Cardamom Black @ The Old Empire Theatre
📍 Cheltenham Parade, Harrogate HG1 1BX, UK
About Cardamom Black @ The Old Empire Theatre
Cardamom Black @ The Old Empire Theatre offers a memorable Indian dining experience in the heart of Harrogate. Housed within the impressive former Empire Theatre building, this restaurant boasts a sophisticated atmosphere and has earned an excellent Google rating of 4.3/5 stars from hundreds of satisfied diners. It's renowned for combining delicious, authentic Indian cuisine with a truly unique setting.
Guests frequently praise the amazing and flavourful food, highlighting dishes like delicious chicken poppers, pakora starters, and diverse mains such as garlic lamb, chicken sizzlers, and vegetarian thalis. The extensive menu caters to various tastes, promising a culinary journey. Reviewers often commend the attentive service, where the team strives to treat every guest like family, contributing to a warm and welcoming dining experience.
Visiting Information
Cardamom Black is open Monday to Thursday from 4:00 PM to 10:00 PM, and Friday to Saturday from 4:00 PM to 11:00 PM. Sunday hours are 4:00 PM to 10:00 PM. The restaurant is committed to accessibility, featuring wheelchair-accessible parking, entrance, restrooms, and seating. For convenience, a range of payment options are accepted, including credit cards, debit cards, and NFC mobile payments.
Location
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📍 Cheltenham Parade, Harrogate HG1 1BX, UK
from 648 reviews
Google Reviews
Reviews from Google Maps.
Showing 5 of 648 reviews from Google Maps.Last updated 6 February 2026.
Loved this place! Atmosphere was ace. Quiet as we came last orders but let us seat just after 9pm, food was HOT, Naga & masala ‘madras hot’ accommodated our requests, food was spot on, beer lively, staff great, food great. We eat a LOT of curry & most of the time it’s not hot for what it says & meat lacks quality. Loved this place. Will return. Thanks guys 5*
Great food, lovely atmosphere, and staff are very attentive. Been twice we will be back. The chicken poppers and pakora starters are delicious. Had a lamb main with bread both also delicious. We will be back.
Food was amazing and very flavorful. Service was spot on, and we were treated like family. Will come here again, our favorite Indian food in Harrogate. My wife had the vegetarian thali with vegetarian tacos. I ordered the garlic lamb and chicken sizzler. It was so all so delicious.
Service was attentive at first but tailed off. Although all waiting staff were busy, there didn’t seem to be enough for the number of diners in on a Saturday night. The restaurant is stunning inside, and there’s a wide variety on the menu to choose from. The meal was most promising at the beginning, with delicious starters which were beautifully presented. Time taken for starters and mains to appear was just right. Sadly, just before our mains arrived, two couples (dining separately on the tables next to ours) started discussing loudly how disappointed they were with the food, called for taxis and walked out. This was not noticed/dealt with by staff. This rather ruined the atmosphere, not least because the abandoned food took a while to be cleared away. My special biryani was disappointing. Had to complain about the totally overcooked poached egg on top which was replaced (I declined to have the whole dish recooked). The dish’s ingredients were listed as king prawn, freshwater prawn, lamb, chicken and mushroom. King prawn was hidden and in the singular. Only about 4 other small prawns. Lamb was the main ingredient. The monkfish and king prawn saag was better. We were given a discount when we came to pay and the manager appeared concerned to hear about the egg.
We can't sing the praises of this wonderful discovery as high as they deserve. An elegant, modern and sophisticated decor with extremely competent , friendly and attentive staff. The food is excellent and copious. Love this place. Our new home from home.