Massala Fine Indian Restaurant review, Cobham

I am somewhat of a curry snob it has to be said. Curries are an absolute passion of mine and I`ve had my fair share of them! However the most frustrating thing is going to an Indian restaurant, asking for a speciality dish from the chef only to find out that it tastes exactly like the other dishes that you have ordered – If I was Prime Minister this would be a criminal offence.

So when we were given the opportunity to review the o’so popular Massala restaurant in Cobham we were there like a shot!

For all those that don’t know, Cobham is situated in the fine county of Surrey, just off the A3 – perfect for commuters heading out of London heading south. The area is well known for its abundance of Chelsea football player who live around and about, and as a town, it`s rather pretty on the whole.

Massalla is just off the main high street, an easy walk wherever you park althought there is parking outside of it. When you arrive the first thing to hit you is just how busy this restaurant is… for a Wednesday night it was heaving and I`m guessing that many of the punters are locals – always a good sign!

Onto the food… we chose the tasting menu and were relatively quickly brought our initial dishes – the prawns were outstanding along with the Methi Machchi Tikka. I was impressed so far!

We were asked how spicy we like our food (a nice touch) and after some deliberation we opted for `medium`. The courses started arriving, each offering a combination of different flavours and spices, and all of which were absolutely delicious. Not a tomato base sauce in sight!

We later learnt (from Chef Pradeep Asawa who made a personal appearance to every table – now I’m even more impressed) that all the food is cooked in a special charcoal fired clay Tandoor oven using only the freshest of ingredients. Believe it or not, Chef Pradeep Asawa has in fact cooked for HRH Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana on their State tour of India in 1992, and the late Rajiv Gandhi, Prime Minister of India.

So to sum up, if you are looking for a truly original Indian culinary experience with incredibly tasty food then you really can`t go wrong with Massala, Cobham. I`d go as far to say that out of around 300 Indian restaurants that I must have eaten in over the years, there have only been three that stand out and Massala is definitely up there.

The pricing is incredibly reasonable and we`ll definitely be heading back to Massala one day soon.