KOTHU SRILANKAN RESTAURANT & BAR - Croydon

You're walking down South End past the usual high street suspects when you spot Kothu's window – steaming woks, the smell of spiced meat and flatbread hitting you before you reach the door. Inside, it's warm and unpretentious: stripped-back dining, buzzy with locals who clearly know what they're after. The kothu roti – those chopped-up parcels of dough cooked with curry, veg and meat – arrives sizzling on a hot plate, and it's genuinely excellent; the kind of thing that'll have you craving it on your commute home. Their curries hit different too, properly built with proper spice levels rather than diluted for timid palates. Worth noting they've got a bar side too, so you can grab something cold while you wait.