Indian cuisine

A couple of years ago, Indian restaurants were a dime a dozen around town. As with food from any culture, it's never as good as Mum makes at home (not my mum - she's Italian), but some places stand out from the others as being far better quality than the usual. Tulsi, in Wellington, has a name for being generally good, standard Indian fare. Not top of the line (no frills), but not bad either. Tonight, I was after a cheap and cheerful meal on my way home after a long day at work, so was pleased to see a Tulsi restaurant in Christchurch.

Hmm. Not a patch on the Wellington restaurant in Cuba Mall, even though the bar boasted a certificate from The Breeze saying they were voted Wellington's Best Butter Chicken for some year or other. (Not sure what that's got to do with a restaurant in Christchurch.) The waiting/bar staff looked completely bored, and the service was detached, bordering on rude as food was unceremoniously plonked at the far end of my table with a mumble which I'm guessing was the waiter announcing what the dish was. My lamb saagwala (usually a favourite of mine) was incredibly average, very salty and with little other flavour - certainly not the 'medium-hot' I ordered. In fact, I'm not sure I could taste any curry at all! Disappointing, really. I might give the original Wellington restaurant another go sometime, but now that I'm a part-time Cantabrian for work reasons, I'll be looking elsewhere for meals in Christchurch.