Gangnam Indian curry for two: makhani and chilli vindaloo, CURRY146

Where is CURRY146 Gangnam Branch and what kind of restaurant is it?

CURRY146 Gangnam Branch is an Indian curry restaurant on the basement floor, 202m and a 3-4 minute walk from Exit 2 of Seolleung Station. It's open from 11am to 9:30pm with no break time, last order is at 9pm, it's closed every Sunday, and there's no parking.

Going out for Indian curry for the first time in a really long while

I recently went out for curry for the first, first, first time in ages. This time it was 'CURRY146 Gangnam Branch.' Looking back, I've gone out for Japanese-style curry now and then, but I honestly can't remember the last time I went for Indian curry. But going after such a long break, I had a feeling it would be really good.

Anyway, this place is built on the original branch in Anam that opened in 2008, and now has 6 locations across Seoul and Gyeonggi, one of which is this Gangnam branch near Seolleung Station. Checking Naver Map's Street View, it looks like the Gangnam branch started operating here around 2023.

Heading into the restaurant. It's open from 11am to 10pm with no separate break time.

Inside CURRY146: seating, atmosphere and the organic wheat notice

The inside of CURRY146 Gangnam Branch was pretty spacious and comfortable, with a kind of warm interior. I could see guests who'd come for a peaceful evening chatting and enjoying dinner in a relaxed atmosphere.

There's dental floss, mouthwash, and herbal candies set out at the restaurant, and overall the place just felt well-kept in a lot of small ways. And on a frame attached to one of the pillars, there was a note saying they use 100% organic wheat to make the naan.

Even going into the restroom to wash my hands, it was just as tidy. They seem to put a lot of care into keeping the place maintained.

CURRY146 menu and the best curry combination for two

CURRY146's curry sets basically come as curry + salad + naan, and you can add turmeric rice for free. If you don't add a barbecue topping separately when ordering, the curry comes with just the basic potato and vegetables.

Before ordering, I read through the notice first.

Looking at the curry menu properly, there's makhani curry, spinach curry, korma curry, chilli vindaloo curry, and more.

My wife and I each ordered 'makhani curry' and 'chilli vindaloo curry.' Makhani curry has a strong creamy, nutty flavor, while chilli vindaloo curry is strongly spicy, so I figured combining them and eating together would work well. And in practice this combo was really satisfying, so if you're dining with someone, I'd recommend it. Oh, and we added tandoori chicken as a topping to the makhani curry, and grilled salmon as a topping to the chilli vindaloo curry.

Besides the curries, you can also order Indian-style chicken dishes or lamb separately, which would be good as a side to go with drinks.

Chilli vindaloo curry with grilled salmon: how spicy is it?

Chilli vindaloo curry is a red-toned spicy curry, and what I tasted at CURRY146 was less harshly spicy and more savory-spicy in a delicious way. Adding grilled salmon as a topping slightly mellowed out the spiciness with its nuttiness.

Our two curries arrived. The food was plated neatly, and the naan was bigger than I expected, which surprised me.

Here's the chilli vindaloo curry topped with grilled salmon. Its red color visually announced that it's a spicy curry, and taking a bite, it was indeed less harshly spicy and more savory-delicious-spicy.

Tasting the sauce, I felt I'd made the right call choosing grilled salmon as the topping. The nuttiness of the salmon harmonized with the spicy sauce, slightly mellowing the heat while adding its own savory richness.

I tore off a piece of the huge naan (you can also just tear it by hand) using the tongs and scissors placed on the table, dipped it in the sauce, and topped it with salmon. The organic naan was chewy, nutty, and even more delicious mixed with the sauce.

Makhani curry with tandoori chicken topping

Makhani curry is the owner's recommended dish, with a strong creamy, nutty flavor that was great to alternate with the spicy chilli vindaloo. The tandoori chicken topping was about 1.5 times bigger than we expected, which surprised both my wife and me a little.

Right around when eating the salmon alongside made our mouths a bit spicy and we started to sweat a little, that's the time to reach for the other owner's-recommendation dish here, the makhani curry.

The chewy naan went well with the chilli vindaloo curry too, but it went even better with the makhani curry. The tandoori chicken was cooked in just about perfect condition. The slightly crisp chicken skin on the outside added a nutty richness.

Ladling sauce over the turmeric rice, putting tandoori chicken and sauce on the naan, then going back to the chilli vindaloo curry again — before we knew it, both bowls we'd ordered were finished.

Oh, and the salad that comes with the set was also pretty tasty, and for reference, the turmeric rice comes with free refills, so keep that in mind.

Is CURRY146 Gangnam worth a visit? Final verdict

• Really good place to visit when you're suddenly craving curry after a long while
• Great atmosphere, clean menu composition, and real depth of flavor!
• Recommend the makhani curry + chilli vindaloo curry combo for the creamy + spicy mix