The Lazy Monkey is the new restaurant in Cov you HAVE to try out

Having Indian food after drinking is pretty much ingrained in the British culture. But imagine not walking to the Indian takeaway in the cold at 2am while being smashed and having a wide range of food and drinks brought to your table.

We decided to test out this theory and visited The Lazy Monkey, an Indian street food restaurant that's just opened in Coventry. Although it has only been under a week since it first opened, we were excited to try out this new restaurant on the first day of opening. Here's what we thought.

A for Aesthetics

Our first impression was astounding, the pillars and architecture entrance/front of the building gave off a posh/fine dining vibe. If it wasn’t for the big “THE LAZY MONKEY” sign on the outside of the restaurant, we would have never known.

Then we got inside and was greeted by the amazing variations of décor around the room. The relics/décor really set the predominant theme of Indian culture.

This varied from having a “chopped” traditional Indian taxi (we’re not making this up), a clock set to the time in Punjab and monkeys (hence the name) resting on pillars.

The lighting was just above dim, really setting in a relaxed vibe. The decor is ideal for any Insta pic and is an instant vibe we can get behind.

The food was unreal

Although there were different “traditional” Indian dishes to choose from, I went for a unique-sounding dish. Indian fish and chips. Yes, I ordered the most common dish in the UK, but I wanted to know what makes it “Indian”.

The price for it was £7.90 which took me back a bit, but maybe that’s the student within me. Maybe I was actually just missing Spoons prices.

So, when I got it and took a bite, the Indian spices and flavours just mixed perfectly. Luckily my friends ordered more traditional dishes and I got to try them. They were also so good.

The varied menu between traditional Indian dishes and British classic with an Indian twist was refreshing and new. It's bound to make this place stand out.

Now coming from an Indian background, I would of thought that no restaurant could surpass grandma’s home cooking. But it came CLOSE (sorry gran).

The Lazy Monkey offer a range of Indian street food alongside a selection of Indian style burgers and wraps. They also offer an Indo-Chinese section on the menu that includes dishes such as tikka noodles and chilli chicken. They also offer a number of vegetarian options.

Some banging drinks

I ordered my usually staple drink, Jameson on the ice (yes I'm aware I have the drinking taste of a grandad). As well as ordering a standard we took the time to sample the cocktail menu. 2 FOR £10, this is a banging deal as one cocktail alone costs £7.50.

It had the fruity flavours and flavours with the same names as a Wetherspoons pitcher (Sex on the beach, Pornstar, etc) but it definitely tasted better. It even came in cool, cocktail shaped glasses (except for one which ruined the aesthetic pics. The taste is a great balance of sweet and liquor. They're also perfect but fresh Insta content tbh.

The service

When I go to a restaurant I usually only interact with the workers when either ordering the food and receiving it. But it was different at The Lazy Monkey. They were helpful in explaining the menu and patient when I took my time deciding what to order. In addition to that, they came up TWICE to see if I enjoyed the food.

The manager saw that I was struggling to get the ketchup out and approached me with a new bottle of ketchup (it was embarrassing on my part). However, the staff overall were attentive and friendly.

Not too close, not too far

For those of you that are commuting to university, I got good news for you. The Lazy Monkey is located on Warwick Row, near the Litten Tree pub. It's about a 6 minute walk away from the train station. So, you can have a drink and meal, and get on the train straight back home.

From the city centre, it is about 10 minutes. Easy to go there and get home in time for your 9am's and you don't even have any washing up to do.

And the one you’ve been wanting to know the most – Student discounts

I hate to break this one, but due to it being such a new restaurant they haven’t finalised any student deals yet. But do not fear, I spoke to one of the workers and they mentioned that once the business starts to see an influx of people, student discounts will be implemented. Yay, that gives us even more reason to go back.

Final thoughts

My friends and I were the last people to leave the restaurant, so before we left. We approached the manager for a comment on their opening night, the manager told the Tab Coventry: “It was a great turnout, better than expected.”

If you are seeking a chilled evening where you want to have some nice Indian cuisine, drink some cocktails and admire decor. I highly recommend The Lazy Monkey.