Last updated at 12:47, Wednesday, 19 September 2012

LIVING next to Manchester's famous curry mile for four years as a student means I have sampled a variety of Asian dishes from some of the best Indian restaurants in the UK.

So, when my partner and I decided to visit Taste Of Balti, in Ulverston last Friday night, the food had a lot to live up to. Situated on Market Street, in the centre of town, Taste Of Balti offers Bangla cuisine to eat in or take away.

Serving food right up to midnight, the restaurant is in the perfect location for a bite to eat after a few drinks in the nearby pubs.

But with a busy weekend ahead, we reserved a table for the more reasonable time of 8pm. Arriving at the popular eatery we noticed that the majority of tables were already occupied, and were instantly relieved we had booked in advance.

Being a few minutes early a friendly waiter led us to the waiting area for a drink and a glance over the menu, while we waited for our table to become available.

As with many Indian restaurants, the decor at Taste of Balti is bright and vibrant, decorated with multi-coloured chairs and interesting art work.

And despite the small restaurant seeming to cram in as many tables as possible, the atmosphere still managed to feel intimate, with dim lighting, authentic music and welcoming waiters.

After a thorough look over the extensive menu, we both agreed that there were a few dishes we fancied and struggled to narrow it down to two options.

Eventually my partner decided on the Garlic chicken (£7.95), I opted for my favourite Indian dish, Tandoori chicken tikka masala (£7.95) and we ordered a garlic naan (£2.25), mushroom rice (£2.45) and a few poppadoms (55p each) and pickles (50p per person) to share.

After placing our order, a tray of pickles and poppadoms was brought instantly to the table, giving us something to nibble on while we waited for our meals.
When choosing a curry it can sometimes be tricky to know exactly what to opt for. But the waiters at Taste of Balti were extremely helpful, explaining how hot each dish was and recommending a few new dishes to try in the future.

A short wait later and our meals arrived, beautifully presented but a little smaller than we had expected. However, the disappointing size was instantly forgotten as soon as we dug in.

My Tandoori chicken was served in a mild, yet extremely flavoursome, rich sauce, which was far more filling that it looked. And my partner was just as pleased with his choice. “This is the best curry I have ever tasted” he proclaimed, while tucking into his Garlic chicken. And after having a taste myself, I had to agree.

The tender chicken was nestled amongst a mouthwatering medium hot sauce, and as garlic lovers we were excited to see plenty of full garlic cloves, to give the dish an extra kick.

Not wanting any of the sauce to go to waste we used the large naan and tasty rice to mop all of the leftover curry.

With the bill coming to £32 including drinks, we were both in agreement that Taste Of Balti was extremely good value for the quality of food we received – in fact we enjoyed our meals that much we are already planning to return this weekend.

First published at 14:34, Tuesday, 18 September 2012
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk