Now that I’ve finally launched the monthly Indian meal around Norfolk and Lowestoft, several years after first considering it, we began proceedings at Roti in Norwich. There is a democratic process to the location of future meals, but I chose Roti as I had never been, I had heard positive things and it was centrally located. Richard kindly drove me to the venue, which has car parking behind the building.
SUMMARY OF EVENING:
Number of people : 7
Richard sneezing incident : Yes
Drama : Yes
Number of people late : 1
There was a friendly welcome from the staff and we were immediately seated at a suitable table for our group size. I decided that I wouldn’t query the spelling of lager and instead just merrily ordered a Cobra. I waver between beer and mango lassi at these things, but beer felt appropriate on this one. We were puzzled why Gordon got a different menu which had more decadent design and didn’t have a drinks page, but we assumed that’s because they realised he was wealthy as I had mentioned that. It’s a good test of how they deal with VIPs. Six members of the group were suitably early. Jonathan arrived late, although naturally we didn’t say anything.
The restaurant was quite sparsely decorated, which suited me as I don’t particularly like excessive decadence and bling, although Richard is a big fan of both. There were relatively few other customers, but perhaps that is usual on a Thursday evening. The building was originally the New Inn which dates to the 1860s, but was rebuilt in the 1960s. It closed in 2001 until it was converted to Choices video rental a couple of years later, becoming Roti Indian restaurant in around 2010.
It was decided, primarily by me, that we would have two poppadoms each and I was pleased that the chutney tray was of a generous size. I was being very brave as I was next to Richard and he likes to play with his food by throwing it about. Luckily, there were only minor incidents involving the venue’s clean tablecloth.
The tray included a crisp onion salad, a sweet chutney, a sweet chilli sauce and a mint sauce. The sauces offered a useful mixture of sweetness, freshness and gentle heat, with the cooling mint sauce proving my favourite. The chutney added some welcome texture, while the onion salad provided a sharper and crunchier contrast. I’m never sure why restaurants serve such vibrantly coloured accompaniments alongside white tablecloths, but I admire their optimism.
I’m focusing on writing about the venue rather than the people, but Gordon likes attention and so here he is reading the menu intently.
I went for the Chicken Tikka Palak with lemon rice and peshwari naan. The portions were generous, especially given the prices charged, and everything arrived suitably hot. The food looked well presented and I thought that the curry itself looked particularly appetising.
The chicken in the palak was tender and the spinach added some healthy goodness to the arrangement. The green chillies provided a noticeable but manageable heat without overwhelming the other flavours. The lemon rice had a distinct citrus character which lifted the richer curry, rather than merely offering the vague suggestion that a lemon might once have been stored nearby. The peshwari naan was soft, generously filled and pleasantly sweet, although I would have preferred a little more crispness around its edges.
There was a little confusion about one dish and that certainly added to the excitement when Steve realised he had the wrong one. I was focused on my meal though, so I didn’t get involved.
A particularly welcome touch was the complimentary drink offered at the end of the meal. It’s probably meant to be mainly spirits, but they were broad in their offering and so I had another beer. Gordon got himself another Tiger and so I kindly shared some of that. He was fine with that policy after he discovered I’d done it. Richard went for a whisky and I will note here that he didn’t opt for Bell’s this time and I make that clear because I got muddled up once and said that he was a big fan of it, whereas it appears it’s only an occasional treat.
Probably not helped by us, but the payment process was efficient as they had printed out a bill with everything itemised on it, which makes payment easier. The staff were friendly, engaging and helpful, so this is certainly a venue which I’d return to. I felt that the prices were very reasonable, the quality of the food was high and the surroundings were clean and comfortable.
To add to the excitement, we then voted on the location of November’s meal. I can reveal that we are going to Shapla Tandoori in Wymondham. Richard and I have since realised that we have been there before, but I think I can manage the considerable hardship of a repeat visit.