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Best Indian restaurants in Harare
Tandoori, butter chicken and proper vegetarian spreads, from Gunhill to Belvedere.
Indian food has a firm place in Harare's eating-out habits, and for a simple reason: it feeds a mixed table well. A group with two vegetarians, someone who wants heat and someone who does not can all order from the same menu without compromise, which is why most of the city's Indian restaurants list group dinners as their bread and butter. North Indian cooking dominates, so expect tandoori and tawa dishes, butter chicken, paneer in several forms and a rack of naan breads, with Indo-Chinese plates appearing on a couple of menus as well.
The core addresses sit along Borrowdale Road on the Gunhill side of Alexandra Park, where both Taj restaurants trade, with Spice Lounge listed nearby but giving its own address in Milton Park, so check the map before you drive. Belvedere has Bukhara on the first floor of Big B Mall, and Highlands has The Fuzion Palace, which mixes Indian and Pakistani cooking with pizza and grills for tables that cannot agree.
Most of these places sit in the $10 to $20 a head band, and Bukhara's starters at around $11 to $13 give a fair idea of where a full meal lands. The two Organikks restaurants are different in kind: Indian curries form part of a wider organic menu, and Ndizvo in Chisipite sits in the top band at $40 or more, so save it for a date or a celebration rather than a weeknight curry.
Booking matters at the weekend, particularly for a group, and Spice Lounge and Organikks Ndizvo take reservations online. Vegetarians are well looked after almost everywhere on this list, and halaal meat is noted at Ndizvo and The Fuzion Palace. Parking is easiest at the mall addresses; the Borrowdale Road restaurants are on a busy stretch, so allow time for the turn-in.
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Taj Restaurant
Indian restaurant on the Gunhill side of Alexandra Park.
The Gunhill Taj on Borrowdale Road brings its chefs over from India and dresses the room in colour, with staff in Indian attire and occasional entertainment. Chicken tikka lababdar and Malabar fish curry sit alongside Indo-Chinese plates and a strong vegetable list. Group dinners and vegetarians do well here, at $10 to $20 a head.
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Spice Lounge Restaurant
Indian restaurant in Alexandra Park.
Spice Lounge takes a lounge approach to North Indian food: a stocked bar, a small-plates section and tawa and tandoori dishes at the centre of the menu. It works for drinks and a few dishes as well as a full sit-down meal. Book through its website, and note its own site gives a Milton Park address.
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Taj Cafe and Restaurant
Indian restaurant a short walk from Sam Levy's Village.
Taj Cafe and Restaurant spreads its tables across a dining room, a veranda and a terrace, which makes it easy for a big group. Butter chicken, tandoori dishes, Indo-Chinese plates and much-praised naan breads fill the menu, with plenty for vegetarians. Its listed address is on Borrowdale Road in Gunhill, not at Sam Levy's Village.
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Bukhara
Bukhara occupies the first floor of Big B Mall in Belvedere and gives traditional recipes a light update, with chicken lollipops, garlic butter prawns and paneer tikka kebab among the starters, priced around $11 to $13. Fresh juices and lassi back the drinks list, and mall parking removes one headache. Open daily from 12.30pm.
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The Fuzion Palace
Indian and fusion cooking in Highlands, with a second outlet in Belvedere.
The Fuzion Palace on Glenara Avenue in Highlands answers the mixed-table problem head on: Indian and Pakistani curries share the menu with Portuguese chicken, lasagne and pizza from a brick oven. It appears on halal directories, suits vegetarians and has private dining for family occasions. A second outlet trades in Belvedere.
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Organikks Ndizvo
Organikks Ndizvo in Chisipite builds its menu on organic, locally sourced ingredients and halaal meat, with Indian and Thai curries alongside oxtail with sadza and peri-peri prawns. Cabanas for shisha, a private room called Dare and a long whisky list make it a night out. Top band, $40 or more a head, open Wednesday to Sunday.
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Organikks Patio
Indian and African menu, sharing the Masawara Urban Retreat address.
Organikks Patio sits inside Masawara Urban Retreat in Borrowdale, sharing the grounds with a spa and gym. Indian and African dishes appear beside sushi and a vegetarian pizza the kitchen is known for, all with an organic emphasis. Seating is mostly on the patio, reached by a path lined with aloes, so pair it with a spa booking.
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