Festival of Food
Indian Cuisine
Dinner Review
It’s time for another installment for the Festival of Food with my regular counterparts, Nick and Athena. With an upcoming interlude in India, it was only fitting that I accustom my digestive system to some Indian spice, so we took on a new comer to the list in 2012, British Raj on Henley Beach Rd. Although Athena was initially apprehensive of trying a new Indian restaurant we eventually convinced her that a night with us would far outweigh any concerns.
On arrival, we entered what looked to be an old house that had been revamped into an open plan dining room. Most noticeable were the numerous photos and signatures of the restaurant’s Indian cricket idols on the walls throughout the restaurant. Although this may be a hall of fame to some, for me it was a little tacky.
We were promptly welcomed and taken through the menu for The Festival of Food, of which the options were amazing. The offer included almost any main curry dish of your choice; with this in mind, we each ordered a different dish to share so we could get a varied view:
Athena: Beef Korma
Nick: Tandoori Chicken Tikka Masala
Myself: Goat Curry
Soon after ordering our mains, we received our starter which consisted of garlic naan. The fresh, crisp taste and textures were only let down by the fact that we didn’t receive any raita or pickle/chutney to dip it in, however upon request it was quite graciously provided in plentiful quantity. The mango pickle was bitter and salty with a mild sourness – but was reminiscent more of pickle from a jar; the raita however was sweet, creamy and more clearly a homemade style.
The tasting plate for entree was made up of prawn tandoori, chicken tikka and mushroom pakora; the chicken was lovely and tender and had a great smoky tandoor flavour; the mushroom pakora had a soggy chick pea crust; and the prawns were slightly stodgy - which would generally be a sign of frozen or over cooked produce. Either way, the entree certainly captured some typically lively Indian spices and aroma, but just lacked the pizzazz and freshness I was looking for. Possibly serving them individually to the guests or one item at a time would have highlighted the depth of the dishes and saved cross contaminating the flavours on such a small plate. Upon cleaning our dishes, the waiter asked what we thought. I provided the above feedback and he commented that our honesty was appreciated to ensure future success, I found this remarkably admirable.
As mains arrived, we struggled to fit the contents on the table. The serves were a generous proportion but the vast majority of that was the sauce. The goat curry was amazingly tender, although the ratio of meat to bone was about 60:40. This was only made easier to swallow because the waiter had advised that there were bones in the dish. The beef korma had a lovely light texture with very earthy flavours and certainly captured the essence of freshly ground spices. The tandoori chicken tikka masala had the makings of a beautiful dish. The use of the word tandoori gave me the impression the chicken would have been cured correctly and then cooked in a tandoor, however it tasted more like pan fried chicken breast finished with an off the shelf butter chicken sauce and an overly rich cream rather than yoghurt as a base.
As we sat and allowed the multitude of food settle, we agreed that the service was very friendly and polite while the food, although not the best we’d had, was certainly worthy of a full gullet and possibly another visit at a later date. To our disappointment however, our chocolate and hazelnut petit fours never arrived, even after a lengthy wait and post bill settlement. It truly was a downside to what could have been a magical night containing minor mishaps.
Darren Richards
(AKA Dougal McFuzzlebutt)
Dinner Monday – Friday $22.50
*Bookings and brochure essential. Quote ‘Festival of Food’ when booking
**Full menu options also available
Where: 170 Henley Beach Road Torrensville 5031
Trading: Lunch Wed – Fri 11.30am - 2.30pm, Dinner Mon – Sun 6pm - Late
Contact: (08) 8354 4881
