Tharavadu, 7-8 Mill Hill, Leeds LS1 5DQ (0113 244 0500). Starters £6.95-£13.95, mains £9.95-£21.75, desserts £4.75-£6.25, wines from £19.95, beer from £3.75
The deep-varnished, wood-panelled interior of Tharavadu, a delightful Keralan restaurant in Leeds, is rich with illustrated maps of the Indian state. There’s even a long one across the ceiling of the upstairs dining room, which you can stare up at while trying to decide what to order. These maps tell you two useful things that you might not have known: first, Kerala has a long coastline; and second, it is thick with palm trees. Prepare yourself, then, for a fair amount of seafood and a lot of coconut. The question is, how much more is it helpful to know about a perhaps unfamiliar culinary tradition?
