Banana Restaurant

+44 29 2061 5135

148 North Rd, Maindy, Cardiff CF14 3BH United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Open Today: -

Quick Facts About Banana Restaurant

Banana Restaurant has received mixed reviews from customers, with both positive and negative comments about the food, service, and overall dining experience. In order to thoroughly evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the restaurant, we will analyze each comment in detail.

Starting with the positive comments, several customers praised the authenticity of the South Indian cuisine and the fantastic flavors of the dishes they tried. The mango lassi and mutton biryani were specifically highlighted as standout menu items. The portion sizes were also mentioned as being generous and worth the prices charged. Additionally, the staff was described as friendly and accommodating, providing excellent service. The cleanliness of the venue was also noted as a positive aspect.

Moving on to the negative comments, one customer expressed disappointment with the service, describing it as abysmal. Another customer found the food to be mediocre, with the masala dosa being the standout dish. However, they felt that everything else fell short of expectations. The fried fish starter was overcooked and dry, accompanied by a poorly prepared salad. The paratha and chapati were described as thick, chewy, and undercooked. The mango lassi and sweet lassi were deemed watery and lacking in consistency. Lastly, one customer felt that the butter chicken did not resemble the traditional dish, although it still tasted decent.

Despite these negative comments, there were still positive aspects mentioned even by customers who expressed disappointment. One customer found the aloo gobi to be very good, while another praised the restaurant for offering a variety of options that they had not seen before. The staff was also commended for their politeness and helpfulness. Some customers specifically mentioned the quantity and quality of the food as a strength, as well as the cleanliness of the washrooms.

In addition to the comments related to food and service, there were also remarks about the overall experience and atmosphere of the restaurant. One customer who had previously visited the restaurant described their return visit as just as good as before, praising the variety of options and the balance of spices in the dishes. The inclusion of a separate portion of spicy sauce on the side was also appreciated. Another customer who ordered takeout mentioned that the interior of the restaurant was lovely. The vegan options were mentioned positively, with specific dishes like jeera rice, vegetable fried rice, okra dhal, and potato curry being enjoyed.

The only comment that highlighted a major weakness was regarding the language barrier with the front-of-house staff. One customer had difficulty communicating and receiving recommendations, leading them to order from another restaurant. This aspect of the customer experience could be seen as a significant concern, especially when it comes to important information such as allergies.

In summary, Banana Restaurant has various strengths and weaknesses. Its strengths include the authenticity and flavors of the South Indian cuisine, friendly staff, good portion sizes, clean venue, and reasonable prices. The weaknesses mentioned include issues with some of the dishes, particularly the starters and breads, inconsistencies with the lassi, and confusion with the butter chicken. The language barrier with the front-of-house staff was also identified as a weakness. However, despite these weaknesses, there were still positive aspects mentioned even by customers who expressed disappointment, such as the aloo gobi, variety of options, and overall experience.

Best TL Reviews

An authentic South Indian experience, I had the mango lassi and a cobra beer to drink which was fantastic! Would really recommend this beer. The mutton roll was an amazing starter and the Mutton Biryani was fantastic. Staff was friendly, food was tasty, venue was clean and the prices were worthy of the portion sizes. I'd highly recommend this place to anyone in the mood for proper good Indian food!

Tried this new restaurant yesterday. It was very good food! They were very accomodating with our not so spicy requests ????. Service was excellent as well.

Ok. Service was abysmal and the food was okay. The masala dosa was very good, and if that’s all we’d had, it would have been five stars. But everything else fell short.

We had the fried fish starter. Extremely overcooked and dry. Came with an excuse of a salad with no dressing or sauce or anything at all.

The paratha and chapati were awful. Thick, chewy, tough. Both completely undercooked. I could make a ball of dough from it if I tried.

Mango lassi and sweet lassi both disappointed. They were watered down and had the consistency of milk. The yogurt and water had even separated.

The butter chicken, pictured below was not butter chicken. It tasted alright but I would not call it butter chicken, if it was called something else I would be happy with it because it looked and tasted nothing like butter chicken.

We also had the aloo gobi and that was very good.

This place is a godsend. This is the best Indian restaurant that I have been to in Cardiff. At really reasonable prices, they are doing the cuisine some justice. We tried porotta, butter chicken and Sri Lankan curry. While the Sri Lankan curry is on the slightly spicier side, the butter chicken could be improved, but hey I'm not really complaining. Seeing porotta that had actual layers made my day. In short, the food is yum and the staff very polite, cheery and helpful. Definitely returning and recommending this place.

In short: Great quantity and quality at great price.

Has really clean washrooms too.

A return visit and just as good as before. We love Indian food and this was a little different, with options we had not seen before and some more familiar dishes. On recommendation of very helpful waiter we started with milk hopper and mutton rolls, then Chicken kothu parotta for me, chicken biryani for my wife. All were delicious, great balance of spice and really well cooked. What I especially liked was a separate portion of spicy sauce on the side so you could add extra spicy heat if you wanted (which we did !) . Finished with a Sri lankan rice pudding which was more like a drink and pleasantly warming.

Add to this great service, a relaxed atmosphere and very reasonable prices. We will definitely be back again!

Great food! We had takeout but the interior of the restaurant was lovely

Tons of vegan options. We especially enjoyed the jeera rice, vegetable fried rice, okra dhal and potato curry. Great if you want something that's a big step up from Indian takeaway. If you like Mowgli's you'll love Banana

Really lovely, flavoursome food, quickly prepared and easy to collect. I already knew the team here were really friendly (they helped me de-ice my car earlier this year) and this experience was just as good. Will definitely be returning.

I telephoned yesterday to order a take away for my husband and I. Since neither of us had tried Sri Lankan food before I had a few questions about the curries and asked if we could be recommended a curry. The lady on the telephone unfortunately did not hold a good command of the English language and explained that she couldn't understand what i wanted. It appeared that she only understood that i was asking for a curry. Since she couldn't understand me we ended up ordering from another restaurant which was a shame, but it really is poor that the front of house staff cannot understand and answer basic questions, this would be a huge concern if I'd been asking questions about allergies etc!