[overscan]

Can anyone recommend a decent Indian restaurant in Auckland? Thats decent as in a good UK style Indian, or an actual authentic Indian restaurant, not a runny puddle of gravy with "curry powder" in it.

Having had two bizarre experiences I'm keen on finding something a bit better.

[gil]

I've not had much luck with Indian food here and prefer to make my own. Will be keen to see responses. I'm sure there's a business opportunity for the sort of Indian we're after!

Gil

[benandclare]

When ordering ask for the Indian hot or UK hot not the Kiwi one :nice1 then you should be right

[jandk]

found that problem here too , it isnt the strength of the curry but the actual taste ..Gotta ring the uk and give a real curry maker an opportunity

[greenchilli]

Hi, OH had a curry at Night Spice on Khyber Pass, think it was good value don't think it was quite up to his usual standard !

[Caroline and Dave]

Although these awards are not recent it is still a very popular place and several people have recently reccomended it.

http://www.ohcalcutta.co.nz/home.php

[jubjub]

TBH we havent found anything that matches up, but we have kind of got used to the curries here now, and generally get them from Ajadz, Punjabi Dhaba or Raviz... but we dont bother that often and I hae been practicing mine a bit more instead, I just wish I could make Onion bhajis.....

[jeffanar]

There is a great South Indian restaurant called Satya. There are two of them - one on Sandringham Rd and one on K Rd. Their entrees are delicious and quite different from most other indian restaurants because they are from the south (the dahi puris are the best!) and curries are pretty good too (no idea how they compare to the UK though!)
Just be aware that if you call up and book a table they may not actually have your booking when you get there! That's what happened to us anyway :laugh

[Spudgun]

Nosh in Glen Innes do some pretty good sauces if you want to make your own.

http://www.noshgourmet.com/

[DMcG]

I've been trying to find a good Curry house in Auckland for a while now - and
I've yet to find one that does a decent dhansak :wah

There IS a really good restaurant in Welly however - called the Great India.

predictably, it's run by a guy from Leicester :D

Dougie

[Marti]

Hmm I have been to the Great India and it still doesnt taste like anything you can get from Birmingham.

The curries and naan breads here are dreadful. And since when is Butter Chicken, watties tomato soup with a bit of coriander thrown in?? Its so wrong.

I find the curries are too tomato-ey and not a lot else. After 12 months I have found a proper onion bhaji in Plimmerton - actual patties, and not a deep fried mess on your plate.

If thats one thing I miss, its the proper Brummie curry. :wah

[Milliemoo]

We stopped going to our local (which used to be really good) because it got to the stage where you'd order 4 x different curries for the table and they all looked and pretty much tasted the same. Plus the quality of chicken was very suspect :uhoh

I'm keen to try that place in Parnell :nice1 and we've also tryed a place in Milford, which was really good, but I can't remember the name :o

Milliemoo

[Moorf]

http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=13781&highlight=calcutta%22&page=2

Not impressed with Oh Calcutta.

[benhila]

Hi

I don't know about Auckland but Planet Spice in Newtown, Wellington does great curries and breads. Try the Malai kofta and the spinach-based curries and you will never look back! The mixed platter with kebabs, pakoras and kachori is also great.

Hila

[mylesdw]

We've yet to find a really good Indian in Chch or nearby. Some acceptable, but none really good. I do miss that.

[Spudgun]

Another place to try is Food Alley in Auckland CBD

http://www.viewauckland.co.nz/info_restaurant_13632.html

My colleagues affectionately call it 'Rat Alley' but the food is great and it has a bit of everything.

[Moorf]

We've yet to find a really good Indian in Chch or nearby. Some acceptable, but none really good. I do miss that.

Agree. Found 2 Fat Indians to be the best of a bad bunch so far. Quite like Indian Sumner, too, but it's tiny and so is their menu.

[gil]

TBH we havent found anything that matches up, but we have kind of got used to the curries here now, and generally get them from Ajadz, Punjabi Dhaba or Raviz... but we dont bother that often and I hae been practicing mine a bit more instead, I just wish I could make Onion bhajis.....

Hey, I learned how at evening classes...we should get together and cook!

Gil

[jubjub]

Hey, I learned how at evening classes...we should get together and cook!

Gil

Oooh, curry night.... I make a good veggie samosa filling... ;) and a nice chicken & lentil curry.... reminds me I havent made Dhal for a good while....

[YouMeAndThree]

Oooh, curry night.... I make a good veggie samosa filling... ;) and a nice chicken & lentil curry.... reminds me I havent made Dhal for a good while....

I'm good at tasting :D

[CJ22]

There's a place in Devonport on the Lake Road. Haven't tried it yet, so can't vouch for it personally, but it IS always packed, so I guess it must be okay!

[Alan]

Pakwan on Lake Rd is excellent and I found the curry in Great India in Welly to be superb also.

[chocolate cake]

Not yet had a great curry in Auckland, barely tried a handful yet. I do though like the idea cheese naans.

[overscan]

Thanks for the feedback so far. I cook pretty good Indian food myself, but sometimes its nice to go out and have it cooked for you. I'm hoping to hear I got a job today, so it'd be nice to know a nice Indian to go celebrate at!

[Hesh]

Have tried a couple of Indian restaurants in AKL / Welly..

Auckland - Little India (Kingsland), Panjabi Dhaba
Wellington - Little India, Daawat, Hare Krishna @ the old bank arcade

Hare Krishna is pure veg. and usually is a buffet place..

We are Indians and would love to have you guys over

[YouMeAndThree]

I've had one curry since arriving, from the Punjabi Dhaba - for me it was the worst every curry I have had in my life (and, erm, I've had a fair few :o ) May be I just need to try something else, but I'm really loathed to after my first experience.

[kanatakiwi]

well my curry last night was SOOO bad I can't even name the place!. I wanted saag chicken (the spinach curry) and my OH had butter chicken. Apart from the fact that the pieces of chicken for both of us didnt even add up to a cupful, the thing that got me was when I examined my pieces of chicken swimming in a watery green gravy, I saw that they were bright orange, in other word they were not cooked in the spinach sauce they were cooked in something else and just added to the green gravy.!! yuck. my orange pieces of chikcen looked suspiciously like the pieces of chicken in my OH's butter chicken. so.... guess its back to homemade curries.

[overscan]

Having grown up in London with a Sikh best friend, spent time at the Gurdwara and even been to India for a holiday, I am pretty conversant with authentic Indian food as well as the UK interpretation, and we've had some amazingly good Indian food in restaurants in London and elsewhere. The stuff I've seen here is just plain weird, like another poster said "watties tomato soup with coriander in" just about sums it up.

Oddly, the supermarkets here sell stuff like Pataks curry pastes which even an idiot can cook into a reasonable imitation of a real curry, so I can only assume New Zealanders like to eat frozen vegetables cooked in tinned soup in restaurants.

Oh if anyone could point me to a good naan bread recipe I would be grateful. So far, not had much luck finding any, and Foodtown sells something called a "naan" which is blatantly a chapati.

[Moorf]

New World (and perhaps others) sell Kopi brand roti which are really nice.

I buy chapati flour at Binn Inn and make my own nowadays.

I've been brought up on curry (grandmother/gt grandmother lived/born in India as did my father when he was young) and it's really hard to satisfy my craving for a decent curry in NZ so generally just homemade. The daal here is terrible, too, from my Chch experiences. *shudder*

Can't wait for parents to move here so I can enjoy Dad's curries again :D

[nippa&pippa]

Can't wait for parents to move here so I can enjoy Dad's curries again :D

*drools* *lick, lick, lick* :laugh

Helen, have you tried Corriander yet? Indian place in Rolleston?

[JandL]

I remember visiting 2 fat indians in Wellington, very nice. Our best curry on the planet was in Fiji, nadi. Better than in India!

[Mike & Nicola]

After 3 years, still to find even a semi-decent curryhouse in Auckland!!! Iguacu in Parnell do a nice South Pacific version.

Is it really bad to miss a UK curry more than friends & family...? ;-)

[MonkeyControl]

We have not found a decent curry house since we arrived, and are resigned to making up for it when we go back to the UK in August for my GirlFriend's Sister's wedding. It's best to try to put a positive spin on it, for instance, the curry may be dissappointing but in my opinion the NZ pie is a thing of beauty.

[Alan]

Monkey, when I was here initially back in May I went to Tauranga and found a fantastic Indian place on facing the harbour. I don't know what it was called but the food was absolutely excellent and certainly better than anything I'd had in the UK.

[world2007]

I think that uk curry houses originally were opened by Bangladeshis who adapted indian foods for british palettes.For anyone that is interested,there is a great book called "The curry secret" which shows you how to make the restaurant curries and sundries that we were used to, at home.I have a copy but unfortunately it is still waiting to arrive in my container!!Cant off hand remember the name of the author, but when it arrives i will post his name if anyones interested.Had a curry the other week and it was dire, so i shall be making my own when it arrives:

[JandL]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Curry-Secret-Indian-Restaurant-Meals/dp/0716021919/ref=pd_sim_b_1 that one?

[Moorf]

Not Auckland I'm afraid -but I was today recommended Arji Bhaji (sp?) on Riccarton Road for a good curry in Chch - has anyone tried it?

[benandclare]

Not Auckland I'm afraid -but I was today recommended Arji Bhaji (sp?) on Riccarton Road for a good curry in Chch - has anyone tried it?

Could there be a Cantabrian Curry hunt in the offing???

[Leo]

Could there be a Cantabrian Curry hunt in the offing???

I've seen many Indian restaurants in Christchurch City proclaiming the best curries & other dishes.

Perhaps, we may even devise a fair rating system, distinguishing between cuisines from the main Indian regions e.g. Northern (Tandoori) or Southern (extra spicy!)? :clap

Happy hunting!

[world2007]

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Curry-Secret-Indian-Restaurant-Meals/dp/0716021919/ref=pd_sim_b_1 that one?

Thats the one:nice1

[Kate D]

I'm hardly a curry connoisseur (love 'em mild and creamy) but I had the most dreadful chicken korma from a takeaway in Johnsonville, Welly the other day. It was obviously the Watties tomato paste version (yep, in a korma) but without the addition of the corriander for a hint of flavour. And the onion bhaji was a plateful of fried bits, with only the merest hint of onion. Truly grim - avoid at all costs!!:wah

[Eleni]

What a great thread! Indian food is my absolute fave, I'll be keeping an eye on this post. LOL. Don't feel so bad, here in Florida, I've yet to find a decent Indian Restaurant. And so far, the ones I've been too are pretty stingy with their portions. I originally grew up in N.J. where there were great Indian Restaurants, but so far, the best one I've been to was in Luxembourg City.

Eleni

[Bromley86]

We went to Oh Calcutta on our recce. The wife's curry was average and my vindaloo took my head off, so I didn't really have a chance to taste it (I even had to steal my wife's lassi :) ).

An excellent website covering UK restaurant and, importantly for me, takeaway recipes and techniques is Real Curry Recipes:

http://indian-recipe.org/curryforum/index.php

[overscan]

Haven't found a good Indian yet, but I enjoyed a nice meal at Bunga Raya, a "Malaysian" restaurant in New Lynn. Food was really tasty, fresh ingredients, spicy, and plentiful. No idea how authentic it was as I've never had Malaysian, but it was better by far than the takeaway Thai the in-laws inflicted on me which seemed to consist of frozen mixed vegetables and noodles in gravy.