Living less than ten miles from the famous curry mile
, having eaten curry since I was a boy and still enjoying a an Indian takeaway or meal at least once a week I would say that I am reasonably qualified to offer an opinion on how to choose a good curry house.
Location
Curry houses seem to be springing up everywhere nowadays. When I was little there was one curry house and if you didnt go to that you had to travel rather a long way to get to another one. Today we are spoilt for choice so dont be put off simply by the location of your restaurant. As there is so much competition it only makes sense to open a new restaurant where there arent anymore so dont be surprised or put off by a new restaurant simply because you think its funny where it is located.
Time of the Week
Time of the week is vital for making your decision. Curry houses usually do a great trade over the weekend especially after the pubs have closed. Unless you are a regular drinker you probably wont see them packed out after closing time so you will need to make a decision based on something else. If you can try and drive past mid week around a normal meal time. I wouldnt expect you to see a full curry house but if the curry is good you will no doubt see customers inside from the native area of the curry house style. This is obviously a good sign as if the native culture are enjoying the cuisine then you are more than likely to also.
Recommendations
Everybody including myself seems to be an expert on curry but it certainly pays to listen. After all if somebody else has had a good experience then the place has got to be worth a try. Dont be afraid of listening to recommendations unless they have come from somebody who only eats after they have been thrown out of the pub when quite frankly anything tastes nice.
Menu Variety
Having tried all of the dishes that have been invented especially for the English I now choose my restaurants based on local variations and curries that I havent heard of. I like to try new things and like the fact that the curry house is making an effort to be different rather than continuing to churn out the same old tried and tested recipes.
Those four top tips will see you OK when choosing a curry house to eat in but just to leave you on one final note. When you have made your choice its always good to try the Dopiaza curry as this will usually give you a good idea of the quality of the restaurant.