When Asad Khan rang to say his India Dining service had now expanded to a tapas and Champagne cocktail unit in the House of Fraser, we were one of the first to visit the ground floor Food Hall.

India Dining's newest launch is both an accolade for the store and for the young entrepreneur whose fine dining concerns in Warlingham Green and Esher and past experience at The Cinnamon Lounge have earned him much acclaim.

His arrival in central Croydon is a true find for those already familiar with ID's delicious food and for those fancying a yummy light bite to eat in or take away, during the busy day.

Tables and chairs with waitress service (there are free pink balloons for tinies!) surround the main bar where customers may also sit and eat or drink.

We opted for a table and noted that breakfast is also served until 11.45am. If the subtle likes of tomato, cheese and chilli toast grabs you, or even Indian bread topped with spicy scrambled egg, then here's the answer. Of course you could also veer into sweet indulgences such as the four-layer chocolate fudge cake for this entire menu is designed to tickle all taste-buds.

There's a nibbles section, a soup section, Indian style mini burgers, wraps, salads, general Indian tapas, curry bowls, tandoori dishes and a wealth of desserts. Wine and beer plus a fantastic selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails also feature. The shopping experience is certainly added to and that seemed to be the enthusiastic opinion of the other tables which by 12.30pm were full. But this is a transient venue, used by business men, shopping mums and ladies who lunch and so there's usually a space for everyone, including those just fancying a cocktail and nibbles.

Having eaten on several occasions at India Dining's two restaurants and been mightily impressed, I was intrigued to see how the new tapas enterprise would match up.

It is recommended that customers try a few different dishes so they can share and this is what we did. Prices we noted were very reasonable with, for example, five crispy chicken pieces coated in spicy breadcrumbs, just £2.25.

Chunky chilli chips tossed in a spicy chilli masala were just £1.95.

Each dish is ideally sized and a miniature version of what you might eat in the restaurant.

More substantial and bursting with flavour and texture was the Southern Indian salmon curry bowl containing mouth-watering chunks of tandoori salmon in a coconut, mustard, chilli and tomato sauce served on a bed of steamed rice.

Tiger prawn tempura provided a chewy, crispy and flavoursome bite, while the miniature onion bhajis and the delightful tiny coconut and almond naan were also given full marks.

Classic chicken masala was another flavoursome curry bowl tried where chicken breast was cooked in cream, tomato, butter and fenugreek and this to my friend's pleasure came with its own miniature naan.

As a big fan of Indian cuisine, I found this menu with its choice of some 55 dishes a superstore of flavour experiences and one that I will repeat often.

It's ideal for the busy shopper or office worker out to grab a flavoursome but not too heavy lunch. We revelled in the choice and were impressed with the helpful service and detailed explanations given by manageress Sabrina.

From 4pm Monday to Sunday there's a two for one cocktail and curry bowl offer. Tuesday is also a good day to visit when if you order three tapas dishes, you get the least expensive free of charge.

The idea of Indian tapas certainly seemed to grab diners.

Spicing up the life of shoppers, we say well done to HoF for bringing in India Dining.

Patsy Payne

The Lowdown

Food: Indian cuisine tapas

Price: £21.80 for two with drinks

Service: Informative and quick

Disabled access: Lifts to food hall

Vegetarian choice: Good

Parking: Centrale

Verdict: An exciting new lunch option for shoppers

India Dining

Lower Ground Floor

House of Fraser

Centrale Shopping Centre

21 North End

Croydon

Tel: 020 8688 9093

Web: croydon@indiadining.co.uk