Wadud’s Fusion of Thai and Indian Restaurant is a welcoming, evening-led spot in Cressing that combines Thai flavours with Indian favourites, served inside The Willows Inn Pub, with dine in, collection and delivery all available.

Wadud’s Fusion sits within The Willows Inn, a traditional, low-ceilinged village pub with original wooden beams and fireplaces, so the setting has that cosy, old-Essex character rather than a modern high-street restaurant feel. The team describe it as a community pub with a saloon bar, open to everyone, now paired with a Thai and Indian fusion kitchen. It reopened under new management on 26 September 2025, and it’s very much positioned as a place to relax with food and a drink rather than a quick in-and-out meal. If you like the idea of proper sit-down dining in a pub atmosphere, this fits nicely, especially for small groups and couples who want something a bit different from the usual local options.

The opening hours make it feel like a reliable evening plan through most of the week, with Sunday offering a longer daytime window. The stated hours are Monday, Wednesday and Thursday 5pm to 10pm, Friday 5pm to 11pm, Saturday 5pm to 11pm, and Sunday 12pm to 10pm. That Sunday opening is particularly handy if you want a relaxed lunch or an early dinner without waiting until the evening.

The best way to understand Wadud’s Fusion is through the menu style. It blends Thai-inspired small plates and seafood with Indian starters, tandoori-style items, and curry house classics, but the structure keeps it easy to order. You can treat it like a traditional starter-and-main meal, or you can build a “tapas-style” table with several smaller dishes, which works brilliantly for sharing and trying a wider range of flavours.

If you’re deciding what to order, it helps to pick a lane.

If you want a table of starters to share, the opening section has plenty of strong options. Kajang Satay is a good example of their Thai direction, chicken skewers finished on a char-grill with a peanut dressing. Crispy Chilli Beef is another crowd-pleaser style starter, shredded beef deep fried, then tossed in sweet chilli sauce with peppers, onion and spring onions. For seafood lovers, there are crispy tiger prawns in panko breadcrumbs with sweet chilli sauce, plus salt and pepper squid served with a spicy mayo. If you want something more Indian-leaning, chicken or lamb tikka is on the starter list, marinated with spices and yoghurt, then served with salad and mint chutney. Vegetarian and vegan starters are clearly represented too, including onion bhajee, aloo cutlets, and vegetable rolls.

If you want something that feels a bit more special, the menu also includes aromatic crispy duck as a starter style dish, served with steamed pancakes, cucumber and spring onion, with a hoisin-style dressing. It’s the kind of order that turns the table into a sharing experience straight away, especially if you add a couple of small plates alongside it.

For mains, the menu shows a strong seafood section that leans into grilled dishes. Examples include monkfish kebab cooked on a skewer with onions and peppers, served with garlic mayonnaise and salad, grilled salmon seasoned with olive oil and mixed herbs, served with an olive butter sauce and salad, and a king prawn grill at a similar “char-grilled, restaurant main” level. That seafood focus is useful to know because many local Indian restaurants keep seafood limited, whereas here it’s clearly part of the core offering.

Alongside that, the wider menu categories suggest you can mix Thai curries, Indian traditional curries, chef specialities, noodles, rice, naan breads, and vegetable side dishes, which makes it easy to feed a group with different tastes. If one person wants a fragrant Thai curry, another wants a familiar Indian-style curry, and someone else wants grilled fish or prawns, you’re not forced into one narrow menu. That range is one of the biggest practical benefits of a Thai and Indian fusion kitchen when it’s done sensibly.

A simple, confident ordering plan for a first visit could look like this.

For two people who want variety, start with satay plus either salt and pepper squid or crispy tiger prawns, then choose contrasting mains, for example one grilled seafood main and one curry-style main, and finish with rice and a bread to share.

For a group, order three or four starters to share, such as crispy chilli beef, chicken tikka, onion bhajee and vegetable rolls, then let everyone pick their own main direction from Thai curry, Indian curry, or grilled dishes, and add extra rice and naan for the middle of the table.

For a more relaxed Sunday visit, arrive earlier and treat it like a longer sit-down, starters to share, mains that cover both Thai and Indian sides of the menu, then stay for a drink in the pub setting after.

Dietary options are easier to handle here than in many mixed-cuisine menus, but it’s still important to stick to what’s actually shown. The menu labels vegetarian and vegan items, with several starters clearly marked, such as onion bhajee, aloo cutlets, and vegetable rolls. Beyond that, specific gluten-free options are not stated as a dedicated category, and at least one dish note highlights gluten in pancakes, so if you need strict gluten-free choices or you have allergies, it’s best to contact the restaurant directly and confirm what’s suitable before ordering.

Location-wise, Wadud’s Fusion is at The Willows Inn, The Street, Cressing, Braintree, CM77 8DQ. That puts it in a village setting while still being within the Braintree area, which is ideal if you want something a bit calmer than town-centre dining, or if you’re coming from nearby villages and want an easy local destination without heading deeper into busy areas. Because it’s inside a pub, it also suits people who like the idea of combining dinner with a drink in the same place, rather than moving venues.

In terms of who it’s best for, it fits a few clear groups.

It’s great for couples who want a cosy evening out with food that feels a bit more interesting than standard pub grub, but still in a relaxed environment.

It’s ideal for friends who like sharing starters and building a table of dishes rather than sticking to a strict one-main-each format.

It works well for mixed groups, because the menu structure spans Thai and Indian styles, plus grilled seafood and vegetarian and vegan-labelled starters, so it’s easier to keep everyone happy.

It’s also a solid option for nights in, because the restaurant explicitly offers both collection and delivery, and the menu is designed for online ordering.

Handy info is straightforward. Dine in is available, and the restaurant also offers pick-up and food delivery. There’s a clear incentive for collection orders too, with 20 percent off collection orders over £20 stated on their takeaway and delivery page. Delivery fees and minimum order requirements are shown as zone-based on their site, which is useful if you’re ordering from surrounding areas and want to know what to expect before you get to checkout. Table reservations are available through their site. Parking is not stated. Payment methods are not stated.

Overall, Wadud’s Fusion is a strong Braintree-area choice when you want Thai and Indian flavours under one roof, served in a cosy village pub setting. The menu makes it easy to either go classic starter-and-main or build a sharing table, and the combination of dine in, collection and delivery gives it real flexibility week to week. If you like grilled seafood alongside curry-house comfort, and you want a place that feels warm and local rather than chain-like, it’s well worth adding to your shortlist.

Food Types: Restaurant; Indian; Thai / Vietnamese; Gastro Pub

Dining Type: Dine In; Takeaway; Delivery

Area: Braintree, Cressing