GURKHA RESTAURANT, 8 MARKET PLACE

A small centrally situated restaurant, seating 26 in an older style building with beams and slate walls, although a more modern pale wooden floor. It is Camelford’s first Indian restaurant, opening ‘about a year ago’ (beginning of 2005) according to the waiter. Actually, it isn’t an ‘Indian’ restaurant but Nepalese, although it serves most of the standard high street dishes. It also offers a few (but not many) Nepalese dishes.

I have to say at the outset that the food was disappointing. The Onion Bhajias (two reasonably sized round variety) were a bit different. Not stodgy, or light and crispy, but had a peculiar soft interior and served with a bilious green riata. They were OK, but nothing more. The Chicken Chat looked the part, being finely shredded pieces of chicken in a sauce, but it was only mildly spiced and without that tangy taste, and was very highly salted. It was also served in a puri which made it filling, but it was the extreme saltiness that was the main reason for not finishing it.

Main courses of Tandoori Chicken and Kathmandu Garlic Chicken Chilli (sic) were equally disappointing. The Tandoori Chicken was good in size – two large pieces - but it had very little depth of flavour. The marinade was only on the surface, and I think it had been grilled. It certainly didn’t taste as though it had been cooked in a tandoor (I suspect they haven’t got one) and the meat, while plenty of it, was a bit dry and tasteless. My Garlic Chicken Chilli again lacked much flavour – you certainly wouldn’t know that garlic or chilli was a feature of the dish – and once more was far too salty. Again I had to leave half of it.

Accompanying Aloo Gobi was a dry dish – almost like Bombay Potato – and looked as though the pieces of cauliflower and potato had been smeared in a light sauce and heated through. Rice was OK, but the Peshwari Nan was very strange. It was soft – almost soggy – with a sort of syrup drizzled on top and a spongy interior. None of it was crisp and had certainly not seen the inside of a Tandoori Oven, which again makes me suspect they haven’t got one.

The waiter was very friendly, and the service efficient, as it should seeing as we were the only ones there until another couple arrived shortly before we left (although to be fair it was a Sunday evening in January). Prices about average, and for some reason the waiter had deducted 10% from the bill. Whether this was some sort of Sunday discount, or whether it was because we left a lot of it I don’t know (I did tell him I thought it over-salted when he asked if it was OK), and I didn’t enquire.

Unfortunately a friendly waiter and a 10% discount does not compensate for a poor meal and I have to give it the thumbs down. It’s my own fault really, as I was warned that it was not good and to eat in the pub opposite by someone who lives in the town, but felt obliged to try it. Next time I’m there, however, it’s the pub opposite for me.

 Malcolm Wilkins – January 2006