Mela Indian Restaurant in Christchurch

Do not go the worst indian resturant . Food service and drinks. Abysmal. Needs to have a new chef as existing one not a clue

The staff are very rude and the food was worse kept waiting for them to take order the rice came out cold when asked for another one we didn’t see it any more when complained we just kept getting dirty looks from the staff we will definitely not go back there

Chose to eat here 2 nights. Great service and choice and being from Birmingham we had high standards. Excellent food, spiced as described and restaurant spotless. Highly recommend

Lovely curry and great service, just what we wanted. I would recommend the lamb bhuna and the naan bread, both really delicious.

Once again, I want to thank all the contributors to TA reviews for encouraging me to check out this place for some much-needed Indian cuisine. I couldn't find any faults at all. The menu offers an impressive selection of dishes, many of which were new to me. I chose the Lamb Laziz as my main course, and it was delicious. The service was excellent, and the surroundings were immaculately clean. I will certainly revisit this restaurant on my next trip to the U.K.

Large takeaway ordered for family of 6 and the food was very fresh and tasty. Used other Indians locally but will go back to this restaurant from now on. Staff are super friendly and food is 5*

Ordered a takeaway last night and I must say it was excellent I've had a meal in the restaurant and that was also excellent. I would highly recommend mela eat in or takeaway you won't be disappointed .

Awful service, brought mains out while we were still eating starters , then they tried to clear mains while my elderly father was still eating not once but twice, very very disappointing

We regularly use this restaurant both for takeaway and eat in. We were given a table not even 24 inches square, with no room for the additional side dishes we had planned to order. We ordered 2 main courses , 1 pilau rice and one bread alongside 2 bottles of beer. So nothing excessive! The waiter who took our order asked if we wanted to order anything else and I quipped that there was no more room on the table, he just laughed! A very disappointing experience although the food was good.

Lovely food, good place to come with both family and friends. Highly recommend the chicken passanda.

But it was my first visit so it’s hard to gauge . If I was to re visit I’d feel able to ask for a hotter vindaloo dish . It was a very clean and nicely decorated venue . With polite, welcoming staff.

I have eaten here before as it is usually one of my favourite Indian Restaurants. We had takeaway for a change and the chef last night (8th April 2023) should be sacked or retrianed. The aubergine bhaji was bitter and inedible and undercooked. Had to throw most of it away. The Jhinga garlic prawn was flavourless (usually delicious) and the chilli paneer (also usually delcious) very bland whereas by contrast the tandoori chicken was ultra spicy (and I like vindaloo or hotter) so girlfriend struggled to eat. Pilau rice normally the best I have ever had tasted more like plain boiled rice. The peshwari nan was only acceptable part oft he order. Very very disappointed and was a complete waste of money.

First time back in nearly a decade. Very clean & tidy. Good, attentive service. 2 cider choices, a rarity in a curry house. Starter decent, main excellent. Good value at £35 per head for poppadoms, starter, main, sides & 3 drinks. Will return, soon.

We both had a lovely evening at the restaurant. We had never been before, we were in Christchurch for one night and Mela sounded like a lovely place to try. The service was excellent, really welcoming and the food delicious. Amazing starter of lamb zingar!. We would definitely be back next time in Christchurch. Thank you

We have eaten here before and it was lovely however tonight’s take away was bland and really watery. It had no flavour and I’m genuinely disappointed.

We have visited the restaurant on several occasions and always found it excellent. However, our recent visit on 18/01/2023 was most disappointing. The chicken was not tender almost stringy. Both the chicken and the sauce tasted watery with a distinct lack of flavour and thin consistency. The meals were not served hot. Hot air was blowing above us which was too intense and uncomfortable. Such as shame as it used to be excellent.

A good night by myself as a walk in. Food very good. I had Shish kebab to start and Chicken madras as a main. A glass of red to wash down. Service very good.

Had a nice evening with family here, food was lovely and would highly recommend. Kids love the punky dessert.

Finding a decent Indian on the south coast is tough, finding a delivery is even harder. Well this was recommended as we stay in Southbourne. Food first class, boiling hot, delicious, good portions and arrived early.

A very welcoming restaurant who listen to your requirements I would certainly recommend 👍I need to say more for this to be posted

Had a nice meal here whilst staying in Christchurch for the night. A good varied menu with friendly staff, the food was served promptly and tasted delicious. Portion sizes were on the small side for the price but that aside, we enjoyed the experience.

Calls itself an Indian cuisine but what they cook is a shame Sick and abusive attitude Not worth trying out

Food was amazing, service decent. A lovely evening had. Thank you. A hidden gem. Don’t overlook it because of location.

Excellent service, polite and smart staff, excellent food from the popadoms, starter and main course. Clean and tidy toilets and restaurant. Good value for money. Well done Mela.

Fabulous food, great service and super clean. Would highly recommend and will definitely be back for a visit soon!

Didn’t feel there was any sort of genuine welcome - Curry’s lacking meat and very small size - Rezala tasteless ! Restaurant clean but Gents toilet filthy sadly first visit and very disappointed

Good relaxed restaurant. Unhurried service with lots of choices and variety. Tasty dishes at reasonable prices

This was our fourth visit, every visit the venue is spotless, the staff impeccable, the food outstanding. Sadly it is quite away for us to travel there or we would definitely go more often.

Absolutely fabulous food and perfect service. The staff were attentive and friendly and made our Christmas day enjoyable. The food was full of flavours and the meat was great quality which really makes a curry. The restaurant is relaxing and decorated beautifully. All in all,...

I visited Mela in Christchurch yesterday evening with a large group of friends. We received a wonderful welcome and the food was delicious. Exactly what we hoped for. Crispy fresh popadoms, pickles then a range of great main meals and sides. The order was handled...

We have eaten at Mela for years. This time, the food was quite good although not very warm, but the service was poor. We were greeted by an unsmiling person and did not feel welcome. The waiter kept clearing dishes before we were ready, leaning...

Love the place very good service & food all ways use for takeaway /delivery staff are always very helpful definitely worth a try

Full of miserable souls, not a single smile. Had better food from ready meal packets, literally no flavour whatsoever. Took over 40 mins to take our food order, lovely decor inside but no charisma at all, would not recommend!

We (slightly) judge a "curry house" by the onion bahji. These were goooood, crispy outside, nuttiness and flavours running through them, great yoghurt sauce. Good cobra. Good portions, great naan, deep flavours without being overly spicey. Nicely done out, good service. If we were local...

We thought we would give this a whirl as its local and looked really attractive. Thats where it starts and finishes. Ordered our go to currys, 1 mixed meat Jalfrezi and 1 chicken ceylon. The jalfrezi was ok, not the worst ever, but edible. The...

There are some great restaurants in Christchurch and this is the best Indian by far. It’s had a total refurb in the last few months. The food is great. The staff are great. Good location with easy parking nearby. They’ve put the prices up recently...

Visiting the area for a few days and was looking for somewhere local to eat. Lovely meal. Service and food both excellent quality. Lovely atmosphere for a Monday night

Beautifully presented food and amazingly tasty too. Staff are very happy and helpful, a new favourite I think. Lovely decor and atmosphere also

I don’t review much anymore but decided to share our account of the evening. A nice refit has taken place and all the waiters are polite and smartly dressed. However service is incredibly slow, and I think we are encouraged to drink. All the alcohol...

The food was EXCELLENT - cooked to perfection. One of the BEST Indian meals I have experienced for years. Brilliant service , attentive and made you feel welcome! Highly recommended

Excellent food, nice environment, friendly staff. One of the best Indian restaurants have been to in a long time . Nice modern restaurant, plenty of space .

The place has a whole new look and is stunning. Glad to visit and dine in again after lockdown. The staff are always very kind and welcoming whether on the phone or in person. As always the curries were delicious. Top stuff all round Mela....

Having been here on both formal and informal occasions. I must say that mela is perfect for work party’s and family party’s. The service and food was excellent. Number One in Christchurch for me.

I used to really love the food at this restaurant. However, had a takeaway this evening and I have to say it was the worst I have ever had. Just pure heat and nothing else. I will not be patronising this restaurant again

3rd visit to this absolute gem. They have recently renovated the restaurant and it looks superb, massive improvement to before. Food is top notch and service is great. With the new look and delicious food, possibly the best restaurant in the area!

1st visit and had a wonderful experience. My wife's birthday so wanted it to special, wasn't disappointed. Lovely decor and atmosphere. Great food, impeccable service. Definitely recommended, we'll be coming back soon.

We had read reviews and had recommendations for this restaurant and as a takeaway, and it just didn’t live up to expectations. We ordered a home delivery and it was delivered on time at 8pm which was great. We ordered the lamb buna it was...

As it was lockdown, we had a home delivery on Thursday night. The food was truly delicious. It was delivered promptly by a friendly lady, and was still piping hot. Would definitely recommend.

I ordered a takeaway from Mela. I've never been there before but had heard good things about the restaurant and wanted to support a local business. The food was delivered quickly by a very friendly lady and the food is delicious. The portions are huge...

We had another brilliant evening at Mela. Great service friendly staff, delicious food and good wine. Good ambience, and pleased to see it busy. Thank you for another great evening, we will look forward to returning.

We ordered a takeaway from Mela last night the first time we have used them and it will not be the last! I have never received a takeaway so hot! Everything was delicious and came within a reasonable time of ordering. Would definitely recommend!

I often eat in the best indian in the UK,/Aberdeen...so maybe I have been spoilt, irrespective of this, from the starter to the main the food was terrible, a main course so called chefs special that lacked any flavor whatsoever, and has the consistency of...

We had a wonderful meal at Mela. Our food was very fresh and so delicious. The restaurant itself was very clean and up to Covid standards. The service was 5 stars and the staff were very attentive. It was nice to have such a pleasant and tasty meal during these stressful times!

We placed an order for delivery this evening at 8pm after numerous phone calls and lies that it was on its way it eventually arrived at 10.10am. Keema naan had barely any meat in it, naan bread doughy, vegetable korma not brilliant we have had delivery from there before and it was ok but was definitely put off this evening we won’t be using them again.

We were staying in the area and asked a member of staff from where we were staying which Indian takeaway they recommended and it was this one.... I can now see why!All 4 of us had different dishes and we demolished the whole lot! Would go as far as saying the best Indian I've ever had!

We went as a family of five and had starters and mains and the food was absolutely delicious, service great and the staff friendly. Would highly recommend a visit.

we booked a table for 5 of us. Absolutely amazing food and friendly staff. Value was goodand good size portions. Would 100% come back and 1000% recommend.

Just had a lovely meal at Mela (we had vegetable korma, vegetable korai and lamb rezla). Service was prompt and attentive without being intrusive. Reasonable price. It is a spacious restaurant so worked for social distancing.

Mela is our go to curry house if we want a curry. There is plenty of choice on the Manu with all the classics as well as a few new dishes for the experimental to try. The food was beautifully cooked and the spices ideally balanced. We will definitely return.

They forgot to bring the first course ! I asked for a jug of water....it was tepid.Dark austere mauve inside with little relief such as bright pictures ,Lighting dull.There were a few wall hangings but nothing to lift the morbidity of the place.Food satisfactory but nothing special.

This restaurant when first opened was brilliant . Great decor, smart keen staff, and excellent food. Being a creature of habit I tend to have the same dishes and each time we have visited we have noticed a slight lack of interest in the customer. The last time was dreadful.The service was one of complete indifference to the customers needs. The hot plate was cold as was every dish we had. Peshwari Nan as advertised in their menu is supposed to be FILLED with coconut and sultanas we opened it and found 4 sultanas and little coconut. We have complained about this every time but no chance of rectifying it would appear. For such a lovely restaurant it is a great shame that the food and service has gone down hill so quickly. I doubt if I shall return to be treated to such a disappointing, expensive, evening out

A real pleasure to eat here. Staff attentive without being intrusive and delicious food. Will definitely go again when in Christchurch

A very nice restaurant - feels a lot bigger inside than it looks from outside. The food was great - very tasty and well cooked. The restaurant is modern and comfortable - also nice and clean. The staff were polite and unobtrusive.

Had one one night in Christchurch and found this great restaurant. Place was packed, which is always a good sign. Cannot fault the service and food was amazing.

Really good from start to finish - simple & friendly booking by phone, nice welcome at the restaurant and tasty food for both of us, excellent.2 x starters, then we each had a main with a shared rice & naan. Next time I'd love to try the aloo gobi too, and we both said we'll go for something hotter. The samosas were pretty spicy, but the mains were (very) tasty rather than lots of kick - we went for medium hot and "one chilli" choices.Would love to try desserts too, but didn't have time yesterday, next time ...Good, friendly & efficient service from every member of staff who served us.The restaurant doesn't look much from outside, but inside is well presented, we both really enjoyed our evening.Recommended.

We were rather late arriving at the restaurant, entirely my fault. The staff were very friendly, our food was excellent and we will revisit when next in Christchurch

We both really enjoyed the meal yesterday. Nice atmosphere, very clean and great food. I have king prawn bhuna which could have been a bit hotter but still really good.

We have had a regular Indian locally but friends recommended this one. From the road it looks small however plaeasanty surprised large well presented rooms actually very nice. Staff attentive and food excelleent. Will definitely return and use as our local. Excellent range and value.

Overall a good experience, we visited on a Saturday evening and received a friendly welcome, the food came out quickly and was well presented and good value. I would try something a bit spicier next time though.

Popped in here with my wife and 3 friends - the service was polite and restaurant decor nice.

I decided to take a shot in the dark and go for something I haven't tried before. I liked the sound of the tandoori king prawn bahar. As I expected it was amazing. I love prawns anyway but with a bit of a tandoori kick made even more perfect. One of my top ten curries.

I've come here twice before but on birthday occasions. This time I came with only my wife. We didn't know what to get so the waiter recommended lamb shanks for me and a king prawn laziz for my partner. When the food arrived it looked amazing. I was sceptical at first but the lamb shanks were exquisite. I would definitely eat again. My wife's laziz was also amazing. I would recommend the lamb shanks to everyone.

One of the best restaurants out there. Would highly recommend. The tandoori fish dish is especially a good one.

My colleague and I visited after a long day at work. We were the only people in the restaurant at the time. Both of us were feeling ill during the night and I was violently sick. I emailed the restaurant who were very defensive and denied that it could possibly be down to their food. Very poorly dealt with by the management. Wont be visiting again.

I was taken here with group of my mates. I had a wonderful time. We had lots of room and a genuine good time thanks to the staff. After having a wonderful meal. The waiters bought out a birthday cake. This was a shock to my friends too. I would definitely come again.

Very nice food, decent portions - generous but not too huge; very good service and civilized atmosphere. Reasonable price. We will return.

We had a takeaway curry from this restaurant as were staying at the Travellodge next door. The staff were polite and efficient and the curries we had were delicious. We both thought these were one of the best we had ever eaten. We would definitely recommend this place.

We had a takeaway last night, three different dishes and it was all surprisingly bland, won't be using this restaurant again :(

Simple decor, helpful staff, food was excellent, not swamped with food, as you typical Indian. Good portions, hot and fresh.

We were a group of 5 that turned up rather late at closing time. Even though they were about to close they made us very welcome. The service was excellent as well as the food. We had 5 different meals and can not fault this place. We will go again when next in the area. Well done to all the staff.

Went with my husband after seeing a show at the Regent’s centre. We initially tried to eat at pizza express who were less than welcoming and informed us we would need to order and finish our meal within the next 30 minutes. So we decamped to Mela and had a delicious meal. The lamb shank was falling off the bone in a gorgeous sauce and was plenty for 2. Will certainly be coming back.

I visited this restaurant in November last year, they completely understood my dietary requirements (vegan) and were very happy to help suggest dishes for me. The food was delicious and there was plenty of it - I will definitely return to this restaurant when I'm next in Christchurch.

We have eaten in and thoroughly enjoyed it. Most often though, we have takeaways delivered.

The menu has all the usual indian curries but thay seem to taste much better other restaurants.the staff are good and very pleasant well worth a visit don't think you'll be disappointed.

Popped in on the off-chance one Saturday evening. The food was very good and tasty. The service was very good. If looking for Indian food in the area then I would recommend.

Best Indian restaurant in Christchurch,been many times here great food great service friendly staff,highly recommended will visit again

Very warm welcome on a freezing cold night. Kindly allowed us to park in the parking space behind the restaurant. Beautiful restaurant, great ambience. Food was delicious from popadoms to everything else we had. Chicken shashlik very fresh, tarka Dhal very good. Anarkali Highly recommended

Great evening meal restaurant located near Travelodge. Very tasty meal, good atmosphere, good menu choice.

Found this Indian restaurant purely by chance whilst on holiday in the New Forest recently. Excellent choice of food and drink served by friendly staff. Reasonable prices for good quality food. I would recommend this restaurant if you're in the area.

I've been here several times now and as someone who doesn't live in the area but in London, I think it's a truly great find. The staff are impeccably mannered and the food fabulous. The only reason it doesn't quite get full marks is because the restaurant itself is in need of updating. Otherwise I rate it highly and wouldn't hesitate to recommend.

Come regularly when down visiting family. The best local for us. They serve exquisite food at a very good price to be honest. Treated very well every time and they maintain their very good reputation and high standards.

As soon as I walked in I was greeted nicely and taken to a table of my choice. So at the start I got four poppadoms and of course chutney which was served along with our drinks within a minute! Then came my order at a fairly fast rate which looked and tasted excellent. Throughout my meal the atmosphere was calm and the waiters always checked to see if everything was OK. After this came dessert which was great. All in all was very good. Would highly recommend.

I'd you want top quality food at a good price and excellent service, go here. The did is really full of flavour, the staff are great and the prices are very reasonable. Even the toilets are clean. Bill

This is our favourite Indian restaurant in Christchurch. The dishes are always delicious. Another plus is that it is right next door to the Saxon Bar micro pub.Very handy

My Daughter made reservation for lunch on line,what huge mistake.we arrived to find door locked with a closed sign on the door and the waiter sat in the restaurant,We should have left then but unfortunately decided stay after waiter opened the door for us. Nobody else in the restaurant atmosphere cold and the waiter unfriendly we where going to leave but being Mother’s Day everything would be very busy,we ordered our food which wasn’t the best and served by a miserable waiter . Never to return,,,,,,

My wife and I visited on a Saturday night following a recommendation. I have to say it was a terrible mistake.

We ordered over the internet and after an hour of no show a phone prompted delivery within 30 minutes. Not impressed given that we received a confirmation text advising the original order was received and due in 45-60mins. The food did arrive after 20 minutes and the curry was acceptable but having eaten in the restaurant it fell short in depth of value. A side order of onion bharjis left a lot to be desired. My impression is that this restaurant is in decline and due to close because I have had far better food and service. Go elsewhere.

We had a curry here and ordered chicken Ceylon, mushroom rice, chicken chat, onion Bhaji and Tarka Dahl. All the dishes were well balanced and full of flavour. Recommended.

Message for all gluten free diners - never eat here. After being told "it should be gluten free" then it "is gluten free" I ordered and explained it had to be gluten free. Well it wasn't and 2 weeks on still have symptoms. They don't have a clue about this.

I took my husband for a birthday curry yesterday and received poor service. we arrived at 6pm were seated and finally got drinks 15 mins later. both staff on duty walked past us and seemed to be more interested in the phone for takeaways. finally ordered and waited another 45 mins for starters. it was only when my husband asked a new person who arrived, was there a problem in the kitchen that service came. main was ok but not up to usual standards. my husband was ready to walk out before starters came. we have never had such poor service here, and were very disappointed. my husbands birthday was spoiled and will think twice before going again.