Dabbawal in Newcastle upon Tyne

Beautiful food fantastic service

Great vibe, food amazing and service wonderful. Going back next week!

As an avid explorer of South Asian cuisine, I recently visited Jesmond Dabbawal with high hopes and hungry anticipation. Nestled in a quaint corner of the city, the restaurant exuded an inviting aura from the moment I stepped in. The ambiance was undoubtedly its strongest suit, with vibrant decor and cozy lighting that promised a memorable dining experience. Upon being seated, I was promptly greeted by attentive staff who guided me through the menu with enthusiasm. However, as I eagerly awaited the arrival of my chosen dishes, it became apparent that the culinary journey I had envisioned was about to hit a bump in the road. The food, unfortunately, failed to live up to its enticing descriptions and the flavors fell disappointingly flat. Despite being labeled as authentic and aromatic, the dishes lacked the depth and complexity that I've come to expect from Indian and South Asian cuisine. The spices seemed muted, the sauces lacked richness, and overall, each bite left me longing for the vibrant burst of flavours I had anticipated. Moreover, what added insult to injury was the glaring disparity between the menu's promises and the reality of what was served. The cola drink that was served was very sweet and was not the typical flavour and taste of a cola. Despite these culinary missteps, I must commend the restaurant for its impeccable service and inviting ambiance. The staff was gracious and accommodating throughout my meal, and the ambiance provided a warm and welcoming backdrop for what could have been a delightful dining experience. In conclusion, while Dabbawal may excel in creating a visually appealing and hospitable atmosphere, its culinary offerings leave much to be desired. For those seeking an authentic and flavourful taste of Indian cuisine, I would recommend looking elsewhere for a more satisfying gastronomic adventure.

Visited 15th April for granddaughters 21st, Great food with plenty of variety, excellent service from staff can definitely recommend this restaurant

Probably the best restaurant of my all life

Awesome food, friendly staff, will deffo go back ..... chefs surprise was delicious

This restaurant has amazing food! It is well worth a visit and I intend to return. The service is excellent and friendly. Very up-market food. We had a selection of special plates so we could try more of the things on the menu.

We had organised a birthday party here. The booking process was super easy, and the staff were very helpful and accommodating. For parties they have a chef's tasting menu. On the day the place was spacious, the food was plentiful and very tasty. The staff were so nice and the service was fantastic despite our guests crowding the aisles! Johnny the manager and his team were always smiling and prompt with all the requests. The vegetarian and non-vegetarian options were great and they catered for a guest with dietary intolerance really well. Really cannot praise the enough. Highly recommended!

Excellent Indian restaurant serving fresh expertly cooked dishes of the highest quality. This is not a ghee soaked pile it high place - the decor and atmosphere are fantastic, relaxed but professional all at once. Service was fantastic and the overall ambience wonderful. Utterly recommend.

Don't know if it's been taken over. Been lots over the years but it seems to have changed. Poppadoms a massive disappointment, like bags of crisps. Onion bajhi cold, no mint sauce, samosa doggy. Pilau rise bland. Can't say I would rush to return again The decor has changed too so something is different.

Easily our favourite Indian restaurant, huge benefit is they have a kids menu which our daughter loves. Food is always phenomenal.

Place looks nice inside but the food was far too sweet and was basically inedible. The managers were also very hostile and rude and were awful to the staff. Our waitress was lovely.

Managers and host were very hostile, to their staff too. Our curries were far too sweet - we raised this yet no response. The decor and vibes are 10/10 yet below average food for above average prices. We’d recommend My Delhi or Chakh Dhoom over this.

Fabulous food, small menu which had enough to please all tastes but easy to make a choice. Quick and friendly service, good advice, will definitely go again. A modern restaurant with really interesting choices and style, the samosa was out of this world!

Nice venue, a bit pricey for average food. Staff were friendly.

Very impressive restaurant hidden away down a back street. The food was delicious, probably the Best Madras I have ever tasted. The staff were all lovely and helpful. We were seated early and didn't have to wait long for food despite it being a busy Friday night. Would highly recommend a visit!

A friend of mine suggest that we meet for lunch rather than the usual dog walk (it was very wet!) and we met up for lunch. Arrived early so was almost empty but it filled up fairly rapidly. We ate from the lunch menu which gave a good selection of starters and mains. The service was prompt and very welcoming and the food arrived quickly and well presented. The waitresses were attentive but in no way over powering and food was excellent. I believe this is a favoured venue for students at night bu there were mainly older parties in at lunch (we fitted this demographic!) I had been to this restaurant many years ago when it was under different management and had another name (probably nearly 40 years ago!) and it is now much better. Highly recommended both for food and service. Thank you to all the staff and my friend for suggesting it!

Superb Indian cuisine, although I only ttied the Veg options. Excellent hospitality, good ambience, decently busy, parking available . Food presentation was top notch as you can make out from the pics. Taste was authentic. Will certainly come back with friends and family.

Fabulous evening, food was delicious and service was first class. Possibly the best indian meal I have ever eaten. Will Definitely be visiting again when next in Newcastle.

A beautiful tucked away Indian. Gorgeous interior and nice atmosphere. The waiters are helpful and nice. The paneer and spinach side is to die for!

The food is really good but the portions are smaller for the price and the staffs are amazing

Summer visit, late review. I ordered from the early evening menu. All the food was absolutely delicious, probably some of the best Indian food in Newcastle. The staff are lovely as well and are helpful with dietary requirements. Highly recommend the mango lassi as well

Brilliant, can't wait to go back.

Don't really eat much Indian food but I enjoyed what I had here when we came here for a works night out a while back.

Food was really nice. Had the chef's surprise, £26.5 for papadum, pre starter, starter, 3 main, rice and nan.

Regular customers, the food is first class,the staff are very helpful and friendly. Another good night at the Dabbawal

Arrived unannounced and promptly expertly served. Food was extremely tasty.

Food is great, cooked with fresh ingredients and a traditional recipe, lamb chops are to die for as are the prawns, service is great and friendly. Great Vibe, wide variety of drinks. And if it’s good enough for Alan Shearer it’s good enough for me 😀 Recently refurbished

Food is really good. My wife loves the curry soup which is a bit special and l love the chicken madras. Gets a bit noisy without fail and so we always book early. Beware , l ended up with a £100 parking fine for using their carpark. This was annoying because l had parked in the same spot on a lot of previous occasions. Took nearly a month to resolve. Could never get the duty manager to speak to me and they couldnt get their email address right.

Great restaurant well worth a visit.

I always look forward to visiting Dabbawall. It used to be my favourite restaurants until my last visit. The menu has changed and not for the better. Even the simplest item, poppadom has been replaced by what I can only call packet poppadam crisps. The signature salad seemed to have changed from a delicious shedded mango and peanut salad to chopped mango with a drizzle of sweet chilli sauce. The most amazing chicken makhani which had depth of flavour and warmth is no longer on the menu. All in all it seems as though ingredients and dishes have been reduced in quality. The place was packed at 5.30 in the evening and the kitchen was busy but sadly my favourite restaurant is no more.

Had a wonderful meal here. The service was good and the food was excellent. It would have been 5 stars but the restaurant was very noisy.

Amazing Indian food cooked to order. I had the railway curry. Tender large bits of juicy lamb with baby potatoes in a spicy savoury sauce. I'm still dreaming about it. It was divine. Peshwary naan was sweet and crispy at the edges. Not too doughy. Superb lentil soup gently spiced with coconut milk.. I think I'll go back tonight!

Railway curry a winner every time

A really good, reasonably priced, authentic Indian restaurant. I tried the samosa chaat and the lamb chops. Both were excellent.

farah was absolutely amazing, such good service from her definitely deserves credit! took care of me and my family very well. thank you farah!

It’s basically a secret Indian grotto of delicious food.

Chaotic front of house. Although it was busy, we did get a warm welcome. The most unusual popadoms we’ve ever had served. They were like ‘posh’ (expensive) Doritos! Madness. A lovely lamb biriyani and a decent paneer dish. Breads (naan / roti) were frugal! Couple of Cobra. Nice. An undeniable rice pudding (knocked off the bill). For me, it’s the kind of trendy place that’s suited for customers in their 20s who either don’t mind (or don’t know) it’s style over substance. Not a bad gaff at all, just not for these old foxes.

I've been here many times. Food is good but portions are very small compared to the prices . Make sure to let the waiters know the level of spicy you want as medium spicy in the UK is mild or less.

Plats excellents, terrasse chauffée, pas d'attente. Je recommande vivement. Petit bémol pour les cheeses naans, pas comparables avec ceux des restaurants indien en France.

Fabulous selection of dishes, with the option of a main or a selection of small plates. The team check for allergies before you order and they do cater for different dietary requirements (do speak to the team when ordering). Love coming to Dabbawal in Jesmond!

Staff were excellent!! Food was unbelievable and what a fantastic atmosphere as well! This is somewhere I’ll certainly be coming back to anytime I’m up in Jesmond/Newcastle! Very clean restaurant, staff were very polite & I personally felt like staff truly cared about your thoughts as well when asked how the food was. Highly recommend!

Very nice decor. Polite service. Gets busy. Lots of meal choices. Definitely recommed. Also their take away is superb too!

Great food, not the average Indian restaurant. Staff lovely and a nice atmosphere. Great IPA from nearby Wylam brewery.

Had a great meal here with my daughter. We went for small plates and there was lots of choice for both of us. My daughter has to have gluten free food and doesn’t eat meat. Very tasty food and we overindulged on cocktails instead of puddings so a great night out. Will definitely return. Booking advisable on a weekend.

Horrible staff the two girls in the till, had to walk out ruined our date. I've had food from there before few years back and it was lovely and I've worked in restaurants also managed few too, i know how to provide good friendly service but last night was one of the worst experience I've had absolutely disgusting behaviour

Walked in for a table and the blonde girl raised her voice to tell us we can only be here for a certain time since we didn’t reserve and then the other Asian girl was rude whilst telling us to go outside and put the ticket on our car! She didn’t even give us a chance to sit very Disrespectful and ended up not getting anything and just leaving need new friendly service

Food was ok for the money, however we were so rushed it was unbelievable. In less than an hour, we’d ordered, had starters and had mains. As a couple out for a Friday night meal, this was not what we wanted. We were only just receiving wine as the curry hit the table! As soon as we then asked for time before we considered desserts as we desperately needed a chance to breathe, we were ignored! We also needed to drink our bottle of wine that we’d barely been able to touch. Very frustrating and will only go back as I know what this place can do when it’s at its best.

Best Indian in Newcastle! Been a few times and never disappoints-the Bombay bombs were insane. Maybe a bit overpriced on the drinks but everything else was superb. Restaurant is beautiful as well. Don’t miss it!

I would say this is one of the places that you can have authentic Indian food in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. The atmosphere is a bit rustic. Good for couples, groups or families. Better do a prebook with the parking.

The service was excellent. The hospitality was even better. And the food was the best Indian Street food I've ever eaten. If you are in the area, it is definitely worth a visit.

The best Indian restaurant in Newcastle. the venue and the food is out of this world. the staff were jolly and friendly which made the whole experience even better.

First timer. Food excellent. Service very prompt. Only criticism -price of drinks- Bottle of Cobra beer £7+. Extortion when you consider Supermarket prices are £2.70. What a mark up! I expect to pay more but not 300% mark up. Disappointing. Otherwise good experience

We will be back! The food is delicious, I’m vegetarian and there was a good choice of veggie options. The tastes! Wow! Just absolutely gorgeous. Service is great, quick and friendly but not over the top. The restaurant is such a surprise when you walk in from the outside. From the outside it looks like a small restaurant but indoors is beautiful. I’ve visited Khai Khai so I knew it would be great but didn’t expect just how gorgeous it was. I’ll definitely be back as soon as I can.

Fantastic lunch with super service

The service was outstanding from start to finish (Monday 21st August at lunch). All the food was really nice with average prices. The restaurant inside is really cool and very different with parking and outside tables too. Sheek kebab and Chicken pakora were excellent. Chicken fry ok but small portion. The mixed grill was nice but not amazing. The lamb railway curry was top draw and the butter chicken was good. Nice chips, rice and good naan breads. Great lunch and would return 100%. The young team serving were excellent

I visited New castle in the month of June for 2 nights break. I stayed in Jesmond so I googled this restaurant before hand and visited on the first day of my visit for lunch and was really surprised with the taste, ambience and the feel. We tried the chicken started which was really good and the thali which was wholesome. I visited them again for dinner on the second day and ordered similar stuff from the menu. They are welcoming and know what they are doing. There is one more branch in the city centre but I visited only the jessmond branch. Definitely try this place if you visit New castle not that far away from Jessmond dene if you are into walking.

First time at Dabbawal food was amazing definitely be back 🥰

We regularly visit, but were very disappointed on this visit, the first since they have changed their menu. We went for the early dinner menu which has not only gone up in price but also has additional charges for most of the dishes. Be warned with the hidden extra charges - extra for anything other than the plain naan and rice, these additional charges were not mentioned when we were told we could have whatever bread or rice we wanted on this menu. We did not get the side of lentils listed on the menu. The desert of spicy chocolate tart was not as advertised. Tiny portion dry and flavourless. Will not be in a rush to come back the new menu is over priced with extra and hidden charges.

Very disappointed by their food this time Went 4 weeks ago.... They don't have North Indian thali.... Portions were less.... The black lentil was so tasteless. Previously they had good and tasty food

The food is delicious and the staff is courteous

After visiting here regularly for the last couple years we were really disappointed after popping in tonight today to see the menu has changed and our favourite dishes had been removed. We ordered poppadoms to start and was so so disappointed with these, they were more like small puffed crisps (the flavouring wasn’t nice either) with the odd bit of actual poppadom in there and only one of the dips was actually nice. The starters were lovely but the mains again were a let down from what they used to be. Super disappointed as this used to be our favourite restaurant but it’s unlikely we’ll be back.

Great food and service. Very quiet because off peak at time of meal. Good value for money.

Food was nice however I was not allowed to order the king prawn and spinach curry when all of the others on my table were ordering off the restaurant week menu. This was disappointing to me due to the fact I looked at the regular menu before coming to Dabbawal and was looking forward to this dish. Also it was really loud and I had a headache ☹️

Really good tasty food would recommend to anyone.

I booked online, gave them my gluten free requirements, got a courtesy call a couple of hours before sitting. Food was amazing also a great selection for gluten free & other dietary requirements. Staff were amazing as well knowledgeable about the gluten free. Great place we will definitely be back we had a great night. Thank you to everyone for all of your help. 👍

Totally pretentious. Go down the road to Valley Junction 397 If you want this style of cooking Birmingham, Brighton, Manchester are leading way. Don't want your money

The take away was brilliant and the service was great.

Another great meal at Dabbawal. The lunch menu is good value and the food is always good. Will be back.

Beautiful food and the best staff you can ask for. 10/10

So, was in Newcastle for my daughters graduation 🎓 yesterday and had a table booked, we finished a lot early than we thought so rang and asked if we could come early, no problem, the experience just got better and better, I've been eating indian food for over 30 years and can honestly say this was the best we've ever had, and I meen by a country mile, absolutely delicious, outstanding, I was blown away

So what a little gem we found here, was absolutely blown away by the food, eaten indian food for over 35 years and this is the best by a country mile great service and ooo did I mention the food lol, I'm back in Manchester...

Fantastic food friendly service and a lovely place to eat at 😀

An excellent restaurant with the most delicious modern twist of traditional Indian food. Staff were amazing even though it was very busy. I would definitely recommend a visit to here if you are in the area. I certainly will be back thank you

Best Indian restaurant in Newcastle

Absolutely Authentic Indian cuisine !

Was a bit disappointed to be honest. Table booked for 7pm. Called to say that we were running late, to be told that the table was only booked for 7-830, that’s fine and then informed that we would have to hand the table back before 830?? We left at 835 and not an issue. Slow service for initial drinks order and after arriving at no later then 715, food wasn’t ordered till 745 and arrived just after 8. Food was average and I feel sad in saying this as we went to Dabbawal in town pre COVID and it was fantastic. Bhajis and chilli chicken came out first and they were luke warm at best, complained about the chicken which was returned and replaced. When the rest of the food came out, it just wasn’t what we remembered in terms of quality. Will not be coming back unfortunately.

Great food! Amazing flavours! Always a treat to go here, never disappoints!

At our arrival it was pretty crowded, but we still managed to get a table. The service was ok but not personal (nevertheless good that they spontaneously ask about allergies). The mango lassis were great, but the food (chicken korma, paneer makhani and the raita) not so much. The texture of the sauces felt unnatural and the taste very sweet, ill seasoned (read: nearly no complexity). The vibe was nice, but the food (main reason to visit a restaurant) rather disappointing, I would not recommend.

Attentive staff, food excellent . Menu varied and had tasty twists on some dishes. Atmosphere is relaxed and fun. Would definitely like to go again.

We tried this place by recommendation from our Airbnb host as it was right around the corner from our stay. Great customer service, seated immediately without a reservation (although I would recommend reserving first). My fiancé and I ordered 4 small plates, pulao rice, garlic naan, & 2 desserts. Everything was absolutely delicious, but I particularly loved the sweet potato tempura. One thing to note is that it was very busy which caused the inside to be quite loud. Aside from that, absolutely no complaints!

Went to Dabbawal to celebrate our 45th wedding anniversary . We'd been before so knew it would be lovely. The food looked amazing and tasted every bit as good as it looked. The staff were friendly and attentive. Hard to believe a vegetarian dish made...

We are regular visitors to Dabbawal’s sister restaurant on High Bridge in the centre of Newcastle. We hadn’t visited the Jesmond location before but expected the same interesting food and good service. The Jesmond restaurant is deceptively large. It has an outdoor seating area and...

My first visit to this restaurant, having previously eaten at their sister restaurant. All the food was stunning, good service and lots of choice on the menu. Definitely recommend.

Love dabbawal, both jesmond and high bridge, go all the time and recommend to all of my friends when they come to Newcastle! My favourites are the king prawns and the signature salad!

Delicious meal fresh take on Indian food good service and great value the vegetable samosas were prepared in a unique and delicious presentation

Dabawal is our new favourite restaurant. The food is phenomenal, the staff are incredibly friendly and provide excellent service. We usually book a table here but even for takeouts the food is ready within a timely manner, packaged with care and tastes just as good...

Great food. Slickly run. Very popular locally. Tables at the bar end will be the quieter ones when the place is full. We all had the Chef's Surprise and had a marvellous and generous range of dishes - enough for doggy bags in fact...The owner...

True authentic restaurant for Indian food. Decent options for non-vegetarian, vegetarian and vegan food.

Book! Very busy but that's because it's devine. Friendly and attentive staff. So much choice for food, all of it was delicious. Lovely atmosphere too.

Best Indian restaurant and takeaway in Newcastle bar none.

Lovely food and great service, a really nice place and would definitely recommend a visit 😀

Been a couple of times now and will be back again soon. Food and service are great, and tasty mocktails.

Tasty well cooked food lovely decor

Great restaurant, hidden away just off Brentwood Avenue, near to West Jesmond Metro Station. Fantastic food, great choice, friendly staff.

What a great place the service is lovely,food is delicious hot and not long to wait. Highly recommended

I went to this place with my family and the staff was very rude, I asked them to turn the heating on a lot of times but no one bothered and I had a 2 month old baby with me as well. Alongside the service was quite slow I had to wait a lot and even after that the food wasn’t properly cooked. Overall had a terrible time there, especially the customer service was horrible, would never recommend this place to anyone!

Really enjoyed the food here. Very easy to reach, next to West Jesmond metro.

Good service, great food. Next to Jesmond West metro

Went last night and had the chef special, had three friends who hadn’t experienced this before - absolutely fantastic ! Every mouthful was delicious and all our requests taken into consideration re level of spice , and preference of dishes - can’t recommend enough !