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3/33 Tamaki Drive,
Mission Bay
Auckland, New Zealand.
Phone: (09) 528 3856
Freephone: 0800 CURRIES
or 0800 287 7437
Fax: 09-528 3853
Email: info@jewelofindia.co.nz |
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REVIEWS
Let's Eat Out
By Dennis & Rosamund Knill
Business to Business September 2007
Bays & Remuera Times August 22, 2007
Howick & Pakuranga Times September 3, 2007
Howick & Botany Times September 5, 2007
While the sort of culinary inevitability built into ethnic food might be expected
of any Asian restaurant, the Jewel of India aims for authenticity and simplicity
Despite the fact that Auckland is overrun by Indian eateries, with many coming
and going with the tide, the Jewel of India has stood
the test of time, and remains
one of Auckland’s originals. Our last dining experience would not have us returning
here in a hurry, but since our last visit the Jewel of India has
undergone a major transformation with new owners, new chefs, a new menu and a
face-lift thrown
in for good measure.
When eating here you need to forget everything that you know about dining at
an Indian restaurant. For a start it doesn’t look like most Indian eateries,
inspired by some decorators' hasty reading of Kama Sutra, and even if the interior
is bright and colourful, absent are the usual artefacts reflecting a majestic
India in the days of the British Raj.
Despite its almost hidden location, the Jewel of India is
a simple unpretentious place that draws diners from near and afar. Best described
as casual eating, the
food here is taken seriously and manages to push Indian cooking to a level much
higher than most.
Authenticity and simplicity is what the new all-time-favourite
menu aims for, giving savvy diners an opportunity to pick and choose from their
colourful menu. The meat, poultry and seafood dishes set the tone and are intricately
flavoured with herbs and spices preserving the character of each dish depending
on which part of India it originated from.
A quick glance at the menu and we
can’t resist samosa ($6.50), pastry turnovers filled with spicy peas and potatoes,
pakora ($6.50) chopped vegetables dipped in batter and well crisped and fish
tikka ($8), greaseless ling fillets marinated in green masala. For mains we opt
for samundri khazana ($22) a bevy of seafood cooked in a tomato and cocnut gravy,
and vindaloo ($17.90) a hot chicken dish with plenty of spice and chilli that’s
not for the faint hearted.
Failing that there are other traditional dishes such
as tandoori chicken ($19.50), butter chicken ($17.90), rogan
josh ($17.00), shahi korma ($17.50) and a wide range of curries such as goan
fish curry ($19).
All
mains come with rice, with a choice of condiments ($2.50) such as chutneys, pickles,
yoghurt, relish and poppadoms together with a selection of freshly baked
breads($2.75- $3.90) from the tandoor. And for the vegetarian there’s something for
everyone. Although desserts are not quite as ambitious save room for gulab
jamun($5.50) deep fried cottage cheese balls dipped in sugar syrup or mango
kulfi ($5.50) home-made Indian ice cream served with aromatic spices.
Although the wine list is ordinary, it’s well priced and with most varietals covered. Wines by the glass are limited to just a few.
Rating: Menu 8.5, Cuisine 8, Wine List 6, Service 7, Décor 6.5, Value
for Money 8.5
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