Curry lovers have their say on Peterborough’s takeaways

With restaurants currently closed, due to lockdown, club members meet online and rate takeaways instead.

Here they share their latest reviews from the May virtual meeting.

GURKHA LOUNGE, HAMPTON VALE

Ordered

Chilli chicken starter

Gurkha paratha bread

Chicken tikka madras

Special buttered chicken

Pilau rice

The chilli chicken starter had a wow factor, it came with some lovely sauce and peppers and onions. The chicken was really juicy and tender and with the right amount of spice was a pure delight.

The mains, I couldn’t decide between 2 dishes so ordered them both. Being a madras type man I ordered that along with one that I wanted to try a spicy buttered chicken.

Now I’m not one normally for a creamy curry but if your A korma lover and curious about a bit of spice this special buttered chicken is a must. Very good. The chicken madras was lovely and the chicken came in small manageable chunks.

The rice was fluffy and was accompanied with the special Gurkha bread which was a joy to taste and was very useful in mopping up all the sauces.

OCC Rating: 9.5/10

INDIAN CHEF, LINCOLN ROAD, WALTON

It was with great delight to be awarded the review of The Indian Chef. Passing many times down the busy Lincoln Road it’s somewhere I have always wanted to try but like a lot of people I have stuck to where and

what I know.

I ordered a Tandoori mixed grill for starter with Poppadoms and all the sauces. The meat was extremely tender and juicy and was a real delight to tuck into alongside the mix of sauces and salad - I can honestly say this was up there with the some of the best tandoori mixed starters I’ve ever had.

For mains I ordered a chicken tikka madras with a side of pilau rice, Garlic and a Peshwari Naan. It’s worth noting The Indian Chef threw in a complimentary Plain Naan which was appreciated a lot.

The Curry was full of flavour and once again the meat was extremely tender - only slight criticism is the Madras sauce was not spicy enough but next time I know to ask for a slightly hotter heat. The Naan’s were cooked to perfection and were of a decent size - again something which the OCC respects greatly.

Being a man who has travelled the world in pursuit of curry greatness I  can honestly say I was really really impressed with the food and can confirm this will be my new regular Indian takeaway of choice.  

Positives = mixed grill starter

Negative = lack of spice on madras

OCC Rating: 8.5/10

DESI TRADITIONAL BALTI AND PIZZA HOUSE, LINCOLN ROAD, MILLFIELD

I selected somewhere I’d used previously, albeit for pizza rather than curry. Service was spot on the requested time of 19:25 and was delivered with a smile - even the poppadom arrived in one piece! Sadly though it wasn’t the crunchiest poppadom, although the delicious tangy lime pickle and sweet mango chutney made up for that.

For starter I went for some chicken pakoras. A decent sized portion and nice, light batter around tender tikka pieces was very pleasant. The main could only be a balti from somewhere that specialises in that particular dish.

I selected a lamb tikka balti with pilau rice. It was extremely flavoursome with a good amount of lamb that was nicely marinaded and tender. A good, thick sauce with lots of peppers and onions too.

All mopped up with a superb chapati, a bargain at 85p. Great service and a very good curry, perhaps lacking a bit of spicy zing but still with good flavours.

Positives = great tasty lamb and chicken pakoras

Negative = poppadoms and lacking a little spice.

Rating: 8/10

PUNJAB BALTI HOUSE, LINCOLN ROAD, MILLFIELD

First things first, delivery time. It’s worth noting of course that takeaways are having to deal with higher demands during these times we find ourselves in. My order was placed to be delivered for half 7 and it came, delivered nice and hot at 7.25, perfect start.

No starters to review, however there were all the usual suspects to choose from through the Just Eat app, despite the menu being a little hard to navigate.

That said, I opted for popadoms and pickle tray, followed by main of a chicken Ceylon (madras heat) rice and a peshwari naan.

The popadoms were clearly made fresh and had crispy darker edges and tasted superb. The pickle tray served a selection of sauces and freshly chopped spicy onion mix. No criticisms at all.

Onto the main event, a deep sauce with a generous helping of chicken which would have not gone down so well if a starter was enjoyed before. For madras heat, it had a slightly heaty kick to it but was certainly not overbearing and was very fragrant.

The peshwari naan went down a treat. It was crammed full of coconut, although the bread itself was a little on the soft side.

All in all a very enjoyable meal, although I would suggest clarifying certain options on the menu with them to ensure it is what you are after. Will use again.

Positives = Fresh pops, superb delivery time

Negative = hard to navigate menu

Rating: 7.5/10

THE SPICE HOUSE, YAXLEY

After planning meticulously for the order to arrive at 7:25 an estimated delivery time of 65-80 minutes meant a Just Eat selection at 6.05 in these unprecedented times.

After surveying the extensive menu a set meal was decided upon including

- Poppadoms with sauce

- Onion Bhaji

- Lamb Bhuna

- Chicken Korma

- Pilau rice

Sadly a premature delivery ensued at 6.40 meaning a hearty 45 minute wait with a wonderful smell settling in the lounge.

After the extended wait, the poppadoms were opened and disappointingly not in tack. The Onion Bhajis were tasty, but a little greasy.

My selection of Lamb Bhuna was cooked just right, with the density of sauce perfectly accompanying the succulent meat and fresh rice.

The down side to the meal was the Peshwari naan was boring and lacked flavour.

A good first visit and definitely worth a return visit when some normality returns.

Positives = Great main dish

Negatives = delivery time too early, poppadoms and naan

Rating: 6.5/10

SHAH JEHAN,LINCOLN ROAD, CITY CENTRE

Two members ordered from here, order came on time and was delivered within the hour which I think is a great plus for takeaway orders.

One member ordered the spiced poppadoms with all the sauces to start off the meal, and for the main ordered lamb hyderabadi with mushroom rice and a peshwari naan.

The spiced poppadoms were crispy with a nice crunch, all the sauces that you would expect with a pickle tray were there, also tasty.

For the first member the main course had lamb chunks with minced lamb with a delicious sauce that accommodated each other perfectly, the only thing wrong with this dish is I ordered a medium spice but

wasn’t much spice at all but taste made up for it.

This was also backed up by another member who ordered the HOT version of this dish and was also impressed with its flavour but severely disappointed as it lacked any spice for those expecting a hot dish.

Positive = very tasty chef special

Negative = A real lack of heat and spice

Rating: 6/10

To find out more about Oakham Curry Club follow them on Instagram and twitter @oakhamcurryclub and online at www.oakhamcurryclub.com