groups of 4 without social distancing. No asking customers to wear masks when moving around the restaurant. We highlighted our concern to the patrons - they kindly offered us a seat upstairs (where we couldn’t see the group of 8) but the damage was already done. Too many sacrifices this year. Sort it out Balti Walla - you’re our favourite Indian but we won’t be back after that!

Amazing love every moment. Such good food.

The best thing about the meal was the poppadoms. If you enjoy overpriced microwaved curries then fill your boots but if you prefer a fresh hot and edible curry run away from this place as fast as you can. Meat was very dry and tough, sauce was extremely watery, thin and tasteless. Naan bread is served in a plastic container you’d expect to find in a children’s soft play area. Social distancing was poor and covid guidelines were not adhered too. Having worked in the industry for over 10 years I hate complaining but this was one of the worst restaurant experiences I’ve ever had and when we politely told the manager that it wasn’t good he was not interested. Poor customer service, poor food, stay away.

Con mucho, el curry más pobre que he comido en un restaurante. . . - Los 4 curry sabían a la misma salsa suave del tío Bens. . . tenía una extraña consistencia acuosa - El cordero estaba duro, el pollo estaba seco. - Cargando 4. 50 por un ramekin de salsa es una broma - Los 4 curry se sirvieron literalmente 5 minutos después de realizar el pedido, lo que siempre es preocupante. - No es compatible con Covid en absoluto - Servicio pobre - Carga de chicos drogándose en los baños - Después de quejarse, no hubo empatía y el camarero se marchó en mitad de la conversación. No se ofrecieron disculpas ni explicaciones - Nos negamos a pagar el precio total de 80 y el camarero estaba tratando de regatear un descuento de solo 8 a pesar de nuestras quejas justificadas. Me sentí como si estuviéramos en el maletero de un auto.Soy plenamente consciente de que es un momento muy difícil para la industria hotelera, pero no hay excusas para la terrible experiencia que tuvimos. Por el precio, espero un curry fresco bueno y honesto con al menos la mitad de un servicio decente, pero lo que obtuvimos fue un desastre absoluto.Es una pena, este solía ser un lugar agradable para tomar un curry con los chicos; ciertamente no volverá nunca más.

After a lovely day out in the Gloucester countryside we we're looking forward to eating at Baltiwala The food and service was amazing after a long day out we all enjoyed the meal. Will definitely recommend

No he dejado una reseña para el Balti Walla antes, pero siempre ha estado lleno y es excelente comida. La primera vez que regresamos por un tiempo obviamente y la comida era mejor que nunca. Gran servicio y precio razonable. Si amas tu curry, sal y apóyalos.

Overcrowded. Had to wait 90 minutes for food.

Great service , delicious food ,high standards have been maintained for years , I've eaten here many times.

Lovely place, reasonable price and BYOB

Firstly it’s important to note this a bring your own alcohol establishment. Not a huge drama as Sainsbury's is next door. But beginning denied a nice pint with my meal was a disappointing start. Sadly it didn’t get much better - very dry food. Everything just lacked passion and enthusiasm. Sad looking Naan bread, no music, drab interior, no beer My quest for Cheltenham’s best curry continues.

Visited tonight with my family for the first time which will unfortunately also be my last. Although the food was lovely, the service was shocking and this makes all the difference to a good night....... as for the sign that says bring your own drink, they really mean bring your own alcohol ONLY so non drinkers pay a premium for flat house soft drinks!!! Plus duechange from bill which was never given and assumed a tip, so I not only got bad service but I paid for it too!

I had one of house specials for dinner this Tuesday but got food poisoned. After 2days of having a meal there I am still very poorly. I will never dine there.

Organicé una fiesta para más de 40 personas y quedé muy impresionado con la organización, el servicio y la comida. Normalmente, con la restauración masiva, se esperan niveles más bajos, pero este no fue el caso aquí. La comida fue excelente. Un menú fijo de buffet de poppadums, entrantes mixtos y 4 curry diferentes con arroz. Había algo para todos los gustos, incluidos los vegetarianos del grupo. El personal de espera no podría haber sido más útil al buscar cervezas de los barriles que trajimos para las personas que no podían moverse por la larga mesa para ayudarse. Traiga su propia cerveza pero no traiga su propio servicio. Todos tuvieron una muy buena noche y me alegraría organizar mi próximo evento grupal aquí.

Reservamos el sábado para un grupo de 17, estaban contentos de tomar la reserva.Llegué a tiempo. . Esperé más de una hora, sin contacto de ningún camarero.Sabíamos que estaban ocupados y, como estábamos bebiendo nuestra propia bebida y charlando, no muy preocupados.Finalmente tuve suficiente y se acercó a un camarero que dijo que vendría a tomar nuestros pedidos, le dijimos 'no te molestes, solo tráenos 34 poppadoms y sabores y toma los pedidos de platos principales cuando los traigas'.Esos llegaron unos minutos más tarde y él tomó nuestras órdenes (para entonces decidimos que solo tendríamos platos principales).La comida llegó dos horas y cuarto después de que nos sentáramos, y cuando lo hizo, fue normal en el mejor de los casos.

Great food as ever with improved presentation and decor.

Nice food reasonably priceed no corkage charge

Bring your own drink is always going to be an added attraction.

Went to Balti Walla whilst we were in Cheltenham visiting family, the place is clean and tidy the tables are well spaced and you can take your own booze. Waiting staff were friendly and welcoming. We ordered various starters and main meals; personally we ordered the set meat meal for 2. Considering the place was full and very busy starters arrive within a reasonable time and were very tasty as was the mains, no complaints, well cooked and presented at a reasonable price. Great atmosphere. Would defiantly return.

Very friendly staff, great with my nut allergy, amazing food and my colleagues were impressed with bringing their own booze!.

Was recommended and although not bad not really out of this world good.

Dios mío, nunca he tenido comida india que no sabía a nada antes. Pero Balti walla ha logrado realmente desanimarme a comer mi comida. Normalmente como de todo y quiero más con lo que como, pero ni siquiera puedo terminar esta comida. No tenía sabor lo que nunca. . . . . . nada en absoluto. El pan nan tenía más sabor que el curry. Por favor, no vengas aquí, ¡fue terrible! ! !

Terrible food and the service was worse

What can I say? Just excellent Indian food and you take your own drinks! Great combination! Love it there.

Fab atmosphere and love taking my own booze food was really nice too! Didn’t get mithered was nice and relaxed

Wonderful curry and the staff were superb with a great atmosphere

Love it We got every 2 weeks or so Great food and value Terrific staff always friendly Take you own wine so you're not paying through the nose like other resturants

Lovely, tasty and filling curry. Lovely staff. Gd choice of curries and accompaniments. Quick service

As always, very helpful and accommodating for big groups. However, the curry itself was a slight let down, the sauce was watery for almost all of us and many of our sauces tasted exactly the same despite having ordered different curries.

The Sunday Buffett price of £11.95 for 2 courses with coffee is fantastic value. An actual offer that is exactly as it says - what a refreshing change All with being your on booze

Me and my family had booked a table two weeks in advance, and been kicked out for “foul language” minding our own business, for them to be esse dropping on us and refusing to serve us

Friendly staff and the best Indian in Cheltenham in my opinion!

Lovely food, take your own drinks, bonus.

Very average - main dishes tasted watered down, and that was eating in. Go here for a cheaper meal and if you’ve had too much to drink to care what you’re eating.

First visit to the balti walla and enjoyed the experience. 12 of us accommodated comfortably downstairs. Bring you own booze as is traditional for a balti house, but there is a small Sainsbury's just next door to save you carting it in! Good range of tasty starters, onion bhajis with tamarind sauce were excellent and standard chicken balti was very good indeed and excellent value for money. Thoroughly enjoyed the experience and the staff were very helpful and polite.

I have lived in the UK nearly for 11 years. This is the worst food I have ever had in a curry house. This is also the first time I had to write such a poor review. I went in personally and requested that my food be prepared with a bit more kick, rather than ordering online or over the phone. The packing was haphazard too. As the food spilled all over the bag. I have never seen any other curry house pack the food in such a bad way. Overall a very disappointing experience. I was so looking forward to the food after pondering over the menu for atleast 3-4 weeks. I would give it a miss. Surprisingly the place was almost fully occupied. Half a 🌟!

The folks here looked after 20 of us for a birthday celebration and through gritted teeth provided excellent service and great food. As it's a BYO the cost was very reasonable at £20 a head. All of us enjoyed great food and I am looking forward to returning

Always been great- good solid nice curry guaranteed and good staff

Full disclosure...we were a group of 14 men on a stag do and therefore we were seated upstairs (which i now know is a bit of a war zone at the weekends). For the majority of our meal, it was too loud in the room to hold any kind of conversation. I imagine the experience of dining downstairs would be somewhat more civilised.

Simple no nonsense BYO curry house! Nothing fancy if that's what you're after ... Otherwise all good!

Really fast service. I had chicken madras, it was pretty standard for restaurant madras. The rice was well cooked and tasty. The best part for me was the garlic naan, it was absolutely perfect. Its bring your own alcohol which makes it a slightly cheaper place to go as you can buy beforehand. I'd recommend to anyone. Also, worth mentioning that you're not interrupted every 5 minutes by different waiters coming over to check you're ok. They popped by once to check we had everything and then left us alone. Great service!

Excellent food, friendly staff and bring your own booze! Good for small meals with a couple of mates and great for large company do’s

I have visited this restaurant on numerous occasions and it never fails to provide great tasting food . You can bring your own drinks ( convenient Sainsbury’s 2 doors away ) . The staff are always friendly and will always try and fit you in even when it’s busy . An all round great place to dine at a reasonable price !! Highly recommended .

Good takeaway, the curry was nice.

Came here for a meal last week staff were welcoming and friendly we were seated quickly. We ordered poppadoms, chicken North Indian garlic chilli quite a dry curry but very well flavoured, a chicken Jaipur again very well flavoured plenty of sauce and tandoori salmon also flavoured well. We ordered pilau rice, mushroom rice, garlic naan cheese and keema naan and Bombay aloo. It was all very nice and quite light compared to other Indians I’ve been to would definitely come again.

Went here with family and friends. The food was outstanding. The staff were very friendly and curtious. The surroundings were very nice. Didn’t feel too cramped or isolated in a corner. Went there before for my daughters 30th birthday and now with friends. Will be going there again without a doubt.