What to order, how hot it really is, and what to put next to it.
You know you fancy a curry.
That’s the easy bit.
Then you open the menu.
Korma. Tikka Massala. Bhuna. Rogan Josh. Madras. Vindaloo.
If you grew up in Britain, you’ve probably been looking at some version of that list for most of your life. You might even have your usual — the curry you order almost automatically every Friday night.
But what actually separates them?
And if you’re a Brit in Dubai looking for the sort of curry you remember from back home, what should you order?
Welcome to the British curry-house scale.
We’ll start gently.
We won’t finish gently.
First, what do we mean by a British curry house?
This is worth explaining, because British Indian food isn’t quite the same thing as traditional Indian food.
The British curry house developed its own style over decades in the UK. Dishes evolved to suit British tastes, restaurant menus became remarkably familiar from Manchester to Birmingham to London, and names like Chicken Tikka Massala, Korma, Madras and Vindaloo became part of British food culture.
It’s the style of curry Curry Mile was created to serve in Dubai.
Not Indian food made more “authentic”.
Not British classics reinvented for Dubai.
Just the familiar British Indian curry-house experience many of us grew up eating back home.
So, where do you start?
Korma — the gentle one
Heat 🌶
If your first question when ordering curry is, “Which one isn’t spicy?”, you’re probably looking for a Korma.
A British curry-house Korma is mild, creamy and slightly sweet. It’s rich rather than hot, which is why it’s often the gateway curry for people who don’t enjoy much chilli.
And there is absolutely no shame in ordering one.
Korma gets teased by people who think ordering curry is some sort of chilli-eating competition.
It isn’t.
A good Korma is comforting, rich and incredibly moreish. There’s a reason it has remained a British Indian takeaway staple for decades.
Order it if: You want something creamy, mild and comforting.
Have it with: Pilau rice and naan or even a peshwari naan. Tear the naan, scoop up the sauce, repeat.
Chicken Tikka Massala — the British classic
Heat 🌶
There are few dishes more closely associated with the British curry house than Chicken Tikka Masala.
Pieces of chicken tikka meet a rich, creamy tomato-based sauce, giving you something fuller and slightly more savoury than a Korma while remaining approachable if you’re not looking for heat.
For many Brits, this is simply what “going for a curry” tastes like.
And if you’ve recently moved to Dubai and are looking for a British-style Chicken Tikka Massala, rather than something completely different from the dish you remember in the UK, this is probably the safest place to begin.
Order it if: You want the familiar British curry-house all-rounder.
Have it with: Pilau rice, naan and a couple of pappadams before you start.
Bhuna — less sauce, more intensity
Heat 🌶🌶
Now things get a little richer.
A Bhuna is cooked down further, so rather than swimming in sauce, you get a thicker curry where the flavour clings to the meat.
It’s savoury, concentrated and generally somewhere around the mild-to-medium part of the British curry-house spectrum.
This is a particularly good choice if you like curry but don’t want your plate dominated by sauce.
Order it if: You want rich flavour without lots of gravy or serious chilli heat.
Have it with: Pilau rice works beautifully, although this is also one we’d happily attack with naan.
Rogan Josh — rich, aromatic and full of flavour
Heat 🌶🌶
Rogan Josh sits in that useful middle ground.
It gives you plenty of flavour without making heat the entire point of the dish. Expect a rich, aromatic curry with tomato notes, beautiful red peppers and a deeper savoury character than the creamy curries at the gentler end of the menu.
For someone trying to move away from Korma or Tikka Massala without jumping straight into Madras territory, this is a very good next step.
Order it if: You want something aromatic and savoury without going seriously hot.
Have it with: Pilau rice and a garlic naan.
Madras — now we’re talking
Heat 🌶🌶🌶
This is where the conversation changes.
A British curry-house Madras should be properly hot.
Not ridiculous. Not painful. But hot enough that after a few mouthfuls you know you’ve ordered a Madras.
The sauce is generally thinner and sharper than the creamy curries above, with chilli bringing a proper kick while still leaving enough room for you to actually taste your dinner.
For plenty of British curry-house regulars, Madras is the sweet spot.
Hot enough to make you sweat a little.
Not so hot that you regret every decision that led you here.
Order it if: You genuinely enjoy chilli and want a proper hot British curry.
Have it with: Pilau rice and naan. And perhaps don’t pretend you don’t need the drink.
Vindaloo — you knew this was coming
Heat 🌶🌶🌶🌶
Ah, Vindaloo.
Few curry names have acquired quite the reputation this one has in Britain.
In the British curry house, Vindaloo became synonymous with very hot curry — the order that traditionally caused someone at the table to raise an eyebrow and ask:
“Are you sure?”
A British-style Vindaloo is fiery, punchy and unapologetically hot.
But a good Vindaloo shouldn’t just be chilli for the sake of chilli. There still needs to be flavour underneath the heat.
If Madras is already pushing your limits, don’t order Vindaloo because your mate dared you.
Actually, you probably will.
That’s also quite British.
Order it if: You like genuinely hot curry and already know that you do.
Have it with: Rice, naan and whatever confidence brought you this far.
So which curry should you order?
If you’re staring at the Curry Mile menu and still can’t decide, here’s the easiest way to think about it:
| If you’re looking for… | Try… |
|---|---|
| Mild, creamy and comforting | Korma |
| Creamy and classic | Chicken Tikka Masala |
| Richer, thicker and less saucy | Bhuna |
| Aromatic and savoury | Rogan Josh |
| Properly hot | Madras |
| Very hot | Vindaloo |
Of course, chilli heat isn’t an exact science. One person’s “medium” is another person’s “where’s the yoghurt?”
But that’s roughly how the traditional British curry-house menu works.
Looking for a proper British curry in Dubai?
That’s ultimately why Curry Mile exists.
Curry Mile takes its inspiration from Manchester’s famous Curry Mile and the British Indian restaurants many of us grew up with.
When we opened in Dubai in 2020, we weren’t trying to create a new interpretation of Indian cuisine.
We wanted the opposite.
We wanted Brits living thousands of miles from home to open a curry, smell it and immediately recognise what was in front of them.
The familiar curries. The naan. The pilau rice. The mint sauce. The mango chutney. Even the oversized pappadams — which, somewhat ridiculously, we still bring over from the UK because we couldn’t find local ones that were quite right.
It’s British Indian food, made for people who miss British Indian food.
So whether you’re firmly Team Korma, have spent twenty years ordering exactly the same Chicken Tikka Masala, or refuse to acknowledge the existence of anything milder than a Vindaloo, you’ll probably find something familiar here.
And if you still can’t decide?
Order the one you used to order back home.
That’s sort of the point.