Malcolm Wilkins - May 2001

I have heard that the Sahib closed for redecoration a year or so ago and has not re-opened. I can't vouch for it, but don't be disappointed if you find it closed!

Malcolm Wilkins - April 2003

Situated in a smaller street off the main Nicolae Titulescu Boulevard by the City Hall for Bucharest’s Number 1 District, this is the only Indian restaurant in Bucharest and, I believe, in Romania. They have been established for about 4 years or so and, by Romanian standards, it would be regarded as an up market restaurant. Opening seems a bit erratic (for example, some evenings it is closed for no apparent reason), but it is open most of the time. Even so, it is necessary to actually go past to see if the lights are on.

It has a spacious entrance room with reception counter and a single large table seating eight people, but the main dining area is beyond where a further 50 or so can be seated at solid wooden East European style tables. Most of the tables are large, seating six or eight. The decor is pleasantly cool with white walls decorated by carved Indian figurines and a number of interesting decorative wooden window shutters with each panel painted with an Indian scene. The most fascinating (and distracting if you are facing that direction!) of these is a large shutter at the end of the room with each panel containing a illustration from the Karma Sutra. Apart from these Indian wall decorations it is not particularly Indian in appearance. The waiting staff are all Romanian and there is no Indian music, but the menu is the traditional Indian menu - if slightly more limited than one found in England. I was also told that the owner - who is also the chef - is Indian and hails from Southern India.

A bowl of mint raita and a bowl of diced pickled red onion were placed on the table at the start while we studied the menu. Unfortunately they did not have the Onion Bhajias listed (and surprisingly correctly spelt) on the menu so we had Samosas and Aloo Tikki. Both were good, particularly the well spiced Aloo Tikki although neither starter came with any salad garnish.

A reasonable choice of main dishes was on offer. Both the Tandoori Chicken and the Chicken Tikka were good, standard Tandoori dishes with the meat well marinated and tasty. Two hotter dishes - Goan Vindaloo made with lamb and Chicken Jalfrezi - were both pleasingly hot and spicy. The Vindaloo contained tender chunks of lamb and potato pieces hotly spiced in a thick sauce while the Jalfrezi was a dryish curry and virtually as hot but with a much fuller flavour with a plentiful number of spices (especially black peppercorns and black cardamons) being cooked whole. This dish was excellent and my pick of the bunch. Murgh Makhani - Tandoori Chicken in a creamy, rather sweetish tomato based sauce - was very bland and a bit disappointing. Pullau rice was first class - very flavoursome and containing numerous whole spices (again including whole black peppers) and sultanas. The potato stuffed Nan was a little stodgy but this was due to the filling as the ordinary Nan was OK.

Service efficient, although the English of the staff is limited to non existent so don’t ask any questions! Prices cheap by our standards (eg. starters all £1.05p and mains all £3.50) although by local standards it is an up market restaurant with above average prices.

Malcolm Wilkins - May 2001