Kismot

The atmosphere and the service there are really good — with Indian music and passionate server.
It’s a little different from other Indian restaurants in Edinburgh. You can firstly choose the main course and then choose the base you like. They have four different kinds of bases with different spice. Ask the waiter there for recommendation! Chicken and lamb suit different bases. I would recommend mild one though.
The amount of dishes there are quite large. I had to pack eventually.
It’s a little bit expensive compared with other Indian restaurant, but it worth.
Suitable for family/​friends reunion.

I thought I wasn’t in the mood for Indian food so we tried another place first but were turned away not, having booked. Our second choice turned out only to be a lunch place, now closed for the evening. A pub crowded with students did not appeal. We decided to try Kismot since it was next door to the noisy pub. Although without a reservation, we were seated immediately. Having only a hour before the concert we wished to attend, we ordered only one dish to share plus two kinds of naan. The garlic coriander naan arrived fairly quickly. It tasted only mildly of its toppings. The cheese naan arrived with our main dish and was really delicious. Finally the main dish arrived. It was a revelation: chocolate massallam. This was the most amazing thing I tasted during the ten days we spent in London and Edinburgh. It didn’t taste exactly like chocolate, but had a rich flavor so unexpected and delicious that after Jeremy left to the concert, I stayed behind to finish every bit of it. One caveat: this does not come with rice. If desired, rice must be ordered separately.
I told our server we’d be back every day to sample more of their menu but sadly, that was not to be. Returning to Kismot will be a top priority next time I’m in Edinburgh.

I can’t believe I like Indian curry so much — NOW!
Was I glad I went and met my fellow Unilocalers at this tucked away place on St Leonard Street. The outside is painted lilac and you might think what is this all about, but it all fits the style they project. I guess its not a typical Indian restaurant you might visit from time to time, but rather something different. I found it very relaxing, clean, customer friendly, attentive, reasonable priced and somehow it reminds me of WINGS, the chicken wings extravaganza in old town.
Its BYOB! Bring your own beer or wine!
I ordered the medium version of Jahore curry sauce with lamb and Garlic and Coriander Nan bread. The lamb was soft and tender. The tomato sauce savory and a bit spicey. Am I glad I went for medium heat as the hot versions will make you twitch :-). One of my Unilocaler friends spit fire towards the end of the meal. The other was glad to have gotten a spare beer to mellow the burning sensation.
The menu choices are amazing and you can choose between mild, medium, sweet and sour and hot curry sauces. And if I say hot, its really HOT, but not as hot as the Killer Curry!!! Yep you heard right. Don’t forget to read the small print!
Other curries that stood out: mild chocolate curry and Iron Bru curry or try Mama’s and Papas special curry on bones. Also try Nutella or Haggis or Marshmallow or chocolate nan bread :-)
The personel was really friendly and very, very attentive. The interior is classy and trendy.
Don’t miss out on a fantastic curry experience!

Funky is the first word to come to mind. The place is all pinks and purples and turquoises and dark tables. Even the water jugs are purple or turquoise. There’s a plasma screen showing a loop commercial for their King of Curry thing that they do, with their top media hits included. It’s kind if distracting watching Jack Whitehall and James Corden crying and drinking bowls of yoghurt, but it kind of fits with the funky thing. If they took out the tables, chucked in a couple of lava lamps and cushions, and maybe tiled one wall with tiny mosaic mirrors, it’d be a cocktail bar nightclub.
But it’s a restaurant. And it is good at being a restaurant. The food hit the spot perfectly; our vegetable pakora/​onion bhajis were soft and crispy, while my chicken korma was rich, creamy, plentiful and contained great big hunks of birdy goodness. The peshwari naan don’t quite reach the giddy heights of those served at Skipton Balti in Yorkshire (nothing ever will) but they’re easily the closest I’ve had! Sweet and flavoury (still totally a word), they’re lined with deliciousness.
The staff dealt with our considerable party size expertly, even shuffling tables in and out to match our miscounted numbers with not a rolled eye to be seen or a tut to be heard. I was surprised there was no water brought until we asked, well after the arrival of the poppadums at the start, but it was otherwise pretty flawless service too.
It’s a bit outré for my tastes in terms of décor but it’s damn fine food, y’all.

Good but not as great as others are saying.
The Bad
The naan simply wasn’t very good. I am used to fresh, fluffy naan with intense garlic flavour. These were huge but rather flavourless and a bit chewy. The pilau rice was also fairly flavourless and disappointing. For the mains, our tandoori chicken was okay but the meat was overcooked and dry.
The Good
Our curry was quite pleasant and the mango lassi was also good. Also no complaints on the service.
Verdict
Perhaps we had over inflated expectations, but this was simply a decent Indian restaurant with nothing exceptional. I take the sides (rice and naan) seriously and they were a let down.

Kismot is a family run restaurant that has excellent food and service! They do not serve alcohol but have no problem with you bringing your own. They even remind you of this when making the booking. Upon arrival, we were warmly greeted by the son and seated promptly. The décor is modern and the ambiance has a lively feel.
We tried a few different curries, tarka dhal, and the garlic naan. Everything was delicious and we were stuffed beyond belief. I cannot emphasize how great the service was here. They make you feel as if you were invited to eat at their home with mum and dad cooking. Wonderful place and a must try!

Friendly, efficient service was the icing in the cake of the best lamb saag I’ve ever eaten. BYOB policy, no corkage charge — what’s not to like?

We visited due to the excellent reviews on trip advisor… We were not disappointed! Even our taxi driver had had it recommended countless times via word of mouth!
Service was excellent. Lamb was slow cooked to perfection & Naan bread was super! Theonly let down was that we had ordered from the meduium section and the curries were not at all hot. They were very good though. Thank you for a delicious meal! We will definitely recommend to our friends & be back next time were in Edinburgh. Great to see a family restaurant doing so well.

This was the best and spiciest curry I found in Edinburgh.
It was also had the single best restaurant décor I have EVER seen. The place is literally family-​run and they’re some of the most hospitable and friendly people in the world.
I went on a curry tour of Edinburgh while I was on holiday. I’ve eaten curry on three continents now and, back home, I like to get my Indian take-​away and add both habaneros and ghost pepper hot sauce to it before I eat it. Curry, and especially spicy curry, is very much an essential part of my life. So I picked a new Indian joint each night while I was in the city in an attempt to find it.
The Kismot Killer wasn’t available at the time I showed up but I was advised by my waiter (one of the coolest, most welcoming guys I’ve ever met) it’s so spicy that it takes away from the actual FLAVOR of the curry, anyway. Let’s be honest, there’s a point when spicy becomes less about flavor and enjoyment than pure ego.
So I got the next spiciest curry on the menu — Vegetable Naga — and asked for IT extra spicy, with rice and chapati. The food was EXCELLENT. The dish, even without modification, was ACTUALLY a fair amount spicy — which, if I can taste a bit of spice, most people probably shouldn’t eat it — and the flavors were SO vivid and pleasant. I would’ve preferred it spicier by a bit but that’s okay, it was still the spiciest curry I was able to find in the city and definitely my favourite.
Next time I go to Edinburgh I shall be visiting again.

Just dined here last evening on a trip to Edinburgh. Read their #1 reviews on trip advisor and had to stop by for a bite. It definitely met all my expectations. Personalized service, home cooked authentic food. I always return home from a trip craving a meal from my own kitchen, tired of mass produced, restaurant food. The owners parents are the cooks, and the home cooking really shines through. I ordered the lamb rogannjosh with garlic naan. Lamb was fork tender, curry well seasoned and containing bits of fresh veggies chopped up, including sliced tomato. This curry was made with loving hands, not poured from a jar! Bravo! I have no doubt you’ll enjoy your meal if you stop by! My only regret was that I couldn’t taste all the unique curries offered, but I guess that’s just a reason to go back ((tummy growls))

I was looking for a nice restaurant in Edinburgh while I was in town for a short visit, and decided to give Kismot a try. The food was excellent, and more than sufficiently spicy. Portions were generous, and the staff was very friendly. I am very glad I decided to try this place out.
One bit of advice: I was lucky to get in without a reservation, as the place was quite busy. If you plan to go, phone ahead.

Easily the best traditional style curry house in Edinburgh, long since recommended but we’d never gotten around to a visit.
We loved it, the service was great and the knowledge of the food was second to none, able to tailor our flavours to the level of heat we wanted, and since I’m a softie and my wife loves the intense heat this was great.
It reminded me of the best Indian food I’d eaten as a student, but better.
I cannot wait to go back.

We made a special trip to Kismot because of how well reviewed it is, and it didn’t disappoint. On our long walk there, we grabbed a few bottles of wine, and when we arrived we were seated immediately. The staff were constantly smiling as were the patrons. We ordered the garlic naan (huge), the aubergine, the sag paneer, the chicken tikka, a salad, and the pickle appetizer. The sides are each about 2 cups of food, and the chicken dish was about 3 cups. The salad was larger, composed primarily of iceberg lettuce — fine with us, we just wanted some raw vegetables. The chicken was delectably moist and the sauce was perfect. The naan came out warm and fresh. The only thing I wouldn’t order again is the pickle app, which had two different kinds of pickle-​based sauces (more like a tapanade), one of which was quite bitter, a delicious marmalade type spread, and something else I can’t remember. It only cost 4 pounds or so, but we left most of it — being too pickle-​y for us — but if you do really enjoy pickles you would probably really like it. Overall, I think our bill for two was around 35 pounds, which is completely reasonable for home cooked Indian food, served up by a local family business.

I am not sure why I haven’t done a review of Kismot earlier as this is one of my favourite restaurants in Edinburgh. I have been coming here for a number of years and I think this is due to the proximatey of the Auld hoose — alternative music, a couple of brews and then onto a curry. Cannot beat that of an evening for me.
Onto the restaurant the décor has had a little bit of a face lift of late with some newly designed posters, as has the menu. Not going to go into too much detail as previous reviewers have mentioned this, but it is a good thing. One thing that stuck me is the new additions to the menu — Kismot Naga pickle and Iron Bruna, yep a curry with Irn Bru.
This is a family run restaurant and the sons greet you on the door with a bit of friendly banter. You can see the other family members beavering away in the kitchen when you first enter.
The food here is always up to high standards and our last outing was no exception. We opted for the pickle trays, poppadoms, raitha and naga chilli pickle. all washed down with lots of Mango lassi. The starter was great but the naga chilli in particular was excellent, beware this comes with an 18 certificate warning and is very spicy.
The main courses were Veg Madras, Chicken Masalla, Prawn passanda and Chicken Tikka North Indian Chilli Garlic. All were great their Chilli Garlic is still my favourite version of this disk in Edinburgh. One thing to bear in mind you get lots of rice and the nans are large so unless you ha vent eaten all day a rice and nan portion does 3 easily. Either that or it was something to do with the fact we order another jug of lassi, but i don’t think I ever come away as full eating any where else.
Thumbs up from me.
Favourite dishes here:
— Mums Desi Khani, homemade curry with limited availability. Worth a try if you are there at the weekend.
— Mango lassi by the jug
— Bhindi
— North Indian Chilli Garlic
— Any of the Madras dishes
— Naga Chili pickle, beware very spicy
— Methi
— Raitha

Kismot shuts for a family holiday in February, it closes for almost a whole month and this is one of the reasons for my increase in curry reviews… That month made me realise that while some other purveyors of curry are really good, I rate Kismot above them.
They also recently reworked the menu, dropping a few of the less popular specialities and streamlining it. It now separates the curries by spiciness, so depending on what you fancy you can focus on one part.
As the old adage goes, absence makes the heart grow fonder, Kismot has earned five stars from me, I keep coming back and it really is the best curry in Edinburgh.

We did some intensive research on where to eat for our recent trip to Edinburgh and are so glad we stumbled on this true gem of a restaurant to experience.
I’d checked out the menu and website so was really looking forward to the ‘family run’ and ‘authentic’ Kismot.
Even from the initial call to reserve our table there was warm and friendly service and a cheeky chappie attitude!
We arrived in a taxi as the actual restaurant was situated outside of the City Centre where we stayed and even the taxi driver had heard great things about the place!
We were greeted like family and it was clear from how busy the place was that it’s a favourite of a lot of people.
We’d considered taking beer as it’s BYOB Establishment but decided to try sample the novelty of just the curry instead.
The staff were very buzzy, and we were seated in the corner by the window where we had ample opportunity for people watching and the to see into the kitchen which is a great experience in itself! (the mam and dad do the cooking and the boys/​cousins/​uncles do the waiting on!)
We had poppadoms to chow over while we considered the menu and with them the BEST pickle try ever– all were tasty, tangy and plentiful!
We ordered a starter to share and i just had to try Kismot Naga pickle– just to be able to say I’d tried it! (the Mr had a sweat on just thinking about it!)
Well– it pained my insides so PLEASE take care should you feel brave enough to try it!!! The small pot of it which was brought was sufficient to taste but not over indulge!
The starter of mixed tikka was HUGE! All the meat was of a good quality and the salad was a nice accompaniment.
The staff were very attentive and when we had a time to wait or a break between courses one of them always came over to check we were doing OK and just have general chit-​chat! We honestly felt like very special friends.
For main course we had–
Lamb Ada– cooked with fresh ginger, tomatoes, lemon & methi leaves and strong Eastern Spices.
Chicken Zeera– roast cumin seeds, fresh herbs & coriander.
Garlic Nan.
Again, the portions were HUGE, not really a complaint but the ‘not so skinny brother’ might have taken a bit of offence that we were well and truly stuffed and seemed like we hadn’t even made a dent in the food and had this not been the 1^st of out 2 night stay we would have certainly taken the rest home!
The meat was great quality and the flavours just as described, definitely notes of food made with experience and love.
The bill was almost embarrassingly minimal for what we had enjoyed but it just shows you don’t have to pay over the odds to get truly good food and great service!
We had a great time at this place and have recommended it to everyone who will listen for when they visit Edinburgh.
We hope to get back to it one day.

This may be the best Indian I have ever had. I’ve had several curries on this long trip, but wow — this one wins the prize. They are also BYOB, which is fairly common in the States at Asian and Indian restaurants, but perhaps not as much here? So it was a very nice treat to bring loads of wine and beer for the group. Dimly lit, casual atmosphere, and friendly service. There were about ten of us in a group, but everything went really smoothly.
Started with some delicious chicken pakoras with a few different sauces, then followed it up with the chicken deshi khani and a side of the best, freshest sag alu I’ve ever had. The deshi khani is advertised as being «limited availability,» and a special, particularly authentic curry. Spicy, rich, and succulent, it was one of the best curries I’ve ever had. And the sag alu! Not the fatty (but delicious) creamy spinach you usually get at Indian restaurants, this was fresh and brimming with spice. Would’ve been happy to get it as a main with paneer, but I didn’t think to do so because I figured it would be pretty standard instead of spectacular, and I was wrong!
My friend ordered something they used to serve but is no longer printed on the menu and they still make it for her. Fragrant pilau rice and hot, crispy garlic naan made this such an outstanding meal. I’d beeline here the next time I was in Edinburgh because as far as I’m concerned, this is as good as Indian gets.

Others may be so inclined to usher you towards The Mosque Kitchen for some traditional food, but they’d be doing you a massive disservice. Kismot is absolutely one of the tastiest restaurants in Edinburgh. I’ve been a handful of times, and each time it has been stellar.
A recent development that left me a bit underwhelmed was their menu redesign. The menu has been drastically cut and the star rating system has been scrapped. Now, you’re left with merely three levels of heat, mild, medium and hot. I take heat relatively well and medium had me sweating in my seat.
In case you’re wondering, they also offer the Kismot Killer challenge for £20 (I think). It’s a ridiculously hot dish that is 99% chilli seeds. Our friend from Bangalore was pressured into accepting the challenge, and he was less than thrilled to be eating it. After three big hulking bites he quit.
The staff here is stellar. They are super nice, talkative, accommodating and knowledgeable. If they take a liking you may even meet auntie in the back!
The only reason this place is receiving 4 stars and not 5 is the loudness. The place is very open and conversations echo quite a bit. Therefore… if a stag or hen party is there then you may as well assume you won’t be hearing much else than their banter.
The place is BYOB!

Without a doubt one of the finest Indian restaurants in Edinburgh. The inviting and friendly atmosphere, of which the Ali family are very proud, immediately creates a pleasant eating environment. The food itself is excellent, combining the traditional dishes you would expect of any self-​respecting curry house with a wide array of regional specialities. Particularly good is the North Indian Chilli Garlic, and as a man who doesn’t like to have his palate destroyed by excessive spice, its strength (as with all the dishes) can be adjusted to your taste. And why not accompany your curry with the strange sounding but weirdly delicious chocolate nan bread
Although alcohol is not served, there is the option of BYOB with the added advantage of no corkage. Kismot pride themselves on a fun atmosphere and as a result it is an ideal place to book large parties, with their group menus affordable and surprisingly varied.
Overall then an excellent place, whether for a great group night out or if you want to try the infamous Kismot Killer, vying for the place of spiciest curry in Scotland.

Kismot, you are one of the most impressive restaurants I have been to in Edinburgh. There are two parts to this story that show why I think this.
FOOD:
Just superb. Easily the best Indian food that I have eaten thus far. I was part of a large group of over 20, and we paid a fixed price each to get a large number of naans and bhajees, and a selection of different curries along with plentiful amounts of rice. All of the curries were incredibly tasty, and most of them didn’t last long at all on our table.
Kismot also provides some interesting dishes that I have not seen replicated anywhere else. You can get chocolate naan (no, that’s not a typo!), which sounds worth a go, although I haven;t tried it myself. They also serve what they call the ‘Kismot Killer’, a stupidly hot curry that sounds more like torture than food. If you can eat it all, you get it for free, though their website suggests, and I quote: «It is recommended that you put your toilet roll in the freezer when you return home.» You actually have to sign a disclaimer before you eat it!
SERVICE:
The restaurant is run by a family team, with the parents in the kitchen, and the eldest son commanding the front of house. It goes without saying that the parents do a great job behind the scenes in the kitchen. It is the front of house experience that puts the icing on the ca… curry for me. Throughout the meal, we were attended to in the ideal way — attentive, but not intrusive. Orders were taken in a cheery manner, and he even joked with us as we sat and waited. His manners were truly impeccable, and he saw us out of the restaurant personally at the end of the meal. I have never before or since experienced better customer service.
As you can see, I LOVE this place. You just have to go there. Cancel tonight’s dinner plans, and make a reservation at Kismot. You will keep coming back for more!