Mr. Holden is in town! The Man from Bradford needed a Curry to match the quality that he is served in The Curry Capital. The venue was dictated by a conversation Hector had last week with Raj and Hari at the Punjabi Charing Cross (157-159 North St Glasgow G3 7DA). They have been promoting Goat as an alternative to Lamb in recent weeks. I raised the possibility of Venison.
Only once before have I tasted Venison Curry and it was home cooked by Hector himself! Mr. Holden was slightly apprehensive for reasons I could not fathom – the man eats Sheep Brain’s Curry, and worse than that – Liver…
Marg and Hector made their rendezvous with Mr. Holden and [Stan.TB] at the Bon Accord and walked the huge distance to the Punjabi. It must be five paces. Two French customers were the only people present as we arrived but a table of four Chaps appeared halfway through. Hopefully business is looking up for this outstanding Curry House.
Starters, this is unusual in an outing for [Stan.TB] and I. Marg likes to share. Haggis Pakora was mentioned, it is not a joke but we had to get the Englishman to try it. A Seekh Kebab and a Fish Pakora also found their way into the order.
Four portions of Venison Curry was the order. Chapattis and Roti in an elegant sufficiency too.
We were kept amused by the Complementary Poppadoms and Onion Chutney, Marg requested some Mango Chutney and it came instantly. The Fish Pakora was very fresh and the powdered Spice gave it a real kick. Mr. Holden thoroughly enjoyed his share of the Haggis Pakora – Och aye the Noor…. The Seekh Kebab disappeared without coment.
Bambi Curry
A solitary portion was brought to the table. The portion was seen to be substantial. A bone stuck up in the middle of the mass of meat. The pieces were cut quite large. This looked a real treat. The remaining three portions trickled up to the dais along with the Breads. This was a stunning Curry! The Masala was more plentiful than my normal Gurmeet. It was thick and oily and was a bit of a throwback. The Venison was so tender, there was little evidence of Fat in any of the portions. The meat is porous and so takes in the flavour of the Spices. Mr. Holden was convinced that this had been cooked yesterday and left to soak in all the flavour, however this is the very nature of Venison. The Venison then has a payback and gives its own flavour back to the Masala.
Karrah!
The meal was very well seasoned, in fact to the point of being on the limit. A sheer delight. I doubt that anyone who does not prefer Lamb to Poultry would ever enjoy it. Venison must be the ultimate meat to Curry – unless someone knows anything different…
The Bill
£66.80. At £11.90 per portion of Curry this was great value. We expected to pay extra for this premium meat. Given the portion size we did very well.
The Aftermath
Hari was thanked for setting this up. Goat is now advertised on the hoarding outside the Punjabi. How long before Venison makes another appearance?