Restaurant review: Epic menu covers all tastes and spices

Bay of Plenty Times

26 Sep, 2016 02:02 AM3 mins to read

Great Spice Indian Restaurant and Takeaway. Photo/John Borren

Allison Hess finds the best Indian food she's ever eaten

On the menu
Great Spice is the third restaurant in owner Bishnu's Indian restaurant empire, which started with a small takeaway shop in Rotorua. Since then, he has opened a Great Spice in Omanu, Papamoa and now Bureta. Each chef has been specially trained by Bishnu himself.

The menu was epic, so many choices for all tastes and spices with chicken, beef, lamb, seafood and goat. Even the naan bread menu was extensive and next time we agreed to branch out from plain to try vegetable naan, naan stuffed with minced lamb or naan filled with dried fruit.

The buzz
We dined on a Sunday night and the place wasn't overly full. Bishnu said his busiest nights were Friday and Saturday, though every night was big for takeaways. The décor is comfortable and not over the top and the usual Bollywood tunes are played quietly in the background for atmosphere. It definitely has the feel of a higher scale Indian restaurant.

I'll have
We started off with the Mixed Platter for two ($20) to get a taste of the entrees on offer: vegetable samosas, onion bhaji, chicken tikka and seikh kebabs. Tasty, but we were saving ourselves for the main course. Lucky we did.

Disclaimer:
I'm a vegetarian which limits my menu choices usually. But not here. There are over 10 different vegetarian curries to choose from, which almost overwhelmed my vegetarian brain used to choosing between the only two non-meat options on most menus. I chose the navratan korma with nine different types of vegetable in a smooth, creamy sauce. Not too rich but full of flavour, it translates to nine-gem curry. A full basket of fluffy, pillowy buttered naan completed my curry heaven.

He'll have:
My date was the kind of guy who usually sticks to the safety of butter chicken, but the range of the menu encouraged him to take a risk and try something new. He chose the goat curry, on recommendation of Bishnu. The risk paid off. It was a beautifully spiced curry with ample portions of tender goat flesh throughout.

Absolutely stuffed, there was just no room for dessert, though Great Spice offered the traditional mango kulfi (a type of mango icecream) and gulab jamun (a sort of donut).

Value for money:
No one could possibly leave Great Spice without a full stomach and bonus - prices don't hit the wallet too hard. Great Spice also offers banquet deals ($35 for non-vegetarian maharaja banquet and $32 for vegetarian banquet). Takeaway meals are about $1-3 cheaper than dine-in prices.

The staff
Attentive and kind, the staff made sure we had everything we needed but left us alone to cram our faces with naan and curry.

The verdict
We racked our brains for something negative to say to balance this review out. Nothing came to mind. Hands down the best Indian food we have eaten. This is the kind of Indian restaurant where you can safely expand on your usual curry order and find a new favourite dish. And don't go without naan bread - your taste buds will thank you even if your waistband won't.