Vegging out with Curry Culture
EMILY CHUDY eats at Curry Culture, 33 Rockingham Road, Uxbridge Tel: 01895 231 074
ACCORDING to the Food and Agriculture Organisation, around 30-40% of the Indian population is vegetarian, so eating out at Indian restaurants is brilliant for veggies like myself and my colleague Katherine, as there is so much choice you might not find in restaurants of different cuisines.
Curry Culture in Uxbridge is close to the centre of town without being in the middle of all the noise, and the ambience is friendly, warm and quiet, which is perfect for if you want to catch up and have a long chat without blaring noise or chatter in the background.
Looking at the menu, I was so pleasantly surprised by the amount of options, not just of vegetarian food, but literally four pages of curries, mixed grills, rices and more to choose from, which was a real treat to see – you could go every weekend and try something different every time without getting bored.
It took a long time to choose, but for starters, I had Malai Broccoli (£3.50) , which was broccoli in cheese marinade, a good level of “tickling” spiciness complemented by the creamy sauce.
Katherine tried the Aloo Tikki Chana Chat (£3.50) – potato patties with chickpeas, mint and tamarind chutney topping – which she said was the perfect level of spice, but the sauce was a little artificial.
For a main course, I had the Vegetable Mixed Grill (£11.95); paneer, broccoli, mixed vegetable kebab, pineapple and pear with a naan bread.
It came out making a wonderful sizzling sound and smelled amazing. Certain aspects of the dish were really delicious – the paneer in particular – but overall it was just slightly too greasy for me, meaning I didn’t have enough room to finish it all.
Katherine had the Aloo Gobi (£6.95) – a potato and cauliflower curry – which tasted gorgeous. It was less spicy than a fiery Vindaloo curry but still had a good kick.
We both shared side dishes of Pilau Rice (£2.50), Egg Fried Rice (£3.25) and Peshwari Naan (£2.50), which added a nice mild flavour along with the spicier dishes.
The waiters were all very attentive, filling up our wine glasses often and explaining all of the food to us, giving their recommendations – which is brilliant when you’re somewhere new.
The restaurant was relatively quiet with a few families, as is typical for a Thursday night, but as it is in a convenient location, Curry Culture will probably be more bustling over the weekends.
For dessert, we both chose the Passion Fruit Sorbet (£2.25), having completely filled up on the main courses.
The food for starters and mains was quite heavy and greasy, so a sorbet was all we could each manage.
It was refreshing and light, but as a major dessert fan it was a slight disappointment that the other food was so rich I couldn’t sample something slightly more substantial.
Overall, the food was pleasant, and the service was very attentive, so I enjoyed my evening out at Curry Culture, but the restaurant lacked that certain something that would make it a knock-out.
I would recommend this restaurant for a casual night out with friends, rather than a big occasion.