Punjabi Tadka Indian Restaurant, South Pattaya

[moo9]

Instead of Indian/Chinese food the British Food should improve

I stay with the Italian and Thai food though!

Cheers

[JimmyTheMook]

Went there this evening.

Place had a bunch of Indian customers and prior to eating asked them how the food was and they said good.

I ordered chicken tika malsala prepared spicy but cooked with as little oil as possible , it arrived as ordered with decent portion of boneless chicken meat.

I did notice when the curries are being cooked water from what looks like a direct tap feed is used , although it reaches a high temperature when being cooked thought this is worth noting.

Along with my curry I had a sweet lassi and also some garlic nan bread that was OK

The owner seemed like a nice guy and was pretty accommodating checking and asking me if everything was OK.

Kudos to Jing Thing for trying this place as it looks like a dump from the outside and would not be a willing guinea pig walking into this place off the street unless it was recommended here.

As far at the prices go think this place is on par with the Tikka Hut on Soi Buakhow but the curry from the Punjab Tadka seemed a bit more authentic as the Tika Hut is run by a Pakistani guy with Nepalese doing the cooking.

Will try the sanitary Iranian place down the road next :jap:

[Jingthing]

Ouch. I don't like to hear about tap water being used in the dishes. That said, it probably happens lots of places without us knowing. Maybe better not to know.

[Thakkar]

Ouch. I don't like to hear about tap water being used in the dishes. That said, it probably happens lots of places without us knowing. Maybe better not to know.

Right you are. When it comes to restaurant kitchens, ignorance is bliss.

[Thakkar]

There's really no reason for Indian restaurants to be much more expensive than equivalent Thai places, so it's a bit of a scam really.

I love your posts!

Thank you.

[syd barrett]

The place is superb. Absolutely the best tasting Indian food for years.

It is very easy to find just a few metres from Kohinoor, going back to Pattaya Tai. The shop front is covered in a kind of Heath Robinson sheet awning.

I will be back.

[Jingthing]

The place is superb. Absolutely the best tasting Indian food for years.

It is very easy to find just a few metres from Kohinoor, going back to Pattaya Tai. The shop front is covered in a kind of Heath Robinson sheet awning.

I will be back.

I'll take that as a thank you for the tip! They better watch out. Here comes the Thaivisa crowd. Uh oh ...

Edited August 18, 2010 by Jingthing

[doctormann]

I was in the Punjabi Tadka on Monday evening, fairly early, about 19:00.

I thought that the food was excellent, although maybe not quite up to the standard that the food at the Tandoori Garden at the Fisherman's Rest, out by Mabprachan, used to be before they lost their chef.

I had a Chicken Reshmi Kebab, followed by Chicken Madras with Jeera Rice. A Sweet Lassi and a Paneer Naan were accompaniments. Total check bin was just over 400 Baht.

My only complaint was that when I arrived I was told that the cook had just stepped outside so I would have to wait '5 or 10 minutes.' TiT - the 5-10 minutes extended to nearly an hour by the time I was served. Luckily, I was not in a hurry and, to their credit, they did apologize for the delay. The owner also wanted to know if I had enjoyed the food - no problem there.

By the time that I left, the place had filled up - it's not very big - and there was only one vacant table. It seems to be popular with Indian / Pakistani customers, which probably says something about the quality of the food.

DM

[Jingthing]

Yes and its already popular and they still haven't even been open one month. Goes to show, delicious food at a good price, formula for success.

Edited August 19, 2010 by Jingthing

[ericg1953]

Yes and its already popular and they still haven't even been open one month. Goes to show, delicious food at a good price, formula for success.

I ate there last nite with some friends..got there at 20:30 and the place was empty....food as described on JT posts....excellent!! sauces were heavy but very tasty..nan was great..chicken tikka masala was my favorite..also liked the mutton samosa...left there very full.

[AbeSurd]

I'm a Brit and love the Indian food we get in the UK. I've been persistently disappointed with the Indian food in Pattaya.

I've now been to this restaurant twice. After two visits I think I've cracked how to make their food as palatable as many posts here suggest it is.

You need to order a 30 baht bowl of plain yogurt along with your food.

Tonight I had:

Mutton samosa (which came with a thick, VERY hot green sauce on the side). 60 baht.

Chicken Biryani (which came with a thick, quite hot brown sauce on the side) 120 baht.

Small bowl of plain yoghurt, 30 baht.

I mixed in 4 parts of yogurt into 1 part of the green sauce with the samosa.

For the biryani I mixed yogurt with the brown sauce 50/50.

Result: Indian food that was more or less comparable with what we get in the UK.

Comment: the food at this restaurant tends to be rather salty (as a previous poster noted). Indeed on my first night some Indian men at a nearby table complained about how salty the food was. One of the benefits of the yogurt is that is offsets this saltiness.

So the food can be DELICIOUS!

Thanks to the OP for recommending it. I reckon I'll be eating there once a week from now on.

[Jingthing]

I agree in general raita (yogurt) goes very well with spicy Indian food. Interesting you mentioned too salty. I am sensitive to overly salted food of any nationality, and I haven't noticed that yet there. It could be a mistake the times you went or the other spices overpowered the salt so much for my palate that I didn't notice! The green chutney for the samosas there is chili based rather than mint based, I think.

BTW, I am not very surprised that some Brits are loving this place, given the North Indian/Pakistani influence on British "Indian" food.

Edited August 21, 2010 by Jingthing

[AbeSurd]

I agree in general raita (yogurt) goes very well with spicy Indian food.

Out of interest, on my bill they listed the plain yogurt as 'Dahi'.

In Britain 'raita' tends to mean yogurt mixed in with, typically, cucumber chopped up small.

My favourite Indian sauce or dip is yogurt mixed in with mint sauce. (By mint sauce, I mean the kind of mint sauce we Brits traditionally have with lamb - a mixture of mint, vinegar and sugar.)

I think some people might call this 'mint raita'.

[Pdaz]

The 'Hot green sauce' Is lime based.. Similar to the 'lime pickle' served in UK curry houses...

Dahi is the Indian name for Yoghurt.. Raitha is the name given to a variety of yoghurt based side dishes used to offset the spicy heat of curries.. Typically it has cucumber but can be made with a variety of other veg, herbs or even with just ground spices.

[buddy]

At approx 7.15pm this evening I was driving slowly in a stop start traffic jam on 2nd road near the dog leg swinging left before the BonBon convenience store on the corner near Marine Disco, and I see a lit up sign "Punjabl Dhakta", I think to myself where do I know that name from?

The penny drops in one of those "ah ha" moments!... a restaurant recommendation from JJ on Thaivisa, I quickly turn off to a small soi to the right hand side and park up.

As I walked in to the small (fan/aircon) room at the back the Wife (I presume) greeted me and there were already 3 older Indian retired gents sat down, we had a bit of a banter while we all waited to be served, which was probably about 20 minutes..

Anyway with out going into all the details of my meal, all I can say it was the best Indian meal I have had in Pattaya, service was great, I could see my food being cooked as I was facing the street in the direction of the kitchen and even the Husband and Chef both asked me how my meal was.

The surroundings arent brilliant but the food for the price was excellent.

Overall a very nice experience.

I shall definetely be going back.

[Jingthing]

The 'Hot green sauce' Is lime based.. Similar to the 'lime pickle' served in UK curry houses...

Dahi is the Indian name for Yoghurt.. Raitha is the name given to a variety of yoghurt based side dishes used to offset the spicy heat of curries.. Typically it has cucumber but can be made with a variety of other veg, herbs or even with just ground spices.

That's interesting about the lime base but there was definitely plenty of chili in that green sauce and I didn't detect mint (which is more typical I think to get in town). Thanks for the info about yogurt. I understood the raitha to be a prepared yogurt dish, not plain, just mentioned it as that is what I usually order, though plain yogurt would would be good as well.

[Jingthing]

The surroundings arent brilliant but the food for the price was excellent.

Indeed we are lucky to have this new restaurant. Life is good.

[Pdaz]

The lime pickle is easy enough to make.. This is the more chunky type you'd see in the UK

Lime Pickle

Ingredients

10 fresh lime

1-2 cups salt

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp mustard seeds

1 tbsp fenugreek seeds

20-25 dried red chillies

1 tsp turmeric powder

Method

1. Cut the lime into small pieces (Preseve the juice while cutting)

2. Put lime pieces in a glass jar and add salt.

3. Shake jar to coat all pieces. Keep aside for 5-6 days till lime becomes tender. (stir it with a dry laddle once everyday.)

4. Dry roast the cumin, mustard, fenugreek, and red chillies. Add turmeric and grind to a powder.

5. Add ground powder to the lime pieces. Mix well with a clean dry spoon.

6. Heat 2 tsp. oil and fry 1 tsp. mustard seeds and add 1/2 tsp. asafoetida to it. Add this to the pickle and mix well.

Allow 4-5 days before eating. Preserve in clean dry airtight jars.

And the 'mint sauce' you mentioned is yet another variety of Raita

Mint Raita

Ingredients

250ml/8fl oz natural yoghurt

½ cucumber, grated or finely chopped

large handful mint leaves, chopped

large pinch salt

½-1 green chilli, de-seeded and finely chopped (optional)

Method

1. Mix together all the ingredients and serve chilled as an accompaniment to any curry or as a dip for poppadoms.

[buddy]

The surroundings arent brilliant but the food for the price was excellent.

Indeed we are lucky to have this new restaurant. Life is good.

Thanks for the recommendation JJ...Good one!.

[Jimmyd]

I had takeaway from Punjabi Tadka again tonight. Excellent.

Pattaya just keeps getting better and better.

Edited August 29, 2010 by Jimmyd

[buddy]

I had takeaway from Punjabi Tadka again tonight. Excellent.

Pattaya just keeps getting better and better.

I have been back twice now, the food and service still excellent, the same as the first time I visited

[Utterlyuseful]

This menu does not seem like good value for food in these dilapidated surroundings …Indian food should be priced on par with Thai food or even less…..Case in point,. the chicken tikka at 120 baht….most thai places will charge 40 baht or so for a delicious fried rice with chicken or even 30 baht for a chicken rice with soup…you can even buy an entire roast chicken on the street for 120 baht that would feed a family of 4 and make the tandoori spice yourself for a pittance…

[Jingthing]

This menu does not seem like good value for food in these dilapidated surroundings …Indian food should be priced on par with Thai food or even less…..Case in point,. the chicken tikka at 120 baht….most thai places will charge 40 baht or so for a delicious fried rice with chicken or even 30 baht for a chicken rice with soup…you can even buy an entire roast chicken on the street for 120 baht that would feed a family of 4 and make the tandoori spice yourself for a pittance…

This is Thailand. THAI street food will always be the cheapest possible "restaurant" meal in Thailand. As far as Indian in Pattaya or even most of Thailand, I defy you to find a better value for tasty Indian food than the incredibly wonderful PUNJABI TADKA Indian restaurant.

BTW, you sound like you haven't even tried this place so your comments on the value for money there is basically WORTHLESS.

Next ...

Edited August 30, 2010 by Jingthing

[JSixpack]

This menu does not seem like good value for food in these dilapidated surroundings …Indian food should be priced on par with Thai food or even less…..Case in point,. the chicken tikka at 120 baht….most thai places will charge 40 baht or so for a delicious fried rice with chicken or even 30 baht for a chicken rice with soup

Fried rice with chicken, or chicken rice with soup, is hardly in the same category at all with chicken tikka.

Since you can't tell any difference in foods, and have no concept of different preparation, why not just eat canned or dry dog food? Wouldn't that be even cheaper?

Edited August 30, 2010 by JSixpack

[Pdaz]

Always amazed when guys rate a resto by the decor or surroundings.. Might apply in some fine dining situation but here we are discussing a 'budget' Indian place... I'm only interested in the food and VFM.. This places scores high on both points.. If you want decor and A/C go eat in Mc D's...Food is plastic and so is the atmosphere.. Hoping to get down to Punjabi T for another feed this week..

[Jingthing]

There are also always the Thailand purists who believe we must only eat Thai food in Thailand. Often, those are tourists, and for tourists I think that is actually a very good idea.

[syd barrett]

I went past today and they have erected a sizable rectangular plastic box-type ensign, high upon a concrete electrical post. 'Punjabi Tadka' for all to see and make location simple for those searching for this excellent eatery.

[Ulysses G.]

This menu does not seem like good value for food in these dilapidated surroundings …

This is Thailand. THAI street food will always be the cheapest possible "restaurant" meal in Thailand. As far as Indian in Pattaya or even most of Thailand, I defy you to find a better value for tasty Indian food than the incredibly wonderful PUNJABI TADKA Indian restaurant.

BTW, you sound like you haven't even tried this place so your comments on the value for money there is basically WORTHLESS.

Next ...

Or utterly useless.

Edited August 31, 2010 by Ulysses G.

[soihok]

Visited the place on Tuesday evening.

Had a chiken masala and a tadka dahl with a couple of nan breads.

The food took a while but it was certainly worth the wait. The food was really good.

The cook is a very young guy called "Raj", great cook.

Must thank Jingthing for bringing the place to my attention, it was the colour of the paint that catches the eye.

Good find indeed, pity I'll not be there for another year.

[Jingthing]

Another thing to point out. When this place was more crowded it was mostly Indians/Pakistanis, etc. but their tourism wave seems to have soften a bit lately. So recently this place has NOT been busy in the slightest, often no customers. So please support this place year round. It is a treasure, please don't starve them out of business in the off Indian season.