… probably the Best Curry served to Hector in Köln, was written almost exactly five years ago with reference to Mumbai Palace (Am Malzbüchel 1, 50667, Köln, Deutschland). There has been a considerable growth in the number of Curry outlets in this city since then, Hector has done his best to keep up. En route to the adjacent Hotel Ahl Meerkatzen I passed by, the building was covered in scaffolding. I was surprised to see that Mumbai Palace is no more, it is now Badmaash – Indian Food Club.
This is the fourth and final Curry of this trip, unless…
I entered Badmaash at 13.00, the once intensively decorated Curry House was almost Spartan in comparison. A couple of chaps were having coffee or similar, I took the table next to the Bar. The Waiter brought the Mittagstich – Lunchtime Menu. I glanced over this then asked for the Main Menu. The grid of Curry Dishes (below) covered Lamb, Fish, Seafood, Chicken, Turkey and Duck, though not every Curry was available in each format. It became apparent very quickly that the Curry I had settled upon may as well be bought from the cheaper menu.
Lamm Dansak (€8.90), when has Hector ever ordered this? A bottle of Sparkling Water (€2.20) would accompany.
More customers arrived, again to drink coffee. One was a clone of Saddam Hussein, well maybe not. The only Curry I would set eyes upon at Badmaash today would be mine.
Lamm Dansak
For the third time this week, Hector was presented with a plate of half-Rice, half-Curry. From the Lunchtime Menu, this was quite acceptable. Eight pieces of Meat sat in a Soupy-Masala. Lentil grains were still visible in the Masala, strange, when I cook Lentils they turn to pulp and become part of the Mash. A dollop of Yoghurt sat on one side of the boundary between Rice and Curry. A sprinkling of Coriander Leaves topped this combination.
Piquant
A Tangy Flavour hit the palate from the off, a Curry with a definite Flavour, a good start. The Spice was moderate, the Seasoning was at a very pleasing level hence the immediate impact. The Daal-effect not only added a different Flavour from my usual Curry choices, but aided the Texture. The Meat varied in Quality, some was decidedly Tender, some required a lot of chewing. The final piece took Hector a full ten minutes of mastication which is unheard of. Some of the Lamb shared the same tanginess as the Masala; some gave off an almost unpleasant after-taste. This puzzled, I could not establish if there was a correlation between the Tender Meat and the Chewy Meat with respect to the latter. Fortunately, the majority of this Curry was a positive experience.
Overall, this was another Euro-Curry, simple and well done.
The Bill
€11.10 (£10.00) Mumbai Palace was on the printout.
The Aftermath
Having introduced myself I had to ask about the change of name. I was informed that it is the same owner.
… probably the Best Curry served to Hector in Köln, not today.
Much later this evening, I managed to leave Altes Brauhaus and not go into Indian Curry Basmati House.
There’s hope for Hector.
