Everest rises to meet expectations

This is reasoning I’ve often used to see the positive side of a disappointing takeaway dinner.

But perhaps it doesn’t have to be true.

I put the idea to the test on Monday night when I ordered a meal from Everest Tandoori on Carlton Road.

What I needed was a decent, filling meal delivered quickly.

What I wanted was a delicious curry, brought to me piping hot.

And what I got wasn’t bad at all.

The food was brought to me three minutes inside the promised delivery slot of 40 minutes.

That’s probably not a bad wait time, given the fact that I phoned in my order just as Everest opened their doors.

I found a pretty well stocked menu online, and because I was relying on the food to sustain me ahead of a busy evening, I went for what I believe to be safe options, some of my favourites.

Vegetable samosas and onion bhaji to start, a lamb pasanda for my main meal, with a peshwari naan and a serving of pilau rice as sundries.

When it came, the food was plentiful and crucially it was hot. Incredibly hot.

Two samosas were deep and well filled, but a little watery.

The bhaji possessed an impressive kick, and were crisped to perfection.

The pasanda could have been a bone of contention, because I’ve previously understood it to be a mild dish but this one had a really tangy flavour.

Thankfully it was beautiful.

My only gripe would be that it was a little greasy, but it’s a minor complaint.

I was particularly impressed with the peshwari naan, not least with the sheer size of it. It was sweet and fruity, but too much so to finish.

In moderation, like most things, it was perfect.

The rice was fairly standard, but I wasn’t expecting anything more.

All in all I was very pleased with what was delivered.

There wasn’t much of a difference in what you’d expect to receive from a waiter in a decent Indian restaurant.

Only one thing bothered me about the takeaway, and takeaway curries in general – the pointless salad included with the samosas and bhaji. If you’re going to add in some salad then make an effort, make it fresh and appealing.

Throwing in a few limp bits of lettuce and a battered looking tomato seems a pointless exercise to me, especially when I didn’t request side salad.

But my overwhelming feeling post-curry was satisfaction.

Good food, delivered quickly for a reasonable price.

HHHH

By Graham Smyth