The Bengal Forest in East Hampshire

I have been to bengal forest on many occasions, apart from our last visit when the chips were burnt, we have always enjoyed the food from there. Today im posting this review because we've just had an awful experience, the woman dropped the food off to us (late, but no problem) she said that although we had ordered 2 chips there was only one but we hadn't been charged (again, no problem) We sat down to eat and the food was stone cold, worse still, my friends naan bread was burnt and my partners Tikka masala had a piece of wood in and mine had two bayleaves in which both got stuck in my teeth... Again I can live with that. But I called to let them know that the food wasn't good at all and they argued with me. I then checked my receipt and they had charged me for mint sauces and samosas that were never ordered. Avoid this place

Just moved to the area from London where the Indian restaurants are all competing against each other as there are so many which means the quality is pretty good. Which brings me to my point. The Bengal Forest is probably the worst Indian food I’ve ever had...i stupidly ordered through Just Eat who are pretty much the next best thing to useless when there is a problem. The food was ordered with a delivery time of 8:25pm nice! It arrived 50 minutes later..it was disgusting. After a few mouthfuls it was binned. Just Eat need to take responsibility for this..it was ordered through them, I paid them and they should offer a refund. DONT GO TO THIS RESTAURANT! DONT ORDER A TAKE AWAY FROM THEM! DISGUSTING 🤮

Went with a group of girls for a curry. Service was excellent, great menu and lovely food! We all had different dishes and thoroughly enjoyed them along with beautiful naan breads! We will back!!

Very very disappointing!!! Ordered our families meal through just eat, it arrived earlier than predicted - great ! But the food was horrendous!! Poppadums burnt, only a teaspoon of lime pickle, curry was watery, another dish was just chillis very little chicken, the raita was pure water - I could carry on. I called and was offered a discount on next order... not good enough and I certainly wouldn't be ordering again. Then I received a call 20 mins later I get a call to say that the food didn't come from them !!! Avoid them like the plague!!!!

Never had such a disappointing or tasteless curry! Will never order from hear again. Slop would be a more accurate description of the food we received. Simply awful!

we had a take away curry, it was very good the masala was the right colour not blood red and it tasted nice and the meat fell apart, onion bhaji was crispy on out side and soft in middle as it should be, mushroom rice was good too, to me it seems that its hit and miss with currys these days, you just have to hope the chef thats cooking is the best one, good curry thank you.

Asked for Vindaloo hot, tasted like dish water, Despite it meant to be Vindaloo hot. Could not be the curry I asked for, SURELY!! Had the same curry from there about a year ago different league, today was nothing like it. Total Tripe. Bland as!! Tasteless. Will never eat there again. Shocking!! Save your money!!! Good for the bin!! Not fit for my dog, and even he refused it!!!

Ordered a takeaway From start to finish using their service it was bad. Staff came across rude. Food was tasteless. Overall not good and won’t eat there again

Although you can eat here I have always had a take away due to family commitments The food is always quick to come & the standard of food is always amazing I have never had a bad meal recommend this restaurant 100 %

Ordered food quite late at night and when it arrived I have never tasted anything so bland and awful the naan was hard and the samosas were soggy and the food had no taste very ride staff definitely will not return a d don't recommend to anyone plenty of better Indians nearby AVOID!

Three of us went for a curry the other night, which we do occasionally. It is usually OK and local. We were given the menus and ordered, ate and got the bill. Food was only OK. Unfortunately the prices on the bill did not relate to prices on the menu. We were told that the prices had been put up about 6 months ago, but they had not had time to get new menus. After more than enough arguments from the owner, he agreed to charge the menu prices. This resulted in a bill about £10 less. Totally unacceptable! Needless to say we will not be going there again. I am sure they are not allowed to do this sort of thing?

Perhaps there has been a change of management. Regular customers here. Haven't ordered for a while but the food we got tonight was rancid and 25 minutes late. It used to be really nice food from here. I really don't know what has happened. Every item that we ordered tonight was awful from the curries to the side dishes. There was two items missing but we were still charged for them. Everything went straight in the bin. Will not be ordering from here again.

Just used this Indian for the first time as we've recently moved in to the area, best Indian ever tasted the flavour was fantastic I could have eaten another portion. The food arrived quickly and was lovely and hot.

Great place to eat in, or take out - you decide! Great selection of Indian food at reasonable prices. We go there every Friday because we are assured of a warm welcome as well as great food!

There really is very little to say about this place. Dirty and grubby with poor food. Unfortunately 3 out of our group of 4 were poorly. Not one for a return visit

unfortunately when we visited this restaurant 2 of our group ended up being quite poorly. The restaurant was not particularly clean which always give cause for concern ref the kitchen. I have heard others have enjoyed their visit and we may just have been unlucky but our visit was not a good one and we will ot be repeating it.

I have just moved into the area and my Mrs and me ordered a take away but it was awful we couldn't even eat it, called the Bengal forest to ask if I returned the curry was there anything we could to and they were really horrible and threatening. Worst take away ever and not nice customer services

First time used this place ! And I have to say very nice indeed ! ordered a takeaway to be delivered, arrived before time given ! Polite delivery driver Impressed so far ? And me and my wife was very impressed with the quality of the food very very nice !! Will definitely be using again !!

Eaten in a couple of times before and the food and service have been variable.Have had takeaway a coupe of times and again it has been variable but tonight was just so disappointing.When ordering Indian food I've always tried to support the restaurant in my village and use Bengal Forest. But I'll be going down the road to the Shalimar from now on.When ordering off the takeaway menu we checked the prices and knew how much it would be but thought I would check. They told me a higher figure, I challenged it and was asked where I got the prices from. They were from the takeaway menu I picked up from the restaurant earlier that afternoon.Order arrived, we received plain naan instead of garlic naan, phoned up to advise, they argued with me about it but agreed to send a garlic naan. We were eating our curry when it arrived so it didn't go cold, some of the plain naan had been eaten. The delivery guy advised that he had been told to take the plain naan back.......he was clearly very embarrassed and actually apologised.The food overall was bland and a real let down, but sometimes that happens. What I can't forgive is appalling customer service, to have to argue on the phone for a correct order is unforgivable.Also, what sort of takeaway doesn't throw in a couple of free poppadoms for a decent sized order for four people? They need to up their game to maintain a local customer base, several friends have had similar experiences but I guess up until tonight, we had just been lucky.

This used to be our favourite local Indian takeaway, what a disappointment. Ordered takeaway curries and rice this evening. One of the rice orders was forgotten, the curries were lukewarm and frankly were very mediocre at best! As this is not the cheapest curry house it was not what we expected. Also no popadoms,chutney or onion relish. We'll be going elsewhere next time.

Had a takeaway delivered, chips cold curry just warm . Absolute tasteless never again.Had more flavour in a packet of crisps.

I booked a table at this restaurant, i'd been here before but not for nearly a year so was keen to revisit.Unfortunately it was a great disappointment. There was only one other table of 4 so it wasn't busy but the service was very slow, slow to offer drinks, slow to take our order and slow for it to arrive.There was one lady on the bar and one waiter dealing with the food but with only 2 tables of 4 this shouldn't have been a problem, the problem was the phone orders for take aways and then people coming to collect their orders.The Take Away side of the business seemed to take priority and I think it should have been those sitting in the restaurant that got priority.I think it would have been quicker to have phoned my order in and had it delivered to the table !The drinks weren't straight forward either, they didn't have one of the items ordered even though it was on their menu and another ordered bottled cider was asked if he wanted ice and when it arrived it did so with the top still on the bottle but no bottle opener. This was quickly put right but I got the impression the lady was new. I ordered Palau Rice but when the food eventually arrived I was given Plain Rice, the waiter offer to change it but it had taken so long for the food to arrive, I didn't want the guy to start new rice as I'd have had to wait even longer which was also unfair on others in our party so I said I'd settle for plain rice.When the bill arrived I 'd been charged for Pilau rice but given the hassle and small difference in cost I decided to just pay and leave.Overall, a bad experience, it might be ok as a Take Away but not to eat in. They need to reassess their priorities which i'd suggest should be those who have booked a table and not the a takeaway.I'm unlikely to go back, they've lost me as a customer.

the Bengal forest is one of my favorites you are always made to feel welcome. from the moment the waiter welcomes you to the time you say goodbye this place is fabulous !they take your order when your ready and then in a short period of time ranging for 10-20 minutes you food will be served i strongly recommend it to anyone who fancies an Indian!

The food here was 'ok' but overpriced. A choice of two white wines on the wine list, we made our choice, ordered and the waiter brought the other one and with no explanation started to pour. When I pointed out we had ordered the other he said 'oh we have run out'. We tasted the Pinot (even though we had no choice) but it was warm. We asked if they had a cold one, but no, the best they could do was put it in the freezer for 5 mins and add ice. No apology was forthcoming. Only two other people in the restaurant, poor service and even worse decor.

Ordered a takeaway online, the menu looked great. Everything we chose was really bad. The prawn dish appeared to be mainly prawn tails in a bland fluid. The aubergine was hard and not cooked. The tomatoes in the shashlik were half green and solid like, they tasted suspiciously strong flavoured. I would judge that the individual components were all from frozen, cooked into a dish, and then microwaved. The onion pieces were all exactly the same size as if from a frozen bag. The mushrooms were either tinned from from frozen. The green peppers were uncooked and very bitter. The rice appeared to be overcooked long grain rice covered in either butter or oil, with green bits in resembling fresh herbs. There was no flavour throughout the dishes whatsoever. I felt like I was eating coloured fat with added salt, pretending to be food. I hope this is an isolated case... but seriously, how can you get this kind of food so, so embarrassingly wrong ?

been going to the Bengal Forest for several years and each time you think it should be slightly better than last time, but it's not, it's average.Not bad but not great.Service is averageQuality of food is generally good, choice good, prices are good.Drinks are usually good and wine is also reasonably priced.We would like this curry house to survive, hence we use it, and because of its locality, easy to use, but it does need to improve, albeit the service, or the quality of food / drinks, it simply lacks the wow factor! We will remain loyal to the BF until it no longer makes sense but it needs to listen to its customers and start to find ways to improve

This was undoubtedly the worst meal I've ever had in a restaurant in my life. It was served as a buffet as there were 20+ of us. The starters were passable, but the main courses were like soup with no substance whatsoever. The rice had been reheated and was mushy. I had stomach cramps the next day. Maybe it's better non-buffet, but I'm afraid they'll never see me again. Ever

Only the 2nd visit, the last was over a year ago. i was impressed 1st time and it was just as good this time. The food was excellent, good service and pleasant ambiance. I won't be leaving it so long before going again.

This is a great place for indian food and prices are good.The meal was cook excellently. It is small but it just right for a small party the let down is the night I was there was,a hen night.The staff is friendly and helpful

We would recommend this restaurant to anyone. The food has always been excellent in our experience both in the restaurant and takeaway. The staff are friendly and helpful and the interior of the restaurant is modern, clean, comfortable and welcoming. Prices are very reasonable and the owner has been known to offer us a complimentary drink on occasion.

had curry with chips. curry was cold and chips were stale and overcooked. called to complain, and was told by member of staff "we dont take complaints" and i was hung up on! worst curry ive ever had and i will NOT be returning!

Went for a curry with my partner quiet early in the evening so we where the only ones there, unfortunatly it will be the last time i use this restaurant as its always cold in there, when we got our food there was one member of staff pacing up and down and to be honest i felt like i was back at school, put me off my food! Also as we where eating all we could hear was the pacing member of staff snorting flem behind us also all i had was the kitchen staff blatently checking out my fiance from the kitchen window, felt like i was being constantly watched and made me feel uncomfterble, considering there are a few good indian restaurant in the area this one i will.not be returning to! Shame considering there is a new restaurant opening in denmead village!!!!!!

have been going here for 4 years, always had great service, great food, and the best dhansak in the portsmouth area. sitdown or takeaway, the quality was always impeccable, but has seriously dipped over the past 3 months. the curry we received tonight was bland, lacked spice and was watery.not sure wether there has been a change in cooking staff, but the food doesn't seem to be cooked with the same care and detail it used too. 3 months ago i would've recommended this as the best curry house in the area, now it's a disappointing also-ran.

Despite living in the area for a number of years we only tried this place for the first time the other day. We ordered to take-away and were not disappointed. We ordered a Korma to share however the only downside was that although there was enough rice and source to split between two; there was not enough meat for two people in our opinion. They only deliver if you have spent £15+ The food tasted nice and the service we received was very good. The restaurant itself is very small and cosy located upstairs of an old cottage type public house building. It is worth a visit.

There were 4 of us visited Sat 28 Sept. The restaurant appeared clean and tidy, pleasant surroundings and good ambience. The service was excellent as was the food. Reasonably priced too. The Manager and staff were attentive and did their best to ensure we enjoyed the experience which we did. It transpires the restaurant has been opened 4 years and we have only just been there, wish we'd tried it sooner as it is an excellent local asset. Would i go again? Definitely yes.

Had a lovely meal here, service was brilliant and good really nice. Would defiantly recommend and visit again.

We have lived in the village for just over 3 and a half years now which leaves me wondering why we haven’t eaten here more. We’ve probably eaten in 3 or 4 times and had a few takeaways from there as well.I’ll try to keep this short and just go through the essentials. The food is excellent – cooked to perfection and full of flavour. I particularly recommend the Chef’s Naga Chicken. They do their own Bengal sauce for dipping poppadoms in which is delicious! The staff are so friendly, polite and efficient. Its very clean inside and nicely decorated. As for price, its so reasonable considering the high quality of the food. Its just a lovely dining experience from start to finish. My wife and I went in there Saturday and although we both love trying different places, we both agreed that we really need to eat there more. We’re really looking forward to our next visit and will be taking friends and family there so they can experience it as well. My advice is go – you wont be disappointed!

Been going to this Restaurant about 6 months since moving to the area, nice atmosphere, staff are great, very friendly, food is very good and although the restaurant is small its quite unique being above pub in a lovely country area, I would definately recommend booking, especially at weekends. highly recommended for a small intermitt restaurant.

Have been to the restaurant on a couple of occasions - small group and large - and found the staff to be very friendly and accommodating whilst not overbearing, the food is superb and always plentiful and all within a good price - infact going back tomorrow - also the take away service is delivered with a smile and ontime!

Parents of Denmead Football Club under 11's team had a curry to celebrate the end of the season.. Great service, great food and great company. About 20 of us in total, food great and all brought out at same time. We will go back again..

I have been meaning to try this restaurant for a long time and am glad I did. The food was tasty, the waiters friendly and the atmosphere was good. It is only a fairly small restaurant and all the tables were full (always a good sign) and the menu was varied. It had a pleasant, cosy atmosphere and was busy but not in an annoying way. I can't wait to go back.

We enjoyed our meal in the friendly Indian restaurant upstairs from the pub (Forest of Bere) in the little town of Denmead, near Portsmouth.The meal was a reasonable price and was washed down with plenty of Indian Lager for the cost of 75 pounds sterling (for four). The meal was hot, the menu varied and the staff friendly, that's basically all you will ever need. Well done.

We live in the area and went to the Bengal Forest after they had put a flyer through our letter box. It was clean and quiet but the service was rather slow considering there was hardly anyone else there. The food was not out of this world either. But for a curry after a few beers it would not be too bad.