Fatt Pundit

Indian

77 Berwick St, Soho, W1F 8TH

££

I found Fatt Pundit organically, in such a way that people rarely eat anymore when in their own country. Whilst doing a spot of shopping around Oxford Street (hell on earth), I walked past its Soho establishment, and with an intrigue from the name, decided to take a look at its menu. At the time, I had recently returned from India, a month where I went vegetarian and lunched almost every day on Momo’s, usually whilst on a beach, knees deep into Shantaram, with a friendly cow occasionally trying their luck to nab one off the plate. I had never even realised these pockets of joy existed before I went to India. I texted my travelling companion immediately “I have found a Momo house in central – we must go!”. This was two, soon to be 3 January’s ago. Then 2020 hit.

This year has been a really confusing one when it comes to eating out, it has robbed the restaurant industry of any concept of spontaneous dining, with each booking needing to be made at least a week in advance, and usually only with members of your own house. Restaurants have had to adapt to outdoor seating, at the time that winter is just starting to kick in, and patrons have had to get used to the notion of wearing a piece of cloth over their face (can double up as a napkin if needed) in spaces anywhere other than their table. The government have closed restaurants for 3 months, only to open them up again and encourage us out with a discount. In short, 2020 has made us take the matter of eating out incredibly seriously – not only are we now faced with the need to plan ahead, but we are risking the chance of getting ill so it really does need to be worth it.

What better time then, 2 years after discovery, to take a trip to Fatt Pundit with my travel companion, best friend, and now housemate. As soon as lockdown was lifted for the second time, we booked immediately: having to call up and beg for a table when online it looked to be fully booked. We arrived at 20:00 on a Friday night, a little bit too tipsy (which the waiter noticed instantly). We ordered a bottle of white pretty pricey white wine (cheapest £28), some Mix Vegetable Momo’s (£5.5) and some Chicken Momo’s (£6). To follow, we ordered some Crunchy Pepper Crab (£12) and Chilli Duck (£11). To finish, we shared a Sizzling Brownie (£8.5).

The momo’s were good: the chicken being a bit more flavoursome than the vegetable. They looked pretty and were steamed to perfection, accompanied by a turmeric sauce and chilli sauce to dip in. The duck came glazed in a caramelised onion sauce – similar to a crispy chilli beef but fresher, and more tender than crunchy. It was still pink in the middle and the flavour of the quality meat wasn’t overpowered by the sauce or the slit green chilli thrown on top. The star of the show, however, was the whole, soft-shell crab served with wok-blistered sweetcorn, charred scallion and Szechuan peppercorn. Oh. My. God. A dish of dreams – tender crabmeat encased in a edible shell, placed on top of crunchy exterior but still slightly chewy interior sweetcorn. It was original: it was special.

It was so special that I insisted on coming back a second time with my fella as soon as lockdown 2.0 lifted. We ordered more momo’s of a different kind, this time going for the beef (£6.5) and kid goat (£6.5). Both rich, and fairly similar – but the beef taking the crown of all on the menu. I would advise ordering these and the chicken for a deliciously diverse momo experience. After my last experience, I advised we get the crab and duck, neither of which disappointed a second, more sober time around. We also ordered some Lamb chops (£15.5) which were perfectly pink and nicely charred, although not a patch on Tandoor Chop House, and a Bing Bread – essentially a glorified paratha (£4). To finish we went for the brownie (again), which came bubbling away, piping hot, gooey in the middle and covered in delicious sauce. Sitting at the bar this time, however, did reveal that this was warmed in the microwave… not to take away its well-deserved majesty, but it did remind me of those plastic wrapped deserts you get in the supermarket.

Although my second experience was just a delicious as the first, I couldn’t help noticing how expensive it was a second time around. The lamb chops came with 4, whilst the crab was over in a couple of mouthfuls. When you are ordering this many plates, the bill soon racks up, especially when the cheapest wine will set you back almost £30 and a piece of bread is a rather ludicrous £4 - our bill came to over £100 the second time around. It is worth noting here that the first time we were sat upstairs, which is small but modern and airy enough. The second time, however, we were taken downstairs – seated in the corner next to a till and the door to the cleaning room. It was unmistakably bright, there were no windows, and the grey walls were claustrophobic and uninviting. The table of 6 next to us were too close, especially for covid-times, and I asked immediately if we could move upstairs: to which they accommodated us at the bar as mentioned above.

Overall, Fatt Pundit is a mouth-watering, bona fide Indian dining experience. It is upmarket in terms of food but could definitely do with a larger and more plush setting. The food is great, but a casual atmosphere such as this one should have cheaper prices.

OVERALL RATING: ****

https://www.fattpundit.co.uk