Where It Began
Bhavnagar,
Gujarat
Growing up in Bhavnagar, a coastal city in Gujarat, food was never just fuel. It was the centre of everything - family gatherings around a thali piled high with sabzi, dal, rotli, and pickles made by hand. Gujarat is one of the most vegetarian states in India, and for brother and sister Ankit and Neha, plant-based food wasn't a lifestyle choice or a trend - it was simply how they grew up.
When they moved to the UK, the Indian restaurants they found bore little resemblance to the food they knew from home - where was the lightness, the freshness, the bright hit of green chilli and coriander? So they decided to fill the gap themselves. Neha helped get Padharo off the ground; today Ankit runs the restaurant.
The Kitchen
Chef
Kamal
Padharo's kitchen is led by Chef Kamal, who has cooked professionally since 1989. He trained at a food craft institute in India, spent his early years at the Hyatt Regency in New Delhi rising from commis chef to chef de partie, and went on to head the kitchen at the Hyatt Regency Singapore. There were spells at the Taj Palace in New Delhi, an Indian brasserie in Sydney and food festivals as far afield as Casablanca, before he settled in England more than twenty years ago.
Southampton already knows his cooking: he wrote the menu for another well-known Indian kitchen in the city before joining Padharo as head chef in spring 2026. The menu we serve today launched with him, and his fingerprints are all over it - ask about the Konkan prawn curry, his own recipe, made here with vegan prawns. His speciality, in his own words, is biryani.
A short film
Chef Kamal, Ankit and Dheeraj on the kitchen at Padharo. Kamal speaks in Hindi, with English subtitles.
Recognition
Awards & Accolades
2025
Indian Restaurant of the Year
Nation's Curry Awards - South of England
2025
Best of Southampton
English Curry Awards 2025
2025 & 2026
Travellers’ Choice
Tripadvisor 2025 & 2026 - top 10% of restaurants worldwide
2024
Restaurant Guru Recommended
4.7/5 rating - 1,500+ reviews
Est. 2023
Southampton
100%
Vegetarian
Gujarat
Rooted In
Award-Winning
2024, 2025 & 2026
Guests of Honour
Where India’s Cricketers Come to Dine
When international cricket comes to Southampton, India’s biggest names come to Padharo. On the eve of the men’s T20 against England at the Utilita Bowl in July 2026, Washington Sundar, Prasidh Krishna and Varun Chakaravarthy sat down with us for their pre-match dinner. They were in good company: the night before India Women faced England here in July 2025, captain Harmanpreet Kaur and her teammates chose us too - India won by four wickets the next day. In September 2026, Manav Suthar liked it enough to come back three nights running.
Manav Suthar
India left-arm spinner, back three nights running
September 2026
Washington Sundar
India all-rounder
July 2026
Prasidh Krishna
India fast bowler
July 2026
Prasidh Krishna & Varun Chakaravarthy
Fast bowler and mystery spinner, with Ankit
July 2026
Harmanpreet Kaur
India Women’s captain, World Cup winner
July 2025
Smriti Mandhana
India vice-captain, four-time ICC award winner
August 2024
The India Squad
The touring India Women’s squad, with Ankit
July 2025
They could dine anywhere in the city - but when Indian cricket comes to the south coast, it keeps finding its way back to East Street.
Photography
Every Dish, Photographed
None of the photographs on this site are stock, and none of them are made by AI. Every dish you see is a plate that came out of our kitchen, shot here in the restaurant.
That is why the menu carries a photograph of every single dish, right down to the papadums. If you are deciding between a masala dosa and the Hyderabadi biryani, you should be able to see both before you order.
We work with Ryan Stanikk, Southampton’s leading food and drink photographer, who shoots the food, the room and the people in it.
ryanstanikk.co.uk