Bollywood Masala

"How were your meals?", asked the waiter.

We, the Always Hungrys, glanced at one another. A brief silence, then perhaps emboldened by that VB;

"The entrees were a bit average...but the mains were fantastic".

Having asked a routine question, but having received an apparently non-routine answer, the waiter was visibly taken aback by our candour, but retained his composure, if not his previous smile. The presence of another customer at the counter perhaps upped the ante somewhat...

Overall, we enjoyed our recent visit to Bollywood Masala in Dickson (on the corner of Challis and Cape streets, by the always-busy and well-lit Domino's and Pizza Hut outlets), as we have on all of our previous visits. This time though the entrees - stuffed mushrooms and paneer kebabs - were just a little dry and sad, especially in context of the general excellence of the rest of our experience, from the food to the service (including being volunteered the details of how they get their lamb to be oh-so-delicious). The eggplant main we had was particularly delicious.

With the unfortunate, apparently generational, closure of the Blue Elephant, we are now fairly comfortable in putting Bollywood Masala as the best Indian restaurant north of the lake (with only Taj Mahal coming close). Just keep to the mains...

Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal is a true hidden gem of Northbourne Av eating. Located upstairs and next door to an 'Adults Only' establishment, its discovery requires a certain willingness to get off the beaten track (i.e. to keep walking by Lemongrass, Mezzalira, Zen Yai, etc.). We were first introduced to this rather charming Indian restaurant by a friend with a fondness for joints stashed away from the 'bustling' al fresco hubs of Civic (e.g. he also introduced us to Happy's Chinese Restaurant and The Cube).

Everything about this place is so nicely and competently done that we wouldn't be surprised if it was still here in 20-30 years time. The service is impeccable, the food delicious and promptly delivered, and the prices just right. We have now sampled a few dishes and really like the vegetarian malai kofta, lamb madras, and chicken korma. Dahl is available as a cheap and yummy side dish, and the chapati (roti) bread is excellent. The true Taj Mahal secret, however, may be in its soothing and intimate atmosphere - the background music and the decor are tasteful and the lighting soft without being seedy.

Taj Mahal, you should be proud of yourself.

Rama's

Rama's is a (Fijian-)Indian restaurant in the Woden suburb of Pearce, set along with an Ethiopian and a Vietnamese place in an archetypal National Capital Development Commission concrete 1960s local centre.

Perhaps due to a perception of being a "hidden gem" given its somewhat out of the way location Rama's has quite a reputation - to the extent that reasonable people talk of it as being Canberra's best Indian joint. Correspondingly, every time we've been there it has been very full (and very noisy), with patrons stuffed into a large number of small booths in a not very large space.

So, how does it stack up in May 2008? Lest there be no mistake, we will say right now that Rama's is competent. However, while Rama's is OK, we would have to question the reputation of it being "The Best Indian in Canberra". Specifically, (along with the noise) the menu was rather unremarkable (i.e. it featured the standards, and only the standards of Indian restaurants in Australia), and the food, while fine, was not particularly memorable (with the possible exception of the Palak Paneer).

Costwise, meals were a couple of dollars more than you might expect for equivalent dishes in other Canberra Indian restaurants, but this was in part offset by generous servings of rice, complementary poppadoms, and no corkage charge. The service was also friendly, efficient, and generally excellent.

In sum, we would probably lean towards one of the Blue Elephant (Braddon), Flavours of India (Garema Place) or the Taj Mahal (Melbourne Building) if we were to make a judgement of "The Best Indian in Canberra" (if it were possible to be so unequivocal), but if you were to go to Rama's on a quiet night with a freshened menu, it would probably be comparable.

Blue Elephant

So you’ve made it almost to the end of Lonsdale St (Braddon)—most likely on the off chance that you’ll manage to squeeze your way in to the trendy, crowded, and noisy place that sells average pizza and reputable European beers. Yes, some people really get off on that kind of thing… In search of something a little different, we (have on many an occasion) decided to give the ‘scene’ a miss and try our luck across the road—at Blue Elephant.

Up the stairs and pass the “Australian Republican Movement” office (yes, you read right) the first surprise awaits—the most lavishly decorated and comfortable take-away waiting area ever. Behind the counter is one of the friendliest elderly restaurant owners (we presume) we’ve ever come across—not friendly in a smarmy way, just a genuine “I’m happy to be here and I’m happy you’re here” vibe. Nice. We call him “The Guy”.

The Guy is the only person on the ‘floor’—he sets your table, takes the order, and brings the food, once the invisible chef downstairs has finished doing his/her magic and the bell rings. How cute and retro! The food is, like, seriously good. Oh, damn it, it’s delicious, OK? Because one of us is a vegetarian, we tend to go for the veggie options—malai kofta, devilled paneer, potato and spinach curry, and eggplant curry are favourites, with naan and saffron rice. We once had a thali (me a non-veggie version) and weren’t impressed—so, stick to the menu. Oh, and Kingfisher beer is a must—it’s perfect with the creamy, spicy and fragrant dishes they serve here.
What puzzles me most about this place is just how good a time we seem to have every time we come here. I don’t know—it’s welcoming, and calming (weird, I know), and sort of homey. A place at peace with itself, and with its guests.