Coriander Lounge Indian Restaurant Southampton

You'll walk past this place a hundred times on the High Street before you properly clock it, wedged between the chain stores and tourist traps. But step inside Coriander Lounge and you're in for a proper treat — this is Indian cooking that takes itself seriously without being stuffy about it. The menu doesn't try to reinvent the wheel, which is exactly what you want. Their biryanis are fragrant and generous, the lamb dishes are tender enough to cut with a fork, and they actually understand that not everyone wants their vindaloo to strip paint. The service moves at a decent clip even when it's rammed with pre-theatre crowds heading to the Mayflower, and the portions are generous enough that you'll be taking leftovers home. It's the sort of reliable, well-executed Indian that every high street needs but rarely gets.