Review : Tandoor Restaurant

Before my first trip to Tandoor, I was warned by my dinner companion, who had already been there, that the restaurant´s food is excellent but the place is “ugly.” She was right on both counts.

But the place is spotlessly clean, and Tandoor isn´t pretending to be a five-star restaurant, anyway. You won´t find an entrée over 170 CZK, though from what I sampled, they would fit in just fine, if not better, with any of the meals at Prague´s more expensive Indian restaurants. Tandoor just feels like an honest place – they´re not hitting you over the head with sitars and jewelled elephants, trying to make up in quasi-authentic atmosphere what they lack in the kitchen. They´re serving you home-style Indian, in generous portions and with friendly service.

The chicken in my chicken tikka masala, for example, was accompanied by plenty of subtly spiced, coconut-tinged masala gravy. The sauce´s perfectly pureed consistency went well over a plate of fluffy basmati rice, and was just right to scoop up with bits of chewy, powdery-to-the-touch paratha bread.

My companion´s vegetable korma was equally satisfying, sweetened with coconut milk and full of crunchy veggies. I was pleased to note that the sauce seemed to be made with more yoghurt than cream, making it less heavy than other kormas I´ve tried. A side dish of saag aloo – steamed spinach and potatoes seasoned with chilli and cardamom – was pleasantly garlicky and did well to complement my otherwise vegetable-free tikka masala.

We´d been a little disappointed by the appetizers, not because they weren´t good, but because both the vegetable and meat samosas were unavailable (fans of Indian food are sure to notice, too, that perennial favorite naan is not on the menu).

Instead, we opted to share a plate of vegetable pakora, which turned out to be a great choice. The pakoras, despite being deep-fried, weren´t too greasy; instead, they were delicately crispy on the outside with a moist potato-cauliflower-and-onion mash on the inside. A light yoghurt dipping sauce was a cool contrast to the pakoras´ spiciness.

I didn´t manage to sample any of the extra-spicy dishes Tandoor has on offer, such as the jal frezis or vindaloos, but I´ve been told that they don´t skimp on the chili – a welcome relief to Prague hotheads who´ve seen many an ethnic dish dulled by a local preference for milder food. I could have used a little more spice in my Indian tea (also known as masala chai) though, with its heavy sweetness overpowering any hint of chai´s traditional notes of cardamom, cinnamon, and ginger.

Nevertheless, I´m sure to be back, in spite of the slightly vapid atmosphere; good ethnic cuisine is too rare in Prague not to. If you´re really dreading an evening in a converted herna, you can always have your food delivered, at a charge of 10 CZK a kilometer (with a 50 CZK minimum). Now that you´ve been warned, though, I think you´ll find it really isn´t that bad in there. It´s certainly nothing a great curry can´t make up for.