IF YOU’RE looking for an Indian takeaway this bank holiday weekend, Simla – in between Northfield and Longbridge near the former George V pub – is well worth a visit.
For starters, there is a good array of dishes, including Massala Papadoms which you do not see at many balti houses and takeaways. These are perfect for people who love papadoms but want some with a bit more spice. They come with a kick, onion salad and classic mint dip which offers the perfect cooling accompaniment.
We next chose the chicken pakora which was very tasty indeed. As you bite into it the gram flour and deep fried coating makes way for the fiery red in colour chicken that is both succulent and beautifully marinated.
There is also a good range of vegetable and seafood starters perfect for vegetarians and those who want something different from the run-of-the-mill openers.
Moving onto mains is a mouth-watering prospect with around 80 different and combination dishes to choose from.
These include Tandori specialities, house specialities, chef’s specials, fish specialities, combination dishes, classic curry selections, balti specialities and biryanis.
We opted for the classic chicken tikka massala and balti chicken and mushroom and two garlic naans which were generous in amount and, as you would hope and expect, packed full of garlic – I do not think you could have got anymore in if you tried.
Every Indian takeaway should have a decent chicken tikka massala and the Simla does just that. With hearty chunks of chicken and plenty of sauce to mop up with the generous naan, it was incredibly creamy and a delight on the taste buds.
Likewise, the chicken and mushroom was the best one we had tried in a long time. It was a brilliant example of the dish with that classic balti taste – perfect blending of the spices providing a full and flavoursome sauce. When you choose chicken and mushroom you should not have to hunt for the mushrooms, there should be lots in there and this Simla dish had just that.
By the end of our meal, we could not eat another thing and the whole array had come to around £20 which for two people to have papadoms, a starter, mains and naans, was pretty reasonable.
Add to that a 15 per cent discount on all orders over £10, free home delivery within a four-mile radius, vegetarian dishes and six European meals for those members of the family or friends who do not like spicy food and the Simla takeaway really does have something for everyone.
