Anyone who comes up with a phenomenally good idea as an Indian Deli deserves a lot of credit. It’s a simple enough idea and if so many other people can do it, then why not an Indian one?
We say:
The only criteria of any deli is that the produce has to be good, fresh and be original enough in that there is no point in stocking stuff you can easily get in a quality supermarket. So for all its plus points, this is where Deli India fails.
Brighton is a pitch perfect location for an unpretentious set up like this, what with the town’s bevy of earthy and organic cafes, juice bars and inexpensive restaurants – it fits right in there.
There are shelves filled with chutneys, teas, Indian snacks, spices and oils along with freshly made staple curries on the counter, marked off on a blackboard.
But there are two major problems here: firstly, the dry groceries on the shelves may certainly offer a reasonable selection for anyone wishing to introduce themselves to Indian cooking, but the produce is neither sourced directly from India nor is it cheap. Hence, one’s better off just popping into an Indian grocer.
Secondly, the curries: there is chicken curry, minced lamb curry, kidney bean and pepper curry and so on – all served with rice and two chappatis, at a very acceptable £4.95 and £4.40 respectively.
But the downside is that the curries are uniformly bland. It’s one thing keeping the chilli at an inoffensive minimum, but quite another not to spice the dish and render it flavourless.
Wraps like the spicy chicken cost about £3.20 and the thali which offers a complete meal with several curries and rice and bread is an affordable £6.
Sadly, starters such as an excellent samosa (£1.80) and well chosen Indian desserts, are not home made and while there are teas in abundance, those too are not home infusions.
Ultimately, this is a worthy effort opened by a couple of young business partners, but there is a heck of a lot of room for improvement.
ADDRESS
81 Trafalgar St
Brighton
BN1 4EB
tel, 01273 699 985
POSTED...
Sun 1 Oct 2006 at 5:36pm
