There are few places to eat on Oxford Street itself - McDonald's, Deep Pan Pizza and Angus Steak House cannot truly be considered viable options other than by tourists who don't know any better - but explore some of the side streets, and you can find some interesting (and admittedly some not so interesting) places for dinner.

Just behind Oxford Circus, we found Kerala Restaurant, a South Indian establishment which is the antithesis of everything that is chic, minimalist and modern. Not only are the tables jammed into the tiny premises, the discordant pictures (a mixture of Indian images and cartoon sketches in the style of Punch from the Victorian days) vie for space on the walls with other miscellaneous (almost random, since there is no evidence of a binding theme) decorative objects including, at the back of the room, what appears to be a trellis covered with fake vegetation.

The menu tends towards the traditional, with liberal references to "Travancore specialities" (Travancore being the name of the state in south west India before it was re-named Kerala). Unlike some restaurants that specialise in south Indian cuisine, the food is not exclusively vegetarian, as meat and seafood dishes hailing from the sizeable Christian population also feature.

We skipped starters in favour of a selection of main courses, including a chicken curry in traditional Travancore style, king fish and green mango curry and okra with mustards seeds, accompanied by lemon rice and appam. When they arrived, none of the dishes looked very substantial and, thinking we'd underordered, were tempted to ask for the menu again - but we found ourselves struggling to finish our original order. Perhaps this was because of the rich sauces, or the excessive oiliness that seemed to pervade everything. Our overriding impression is of the greasiness of the food and the leaden feeling that follows an overly heavy meal: a shame, since the flavours and spicing were neither unpleasant nor hackneyed versions of dishes typically associated with Indian cuisine.

Too full for dessert, we finished with a couple of soothing teas instead. The staff didn't rush us, so we people-watched into the night. Kerala Restaurant was busy enough throughout the evening to give the place an amiable buzz, and there appeared to be some regulars dining that night. I'm just not sure that I'll be joining their ranks.

- Tracy Yam, 11/2004