Review of 'Prashad'
For some time now we have made the trip from our home in Nantwich, Cheshire to York to attend a stamp and coin show held there twice a year. As we travel on the M62 through the Peak District we pass by Bradford. The foodie in me knows that Bradford is the “Curry Capital of Britain” so during our trip this time I was determined to make the best of it with a trip to the best the city has to offer. A search online led be to “Prashad” with it's numerous accolades: “…finalist in Gordon Ramsay’s Best Restaurants in 2010, 2 AA Rosettes since in 2015, named in the Good Food and Michelin Guides, winning the Bib Gourmand since 2014, the Yorkshire Life Chef of the Year 2013, Morrisons Magazine Great Grub Award 2013, the Oliver Awards Best Indian Restaurant 2014 and been awarded a Certificate of Excellence by TripAdvisor for the last 5 years in a row.” More recently in 2023 (and 2022) it was awarded Best Restaurant at the Bradford Curry Awards. Indeed, inside the restaurant you can see these awards on the walls…
Arranging a booking at 5 pm (the time they open) on a chilly January in Friday we parked in their adjacent car park. You would be forgiven for passing by without realizing what a treasure this is in the small building on the corner of Bradford and Whitehall roads in Drighlington, midway between Leeds and Bradford, presumably why both cities lay claim to it in their awards.
The rather nicely decorated restaurant has dining areas over the ground and first floors (toilets are also upstairs) but we were seated near the main entrance opposite the bar which was a bit chilly with a draft coming from the door every time it was opened. The modern decor is tastefully decorated with not only their copious awards but also a number of interesting pieces of modern art.
Shortly after we managed to settle ourselves with our jackets (we were not going to let these be put into the cloak room – they were keeping us warm!) we were presented with the menus. A rather modest drinks menu contained a limited selection of alcoholic options, including signature cocktails, but also a decent number of non-alcoholic drinks as well including our favourite Indian drink - Mango lassi, either by the glass (£3.75) or jug (£9.45), since we both were drinking this we opted for the jug which was likely a mistake with all of that liquid.
While we pondered our menu choices we were presented with a small “amuse bouche” from the chef which was an herb-y deep-fried dough ball with a rather spicy red sauce. Absolutely delicious and very refreshing.
Prashad is unashamedly vegetarian and the rather short, for an Indian restaurant, menu is filled with ingredient combinations that are quite inspired. These are not dishes pretending towards their meat-y equivalents but vegetarian in their own right, which is refreshing to see. There is a “Fixed Price” menu (£49/couple) on Tuesday through Thursday and Sunday but as it was a Friday…There is also a 7 course tasting menu (£68/each) which looked amazing but was, frankly, more than we could likely eat as we were still a bit full from our lunch.
The a la carte menu explains the ethos of the family that have been running the business for more than three decades which showcases their Gujarati culinary heritage and fine dining seasonal cooking. Next is a section describing the tasting menu followed by “Starters”, “Served Cold”, “Main Dishes”, “Accompaniments”, “Additionals” then “Hot Drinks”, “Hot Desserts”, “Cold Desserts” and the “Fixed Price” menu.
We declined the traditional poppadom starter to instead select the (starter) “Tasting Platter” - “A selection of starters, cut each in half and share between 2. Perfect with Chaat” (£18.75) - that we paired with the recommended “Chaat” - “A medley of tastes and textures: diced hot samosa topped with crisp pastry, potato, chickpeas, yoghurt & tamarind dressing” (£9.40). It took some time for this to arrive but when it did it took our breath away. The chaat was beautiful and rich with huge pieces of samosa covered by layers of texture and flavour including the sweet-sour notes of tamarind with a tangy natural yoghurt. The crisp pastry on the top was lost by the flavours and textures beneath. Absolutely gorgeous.
To be fair, we remembered for all of a few seconds when it was explained what each of the starters were on the beautiful tasting plater placed between us. Even for two people this was quite a large dish. The narrow cone-shaped samosa in the middle of the platter was perfectly crispy with a pasty interior that was absolutely delicious. The only other familiar item on the plate was the unmistakable onion bhaji which was perfectly crispy, very flavourful and not in any way greasy (nothing in the meal exhibited greasiness). Each item on the plate offered a new texture, a new flavour and level of spiciness - The sweet pop of pomegranate seeds, a deep fried ball of chick peas, compressed spinach parcels that were in no way bitter, sprigs of fresh herbs and greens…All were a delight.
Next up were our mains. We ordered only one each which was more than enough. I had a dish I have never actually eaten before though seen many times - The spectacular looking “Masala Dosa” - “Lentil & rice flour crepe with a spiced potato & onion curry, served with lentil broth and coconut chutney” (£15 95; Extra Paneer £1.95). Despite it's size the dosa was light as a feature so much so that it made it difficult to dip in the accompanying small bowls of lentil broth and coconut chutney, with the pieces falling apart as you tried to scoop up the sauce. Once I hacked my way through the delicate Dosa to the filling I was rewarded by a lovely, mild potato and onion curry.
My companion went with the “Chole” - “A rich and complex melt-in-your-mouth chickpea curry, with cinnamon and star anise” (£16.95) - with, as recommended by our waiter, “Garlic Naan” - “Tandoor leavened bread with fresh garlic” (£4.25). The rather thick but lovingly presented naan was light and fluffy, perfect for dipping in the curry while the curry itself was not at all spicey with delicate flavours.
Neither of us were able to finish our mains despite our best efforts so we had to ask for them to be packaged up to take with us (they do also offer a takeaway service). We will be enjoying them for dinner tomorrow perhaps not as good reheated as on the day but still likely to have retained their wonderful flavours.
At almost £85 for the two of us, this was not a cheap meal but was absolutely delicious and, surprisingly for such an upmarket restaurant, the portion sizes are quite generous perhaps due to it being vegetarian? The staff were amazing, there exactly when you needed but not hovering around your table all the time. For each course exactly one, different, member of staff would ask us whether we were enjoying our meal or not. This shows (1) a huge amount of coordination and communication between them and (2) that each and every one of them care that you enjoy the food. Our waiter was friendly and happy to explain anything on the menu to us as well as offering opinion when requested.
An amazing meal in an amazing restaurant. One of the best Indian meals I have ever had, not just best Indian vegetarian. The care, and attention given to each dish was immediately apparent in both the presentation but more importantly the flavour. Fresh ingredients, amazing flavours, incredible textures…The price might put some off but this quality of food does not come cheap.
Well worth the trip.
Rating: “Nearly perfect, but not quite”
Review Date: 2024-01-19
Cuisine: Indian
Address: 137 Whitehall Rd, Drighlington, Bradford BD11 1AT ENGLAND
Location: West Yorkshire (England) - Bradford/
Map:
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Telephone: +44 (0) 113 285 2037
URL: https://www.prashad.co.uk/