Plenty of us have a roster of our favourite places to eat - a go-to quick bite after work, or a trusted Italian restaurant ideal for a special occasion.
Since moving out of the city centre a few years ago, though, I've struggled to find an Indian restaurant which has made the team.
So I was excited to try Tamarind Fine Indian Dining in Blofield, which is just about within delivery distance and a short hop away in the car.
It's built up a strong reputation since opening in 2013 in the home of a former pub, and has become a point of pride for many in Blofield. It's a former EDP Norfolk Food and Drink Awards best restaurant winner, while owner Giyash Miah has scooped the general manager of the year award at the English Curry Awards.
So, midway through lockdown and delighted that someone else was doing the cooking, we ordered online, collected our order 45 minutes later and unpacked it at home.
We ordered far too much for two, but tucked into our starters - the haash tikka (£6.95), pieces of duck marinated in spices and grilled in the tandoor oven, and the zinga roshuni (£6.50), king prawns split open and pan fried with garlic butter, mint and turmeric.
The duck was tender, charred and gently spiced, and the king prawns were juicy and garlic-packed - the latter was my favourite of the two, but both were excellent.
Our three main dishes were the shahi beef (£14.95), a Tamarind special, chicken passanda (£10.50) and lamb tikka (£9.50).
The shahi beef was stand-out good, diced fillet of beef grilled in the tandoor until tender, in a rich, savoury and aromatic sauce.
The passanda, a creamy curry with almonds and coconut, was mild, sweet and moreish, with plenty of tender chicken.
And the lamb tikka, pieces of lamb marinated in yoghurt and spices, was excellent, with layers of flavour creating a wonderful depth.
Our sides were keema rice (£3.75) - rice with minced lamb meat, the king of all rice - a naan bread (£3.25) and cauliflower bhaji (£4.75), florets cooked in a spiced tomato sauce.
It was a lot of food, but we cleared our plates.
Price
We thought paying just over £50 for two starters, three mains and three sides was good value, particularly given it's on the upmarket end of the scale. That obviously doesn't include drinks.
Service
Really friendly. Ordering from the website was straightforward and picking up the meal was hassle-free. They offer delivery, but there's a 10pc discount for collection so, ever tight with our funds, we opted for that. The staff I met were friendly, and manager Giyash was very helpful.
Highlight
The food. It would have been lovely to eat in the restaurant, but I didn't feel the quality was sacrificed because we had a takeaway. It definitely feels more special than your average takeaway and everything we had was of great quality.
Summary
If you're a fan of Indian food but fancy something slightly more refined, it's definitely worth visiting. Now restrictions are eased, I'll certainly return to eat in.
Three dishes to try
Zinga laziz - the zinga roshuni is not on the restaurant's new menu, but I'd instead try the zinga laziz (£6.95), king prawns split in half, delicately flavoured and grilled.
Shahi beef - tender, rich, meaty. Lovely - and perfect mopped up with naan bread.
Keema rice - a must-have with any Indian meal for me.
If you like that, try these
Roti, Finkelgate in Norwich - In the city centre, Roti is a popular go-to for many living in Norwich.
Namaste, Queens Road in Norwich - Namaste serves authentic vegetarian and vegan Indian food.
Shapla Tandoori, Attleborough - Shapla has built up plenty of loyal diners.
Our food reviews are always independent. They are the opinion of the reviewer based on their experience of the venue when they visited. The establishment is not aware of our visit, is not informed we intend to write a review and bills are paid by the reviewer. The choice of places reviewed is also independent and is not based on venues which do or do not advertise in our publications.
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