Taste of India

40 Oxford Street Whitstable has been the home of a number of Indian Restaurants over the years and, after a break of a few years as a bistro, it is now the home of Taste of India.

Opened in August/September 2023 and on Bob and Phil's "must get round to visiting it" list ever since, a cold January evening and the time finally arrived.

Situated opposite Whitstable Library, there is fairly limited street parking nearby and the nearest public car park in Middle Wall is about a 5 minute walk away.

The restaurant is decorated in a modern fashion and nicely welcoming - although to Phil the dining area seemed smaller than some of its predeccesors and can probably only accomodate around 30 covers  On arrival, Bob and Phil were the first diners of the evening and were promptly shown to a table.  They were not on their own for long, however, and in a short space of time the restaurant was about half full.

The (bottled) Cobra's were served promptly and Bob felt that they could have been a little colder.  The papadums were warm and fresh and served with a selection of 4 pickles although Bob found the Lime Pickle a little too lumpy.

The Curries arrived in due course and Phil thoroughly enjoyed his Dhansak which had a nice sweetness without the heat being too overpowering.  The texture of the sauce was good and plentiful.  Bob thought his Butter Chicken was good too and everything that he expected although the chicken was a little tough.

The Special Rices were hot and plentiful and the servings of Bombay Aloo and Chana Paneer were generous.  Phil felt that both vegetables worked well with his curry but Bob found the flavour of  the Chana Paneer too similar to his Butter Chicken.

There was on waiter on duty alongside the owner and there was a noticable difference in attitude between the two as the young waiter seemed somewhat hesitant and reserved and the polar opposite of the jovial owner.  The service on the whole, however, worked well and was well paced.

Area	Phil	Bob
Beer	8	8
Papadum	9	8
Curry	9	8
Rice & Vegetables	9	9
Service & Ambiance	8	8

                

In total a very respectable 84

It was good to see a busy restaurant midweek on a cold winter's evening and it was clear from the greetings of some the diners that it has rapidly acquired a band of regular diners.  Bob and Phil wish the restaurant well!

Sipson Tandoori, Harmondsworth

Bob and Phil had a two car booking this afternoon to take a family to a hotel near Heathrow ahead of them flying off on holiday.  Having dropped at the hotel, they decided it would be a good idea to find a local curry house and a quick search online led Bob and Phil to choose the Sipson Tandoori...just less than 4 miles away.

Sipson Tandoori is a modern looking restaurant in a parade of shops at the junction of Harmondsworth Road and Sipson Road.  There is limited parking on the road outside of the parade and both Bob and Phil were able to park without too much problem.

Bob and Phil entered and were greeted cordially by a smartly dressed waiter and shown to a table under instruction of an even more smartly dressed head waiter.  The restaurant itself is nicely decorated with a modern theme and was spacious and airy with music being played in the background which did not detract from the ability to have a conversation.

The beer on tap at the Sipson Tandoori was Kingfisher rather than Cobra, perfectly acceptable and served nicely cold.  The pappadums arrived promptly and were nicely warm.  They were served with 5 different and very well received.

Bob tonight went for his usual Chicken Korma and Phil his Dhansak.  Both chose different rices - Special Fried and Keema respectively and vegetable wise a Sag Aloo and Muttar Paneer were the order of the day.  Bob was delighted with the combination of flavours and, at last, found a restaurant where the potatoes were not watery and flavourless.  Phil thought his Dhansak was excellent and agreed with Bob about the different flavours.  

The waiting staff were very attentive without being overbearing and during the meal Bob & Phil were pleased that the Head Waiter came to check that all was well and both were delighted to see the return of the post prandial napkins.

Area	Phil	Bob
Beer	9	9
Papadum	9	10
Curry	9	9
Rice & Vegetables	9	9
Service & Ambiance	10	9

                

In total a magnificent 92!  The highest mark that they have ever awarded.

Since the post COVID restarting of the blog both Bob and Phil have been lamenting the quality of curries that they have experienced with many curry houses near them either closing or serving take aways only.  Sipson Tandoori shows that the art of a good curry house is far from dead and the only downside is that it is a 3 hour or more (depending on the M25!) trip to go for a meal there!

Spice of India - Horsford

A planned golfing trip gave Bob and Phil a chance to sample a restaurant far further afield than normal.  A quick Google of Indian Restaurants near Taverham and up popped Spice of India in Horsford - a mere 7 minutes drive from where they were staying.  Bob felt it would have been rude not to try it out.

The Spice of India is a converted pub in the village of Horsford.  Nicely externally decorated and appointed with a pub car park sized car park Bob and Phil eagerly entered.

Inside was equally nicely decorated and Bob and Phil were quickly shown to a table.  For a Sunday evening there were a few tables occupied and more were filled during Bob and Phil's meal.

Orders placed, the (Draught) Cobras arrived promptly and were as cold as they should be and very well received.  They were shortly followed by the Papadums which were fresh and warm but, to Bob's disappointment, only 3 pickles were served and there was no Raita to be seen.  With a bit of encouragement from Phil, Bob tried the Lime Pickle and surprised himself by quite liking it.

There was a short wait for the curries and Bob felt that his Chicken Malayne was well balanced and went well with his special rice.  Phil decided that his Chicken Dhansak was the best he had experienced since the return of the blog.  They were both very disappointed with the Aloo Gobi and Muttar Paneer.  Phil described them as frozen mixed vegetables served in a slightly spiced (but otherwise tasteless) tomato based sauce.  Very disappointing.

The service was conspicuous by its absence.  The only time waiters appeared were to take and serve the orders.  Bob even struggled to attract attention when it was time to pay as the waiter seemed far more engrossed in his phone rather than his customers.  Phil was very displeased by the lack of hot towels at the end of the meal.

Area	Phil	Bob
Beer	9	8
Papadum	8	8
Curry	9	9
Rice & Vegetables	5	4
Service & Ambiance	4	4

                

In total a rather average 67

Spice of India has great potential - a lovely venue and superb curries.  It was almost as if vegetables and service do not matter.

Gandhi, Herne Bay 9 Years later!

Phil & Bob often find that the subject of Curry comes up on their journeys too or from Airports and, on one such journey, Gandhi in Herne Bay came up.  Phil remembered that it had been reviewed in the past but was shocked to see that it was a long, long, time ago - in February 2014 in fact.  A quick call was made to Bob and thus the venue for tonight's curry was set.

Locals will tell you that Gandhi has been there for years (and Bob and Phil can vouch for at least 9 of those).  Located at the High Street end of Station Road, there is street parking nearby.

Stepping down into the restaurant there is a definite feel of a "traditional" curry house with, in places, the flock wallpaper still hanging.  That is not so say that it needs redecoration - far from it - but it adds to the feeling of having been there for ever.

The (Bottled) Cobra's arrived promptly and were nicely cold and shortly followed by fresh Papadums that were nicely warm!  Four pickles were also served.  Bob was unhappy that there was a lime pickle and not the powdered coconut pickle that he prefers.  Phil thought that the mango chutney had a really good tang to it.  Alongside the Papadums a little taster of Aubergine Fritters were offered and well received.

Phil was delighted to find that Chicken Dhansak was still on the menu and was not disappointed.  It was nicely presented, the sauce had the right texture and there was a delightful sweetness to offset the heat.  Bob chose the Korma and was not impressed with the lack of flavour and he felt it almost watery.  Given the lack of Special rice at their last venue, the boys decided to continue off piste with Phil opting for a very nice Keema rice and Bob choosing a Tikka rice (which he thought was better than his Curry!)

In an attempt at standardisation, they opted for Chana Massala - which both enjoyed and Phil in particular thought had a very distinct flavour that worked well with his Dhansak - and Bombay Aloo - which was again disappointed and left Bob wondering why anyone had bothered to dig the potatoes up if their fate was to end up as a bland lump on a dish.

The service was not how Bob and Phil remembered it from before.  Their waiter, whilst not rude, seemed to just be going through the motions and not really engaged.  It should be noted, however, that hot towels are not a thing of the past everywhere - even if they are of the "microwaved" variety.

Area	Phil	Bob
Beer	8	8
Papadum	8	8
Curry	9	5
Rice & Vegetables	7	7
Service & Ambiance Bonus	7 1	6 1

                

A total of 75 which is quite a way below the previous score 9 years ago.

The score left Phil and Bob wondering whether their standards had changed over time of if the Post COVID era has led to lower standards.  Having said that 8 of the 10 tables in the restaurant were occupied which seemed remarkable for a Wednesday evening so it remains popular with the local clientele.  Gandhi should also be congratulated for its durability as many other curry houses have come and gone.

Flavours by Kumar, Ramsgate

It is said that time flies like an arrow (and fruit flies are partial to a banana) and, in the blink of an eye, years have passed and things change.  Bob no longer runs a furniture shop and both he and Phil can be seen on the various motorways around Gatwick and Heathrow as they both now drive Private Hire vehicles specialising in airport transfers.

Without the need to deliver furniture in the evening the excuse for a curry was lost but now, following recommendations from various passengers, it is back!

So Phil dusted off his notebook; Bob dusted off his taste buds and for the first time in nearly 6 long curry free years a destination was set.  Flavours by Kumar in Ramsgate.

Flavours is located on Effingham Street in Ramsgate, close to the junction with Queen Street.  There is no obvious street parking nearby but there is a pay and display car park in Cavendish Street a couple of minutes’ walk away.

It may be because there were external redecorations in progress but the entrance was slightly confusing as the door had “exit only” emblazoned on it but Bob and Phil made it inside and were shown to a table.  It is worth noting that, for a Wednesday evening, there were several tables occupied with more arrivals during Bob and Phil’s meal so they were left with an impression that it was a popular venue with the locals.

The (bottled) Cobras arrived quite quickly and were cold but not quite cold enough.  Bob and Phil were then presented with a small amuse-bouche (if there is such an Indian equivalent) of a nicely presented aubergine fritter which was both welcome and tasty.

The pupadums were soon to follow with assorted Chutneys.  Bob was a little disappointed that there were only three chutneys and, bizarrely, Phil struggled with the onions (he felt the way that they were cut made them difficult to eat).   Bob also felt that the pupadums themselves were bordering on becoming stale.

With the pupadums consumed, another amuse-bouche was to follow in the shape of a very flavoursome cup of soup following which the main courses were served.  Bob chose his normal Chicken Korma but Phil was dismayed that there was not a Dhansak in sight and, instead, settled for a Gosht Mughlai.  Also missing from the menu was a special rice dish so both settled for an egg rice and they shared sides of Chana Masala and Bombay Aloo.

Phil did enjoy his curry - not initially hot but it crept up on him - but Bob felt that his choice was rather bland.  They were both disappointed with the Bombay Aloo – with Bob commenting that the potatoes should have been left in the ground but felt that the Chick Peas were very good.

The service was well paced and not overbearing and the amuse-bouche courses were a nice innovation.  It was also disappointing to note, however, that towels were not provided at the end of the meal and Phil was left wondering whether they had become a casualty of Covid.

All in all a bit of a mixed bag with the scoring as follows

Area	Phil	Bob
Beer	7	7
Papadum	6	6
Curry	8	3
Rice & Vegetables	7	7
Service & Ambiance Bonus for Amuse-Bouches*	7 2	6 2

*2 bonus points awarded by both for the amuse-bouches

                

In total a somewhat disappointing 68

It was great to be back out currying again but it does feel that things have changed.  Both Bob and Phil have noticed that many of the curry houses that they knew and loved have fallen by the wayside and Phil is worried that Chicken Dhansak no longer features on the menus!  After so long away it is difficult to judge whether the scoring has been harsh.  Only time will tell