Dongmyo Indian restaurant where curry goes on naan then rice: Namaste

When you're craving something a little different from the usual, Indian curry is a great choice. Tearing off warm naan and dipping it deep into rich curry, then adding samosa, chicken tikka and shrimp chili on the side, turns into a pretty hearty meal.

This time I visited a well-known Indian restaurant in Dongmyo, Namaste Dongmyo Branch. Instead of ordering dishes one by one, I went with the couple set for two, which lets you try a bit of everything.

The table filled up with samosa, chicken tikka, shrimp chili, chicken makhani, vegetable curry, plain rice and garlic naan. Adding a blueberry lassi on top of that meant I got to enjoy the full range of Indian flavors from start to finish.

Namaste Dongmyo Branch: Indian food by Dongmyo Station

Namaste Dongmyo Branch is an Indian restaurant on the 2nd floor of a building at 18 Jibong-ro, just 29m from Exit 5 of Dongmyo Station. Dongmyo has all kinds of restaurants, from Korean food to barbecue to bunsik (Korean street-food snacks), but sometimes only fragrant curry and naan will do.

Namaste Dongmyo Branch offers more than just curry — you can also try classic Indian dishes like samosa and chicken tikka, making it a good pick when you want to enjoy several dishes at once.

If you're visiting with a companion, the couple set is especially convenient. Rather than each ordering a single curry, you get a string of dishes arriving one after another, which makes for a fun tasting experience.

What the 50,000 won set for two includes

The set for two at Namaste Dongmyo Branch runs ₩50,000 and includes 2 samosas, 4 pieces of chicken tikka, shrimp chili, chicken makhani, vegetable curry, plain rice and garlic naan. Add a drink and the table fills up fast.

Each portion doesn't look huge on its own, but with both naan and rice plus two kinds of curry, it's a solidly filling meal for two.

Best of all, it's not just curry — there's fried food, grilled meat and a shrimp dish mixed in too, so the flavors stay varied right to the end.

Samosa, the crispy opening dish

The samosa catches your eye first. Fried to a golden brown in a triangular shape, it's crispy on the outside with a filling built around potato.

Split in half, the filling is pretty substantial. You can see the fluffy texture of the potato along with peas and other ingredients, plus a subtle spice aroma. The crisp exterior against the soft interior makes for a nice textural contrast.

Dipping it lightly in the sauce that comes alongside adds a sweet-tangy note. It's a great appetizer to share before diving into the curries proper.

Chicken tikka: light and fragrant

Chicken tikka is another must in the set. The chicken, coated in a reddish marinade, is grilled into bite-size pieces. The color looks quite spicy, but what actually comes through first is the distinctive spice aroma and the clean flavor of grilled chicken rather than heat.

The outside has a light char, while the chicken inside stays tender. Eating curry non-stop can start to feel heavy, but picking up a piece of chicken tikka in between changes the texture and revives your appetite.

It also works well placed on naan with a bit of curry on top.

Shrimp chili with plump shrimp

Next to the chicken tikka comes the shrimp chili. Plump shrimp are mixed with onion and bell pepper, all coated well in sauce.

One bite gives you the springy texture of shrimp followed by a sweet-spicy sauce. Compared to the strong spice aroma of curry, this tastes more familiar, so it's an easier dish for people new to Indian food.

The crunchy onion and bell pepper work well here too. If chicken tikka is on the cleaner side, shrimp chili has a bolder sauce flavor, making them good to alternate between.

Chicken makhani, the mildest curry of the set

The dish I reached for most as a main that day was chicken makhani. Chunky pieces of chicken sit in a deep orange curry topped with a touch of cream.

One bite brings soft, nutty flavor rather than strong heat. A gentle tomato-like tanginess blends with the creamy richness, making it approachable even for people new to Indian curry.

The chicken pairs really well with the curry sauce too.

Personally, I liked chicken makhani even more with garlic naan than with rice. Tearing off a piece of warm naan, loading it with curry, and topping it with a piece of chicken really brings out the pairing of soft curry and chewy naan.

Vegetable curry with the vegetables still firm

Vegetable curry arrives alongside the chicken makhani. Loaded generously with vegetables, it offers a completely different texture from the smooth chicken makhani.

Bell pepper and onion give it some bite, so each mouthful mixes crunchy and soft textures. The sauce carries plenty of spice, but the subtle sweetness from the vegetables keeps it from feeling too heavy.

Placed between meat-based dishes like chicken tikka and chicken makhani, the vegetable curry balances out the whole spread nicely. It's also fun to alternate chicken makhani and vegetable curry on naan.

Garlic naan is best dipped in curry

Naan is hard to skip with Indian curry. The Namaste set for two includes garlic naan.

The naan comes out large, with golden browned spots here and there and a slightly crisp edge. The center is soft and chewy, easy to tear apart by hand.

Plain, the naan is already clean and nutty, but it really shows its worth once dipped in curry. Loaded with chicken makhani, the rich, smooth curry flavor soaks right into the naan. Topped with vegetable curry instead, the added vegetable texture gives a completely different feel.

Being able to pair the naan with different curries each time is the real advantage of garlic naan.

Round two: curry mixed into plain rice

The Namaste Dongmyo Branch set for two comes with plain rice as well as naan. Spooning some chicken makhani over warm white rice and mixing it together feels similar to the curry rice we're used to, but with a distinctly different spice profile.

Starting off with curry dipped into garlic naan, then switching to rice partway through, lets you enjoy the same curry in two different ways. Mixing a little vegetable curry and chicken makhani together into the rice is also worth trying.

Adding the rice on top of the naan definitely makes the meal feel much more filling.

Adding a blueberry lassi to finish

For this meal I also had a blueberry lassi. Lassi is a yogurt-based drink, so it pairs especially well with spice-forward food like curry.

The blueberry lassi combines a white yogurt base with a deep purple blueberry sauce. Stir it well and one sip brings soft yogurt flavor followed by the sweet, tangy taste of blueberry.

It's not too heavy, with a refreshing edge that goes well after chicken makhani or chicken tikka. A cold sip of blueberry lassi after a few bites of rich curry cleans the palate nicely.

The thickness and smoothness unique to yogurt set it apart from a regular drink. If you're planning to eat curry and naan, pairing it with blueberry lassi is a combination well worth trying.

Is the Namaste set for two worth 50,000 won?

The biggest strength of the couple set at Namaste Dongmyo Branch is that one order lets you try many kinds of Indian food.

The samosa is crispy outside and fluffy inside, the chicken tikka is clean with a strong spice aroma, the shrimp chili pairs plump shrimp with a sweet-spicy sauce, and the chicken makhani is soft and creamy.

On top of that there's the vegetable curry loaded with vegetables, so each dish has its own distinct flavor and texture. I also liked that both garlic naan and plain rice come with the set, letting you dip naan into curry first and then mix curry into rice later for a varied experience.

If you're craving curry in Dongmyo

The set for two I tried at this Dongmyo restaurant, Namaste Dongmyo Branch, is a great fit for anyone trying Indian curry for the first time or wanting to sample several dishes at once.

For ₩50,000 you get 2 samosas, 4 pieces of chicken tikka, shrimp chili, chicken makhani, vegetable curry, plain rice and garlic naan — plenty for two people to eat slowly and still feel full.

Personally, the combination of soft chicken makhani and garlic naan was my favorite, and mixing in shrimp chili and chicken tikka along the way kept things interesting. Finishing with a blueberry lassi rounded off the rich curry flavors with something bright and smooth, making for a well-balanced meal overall.

If you want to enjoy Indian curry and a range of Indian dishes all at once in Dongmyo, the Namaste Dongmyo Branch set for two is worth considering. There's crispy samosa, clean chicken tikka, sweet-spicy shrimp chili, and soft chicken makhani and vegetable curry. Alternating between garlic naan and plain rice lets you enjoy a single curry in multiple ways, and adding the bright yogurt flavor of blueberry lassi makes for a meal full of changing flavors from start to finish.