Fleet curry houses...

Naively I tried to get a table at Gurkha Square in Fleet without a booking - naive and stupid because the place was pretty full and little should I have doubted the honesty of the manager who turned us away: the place was
*heaving* 45 minutes later.

I eventually ended up in Gulshan. It's quite rough and ready in terms of decor and not cheaply priced (the higher end of reasonable I suppose with about £3.00 for a special rice dish which is a bit silly).

Anyway, my point in posting is to say: bloody hell, there really are some gems out there just waiting to be discovered in Hampshire/Surrey and probably everywhere else in the UK too. Had I managed to get a table at the highly praised Gurkha Square (a very small restaurant) I would never have tried Gulshan. The food was very, very nice - a lamb jalfreizie (with tender meat, lovely spicing and presentation, decent quantity and a nicely flavoured (if a little thin) sauce); a chicken dhansak (again tender meat with nicely spiced lentils and a this time a richly flavoured smoky sauce); and rice that was almost, but not really too close to quite, worth £3.00. Not too many if any special menu items but it was clear that the food had been cooked by someone who, despite a busy restaurant, took pride in every dish.

It was a busy night for all the Indian restaurants in Fleet by the looks of - I'm not sure why it was *so* busy - but even so the waiter and manager in Gulshan appreciated questions about the food. The secret, apparently, rests with the chef and as far as the manager is concerned continuity and consistency is all the manager needs to know.

It's *almost* enough to make me feel proud to be British ;-)

Has anyone been to Gurkha Square?

Gareth.

From [email removed] Fri Nov 26 08:04:01 EST 2004
Article: 18630 of uk.food+drink.indian