The idea of a Fish Curry at Makkah Restaurant – Halal (15, Anaxagora 13, Athina 105 52) was firmly planted in Maggie’s head after Hector walked in to inspect their Fayre last week. I have lost track of how many times Maggie mentioned – Fish Curry – in the last few days. It would have been just the thing to discover the Fish Curry was – aff.
I used dead reckoning to walk through the streets of Psyri towards Omonia. Walking along Geraniou I reconfirmed the continuing presence of the venues which brought me to this part of town all those years back. Where was Makkah? On consulting Google Maps it was somehow a few streets away from where I stood, strange. Stepping into Anaxagora, behold Makkah! Google have the correct address but at the wrong locus. Hopefully Hector will have this sorted soonest.
The restaurant was empty as we entered just after 13.00, no strange looks this time. Approaching the counter, there was no sign of the intriguing Fish Curry spotted last week, well, hopefully a newer batch. Instead, a much darker Curry was in its place. I verified that this was indeed a Fish Curry, well it had to be, the Fish were whole and shrouded in Masala. All was well.
Marg was not having Curry, she asked for Salad which may well have come anyway. Fish Curry for three was ordered, with Rice for Maggie. I studied the photos of the Bread, the Paratha (€1.00) looked to be the real thing, a change from Naan (€0.50). Note the honourable prices for Bread.
Four small bottles of Still Water were brought to the table by the young chap who would be serving us. We were given the once over by the more mature chap behind the counter, Chef.
We settled in for the wait. The curtain rails surrounding the tables opposite caught the eye. Social distancing in the extreme. The middle chairs at our table for six were blocked off, ladies at one end of the table, chaps at the other. Face masks have to be worn at all times in Athena, even in the street, except when one is sat down in a cafe, pub or restaurant. There is a hefty fine for those choosing to ignore this requirement. Pubs etc all shut at midnight and everyone has to be indoors, between 00.30 and 05.00. Clearly, these must be the most dangerous times for catching Koronavirus. It does mean that there is no late night street noise in Psyri which would otherwise be the norm. No Track & Trace records are being kept.
Assembling the food on the table took quite a few moments. The Salad was bright and bold, look at those Chillies! This was not what Marg had in mind, still she would hoover enough enough to get her fill.
A plate of Basmati, enough for all, was presented. A second was brought afterwards but sent back. Individual bowls of Raita were provided.
The Paratha were huge. Thinner than the norm, Chef had achieved the classic layering and flakiness that makes for authentic Paratha. A bit Oily to start, and very hot, these were just the business. Clive chose to leave his to the end and mop up all that was left. That would be quite some time away, eating this Fish Curry would require skill and concentration.
Fish Curry
A bit – Soupy – around the edges of the plate, the Masala which covered the Fish was thicker with finely chopped Onions and Tomato pulp. This was the real deal, no Blended Masala, this was genuine Desi Cuisine.
I took some Rice because there was so much of it, this soaked up the peripheral Shorva. Some bits of the Salad even made it on to my plate, including a couple of Chillies. I had no knife, the Chillies would have be handled one bite at at time.
I tore a strip off the ample Paratha and dipped, oh yes, this will do. The Masala had the distinctive Flavour of Fish, so often this is not the case.
The Fish had to be treated with the utmost care, else mouthfuls of bones would spoil the eating. Maggie led the way in deboning hers. With the carcasses isolated, the second half would be a much easier affair.
Fish and Rice, Fish and Paratha, Fish and Masala, just Fish, then a bite of Green Chilli, brave. I became less so, eventually Clive balked too.
A bowl of Soup was placed centre of table accompanied by four spoons. We had no bowls. How were we to eat this?
Meanwhile, Marg had selected bits of the Salad, i.e. no Chillies. She had Rice, helped with the Paratha, and was the only one of us to take some Raita. Marg and Maggie were first to try the Soup, Hector formulated a plan.
Approaching a state of exhaustion, the Fish was finished except for the odd bits of skin and whatever. I took some more of the Rice and the Soup and made a shallow creation on my plate. With the remaining Paratha, this was both dipped and scooped. Even more pleasure was therefore extracted from the remnants of the Fish Curry.
Very tasty overall, and most certainly quite an experience.
Maggie:
I was slightly concerned about it being on-the-bone, but I didn’t choke on any and only had to spit out a few. Lots of Fish, not too spicy, could have been a warmer temperature. Harmless soup.
Clive:
It was full of Fish, not a dish for the Queen Mother. You expect a bit of fire in a Curry, they gave us Chillies which livened it up. The quality of the Paratha was excellent.
Marg:
I cheated a wee bit. I asked for a Salad which contained Onion, Cucumber, Tomato and massive Green Chillies, but added Raita to my dish. The Raita was very spicy, but I enjoyed the Shorva added to the Rice, and some of the Paratha.
Marg had done very well out of her – Salad.
*
The Bill
€20.00 (£18.10) A round sum. Whilst other Curry Dishes were priced on the wall, Fish Curry was not.
The Aftermath
The Calling Card was given to the young waiter who didn’t quite know what to do with it. Hopefully Chef will see this later.
I am still taken by last week’s Fish Curry. I’ll be back.