WHERE: 115 Parnell Rd, Parnell. (09) 377 7898
OUR MEAL: $188.50 for three appetite ticklers, two "yummy curries", two other mains and sides, four Kingfisher beers and two glasses of wine.
OUR WINE: By the glass $9-$11, by the bottle $32-$58.
VERDICT: Good and reliable Indian food in contemporary surroundings. Bring your reading glasses.
OUT OF 10
FOOD: 8
SERVICE: 8
VALUE: 7
AMBIENCE: 7
KEY POINTS:
There are few things more disconcerting than dining in a restaurant where the staff outnumber the patrons. Hovering waiters, beady eyes looking for the least excuse for their owners to swoop and scoop, endless inquisition on dining satisfaction.
This was the case one recent Saturday night at Shahi, one of a chainlet of four Indian eating places specialising in northern Indian cuisine.
It was surprising to find so few followers, because Shahi has been around in Auckland for 10 years or so. Although our last visit was some years ago, the food was remembered with appreciation.
And, to their credit, the staff mostly had the decency to keep a respectable distance.
The decor in the Parnell branch is clean and uncluttered, and there's an area with floor cushions to enhance the experience. Bill had been sailing all afternoon, so we eschewed the cushions for more conventional seating.
And once we were wined and watered, it gave us a chance to get to grips with the most inventive and over-the-top menu any of us had ever read.
Now Indian food can be creative when it is very good but, no matter the standard of excellence, to describe vegetable kofta curry as "orgasmic" is taking things a bit far.
Likewise, "heart throb" saag panir and "libido enhancing" golden fried calamari. My personal favourite, though, was "synchronised swimmers" for a fillet of fish cooked with ginger, garlic, onions, tomatoes, yoghurt and spices. Swimmers the fillets may once have been, but synchronised? Who knows? And you really don't want to know what they called the beef vindaloo.
The calamari ($9.50) was excellent, although I was in no position to judge its efficacy. Kevin reported that the batter was lightly enough spiced to enhance the flavour and not overpower it.
Bill's seekh kebab ($9), the "iron booster", had had a heavier hand on the spices, and was delicious for that. Barbara and I shared the Garden of Eden, a vegetarian platter ($15.50). It was a combination of bhajjia, samosas, and the biggest aloo tikkas I've ever seen. Lots of potatoes and peas, but redeemed by an excellent tamarind sauce, which can fix most things Indian.
The mains were all pretty standard fare, distinguished only by their exotic names. Chicken tikka marsala ($20.50) became Full Moon Delight, and kadai gosht ($20.50) was dairy-free and therefore a Complete Achievement. Barbara's vegetable curry ($15.50) came with plenty of cashew nut sauce, and my chicken biryani ($21) had a hint of lemon with the cashews and raisins.
The sides were equally good. Raita, mango chutney and mint chutney were all very acceptable and without strange names.
All four branches of Shahi (the others in Remuera, Ponsonby and Milford) offer the same menu. The food is well-cooked, well-presented and the ingredients fresh.
But the ascribed merits of the meals make this a dining experience not easily forgotten.
