PARADISE INDIAN RESTAURANT

Paradise Indian Restaurant
200 Jells Road
Wheelers Hill

http://www.paradiseindian.com.au/

Indian has never been one of my favourite cuisines so for this reason I had never before visited Paradise, the local award-winning Indian restaurant located at the Wheelers Hill Shopping Centre. 

Highly recommended by Indian friends, and with a desire to try somewhere new, hubby and I ventured to this plain looking shopfront on a Saturday night to celebrate our wedding anniversary.

Step through the doors however, and you are immediately transported to the subcontinent.  Indian artwork fills the walls and floral wreaths hang from the ceiling.  The waiters are formally dressed and eager to please.  Judging by the amount of takeaway orders leaving the kitchen, this place is popular...and with good reason.

I’m no expert in Indian cuisine, but the food was seriously good.  The place was almost full and live music began at 8.30 p.m.  Service was pretty good if a little inattentive at times.  All in all a very enjoyable night.

WE ORDERED

Complementary pappadams and three accompanying relishes were brought to our table as soon as we’d ordered.

We shared the Nawabi Chikken Tikka for entree - Chicken breast fillet, marinated in Paradise spices & saffron dipped in egg batter, cooked in the tandoori oven

For main course we shared Lamb Korma - Tender lamb pieces cooked fresh corriander, ginger , green chillies & saffron and Bengali Prawn Malai - Prawns cooked in mild sauce with coconut & cream

We also shared some Saffron Rice and a serve of Roti Bread - Wholemeal bread baked in the tandoori.

For dessert we shared Kulfi Ice Cream - Thickened milk & pistachio flavoured with cardamom & saffron followed by a Cappuccion and Caffe Latte.

WE THOUGHT
We couldn’t fault the food...the relishes and sauces were flavoursome and the meat in all dishes was melt in your mouth tender.  The Roti bread was quite different to the store-bought kind you find in supermarkets with almost no oil.  I was disappointed at first but found that it was actually preferable as there was enough oil in the sauces.  I really enjoyed the ice-cream, it was full of flavour and refreshing.

WE LIKED

The atmosphere was pleasant and the owner was genuinely interested in ensuring we’d enjoyed the food and had a good night.  The music added a fun touch, reminding me of the laidback kind of surfie music you’d hear in a Quentin Tarantino film.

WE DISLIKED
Like many Asian and Indian restaurants, the wine list was seriously lacking...but it is BYO so best to take advantage of this next time.  The caffe latte and cappuccino were way too strong and the cappuccino was slightly burnt.

WILL WE RETURN?

Definitely, a return trip with friends is already planned and we took a takeaway menu as we walked out the door.

8/10