Kuti's Indian Brasserie evacuated after blaze

Smoke coming from the rear of Kuti's Brasserie. Photo by Echo reader Zoe Tarrant. Smoke coming from the rear of Kuti's Brasserie. Photo by Echo reader Zoe Tarrant.

Firefighters were this afternoon battling a blaze at a popular Southampton restaurant.

Crews from St Mary's, Hightown and Redbridge were called to Kuti's Indian Brasserie, on Oxford Street, at 2.33pm, following reports of a fire.

The blaze was in the extractor fan chimney.

Two breathing apparatus, two hose reels, one jet and an aerial ladder platform were rushed to the scene.

The building was evacuated while fire crews tackled the blaze, which took 30 minutes.

No-one has been injured in the incident, and staff are hopeful of being able to re-open the restaurant later today, by installing a temporary extractor fan unit.

Comments(36)

chrismatthewsj says...
3:24pm Wed 19 Sep 12

Ouch, that will hurt during Boat Show week!

Fingers crossed that no-one is injured and hope they manage to reopen soon... top restaurant.

ynotalison says...
3:37pm Wed 19 Sep 12

Oh dear, such a shame...

ToastyTea says...
3:52pm Wed 19 Sep 12

I hope they korma out of this ok.

Smithy2012 says...
4:15pm Wed 19 Sep 12

That was one hell of a Vindaloo

Huey says...
4:25pm Wed 19 Sep 12

Time to tikka look at other premises

AD1234 says...
4:40pm Wed 19 Sep 12

I bet the fireman didn't knock - just bahji'd in. No manners - must've been brought up by his Naan.

George4th says...
4:46pm Wed 19 Sep 12

chrismatthewsj wrote:
Ouch, that will hurt during Boat Show week!

Fingers crossed that no-one is injured and hope they manage to reopen soon... top restaurant.
"top restaurant"??
>
Not if you have an appreciation of Indian food!!

Solomon's Boot says...
5:05pm Wed 19 Sep 12

Bet the police thought 'aloo aloo' what have we here? Whilst they had a 'chat' about it!

Solomon's Boot says...
5:07pm Wed 19 Sep 12

It needed warming up anyway. It was always a bit 'chilli' in there!

Family Man says...
5:26pm Wed 19 Sep 12

I would take a bet on the fire breaking out or starting in the the extractor fans, ducts or filters. Fat from cooking is vaporised and then condenses or lodges in the extraction equipment which must be regularly cleaned and maintained, and if not, catches fire easily. Any takers?

Family Man says...
5:28pm Wed 19 Sep 12

Family Man wrote:
I would take a bet on the fire breaking out or starting in the the extractor fans, ducts or filters. Fat from cooking is vaporised and then condenses or lodges in the extraction equipment which must be regularly cleaned and maintained, and if not, catches fire easily. Any takers?
Or perhaps I should have read the report more fully...

AD1234 says...
6:10pm Wed 19 Sep 12

Furthermore, the Kuti's owner is a pilau of society.

kingnotail says...
6:34pm Wed 19 Sep 12

George4th says...
4:46pm Wed 19 Sep 12

chrismatthewsj wrote:
Ouch, that will hurt during Boat Show week!

Fingers crossed that no-one is injured and hope they manage to reopen soon... top restaurant.

"top restaurant"??
>
Not if you have an appreciation of Indian food!!

-

Thought it was fairly decent, can only think of Rasraj and Namaste Kerala which are better in the city centre. Coriander Lounge is hugely overrated!

huckit P says...
8:31pm Wed 19 Sep 12

To get a real tasty curry you need to get out of the city. Most places in Southampton (Oxford Street in particular) are over-priced and over-rated. Kuti's has always been over-priced; not to mention pompous.

G-man1 says...
8:32pm Wed 19 Sep 12

Indian Melody is worth a look for a good city centre curry house

George4th says...
9:41pm Wed 19 Sep 12

kingnotail wrote:
George4th says...
4:46pm Wed 19 Sep 12

chrismatthewsj wrote:
Ouch, that will hurt during Boat Show week!

Fingers crossed that no-one is injured and hope they manage to reopen soon... top restaurant.

"top restaurant"??
>
Not if you have an appreciation of Indian food!!

-

Thought it was fairly decent, can only think of Rasraj and Namaste Kerala which are better in the city centre. Coriander Lounge is hugely overrated!
Good choices! Agree about Coriander.
Must try the Indian Melody on G-man's recommendation.

WECOMING4U says...
10:51pm Wed 19 Sep 12

Kuti's have their piers.

MGRA says...
11:41pm Wed 19 Sep 12

their sunday buffet is quite simply the best meal one could wish for in the city of southampton....

bazzeroz says...
11:56pm Wed 19 Sep 12

Overpriced, poncy food! Not quite sure what the comment about the boat show meant. There ARE other restaurants available.

andysaints007 says...
1:08am Thu 20 Sep 12

The most bland Indian food in the south

luckypigs says...
1:20am Thu 20 Sep 12

some comments here were a little amusing to some but give a little thought to the owners who like many buisnessmen in our area struggle to make a living in the area or shut down because of the credit crunch, we should try supporting local buisness a bit better kuti's in southampton and Fair Oak offer such a Wonderfull dining experience,come on try supporting this great restaurant, I've had some great Meals there. start supporting some great southampton restaurants. and no I don't work there

ToastyTea says...
1:21am Thu 20 Sep 12

G-man1 wrote:
Indian Melody is worth a look for a good city centre curry house
The best thing about Indian Melody is the owner, crazy and funny as fook, his weird posh English accent especially. I wouldn't say Coriander Lounge is overated, when I went in there the food was really good and worth it's rep. Rasraj on Oxford St is really good too. Spoilt for choice for Indians that side of town anyway, about 6 in 1/4 mile area!!! crazy

luckypigs says...
1:22am Thu 20 Sep 12

let us know when you back open guys

luckypigs says...
1:38am Thu 20 Sep 12

most off us britts don't really understand what a good indian or thai meal looks or tastes like, keep up the good work, some of us realise meals from that area of the world are not just chucked in a blender and served hot so you can't taste how bad they are.
Brian

solomum says...
8:08am Thu 20 Sep 12

bazzeroz wrote:
Overpriced, poncy food! Not quite sure what the comment about the boat show meant. There ARE other restaurants available.
The boat show week would be very lucrative for Kuti's, hence the comments. The owners will be losing out on one of their busiest times. This is their livelihood so it is a shame that the public use this forum to run the restaurant down. Talk about kicking someone when they are down, but hey, that is the mentality of people these days.

kingnotail says...
10:52am Thu 20 Sep 12

George4th says...
9:41pm Wed 19 Sep 12

kingnotail wrote:
George4th says...
4:46pm Wed 19 Sep 12

chrismatthewsj wrote:
Ouch, that will hurt during Boat Show week!

Fingers crossed that no-one is injured and hope they manage to reopen soon... top restaurant.

"top restaurant"??
>
Not if you have an appreciation of Indian food!!

-

Thought it was fairly decent, can only think of Rasraj and Namaste Kerala which are better in the city centre. Coriander Lounge is hugely overrated!
Good choices! Agree about Coriander.
Must try the Indian Melody on G-man's recommendation.”

-

Don't bother, it's terrible. I have a number of Indian friends who have been and say it it is in no way authentic. I went and the food and service was awful, the manager is arrogant and annoying, and won't leave you alone while one poor solitary waitress has to do all the work, resulting in bungled orders. Went there as the mrs is vegetarian, she thought it was even worse than I did!!

andysaints007 says...
12:28pm Thu 20 Sep 12

luckypigs wrote:
some comments here were a little amusing to some but give a little thought to the owners who like many buisnessmen in our area struggle to make a living in the area or shut down because of the credit crunch, we should try supporting local buisness a bit better kuti's in southampton and Fair Oak offer such a Wonderfull dining experience,come on try supporting this great restaurant, I've had some great Meals there. start supporting some great southampton restaurants. and no I don't work there
Thats all well and good but if I and others don't like their food why would we want to eat there ?

originalsfc says...
1:06pm Thu 20 Sep 12

luckypigs wrote:
some comments here were a little amusing to some but give a little thought to the owners who like many buisnessmen in our area struggle to make a living in the area or shut down because of the credit crunch, we should try supporting local buisness a bit better kuti's in southampton and Fair Oak offer such a Wonderfull dining experience,come on try supporting this great restaurant, I've had some great Meals there. start supporting some great southampton restaurants. and no I don't work there
You obviously dont know Kuti and how he operates....even a stretch didnt change him

kingnotail says...
2:06pm Thu 20 Sep 12

ToastyTea says...
1:21am Thu 20 Sep 12

G-man1 wrote:
Indian Melody is worth a look for a good city centre curry house
The best thing about Indian Melody is the owner, crazy and funny as fook, his weird posh English accent especially. I wouldn't say Coriander Lounge is overated, when I went in there the food was really good and worth it's rep. Rasraj on Oxford St is really good too. Spoilt for choice for Indians that side of town anyway, about 6 in 1/4 mile area!!! crazy”

-

For a city of this size, that's actually pretty poor. The words 'Southampton' and 'spoilt for choice' just don't go together. Unless you've never left Southampton?!

ToastyTea says...
3:14pm Thu 20 Sep 12

kingnotail wrote:
ToastyTea says... 1:21am Thu 20 Sep 12 G-man1 wrote: Indian Melody is worth a look for a good city centre curry house The best thing about Indian Melody is the owner, crazy and funny as fook, his weird posh English accent especially. I wouldn't say Coriander Lounge is overated, when I went in there the food was really good and worth it's rep. Rasraj on Oxford St is really good too. Spoilt for choice for Indians that side of town anyway, about 6 in 1/4 mile area!!! crazy” - For a city of this size, that's actually pretty poor. The words 'Southampton' and 'spoilt for choice' just don't go together. Unless you've never left Southampton?!
Um I'm just talking about Indians on that side of town, there are plenty more in the city centre to chose from.
But I do agree with you from the view point that for restaurants in general Southampton is poor and isn't alot of choice and barely any really good restuarants (especially non chain ones).

luckypigs says...
12:10am Fri 21 Sep 12

restaurants in southampton are very good i have dined around the world and most uk restaurants are second to none if you want to buy a 10 pound takeaway thats what you get, if you want a meal for two with wine you may choose the thirty pound a head, try something new and be willing to spend a few pounds and your dining views may change, we all love a heated sausage roll or pie for a pound, but sometmes its worth enjoying some great grub spending a little more, but kuti's in Southampton is very good value for money, if you want a ten pound curry and a few beers its still gonna cost you 20-30 pounds, stop knocking these hard working people who pay taxes for many lazy people who live in our area. your coments can lead to companies closing and not supporting those lazy B&%gers

luckypigs says...
12:14am Fri 21 Sep 12

I often wondered why the aussies called us whinging pom's but now i understand. my love to all those unhappy people.

luckypigs says...
12:31am Fri 21 Sep 12

To some on here when you have a bad exsperience or poor meal at any restaurant, here is a great tip finish your meal or ask for something different, if content afterwards leave a tip 5 to 10 %
if they did not satisfy you complain at the end, better still tell them where they went wrong,... cold plates, incorrect meal, wrong steak, cold vegetables whatever, but TELL THEM NOT ME. most restaurants do handle and like sensble criticism, if you ran a restaurant the last thing you need are people saying thank you than blogging on line how bad you were, reminds me of the wife.

luckypigs says...
12:51am Fri 21 Sep 12

i tend to have a two visit routine, good meal return good meal return.
poor meal inbetween courses, ask for an alternative, be clear what you feel is wrong, continue meal but don't eat what you feel is not right, complain at end of meal better still tell them what you noramally exspect and how they failed to deliver. most restaurants will remove any costs of meals wine beer etc if they understand why you are unhappy, some offer revisits with discounts, try them again and if they fail let your feet do the voting. if you were in any trade of service you wan't people to tell you how you could have done better but we all wan't that info when we are doing that work not 12 months later. all restaurants need that immediate feedback. yeah we should all be perfect in our jobs but we are not.
my note about restaurants outside of uk. def complain at end only. unless your paying over £100 a head.

luckypigs says...
1:10am Fri 21 Sep 12

You may well have the argument i have been to a restaurant 3 or 4 times or more and the service was really poor, i never go that far with any restaurants. failing the first two visits are my last visits, and Kuti's have never failed me as a good restaurant. and that's my view.

luckypigs says...
1:35am Fri 21 Sep 12

although being paid £18 an hour i do realise some people in southampton are paid the minnimum wage and i feel this is wrong, I witness some people who work in shops like tesco etc being treated really rudely by customers, minimum wage earners being badly treated by people who earn much more, or even worse those who clearly don't work standing in large queue's in iceland folding their arms that apparantley don't work expecting the poor £5 pound an hour staff to bag all of their goods for them. given the staff working their are paying for part of their groserys

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