Yup, you heard me! This is our 5th (and by no means last) review of Curry Palace in Cottenham. For proof of this, check out our visit in 2014, 2016, 2017, and 2022. You may ask yourself why we keep coming back and the answer is simple, it’s a fantastic Indian restaurant!

Curry Palace is also my favourite Indian restaurant north of Cambridge. This is important for someone living in the fens, as top quality Indian restaurants are few and far between, so having a gem like this is a real life saver.

There isn’t much that can be said that hasn’t been said already during my previous reviews. The restaurant is stunning with one of my favourite pieces being a rather fetching water feature behind the bar which adds a really relaxing and atmospheric feel to my experience.

It isn’t just novelty features that make it a pleasant place to dine in however, as the entire restaurant is tastefully decorated throughout. No wonder this used to be a common dining restaurant for Sir Stephen Hawkins.

The menu is large and extensive. To give you an idea of prices, standard lamb and chicken curry dishes are £10.95. Tandoori, biryani, and a list of chef specials are also available.

There is no beer on draft, which is a shame but they do bottled beer in 650ml bottles. They have both Kingfisher and Cobra beer available. It would be nice to see something like Bombay Bicycle available but Kingfisher served us perfectly well.

One of the main reasons I keep coming back to Curry Palace is the lime pickle. It seems strange to get excited over a papadum side sauce but this stuff is spectacular! Speaking to one of the managers on a previous visit, he explained that their lime pickle (amongst other things served here) are made and brought in from London. Initially you’d think that this was a lot of effort to go to but it clearly shows.

Everything about the lime pickle is perfect. The portions are generous, it is sharp, succulent, and cut into generous crunchy chunks. All the other sauces are great too.

The waiter here recommended I try their Mutton Kala Bhuna. This was from the Chefs Recommendations and is an absolutely sublime dish with some of the most tender and juicy mutton I think I had ever had. I cannot recommend this dish enough!

I was visiting for my birthday meal and I had not been for a spicy curry in a while, so I was here for something with a real kick to it. I ordered my favourite, the chicken tikka vindaloo (extra hot on request). The chicken was tikka’d really well and was of a very high standard. The sauce was a little lacking in my opinion which was a shame but it did have a nice kick to it.

The saag aloo always makes a perfect side for a vindaloo, so naturally I had a side portion to bulk it out and give me some extra potato. That mushroom rice was also executed excellently.

My wife had the chicken tikka masala which she thoroughly enjoyed. It was bright and bold but this isn’t takeaway from the flavour.

The service here is always impeccable and I have also noticed over the years that the staff ratios are quite high. There was always someone close by if needed and they were frequently checking in to make sure that their food met their own high standards. I brought my 6 month old son and the staff were even engaging with him, which is always nice.

In these hard times with businesses (especially restaurants) struggling, it is completely understandable to see certain things cut in order to make ends meet. Which leads me to the iconic hot towel that has slowly been vanishing from the Indian restaurant scene over the years but not at Curry Palace! Hot towels are still very much a thing here! That also includes chocolates.

We also noticed that there was no service charge was automatically added to the bill. I cannot remember if this has always been the case at Curry Palace but it is good to see this included in the price.

Another day another great meal at Curry Palace. I like to think the standard will still be as high on our tenth review.

Thanks for reading.