The Ali Raj - Margate

Following a rather tricky delivery in Cliftonville, Bob & Phil decided to revisit a restaurant that they had been to before in the "pre-blog" days.  A restaurant that they had thought quite reasonable in those early days of curryness.

The Ali Raj is located at the Westbrook end of Margate on the A28 near the Sea Bathing Hospital.  Although the road is a busy one, there is street parking available outside and along the whole parade of shops in which the restaurant is located.  It is nicely lit and looks to have been fairly recently renovated.  We were greeted at the door and shown to our table and given our Menus which Phil felt resembled the type found in a transport cafe rather than restaurant.

The Papadums were warm and fresh although a couple were slightly burned and, accordingly had a rather bitter taste.  The (draft) Cobra was served cold and, following the earlier exertions, well received!  There was something about the dips, however, that felt different.  Neither Bob nor Phil could put their finger on why.

The curries were a bit of a mixed bag.  They were served in generous proportions.  Bob felt his was OK if a little overcooked but Phil's was too hot almost to the point of unpleasantness - heat simply conquered all!

The Sag Aloo was nicely flavoured (and Phil felt a great cooling option) but the Muttar Paneer was a rather strange concoction of peas in a cheese sauce and was a bland goo.  Both Bob and Phil were disappointed not to see lumps of cheese.

The service was pleasant and friendly but not over attentive.

Area	Phil	Bob
Beer	7	7
Papadum	6	7
Curry	5	7
Rice & Vegetables	6	7
Service & Ambiance	7	7

In total 66

Having had rather fond memories of a good curry here in previous visits, Bob & Phil were rather surprised by the scores.  Was it just a bad night or were Bob & Phil looking back through rose tinted spectacles?

Chatni - Canterbury

After bemoaning about the lack of curry houses in Canterbury in a previous post, Bob and Phil were delighted to discover a new restaurant had opened up.  An evening delivery to Lyminge meant a return journey through the city and a very short detour found Bob and Phil outside the doors.

Chatni is located on St Peter's Street, not far from the Westgate Towers on one of the main shopping roads in Canterbury.  As such it is ideally located for the tourist trade.  As with every other business in Canterbury City Centre, parking is to be found in one of the many pay and display car parks around the city (visitors please note that hours of operation are from 07:00 until 21:00).

Many of the buildings on St Peter's Street date back in time and Chatni is no exception with many beams to be seen on entrance although the extension to the rear is modern.

The restaurant itself is quite modern in style although Phil was pleased to note the absence of coloured lighting.  It was noticeable that there was no music.

The (Bottled) beers arrived promptly but not so the Papadums.  When they eventually did arrive they were warm and fresh and lightly salted.  Phil was disappointed to note the absence of a lime pickle but agreed with Bob that the Mango Chutney was very nice indeed.

The curries were on the whole a disappointment.  Bob felt that his Butter Chicken was somewhat boring and lacking in flavour.  Phil on the other hand could not get past the overwhelming chilli that spoilt his Dhansak. Both felt, however, that the temperature of the dishes could have been warmer and towards the end of the meal the dishes were getting quite cold having not been served on dish warmers.

The vegetables were a bit of a mixed bag.  The Sag Aloo (Aloo Palak) was nicely flavoured and mild but the Muttar Paneer was rather bland.

The service on the whole could best be described as slow and perfunctory.  Bob felt that a Friday or Saturday night would likely result in many disappointed diners!  Phil was also concerned to note that the place mats on the tables appeared to belong to a different restaurant (2nd hand?)

Area	Phil	Bob
Beer	8	8
Papadum	8	8
Curry	4	6
Rice & Vegetables	5	5
Service & Ambiance	5	5

In total a quite disappointing 62, sadly placing it in the bottom 5 restaurants visited.

From the outside Chatni looks nice and the meal started well but appearances can be deceptive.  Given its location, it is likely to attract the tourist trade and not many will come back!