Wednesday 31 July 2013

Blue Cobra Indian Restaurant, Portsmouth

Lovely meal with plenty to go round!
This month’s meal brought us to North End and the Blue Cobra (It is also Dave’s first choice sojourn into Grubgang – and in his opinion probably the best Indian in Portsmouth – lets hope everyone else thought the same!).

 The Blue Cobra is a contemporary Indian restaurant nestled in the numerous shops and restaurants on the London Road in North End, Portsmouth. It offers an extensive menu, including some unusual dishes such as buffalo and curries with mango pieces.

 Unlike many other restaurants in the nearby area, Mike felt it  didn't feel cramped as there was plenty of space and the decor was lovely and the music was played at a nice level so we could here ourselves talking. Clair also felt there was plenty of space to move and you didn’t feel like they were cramping you in like sardines to maximise covers.

 So The blue Cobra is ticking all the boxes so far… What about the food…

 Dave – “The menu here is very varied, and portions are pretty generous and the price is very agreeable. I had the Shahee Mixed Kebab to start with, which is a little taster of pretty much all the meats this restaurant has to offer, topped with onions and cheese. If you're not a fan of Indian spices, this is the ideal way to try a little of everything from the mild to the medium. The main course was a Tandoori Special Grill; again, more of a selection of everything with chicken, lamb, beef and duck. The meat was lightly spiced, enough to give it flavour without overpowering everything and also very tender; the chicken just melted without being overly oily in particular. The Keema rice was a generous portion for the price, and was also very tasty without being overly spicy. Drinks were also reasonably priced too. Deserts were usual Indian affair; I didn't partake because I'd stuffed myself, and didn't even touch my inclusive naan bread!”

 

Gemma – “I had Hush Tikka to start which is duck cooked to perfection (in my opinion) and the same main as Dave as its a good sampler. I loved all the complementary items the Restaurant offered. First with the poppadum’s and sauces and then afterwards with refreshing orange segments to cleanse the pallet (with a hot towel!).”

 

Dean – “I played save with onion bhaji for starters and for the main I had the Chicken Fried Rice, Keema Nann with the Tandoori Mixed Grill. Luckily Clair chose a lovely curry (don’t remember the name), which I used to combine with my main, as the tandoori grill in my opinion really needed a good sauce to accompany it.”

 

Clair – “I chose a Naan bread to start, but they are so huge I think if I went back I would go straight for a main meal. The portions are more than enough and would fill a hungry tum very quickly! I also liked the fact that I asked the waiter that the dish be as mild as possible and they seemed to do this for me with no problems.”

 

Pete – “I choose to be a bit more adventurous then I usually am and started with the Dum Aloo (An Egg/potato mixture encased in a breadcrumb outer layer – Which was lovely) followed by the mixed Massala curry with Lamb, Chicken and Prawns – Also fantastic. I choose to accompany with a Aloo Gobi – which unfortunately they had run out of cauliflower – so had to have a Bombay Aloo instead. Now if I had known the portions were so large I wouldn’t have ordered the side dish (Probably my only negative of an otherwise lovely meal!).

 

So the menu was extensive, the portions generous and the taste not too spicy – Again the Blue Cobra seems to be ticking the boxes… What about the service?

 

Mike – “The staff were very friendly and attentive to our needs, although the only problem I had was that the waiters were ever so slightly over eager to clear our plates away!”

 

Clair – “They need to work on getting orders correct and as Mike said they were too eager to clear up, so I felt a little rushed!”

 

Dean – “Pretty good service. Especially liked the fact they gave complimentary orange halves to wash our palates, then Baileys and chocolate to wash it all done. They even doggy bagged Clair’s leftovers (curry, Bombay potatoes and my rice), which I had for lunch at work the next day!”

 

Gemma – “The only down side was the fast pace that the waiters were setting, was at times making me feel a little rushed and the usual issue of plates being cleared before we had all finished.”

 

Pete – “A pleasure dining experience, with very little to complain about except the lack of cauliflower! – Didn’t really feel rushed at all, however the plates really need to be cleared once everyone has finished!”

 

So apart from being a little eager to clear the plates away, not too much to grumble about. So what about the overall score and final thoughts?

 

Clair – “All in all, Dave picked a lovely place and for a first choice of venue, you will have to keep up the good work for future venues! And I now also have a lot to live up to next month!!”

 

Dean – “Had a really nice meal, pretty good service, especially liked the fact they gave complimentary orange halves to wash our palates, then Baileys and chocolate to wash it all down.”

 

Gemma – “We definitely recommend it! Not too crowded.”


 

Pete – “A lovely restaurant, with great food, and reasonable priced. Very little to complain about! All in all, a great Grubgang venue!”

 

So it looks like the Blue Cobra gets the thumbs up from the Grubgangers! A great contemporary Indian with a large and varied menu, with the addition of a range of fish curries as well!

The decor was clean, the staff welcoming and attentive (Although a little too eager to clear the plates away!), with good sized tables (Not too crowded), reasonably priced drinks and clean respectable facilities.

Marks out of ten..............................................................8.5 (Dave Graham)

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