BTO: The flour items here will really floor you

Business Times - 16 Feb 2009

The flour items here will really floor you

NEW RESTAURANT
Spices of India
#01-01 Rendezvous Hotel
9 Bras Basah Road.
Tel: 6333-5372

 

PUT the team behind Spices of India together and you get a mini United Nations: the chefs are from Nepal and India, the young artist behind the intricate designs on the restaurant's glass panels and menu is a Singaporean, and the operations director hails from Malaysia.

 

Ipoh native Dave Purba says he came to Singapore in 1992 to help with the setting up of several well-regarded Indian restaurants such as Ivory Kitchen and Go India. He's also worked at Riverwalk Tandoor. Subsequently, Mr Purba explains, he decided to strike it out elsewhere so that 'I could implement my own ideas and be independent'.

 

The result is the five-month-old Spices of India, a mid-sized North Indian restaurant with an al fresco area on the ground floor of Rendezvous Hotel. It's a location chosen by the owners - despite it being minutes from the slew of Indian eateries in Little India - for its close proximity to 'a lot of businesses, Indian expats' residences, Singapore Management University and the School of the Arts'.

 

Unlike its team of varied nationalities though, Spices of India's food is clearly Indian, with a focus on traditional recipes. According to Mr Purba, the restaurant's chefs have had quite a bit of global experience, including stints in some of India's top hotels.

 

Some of this experience shows in the food, which is made on the spot with freshly-prepared sauces and no MSG. The flour items, especially, are very good, down to the complimentary pappadums. A starter of bhindi crispy ($7), for instance, comprised neatly julienned strands of ladyfinger coated in gram flour and fried until golden brown. Unlike some versions of this traditional recipe we've had which were slimy and soggy, the one here was really moreish - crunchy and not too oily. The lightly-spiced flour was tasty too.

 

The naan breads (from $3 for the plain naan) were also excellent, all airy and crisp on the sides that had made contact with the oven and with fluffy middles.

 

But the meats and seafood didn't fare as well. The tandoori khazana ($25), a dish of tandoori chicken, fish, lamb and prawns delivered on a sizzling hot plate, was rather dry and the fish and prawns were not very fresh. The butter chicken ($20), which came recommended by our waiter, was quite pedestrian.

 

Still, Spices of India is a not a bad option in an area that isn't known for its food (it's certainly better than the overpriced nasi padang restaurant in the same hotel).

 

The restaurant has a lunch buffet too that's quite good value for money - $15.90++ for a spread of soups, tandoori items, salads, desserts and freshly-baked naan, along with coffee or tea.

 

Rating: 6/10
By Audrey Phoon