Best Indian Food In Phuket?

[Jowels]

Most of the Indian restaurants I've tried in Thailand have been bitterly disappointing. Does anyone know a decent curry house anywhere on Phuket?

Edited October 19, 2005 by Jowels

[avatar]

A good curry house I've tried twice is in Laguna entrance called Indiana the chef used to work next door in Kasmir and left and has opened up 2 doors past the Kashmir, a friend of mine also tried out the Indiana and was well impressed

[kasi]

A good curry house I've tried twice is in Laguna entrance called Indiana the chef used to work next door in Kasmir and left and has opened up 2 doors past the Kashmir, a friend of mine also tried out the Indiana and was well impressed

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'll have to try that one. I think Laguna is a ways from Chalong though.

I too have been very disappointed with the indian food in Phuket.

I look forward to going to bkk just for the indian restaurants.

We need some indian food in the Chalong area.

I can't complain to much because we have so many good restaurants of other persuasions that things don't get too boring.

I'm sitting in hotel in KL right now and the indian food around here is great.

[Simone]

Have you tried Red Chilli? If you head to Rawai from the Chalong Circle you go past a service station called the Lemon Green or Green Lemon, not sure which. Just a little further is a sign with a red chilli on it. The owner is a lovely guy - half Thai half Indian. The food is delicious. It takes quite a while to cook because he starts everything from scratch. I can recommend the onion bajhis (sp?), the dahl and the saag. Yummy!

There is another Indian in Chalong on the road to the pier but it isn't half as good. I'd say it's worse than the stuff we get back home!!

[Sir Burr]

The Red Chilli isn't bad, but, it's nowhere in the league of Indian food available in Malaysia, Singapore, or, the UK. As Mr. Asoke said himself, "it's just ordinary Indian home-cooking".

[LadyinRed]

There is another Indian in Chalong on the road to the pier but it isn't half as good. I'd say it's worse than the stuff we get back home!!

It's called Mr. India. Not quite as tasty as Red Chili's and they charge a cheeky 99 baht for rice!

There is one in Kata, close to Kata Beach Resort (the T-junction road towards going to Chalong, about 20m from the T-junction, left side) which do reasonably good Indian food (no lamb in low season; run by Burmese I think) but for the price it's still a rip off compared to Singapore or Malaysia (even in BKK I think Indian's expensive).

The best place in Phuket so far is in my Indian colleague's house

[Simone]

The best Indian food I have had in Thailand has been in MBK food hall. And the best Indian food I had in KL was in the Petronas Towers food hall. ###### those food halls are good!!

[kasi]

The best Indian food I have had in Thailand has been in MBK food hall. And the best Indian food I had in KL was in the Petronas Towers food hall. ###### those food halls are good!!

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That's where I had lunch yesterday! Very good indeed.

I'll have to give the red chili guy a try. Every-time I've passed there it looks as if they're not open for business.

I tried the place in Nai Harn just past Don's and found them rather disappointing and clueless.

The place(karna sutra?) in downtown phuket has average food at rather pretentious prices.(I resent being charged 180bht for a glass of cheap house wine or the 400bht corkage fee if you bring your own) The service is erratic(one time they brought my appetizers and main courses all at the same time!)(you expect that at a cheaper thai restaurant)

The owner is a very well spoken(obviously well educated) Indian. Nice enough guy but I suspect he makes his money elsewhere and the restaurant is not a main focus of his. Too bad he doesn't go over to Salvatores around the corner and get some tips on how to run a good restaurant. Or got to Bhukaras or the Rang Mahal in BKK.

[Judge]

I too have been very disappointed with the indian food in Phuket.

I look forward to going to bkk just for the indian restaurants.

The Indian restaurants in Bangkok suck too!

Laos and Vietnam have really good ones, but the ones in Thailand are barely acceptable at best.

I can't figure out why?

[solo siam]

Best Indian food I have had in Phuket is from Kharnasutra in Phuket Tow, Its right next to Kra Chock See (sp).

Its not particularly cheap but its a nice restaurant and they do some really nice breads, The Vindaloo is the best although ask for chicken as its better than the mutton (its probably about the same as a hot madras in the UK).

The best breads there are the Poori and the Bathura (sp), One of them is deep fried but is the nicest Indian bread I have eaten anywhere.

The Ali Baba in PATTAYA is excellent, but is no relation to the Ali Baba's in Phuket, which are poor in comparison.

I'd love to start a curry club in Phuket, Where basically everyone just gets together once a fortnight or so and checks out a different Indian Restaurant - Used to do one in the Uk and it was a great laugh.

There used to be a nice Indian in Patong, down near the tailors off one of the beach road sois, Dont know if its still there, that was very nice as well.

[madmitch]

[it may not be the most authentic but try curry night at The Green Man in Chalong, every Friday from 7pm. Very good onion bhajis.

[kasi]

[it may not be the most authentic but try curry night at The Green Man in Chalong, every Friday from 7pm. Very good onion bhajis.

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I've tried the green man curry night. Nothing to write home about. Though the assortment of chutneys was pretty good. The curries themselves were rather british (bland). The cassoulet and the paella on the upstairs menu were really quite excellent.(not cheap though) And they also have some issues regarding their wines. Apparently they only stock wines on consignment from the wine merchants.

It ends up being a dumping ground for wines that don't move.

[kasi]

Best Indian food I have had in Phuket is from Kharnasutra in Phuket Tow, Its right next to Kra Chock See (sp).

Its not particularly cheap but its a nice restaurant and they do some really nice breads, The Vindaloo is the best although ask for chicken as its better than the mutton (its probably about the same as a hot madras in the UK).

The best breads there are the Poori and the Bathura (sp), One of them is deep fried but is the nicest Indian bread I have eaten anywhere.

The Ali Baba in PATTAYA is excellent, but is no relation to the Ali Baba's in Phuket, which are poor in comparison.

I'd love to start a curry club in Phuket, Where basically everyone just gets together once a fortnight or so and checks out a different Indian Restaurant - Used to do one in the Uk and it was a great laugh.

There used to be a nice Indian in Patong, down near the tailors off one of the beach road sois, Dont know if its still there, that was very nice as well.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Is Ali Baba's in Pattaya there on beach rd near mikes mall? Food there was pretty good though a little expensive I thought.

In Patong there is a descent place on Rat-u thit rd opposite the divesupply shop. A Pakistani owner extremely nice fellow as is his family. Food was above average prices cheap and the price of the house wine reasonable.

200 meters south of that one are a couple of really terrible places. I have a horror story for each one.

The place off Bangla rd next to the Islander restaurant has ok food too but again they seem to have issues with their house wine. While the Islander charges 70bht for a nice glass of house wine these guys want 120bht a glass for some undrinkable Italian swill. Not to mention the tailor/owner of the restaurant seems to think he owns the street by parking his fancy car right in front of the restaurant(blocking the rather small street). I eat at the Islander often and witness this behavior frequently.

To be successful in Phuket requires getting many of the little details correct. IMHO. There are many many choices out there. And if you get tired of the tourist rip off places there seem to be a million thai food stands where you can eat well enough for 25-50 bht.

[kasi]

The owner(I think) of the kharna sutra PM'd me and said he is revising his wine list and will be spending more time at his restaurant.

His food is good as is the nice ambiance of his restaurant. I'll have to give them another try soon.

[Sir Burr]

Met the owner (Tommy?) of the Karna Sutra at Nikita Bar a few nights ago. Seems like a nice bloke. Will have to go one day.

Sandeep, the chef at the Green Man left awhile back to go work in the Gulf. I never rated his curries very highly, though, the onion barjis were good.

Personally, I don't think wine is the way to go with Indian food. Beer is much better.

The restaurant next to the Islander is the Navrang Mahal. Total rip-off. After being charged an extortionate amount for a very small bowl of vegetables that was cooked in some curry powder, vowed I would never go back.

I think the reason that there isn't an established Indian food scene in Thailand, is that most Indians don't open restaurants, they do other things. In the UK, the vast majority of restaurants are owned by Bangladeshis and Pakistanis. Not very many reside here in the Kingdom.

[Silent Tiger]

theres 100s to choose from ask any tuk tuk driver or any off the 100s of guys trying to sell you a suit

[Sir Burr]

theres 100s to choose from ask any tuk tuk driver or any off the 100s of guys trying to sell you a suit 

What have tuk-tuk drivers got to do with it? Never seen an Indian tuk-tuk driver in the twenty years I've lived here. As Thais in general don't like indian food, asking a tuk-tuk driver for a recommendation would be futile.

All the tailors touts (mostly Nepalese) don't frequent Indian restaurants. Too expensive for them. They cook and eat at home.

Between the posters that live here, I'm sure most of the indian restaurants have been visited and most of them are over-priced crap.

Your post pretty much proves your ignorance of Phuket in general and how things work here in particular.

Don't know why you have an axe to grind regarding Phuket, but it's getting boring, and no, I don't have a business here.

Edited October 24, 2005 by Sir Burr

[khall64au]

The owner(I think) of the kharna sutra PM'd me and said he is revising his wine list and will be spending more time at his restaurant.

His food is good as is the nice ambiance of his restaurant. I'll have to give them another try soon.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Speaking of Khanasutra:

.... there is a casual social/ networking party there on the last Saturday of each month (starting this Sat 29th at 6.30pm). Will be mostly professional farangs looking to meet up with other farangs who they haven't met yet (It's a big island after all).

A good chance to try the food and meet new people. Maybe I'll see some of you there!

[seonai]

Khana Sutra is the best Indian restaurant I have come across on Phuket. Owner, Billy, is a star - an Indian educated in Hong Kong and Britain - and a great host. The chef is conscious of cholesterol problems etc and makes his delicious food to suit any dietary requirements. I don't think the food prices are too high.... considering a lot of establishments sell fried noodles with a couple of prawns at upwards of 100 baht!!!!!

Check it out. Khana Sutra is a devine experience. The lighting is perfect, the music subtle and suited to the dining mood and the mosiacs, candles and 'secret' reading room are to be savoured. Kama Sutra - well Billy has a private collection of books on the subject.

Seonai

[Patong Bob]

In Patong, the Ali Baba in the Soi off beach Road opposite the Holiday Inn is the best I've found.

Navrang Mahal is the worst restaurant in Phuket (not only the worst Indian).

[bangkokian]

Y'all will have to wait till I open a restaurant, that is if I can count on my lucky stars.

For current operators, I understand that Indian food has to be a little expensive cuz Indian cooking tend to shrink/reduce the volume of the ingredients, particularly the veggies. But, please don't overcharge on rice, esp plain rice (rice expands in the cooking process). Of course, this does not only apply to indian restaurants alone, but many restaurants in LOS these days.

For those who really want to go upsacale, upgrade the decor and ingredients to match the price.

I've notice that Indian restaurants in the U.S. tend to price their food much more reasonably than the operators here. ( Thai restaurants in the U.S. on the other hand tend to be over-priced, as far as my experience is concerned.)

Getting hungrier as I type.

[bangkokian]

The Indian restaurants in Bangkok suck too!

Laos and Vietnam have really good ones--Names of these good restaurants please.. Thanks!

[Jowels]

Sincere thanks to all the curry enthusiasts who have taken the trouble to respond. I'll be in Phuket later this month and will try the Red Chilli, Kharnasutra and Ali Baba's. I'll post a review here and let you know what I think.

In reply to a previous poster, the best curry I've had in BKK was at the Rembrandt hotel's Rang Mahal restaurant. Althpugh it's not cheap, it's widely regaded as the top Indian restaurant in Bangers. It's located in Suk Soi 18.

[bangkokian]

I look forward to reading your reviews.. Yes, Rang Mahal is o.k.(not cheap, but good atmosphere). It is also frequented by Phra Thep. Have you tried Tiffin? Pretty good food, but they can do alot more on the decor side,since the food is not cheap either...may be they already have done so. So which restuarants serve good indian food in Laos and Vietnem?

Sincere thanks to all the curry enthusiasts who have taken the trouble to respond. I'll be in Phuket later this month and will try the Red Chilli, Kharnasutra and Ali Baba's. I'll post a review here and let you know what I think.

In reply to a previous poster, the best curry I've had in BKK was at the Rembrandt hotel's Rang Mahal restaurant. Althpugh it's not cheap, it's widely regaded as the top Indian restaurant in Bangers. It's located in Suk Soi 18.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[avatar]

Had another Mutton Jalfrezi with Bombay Aloo, Pilau Rice and Garlic Nan at Indiana Cafe in Laguna entrance, was the nuts

[jrincon17]

I too have been very disappointed with the indian food in Phuket.

I look forward to going to bkk just for the indian restaurants.

The Indian restaurants in Bangkok suck too!

Laos and Vietnam have really good ones, but the ones in Thailand are barely acceptable at best.

I can't figure out why?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

different spices

[solo siam]

Y'all will have to wait till I open a restaurant, that is if I can count on my lucky stars. 

For current operators, I understand that Indian food has to be a little expensive cuz Indian cooking tend to shrink/reduce the volume of the ingredients, particularly the veggies.  But, please don't overcharge on rice, esp plain rice (rice expands in the cooking process).  Of course, this does not only apply to indian restaurants alone, but many restaurants in LOS these days.

For those who really want to go upsacale,  upgrade the decor and ingredients to match the price. 

I've notice that Indian restaurants in the U.S. tend to price their food much more reasonably than the operators here. ( Thai restaurants in the U.S. on the other hand tend to be over-priced, as far as my experience is concerned.)

Getting hungrier as I type.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Why's chicken Tikka so expensive then?

Its dear because they know they have a niche and can charge a lot for it, I cook a lot of Indian food and its very cheap to cook, probably more so than Thai food TBH. Ingredients mostly Onion, Tomatoe, Garlic, Ginger and spices.

[bangkokian]

Good point about chicken tikka. Been a vegetarian for the most part so forgot about that. Most veggies do shrink a great deal. Yes, the base/gravy seems simple enough, but certain good quality spices are expensive esp. saffron, though I tam pretty sure most restauarnts out here don't use them. For a good hearty, non-oily gravy, you need lots and lots of tomatoes and also quite a bit of spice and sometimes lots of spinach. In the case of paneer dishes, you also need lots and lots of milk. Garbanzo beans, almonds and even cashews, raisins, butter and ghee are relatively expensive here in Thailand compared to ingredients used in Thai food or popular western-style desserts. Many Indian sweets are not made from cheap (rising) flour, but with grounded nuts (Bharfee), cheese (Rasmalai) and sometimes yoghurt and semolina ...lots of shrinking again. Now most birthday (western) cakes here are made from cheap factory-processed flour, and often times artificial flavors and colours and they are expensive. Tiramisu, on the other hand is made from more expensive ingredients, even though the whipping cream and mascarpone cheese don't have to go through the shrinking and cooking process,so it's understandable that it is expensive. Pizzas here are relatively expensive too, even when they are made from locally processed cheese (that shrink somewhat in the cooking process) and other local ingredients.

From my experience outside of Thailand i.e. Eugene, Oregon, the only expensive ingredient for Thai food is fresh organic lemongrass, but thank God that good herb is available cheaply here in the Land of Smiles.

Again, speaking from a Thailand-based vegetarian point of view, I find the ingredients for Indian food (except for dhal) in general to be more expensive than those required for cooking Thai food. Oh yes, Dhal is often given to the needy for free in India, so I urge all restaurants to price this protein dish fairly. Dhal also expands in the cooking process, and since all Indian restaurants I know use the pressure cooker, heating cost associated with traditional slow cooking should not be factored into the price.

Many local restaurants are also overcharging for low quality pasta dishes made from local Best Food brand factory pastas, with watery gravy, but worse are restaurants (fusion, Thai, Indian etc.) charging 30-50 baht for a weeny bit of plain lump of white rice on a plate. O.k. enough for my rant...

Y'all will have to wait till I open a restaurant, that is if I can count on my lucky stars. 

For current operators, I understand that Indian food has to be a little expensive cuz Indian cooking tend to shrink/reduce the volume of the ingredients, particularly the veggies.  But, please don't overcharge on rice, esp plain rice (rice expands in the cooking process).  Of course, this does not only apply to indian restaurants alone, but many restaurants in LOS these days.

For those who really want to go upsacale,  upgrade the decor and ingredients to match the price. 

I've notice that Indian restaurants in the U.S. tend to price their food much more reasonably than the operators here. ( Thai restaurants in the U.S. on the other hand tend to be over-priced, as far as my experience is concerned.)

Getting hungrier as I type.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Why's chicken Tikka so expensive then?

Its dear because they know they have a niche and can charge a lot for it, I cook a lot of Indian food and its very cheap to cook, probably more so than Thai food TBH. Ingredients mostly Onion, Tomatoe, Garlic, Ginger and spices.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[bangkokian]

Just a bit more na... You can actually get cheap indian food at the stalls and shp houses in Phoa Rat, but they are often oily, and may not be hygenic enough for many readers of Thai Visa.

I am quite convinced that in general food in Laos and to some extent Vietnam must be better tasting than what you can get here due to availability of better local ingredients. can't wait to get a taste of Indian and all other food there.

Bon Apetito to all

[thesikh]

Why's chicken Tikka so expensive then?

Its dear because they know they have a niche and can charge a lot for it, I cook a lot of Indian food and its very cheap to cook, probably more so than Thai food TBH. Ingredients mostly Onion, Tomatoe, Garlic, Ginger and spices.

chicken tikka is expensive BECAUSE a real one is cooked in a Tandoor Oven.

These can not be bought at tesco Lotus which uses charcoal to cook the food.

Charcoal in Thailand is a bit on the expensive side.

Chicken Tikka masla, 1st cooked in the Tandoor Oven then cooked in the final masala, is why it is an expensive dish to produce.

You can't make tandoor items at home unless you have a tandoor oven at home.

An Indian restaurant which has any tandoor items on its menu ie Nans, Sheek kebabs, tandoori Chicken etc SHOULD have a Tandoor oven on its premisis.

Otherwise you are being ripped OFF. Sort of like Kashmir restaurant in Lagoona.

His Tandoor sits outside the restaurant collecting cobwebs BUT he has Tandoor items on his menu. That nasty word 'Grill' keeps popping up.