Whenever and wherever I eat, I want
my food to be two things, ‘well cooked’ and made from ‘quality ingredients’. When
having a meal from a culture and cuisine that is not “my own”, say, Japanese,
Mexican, Italian or Indian, I typically want the food and experience to be
“traditional” and “authentic”.
There are times when, “in my head”,
these two words mean the same thing… but occasionally I am reminded that this
is not the case. Sadly, in the UK, with Indian food in particular,
“traditional” has often come to mean ‘hackneyed’ and ‘clichéd’
“Traditional” Indian (usually
Bangladeshi) and Italian restaurants are ten a penny… whilst some may argue there
is still a place for the stereotypical “Curry House” it is usually late at
night after several drinks.
“Authentic” on the other hand is an
altogether different beast – and, in my opinion, despite one or two notable
exceptions, there are not enough good quality eateries serving “authentic”
Japanese, Mexican, Italian or Indian cuisines… certainly not in the North West.
This brings us to, the Indian Tiffin Room in Cheadle, which is
just ‘around the corner’ from where we live in Cheadle Hulme. It’s a great
little place; and, more importantly, one of a growing number of “Indian Restaurants”
that are putting a modern twist onto “authentic Indian street food”.
We visited back in early August and
have been intending (trying) to go back… but it’s always full! For the owners
(and sensible people who have the foresight to book) this is a good thing… for
us, it's a pain in the neck (and we fall back on our old favourite, Seven
Spices).
Until we get around to returning to
sample more of the dishes and take proper notes, here are some pics and
descriptions of what we ate:
Grazing Puri Platter –
Behl Puri, Dahi Puri & Sev Puri.
Gobi Manchurian –
Cauliflower - wok fried the
Indo-Chinese way.
Onion Rava Dosa –
Thin & (too?) crispy semolina
crepe, sprinkled with onion.
Chicken Lollypop –
Lollypop wings, coated in ITR
marinade
Tandoori Lamb Chops
Paneer Pakoda –
Batter fried homemade cottage cheese
with mint chutney.
ITR Lamb –
Lamb cooked in chef’s lamb curry
with intense flavours.
Gulab Jamun and Carrot Halwa –
Grated carrot cooked in condensed
milk.
What I like about The Indian Tiffin Room (and places such
as Mughli)
is that with their menu and presentation (not just of the food but overall
styling) they seem to be trying to stand out from the crowd and move away from (challenge)
people’s perceptions of the “traditional” whilst retaining "authenticity".
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