As we mentioned in our previous blog, we ate at two amazing, ethnic restaurants in Islington, London. We were anxious to taste Indian food and our first hosts in Bakewell lived in London for 20 years and said Birmingham had the best Curry Houses in the UK. Our second sit was in a Birmingham neighborhood so on our first night in Birmingham and before we left the next day for our sit, Barb had located a Curry House, Taj Mahal, near the Airbnb we reserved for the night. So with our backpacks we ventured through the city for a few blocks before finding the Taj Mahal. We were a little reluctant because we were dressed for travel and we could see tablecloths on the table in the restaurant. My rule of thumb is tablecloths indicate a fancier restaurant than I usually care to dine. But we were hungry and it was getting late and didn’t want to be walking around a city of one million people with backpacks so we went in and were relieved the other tables were occupied with people dressed casually. The waiter was an older man that was not particularly sociable but he was efficient. We ordered Naan with syrup, Tikka Masala with lamb and chicken, white rice and an appetizer. The only Masala dish I have had was at Melas and the color of the sauce was a caramel color so when our dishes were brought to the table and the sauce was red I was surprised. I couldn’t help thinking it was tomato sauce until I tasted it and was delighted with the flavors and slight subtle heat. The reviews of the restaurant and the talk of Birmingham having the best curry restaurants were accurate. All of our food was scrumptious but the Naan was exceptional and I would have been content to order more and cancel the entrees.
Our current sit is in Ward End, about five miles from downtown Birmingham. The walkable area consists of many businesses including a couple of pubs, some fast food type restaurants, pound (dollar) stores, two grocery stores and a Curry House, Purbobagh. In my experience in the States as I travel away from city centers the quality of restaurant food diminishes. So, although Barb said Purbobagh has very good reviews, since we were in a suburb, I anticipated average food quality. But our hosts recommended it so we intended to dine there. We had some small meals at the pubs throughout our first week and decided to go to Purbobagh last night. What a very pleasant surprise! It was the best restaurant experience on this trip and some of the best food and service we have received anywhere! They open at 17:00 so we stopped at The Hornet for a pint and then ventured to the restaurant. It is an average size restaurant with approximately 20 tables all with tablecloths. Our waiter was a man in his late 40’s and may have been the manager. He was very accommodating and eager to please. I thought I ordered a couple of glasses of red wine but he brought a bottle but it was only $15 so we decided to keep it.
The menu was extensive and I only know Tikka Masala and read over the menu choices but was only sure I wanted Naan. Barb ordered Butter Chicken, white rice and garlic Naan. I told the waiter everything looked appetizing but I couldn’t make up my mind. I said I would like something with sauce with a little heat. Our waiter’s face changed from intent to a confident one and said, “I have just the dish. Will a medium heat be appropriate?” I said it should be. Our waiter first brought out some Papadom and a tray with five bowls, one with cucumbers, tomatoes and onions and the others were sauces. We finished the several large pieces of Papadom and I tried the sauces first by themselves and then with onions. All were delicious.
The waiter then brought us something extra for us to try. It was a Tandoori chicken dish with onions sautéed in spices, including curry. After trying a piece of chicken I silently wished I had ordered that for my entrée. The main dishes arrived and Barb’s Butter Chicken was a red sauce with streaks of white, I assume yogurt. My dish was chicken, potato and boiled eggs with spices and a small amount of sauce. The Naan was the size of a small pizza and was light and fluffy. Both dishes had great taste and I swiped the Naan in the sauce from each dish and knew we made the right choices for our entrees.
Since we filled up on the Papadom and sauces, we had the remainder of our entrees boxed up for “take-away”. One of the other waiters stopped by our table and said the manager was having a special dessert made for us. He brought us each a small parfait dish warm on the bottom with vanilla ice cream with a caramel sauce drizzled on top. At the bottom of the dish was a round doughnut type food soaked in a tasty syrup. One bite of that with the ice cream and caramel was as good as a dessert gets.
We talked to the waiter and learned he is planning to visit his brother in Newark NJ and planning to open a restaurant there. He also told us all Indian restaurants are called Curry Houses and 80% of them are actually Bangladesh cuisine with the other 20% being either Indian or Pakistani. After gushing to our waiter of the extraordinary food and impeccable service he provided, we told him we are certain to return while in Ward End. The total bill was 37 pounds or $45 and it was worth every pence.
Cheers from Ward End!
John
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