Prashad Leeds: The award winning South Indian restaurant well worth the trip to Drighlington

Prashad has been on my list for a while; quite the trek outside the city centre, I must admit it's been pure idleness that’s meant it’s taken nearly six months of talking about the place before biting the bullet and buying a bus ticket.

Known for its award-winning vegetarian dishes lovingly crafted by a family of food lovers, both me and my partner knew that Prashad would rival any South Indian restaurant we had been to before.

Thanks to pure luck, our dinner date at the restaurant fell on their 30th anniversary celebrations.

Not only was the restaurant full on all three floors, packed with regulars and newbies like us, we were also gifted with a range of entertainment, complementary dishes and, of course, birthday cake.

Quickly seated at one of the few remaining tables upstairs, we both ordered ourselves a sweet mango Mongozo beer and took a deep dive into a menu full of delicious curries.

Selecting a Thali plate and an extra paneer masala between us, we nibbled on our poppadoms before being given a complementary potato salad starter.

A tiny bowl filled with just enough potato to eat in two mouthfuls, this gorgeously creamy taster told us all we needed to know about our upcoming mains: we were in for a treat.

Ten minutes later, one of the most impressive Thali plates we’d ever seen was carried over to our table; huge, golden and filled with a creamy combination of dhal, aubergine curry and paneer, we dove into each curry, bhaji and samosa on the plate, marvelling at each spoonful wrapped in rotli.

Between mouthfuls a side of tangy yogurt helped refresh our palates, and before long we’d made a reasonable dent in what I can firmly say is the best Thali I’ve tried in Leeds.

After finishing our meal with a few spoonfuls of the smooth yogurt dessert, we were informed that a drummer would be performing downstairs before the cutting of Prashad’s 30th birthday cake.

Quickly drinking our beers we headed for the second floor, following the sound of laughter and chattering.

Music, cake and lots of celebration ensued, and it's for this reason that our trip here seemed so worth the 20 minute car ride.

Happy 30th anniversary to our new favourite restaurant.