The Amber Fort - Beckenham

The weather gods did not want Bob & Phil to go anywhere tonight.  They created a sink hole to close the M2 and gridlock everywhere between Gillingham, Sittingbourne & Faversham. They blew winds to close the QE2 bridge and, with it, turn the other Motorways in Kent into car parks.  And as a final challenge they decided that if Bob & Phil dared to venture out they were going to get wet.  But the show must go on and a customer in Beckenham needed their dining table and chairs......

Delivery over, with a kind recommendation in hand, Bob and Phil turned up at the Amber Fort in Elmers End Road.

The Amber Fort is a modern restaurant located in a parade of shops in Elmers End Road.  There is plenty of street parking available on the road outside.  It looks clean and modern with bold colours and colourful decorations.

The (draft) Cobra was nicely cold and served promptly along with the Papadums which were warm and fresh.  There was a selection of 5 Pickles although Bob didn't particularly like the onion ones.

Phil thought his Dhansak was very good indeed, the earthy taste of the lentils came through along with a good balance of sweetness and heat.  Bob was a little disappointed with his Butter Chicken, however, as he felt that there was a little flavour lacking and that it was slightly overcooked as his chicken was a little rubbery (Phil resisted the crack about "Grad you're enjoying it...")

The Sag Aloo was very good but, sadly, the Muttar Paneer was very bland, the peas tasteless and no real sweetness in the sauce.

The service was polite and picked up after a rather aloof start (we were pointed to a table rather than shown to it).  It culminated in terry towels at the end of the meal and we were offered a complementary drink at the end.

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

In total a respectable 77.  Above average but not on the leaderboard.

Gandhi - Herne Bay

It was a return visit to a regular customer in Hawkinge this evening.  Although (or perhaps because) it is close to Folkestone, there are no curry houses on the route from Canterbury and this was giving Bob & Phil cause for concern - a matter they happened to bring up with a Rep that co-incidentally called into the shop today.  It was at said Rep's suggestion that a slight detour was made on the way back to try Gandhi which is a regular haunt whenever he visits his son in Herne Bay.  Names cannot be divulged but - Great Scott!! it was a good call.

Gandhi has been established in Herne Bay for nearly 30 years but unless you are a local you would not know it is there.  Not in the main tourist areas, it is located slightly away from the popular areas in Station Road.

On entry it has a tradtional feel about it, perhaps slightly crossed with a pub with its wood panelled walls, wood & glass partitions and its subdued lighting.

The Papadums were warm and fresh and lightly salted and of the fine variety as opposed to the slightly thicker ones that are often served.  They appeared with the usual pickles and dips along with (bottled) Cobras that seemed to have more flavour than the norm.  An "amuse-bouche" of deep fried aubergine was also kindly provided.

Phil's Dhansak was nicely presented and, although not on the menu, Bob's Butter Chicken was prepared to order.  Both were very generous portions and well received.  From Phil's point of view it was everything he expected from a Dhansak.  Bob found that his flavours were "different" to the norm but enjoyed it nevertheless.

The Muttar Paneer was sweetly flavoured and not so overpowering as to allow the natural taste of the Peas to come through.  The Sag Aloo, although unusually dry in nature, was also cooked in a way to allow the different flavours of the vegetables to come through.  Phil did feel, however, that the potatoes needed more seasoning.

The service was excellent - polite and attentive, yet not overbearing.  Bob & Phil particularly liked the amuse-bouche and offer of complementary digestif.  Being extremely picky, the napkins were of the "baby wipe" style as opposed to terry towel although it should be acknowledged that they were opened and served rather than just presented on a plate.

Area	Phil	Bob
Beer	8	8
Papadum	9	8
Curry	10	8
Rice & Vegetables	8	9
Service & Ambiance	9	9

In addition, Bob wished to add another point to reflect both the amuse-bouche and digestif but couldn't decide where to put it.  Which gives a total score of 87 putting Gandhi joint top of our leader board.

There is always a danger that, following a few weeks without a curry (and in Phil's case January was an alcohol free detox month too) an excitement can lead to over scoring and Bob & Phil discussed this ahead of preparing the blog entry.  The conclusion reached, though was that this was an excellent curry and deserved its very good score.

Shamrat - Maidstone

It was a fairly easy delivery to Tonbridge this evening and, planning ahead, a revisit to the Spice Lounge in Hadlow was keenly anticipated.  The best laid plans fell, however, as the restaurant is no more - as and Indian Restaurant that is.  Mildly disappointed, Bob and Phil spotted the Shamrat as they came through Maidstone and an instant decision was made.

The Shamrat is located on Lower Stone Street in Maidstone.  It is a rather busy road with no parking but there is a multi-storey car park just around the corner.  The restaurant has a pleasant mix of beams and brickwork and the lighting and decor reflects the age of the building.  We were pleasantly greeted on entry and shown to a choice of tables.  For a Wednesday evening we were surprised at how busy it seemed.

The Papadums were warm and fresh and lightly salted.  The dips were the usual mix of onions, raita and mano chutney but with the addition of a lovely spicy chilli jam.  Very good indeed.  The (draught) beers were nicely cold and very well received.

The curries were excellent.  Phil's Dhansak had the lovely earthy flavour of lentils and Bob thoroughly enjoyed his Korma.

The rice was light and tasty but the vegetables were the only slight disappointment to the evening.  Bob felt that the Sag Aloo was rather bland, although Phil enjoyed the taste of the spinach coming through the dish and both felt the Muttar Paneer to be a bit of a let down.  Usually the peas are served in a creamy sauce but these were served dry and the peas were a little overcooked and hard.  It was tasty nevertheless.

The service was excellent.  There were plenty of staff on hand and Phil had a pleasant conversation with the Maitre'D on the merits of our different curries and dishes.  On the whole the everything went very smoothly but, being very picky, one vegetable dish arrived a couple of minutes after the others.  Hot napkins were served after the meal.

Area	Phil	Bob
Beer	9	8
Papadum	9	9
Curry	9	8
Rice & Vegetables	7	7
Service & Ambiance	9	10

In total an excellent 85 with the lower marks for the vegetables being down to taste rather than anything wrong!  This score puts Shamrat into 4th place just two marks from joint top spot.

A great meal and, if it were located a little closer to home, a candidate for our favourite restaurant.  We can understand and would support its claim to be Maidstone's Premier Indian Restaurant.

Romney Spice - New Romney

A large delivery to New Romney saw Bob and Phil joined by Clyde for this evening's delivery.  Clyde likes a good curry and thus became our guest blogger for the evening.

We spotted the Romney Spice on the way to the customer's delivery and, armed with a great recommendation from them pulled up outside with eager anticipation.  Located on New Romney's High Street, the restaurant is easy to find.  Although we couldn't say with certainty, we wouldn't be surprised to find that the building is listed.  Beams and thick walls abound and the decor and lighting is sympathetic to the age of the building.

The Papadums and the (bottled) Cobras arrived together with a tamarind dip instead of the normal lime pickle.  All were well received but we were surprised that the beers were served in pub glasses rather than branded.  It was good and cold though!

The curries were very good although Clyde did find his lamb (Madras) a little on the chewy side.  The portions were very generous and served on hot plates so were good and warm all the way through the meal.

The rice and vegetables were all well flavoured and, again, were generous in proportion  Clyde also enjoyed his keema naan.

The service was very polite and affable.  Hot towels were served after the meal and we were all offered a complementary drink.

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

In total a very creditable 82.  Clyde was asked to provide his marks independently and scored 9,8,7,9,8 - an equally good mark.

Without being spectacular, Romney Spice racked up a score that sees it sitting just outside of our top 5 but well within our top 10 restaurants.

The Empress of India - Sittingbourne

After several weeks without an evening delivery, 4 came along at once.  A quick race up to Bexleyheath followed by a tour around Sittingbourne saw the Empress as the venue for the end of the evening.

Located on East Street, the Empress of India has been around for quite a while now (since 1991 according to the menu).  It has a more traditional feel to it with subdued lighting although, unusually, it had two TV's showing Bollywood movies.  For a Wednesday evening it was surprisingly busy.

The Papadums were a slight disappointment as they tasted oily and, in one case, left a bitter taste in the mouth.  The dips, however, were good with an interesting beetroot (we think) dip instead of the lime pickle. The (draft) Cobras were good and cold

Phil's Dhansak was very nice.  A great combination of heat and sweetness and the chicken was well cooked.  Bob was a little disappointed with his Butter Chicken, however, as it was rather bland

The vegetable dishes both had their distinctive flavours and the rice was a nice neutral pallet on which to try the flavour combinations.  Bob did feel, however, that there were too many peas in the rice.  The portions of all the dishes were very generous and there was quite a bit left at the end of the meal!

The service could not be faulted - even down to providing a pair of reading spectacles so Bob could peruse the menu.  Phil wasn't sure about the TV's however.  It is also worth noting that, by default, the restaurant adds a service charge to the Menu.

Area	Phil	Bob
Beer	8	8
Papadum	6	6
Curry	8	6
Rice & Vegetables	8	7
Service & Ambiance	8	8

In total a good solid 73, really only let down by the Papadums.

Without being spectacular, The Empress of India racked up a solid score which, in a way reflects the feeling you get when you walk through the door.  You know you are going to have a good curry.