The Star in Southwark

Been here quite a few times but tonight will be the last. Had to ask three times for a drink and ate the whole meal without a drink as a result - the drink never came. First response "I'm just here to serve the food." Second response "I'll get it for you." Third response - forget it!

My family went to the Star last week, as it was both my and my sons birthdays and he said he fancied a curry. So as he stayed with us we decided to go to the Star in Cheam Village which is fairly local to us. I have been before and the food has been ok. NOT this time, we had possibly the worse curry We have ever had. Papadoms and Starters were ok But !! The mains were dreadful King Prawn dhansak , a chicken dish , plus a lamb dish which was inedible as it was so tough. Every dish tasted the same with no variation with the sauces and to really spoil the evening my wife bit on a fairly large stone which was in one of the dishes. When the staff were informed there was no apology - their comment was "it must have been in the rice! Because it was a birthday celebration we didnt complain at the time as it would have spoiled the evening for our son but we have been in since to complain to the manager. It wasn't a cheap meal by any means (no discount offered as a way of apology) and we certainly won't be returning

Only been coming here for 40 years Food is always great, service is friendly, brisk and sometimes chaotic, which is just part of the charm

I used to be a frequent customer of the Star, for some 10 years in fact. However, more recently I found that they treat you appallingly in there. I arrived with 2 companions with a view to be seated. I was told there were no other tables available other than a table for 4 by a very loud group of women - chavy types. I asked whether the other tables on the entrance side were available as we wanted a quiet meal. However, I was assured that these and a table of 5 on the other side were booked and that if a table were to become available they would move us. I protested 5 minutes later to a visit to the loos and the (eastern European) waiter said it was the table we had or the option for another restaurant in Cheam. To cut a long story short, we were lied to as no one turned up for any of the other tables and we were forced to have an uncomfortable time on the table neighbouring the loud and disruptive group! Very disappointing and they have lost a customer because of this. We were lied to, plain and simple.

Traditional boozer, no thrills, good beer, good hospitality, pleasant ambience. Various memorabilia from the age of steam/railway, if that floats your boat? Certainly adds towards the traditional aspect.

Went to The Star of India in Cheam, Surrey, just before Christmas for a friend's birthday. Every year we have a curry to celebrate with 'Rufus', sometimes at The Star, sometimes elsewhere. Its location is convenient, which is why we went again this year. I've never really been a fan of this place before we last went, but one thinks "give it another crack, it may have changed its ways". Unfortunately, ways have not changed. It's by no means a party atmosphere in there, despite being somewhat untraditional and modern for a curry house, but this didn't stop some truly lax service. We went in at 8 o'clock, we cannot have been eating before half-past nine. The curries themselves aren't great, but the standard of curry around, especially in places that try to be too much, isn't in general. Go for a more traditional place where they put humble courtesy and quality curry above swanning around doing nothing and serving bland dishes. Substance over style gentleman. Also, watch out for one of the waiters, 'Trousers'. You'll see what I mean.

My partner and I ordered food from here and wanted to collect it. I got there a bit early, not only was I treated with the best service, but I was given a complementary glass of wine while a waited. The staff are superb and ensure every customer feels like a VIP.

This place looks like a cross between a bad Karaoke bar and the dance floor on a cruise ship. It needs to start again. The decor is shocking. The menus dirty and tatty. I didn't think it was possible to make a bland curry but these guys have managed it. The bulk of each dish is onion. The Naan was good. It used to be good. Did they sell up and the new owners thought they could cut corners and have got complacent? Will definitely not return. It was £92 for 6 beers and a curry for 3. AVOID!

I last went to The Star with family what must be getting on for a good ten years ago, sadly a lot has changed since then. In my experience once a restaurant gains a good word of mouth they tend to lean back a bit and get a little lazy. It saddens me to report The Star is one of these very eateries. The service: We were rushed in and out given no choice of starter or desert just the bill hurriedly plopped on our table more or less as soon as we had finished our last mouthfuls. This sort of service is never 'acceptable' though if the restaurant is busy it is more understandable. This was 6pm on Friday evening and apart from us there were two other tables dining. The food: Sadly this may as well have been out of a tin, all veg was processed and overcooked. For a Madras there was no real hint of 'heat' it tasted very bland almost gravy like?! Food was served at a lukewarm temperature. Credit where it's due the Naan was pretty good. Portions very very small for the price. Overall I would have to say avoid at all costs. The only real positive is it is a clean and respectable looking place.

Came here after being recommended from another friend. Fantastic, friendly service from every single member of staff. The fact that the restaurant was completely full says enough! Very reasonable prices, I had a dish that one of the waiters recommended I try and it was excellent. I even took the rest of our food home that we could not finish! I would definitely return here.

My partner and I went yesterday we both had lovely food ,good service ,that's all we ever look for when eating out but lately not been getting it from other restaurants,so we were very happy to recommend the star of India

We have been going to The Star for a while now, myself sporadically with friends and now that my boyfriend has discovered a love of Indian food, more frequently. The service is always great and the food is really delicious - I highly recommend the King Prawn korai that comes out sizzling!!! Everything tastes very fresh and is nicely presented. For me the highlight is that their dessert menu offers coconut ice cream presented in a coconut shell - a bit of a 70/80s throw back but makes me feel like a kid on my holidays again and completely yummy!!! My partner is very fussy about his madras or vindaloo but appreciates the hotness of both at The Star. They also do a reasonably priced bottle of Chablis,or, if drinking alone, the house wine is not bad at all and is served in a generously filled glass! All in all A******* .It's definitly one of our go to places for a chilled, well fed evening.

Have lived in Cheam Village for 8 years and visit The Star three or four times a year. The menu offers something for all curry lovers and has so far never let us down. The service Is polite and friendly. The upbeat ambience Is a reflection of the anticipation felt by the hoards who visit time and again.

Initially arrived at 730 and whilst waiting outside for my friends I saw lots of people going in to the restaurant for eat in and take-away meals. Excellent service that did not rush us to choose from the menu. Excellent clean and smart interior. Comfortable seating and there is a nice background noise of conversation. The Star has a nice atmosphere. Nice polite staff. The food was superb. I am a curry fan and have had good. bad and indifferent meals before. This was very nice. Again no rush to get rid of us and we left in a thoroughly good mood! I am not from the area but I hope to meet those friends again soon and no doubt we will go back to this restaurant. You know what it's like when you find a good one!

Too heavy on the salt and depending on what you order can be too rich. I am a curry addict but can't stomach this food or it will be sure to upset my tummy. The staff are nice and service is good. If they reduce the salt and have less intense spice ( or maybe lighter on the fat ?) it might be better. We have curry at least once a week but not here.

Very nice restaurant. Food was lovely. Service was efficient and we weren't kept waiting long for anything. We even got extra choccies too.

Wow fantastic meal with my wife service just cool the food came out spotless real taste of Indian food not like the other restaurant in Cheam I would recommend to my friends

i ate here tonight with my best friend, the staff was very friendly, the service was brilliant, the atmosphere was buzzing it had a really good feel to it all, the food was fantastic on of the best curries i have had in a long time. well done!

I went for a meal at The Star last night and found it was pleasant. We ordered many different sides and main dishes and they were overall very nice and tasty. The ticka masala is a dish that i don't reccomend as it is done differently to how you would normally have it, i think it's because they put too much coconut in, making it very thick and lots of coconut bits in the curry. The service was VERY quick which suprised me as the other reviews seem to say how slow and bad it is. What made it for me is i asked for a lemonaid and did not specify the size so they brought me a small, about 20 minutes later one of the guys who worked there came over with a large lemonaide and apologised that i had asked for a large. This then meant i got a free small lemonaide, i was happy so i wasn't going to argue with him!

Came here for a curry a couple of weeks ago as it was my mothers birthday only to find the service very slow and waiters seemed disinterested apart from a sweet older Indian man. Good coffee came quick, cheerful waitress that made us laugh. Curry was mediocre, no lemonade and no tiger which I thought was unusual, might come again due to fantastic coffee.

Been going here for over 30 years. The food and staff were great. I don't know what is currently going on. Food has bombed. Staff seem disinterested and rude. This was evidenced at a recent meal. Staff were rude, over an hour for food. Several tables voted with their feet. please return to your AUTHENTIC roots, come on Michael!

I have used the curry house off and on over the years as it is local. However last night we ordered chicken madras which was just an orange v spicy sauce with no flavor! Also chicken zilzila which is my favorite from there, it was horrible! Just a plate piled up with dry chicken and onions! Yuk! The meat samosas were tiny also! I politely complained and waiter was v apologetic but rest of staff not so! That's it never again!!:-(

Food was very good but service is rubbish. Took an hour to get our food. Much much better curry houses around in Cheam and Sutton. Wouldn't recommend

Well the food is always ok, nothing out of this world but the restaurant is always welcoming. Terrible service on our last two visits so much so would contemplate somewhere else first!

I have visited this restaurant on a number of occasions, with groups of friends, and always enjoyed it, however more recently I went with just one friend and had a completely different experience. There was a large noisy group present, maybe they were getting all the attention, because for us, service was slow, staff were unattentive, and at the end of the meal, I actually found what I believe to have been a pubic hair on my plate. Obviously I complained, and was offered a free shot (?!) I should have had the confidence to refuse to pay, but actually the food was good. I will however never be visiting there again.

This is an old favourite of mine and an Indian I always enjoy going to. The staff are always very nice and attentive, and the food just delicious. Not too expensive either. I visit this restaurant every few months and have always had a great experience here. Just across the road there is plenty of free parking which is always very handy!

an old favourite had been out with colegues from work decided to eat and the star managed to fit us in even though we had no booking and they were very busy A mixture of favourite dishes all well presented by friendly staff and a constant supply of cobra What's not to like

Haven't been here for a couple of years, but remembered it was good. Booked table day before, but when we arrived they appeared to have forgotten. Waited a good ten minutes to be seatedSpeed of service was ok, but we felt as if the waiters would rather be doing something else.Food was good but whole experience ruined by the service.

Came here with 4 friends and was seated at a nice round table by the window. We ordered drinks straight away and was asked if we wanted popadoms which was a good start. Not long after one of the guys came round to take our order. Well, he got half way round and was distracted by something else and walked off! About 5 mins later he came back to take the rest of the order. That was really annoying. Anyway, the food soon came out all at the same time which was good, not piping hot how I like it, but ok. My chicken tikka came on a sizzling plate with onions but was more like a fajhita than chicken tikka which was a shame. The bill came to £27 each but we did have 4 bottles of wine so quite reasonable. Would go back but it's not the best curry I've had.

The meals were OK, although service was rather slow. This is quite a large restaurant with tables close together but there did not seem to be enough staff and our dirty plates were left on the table rather too long, as happened with other diners as well. Also, it is too noisy for my liking, though I should add that we were there on a Friday evening. On asking for tea at the end of the meal, I was told they did not do tea. So I asked for a decaff coffee - no, they did not do that either. My son had to ask for milk and sugar for his coffee. There were no refreshment towels given out at the end of the meal. Overall, not bad but not great either.

An ideal place for a curry if you live locally, but not worth travelling. The staff are good but the food is the same you have had before in endless Indian restaurants.We ordered 3 different chicken dishes and when they arrived they all looked the same, this sums the restaurant up.£25 per head including beer

The food was not liget indian and the korma tasted crap. Even this would be suited for western taste.

Popped in for a curry after a few drinks.I went for a chicken tikka masala, (I know, very boring), but it was lovely.Service was excellent, attentive without being in your face.It was very quiet, but that could have been because it was the Sunday night of a bank holiday weekend.Reasonably priced for a curry house

Popped in for a post-pub curry. Lovely food, but it was a bit quiet and, therefore, lacking in atmosphere. Lots of vegetarian choices too, including fab paneer cheese dishes.

they do a very good balti chicken here, The chicken is delicious. Unfortunately it has been a bit hit and miss when it comes to how it is served, Sometimes the chef is a little sloppy and teh chciken is served in a bath of ghee, which has put us off going there again..

The food here is lovely and tasty and great value. the staff are friendly. There are all the normal favourite dishes and some less well know. They have also started a healthy food bar. Well worth visiting

From the outside the Star is a well set out and attractive restaurant occupying one of the prime sites in the Sutton suburb of Cheam Village. The setting is contemporary and modern with vibrant eastern colours and not a hint of flock wallpapers in sight. When we arrived on a Monday evening it was about half-full and there was an encouraging hum of conversation.The ambiance of the place was really pleasant and the welcome was warm. We had a pleasant table. There were a mixture of couples, foursomes and a couple of small groups in the restaurant which combined to give the place a good buzz without it being so deafeningly loud that it was difficult to hear a conversation across the table.The menus were with us in moments. Bottles of King Cobra arrived well chilled shortly afterwards. We much prefer the subtleties of the milder dishes without chilli and we were able to find lots to chose from and, more importantly, the restaurant was quite willing to produce dishes from the menu without chilli... a really good sign that food was being prepared in the kitchen and not just being heated up from batches as it was needed.We bumped into friends in the restaurant who about to leave at the end of their meal. Unlike us they enjoy the really hot stuff and have sampled almost every "Indian restaurant" in a ten mile radius. One considers the quality of a good vindaloo by how many times he had to mop his brow! But each to their own. They had enjoyed their meal.The popadums were no better and no worse than we would find anywhere, the pilau rice was perfectly cooked and just the right sticky consistency, the nan bread was fresh, moist and had none of the off flavours of scorched oil the, our prawn korma was tender with that freshly cooked perfect taste and texture and, finally, a chicken Kashmir was also tender, moist, well balanced and delicious.The service was efficient but the Star focuses on producing really excellent food rather than fast food. On the evening that we were there, it took about until about an hour after we arrived before the main course were delivered to our table. But... the purpose of the evening was to have a unhurried, relaxed, enjoyable meal in pleasant surroundings where we could spend some quality time together and have a pleasant conversation... so the leisurely pace suited us just perfectly.We liked best the quality of the food and the subtleties of the flavours.We liked least the time it took us to order a second round of drinks.Top Tip: This is a place to avoid if you want a rock-bottom priced fast plateful of batch cooked chilli laden “curry” washed down with cheap beer. This is a place to book if you fancy excellent Indian cuisine, skilfully prepared and served at a comfortable leisurely pace.