Holding court at the Fort

Why has The Red Fort become such a New Labour hang-out? Well, for one thing it's in Soho and that's always been the stamping ground of senior Labour politicians. Michael Foot and his cronies favoured The Gay Hussar in Greek Street, while Harold Wilson used to like nothing better than to wash down a plate of fish and chips with a pint of bitter in Kettners on Romilly Street.

Then there's the fact that it's an Indian restaurant, albeit a very posh one. The late Robin Cook was always banging on about how much he liked a slap-up curry, presumably in the belief that this established his proletarian credentials. It can't be a coincidence that chicken tikka masala has replaced steak and chips as Britain's favourite dish under New Labour.

But, above all, it contains the word 'Red' in its name. That must have struck Neil Kinnock as a good joke when he started coming here as Leader of the Opposition in the mid-Eighties, not least because the plush decor and expensive cuisine are so at odds with the socialism he professes to believe in.

Needless to say, that doesn't apply to Tony Blair, who's reported to enjoy takeaways from The Red Fort. Perhaps he favours this restaurant because, like him, it's red in name only. In all other respects, it's a bastion of the ruling class.

When The Red Fort first opened some 23 years ago it could lay claim to being the first posh Indian in Britain - at least, the first since 1811 when the Hindoostane Coffee House closed its doors. The owner, Amin Ali, sees himself as a kind of ambassador for upmarket Indian cuisine and, over the years, has staged various festivals showcasing the best that India's various regions have to offer.

In 2001, he managed to persuade Mohammed Rais from the Dum Pukht in New Delhi to become his head chef and, more recently, he's installed five different chefs in the kitchen, each specialising in a different culinary tradition.

The interior is supposedly based on the original Red Fort in Delhi, a palace designed by the same emperor who built the Taj Mahal, but, to be honest, it has the same corporate, slightly bland feel that nearly all posh Indians have.

The walls have been painted a creamy, light brown colour that reminded me of chicken korma, while the artwork is so subtle and understated it seems designed not to be noticed. I don't know if Air India has its own, dedicated lounge at Heathrow, but if it does I imagine it looks something like this.

My companion and I began with a selection of starters for two and followed up with chicken in a creamed tomato sauce, and Welsh lamb cooked with ginger, garlic and red chilli.

The starters were a fairly mixed bag, containing the usual assortment of chicken tikka, king prawns and cylindrical brown patties, while our main courses were both pretty good. The wait staff were extremely attentive, but that may have been because less than half a dozen tables were occupied.