Royal Deli

Hallo there, The Royal Deli has been the curry house of choice in PE for many years. When it first opened its doors the Grinch and I were regulars and then laziness crept in and take-outs from this delicious spot became the norm however after an energizing hike we went to feed our faces at the imporium. The decor has much improved since I was last in the spot and it is looking very upmarket. The menu has also been added to which was a delight to me as the takeouts have alway been the Royal Deli special which is mutton curry with potato. So after quizzing the menu, the Grinch and I decided to share a fishcake starter. When the Grinch first mentioned fishcakes I honestly thought "Oh no what's Indian about fishcakes" Wait until you eat them. These fishcakes are H. O. T. Hot! Not for the faint hearted. You definately need to ply on the sweet chilli sauce to cool the damn things down.5 small fishcakes were served as the starter so a word of advice - share unless you want to leave off the main meal. The starter is enough to have as a bar snack and feel full enough not to need a main. For the main, Grinch went for the usual Royal Deli special - mutton curry. I venture out to try the Madras Lamb Curry. This is superb! Just meat and sauce,no potatoes or other bits. Its served with rice and pomperdoms and of course the sambals. Sambals consist of chopped banana, chopped, fresh tomato and onion mixed together, chutney and some other intersting bits apparently called chevron. Now I'm not one for pmpadoms, I find them far too oily and bland however, last night I added a hint of salt and found that they improved vastly. (maybe that was the trick of the 2nd glass of wine.) When the Grinch sampled my fare he declared it a winner and from now on the Lamb Madras would be our stample take-out. Having said that I am sure that you have deduced that the Mutton Curry did not live up to expectation and was reassigned to the medioca catagory. Do book. This place was humming yesterday. They do have a smoking section, which is where we sat. The smoking section is in the pub area so when, like last night, theres a huge crowd at a birthday bash one feels like a bit of an intruder and when they leave and you'r left sitting stock-siel-aleen it is a bit in the eyes. Next time I'll sit in the restaurant and Grinch will have to smoke the electic thingy. The evening passed plesantly. The food is good, priced perfectly. The service is efficient and friendly. The owner is hands on and that does make a differnece especially when he takes time out to chat to you. This is a place you recommend without hesitation. It does cater for those non-curry guests serving both steak and fish.

Apron Strings

Hallo there, Apron String's is an age old PE favourite, one happy place. Nothing more pleasant than sitting in the baking hot sun under a shady tree, kids playing at the "Bottom" of the garden were than can be seen and not quiet so easily heard sipping a cup of your favourite brew and ensuring that you partake of enough sugar to see you through the next bout of child minding. The tarts,cakes and scone are delicious espically when accompained by the strawberrry jam. Apron Strings was once known for its strawberry fields and home made strawberry bakes. Things have changed a bit but it still remains a good place for a family outing. The lunch menu is sparse and the meals a bit medioca. K and I had toasted samies, chicken mayo and a tomato and cheese,no extra bits like a few chips (get that at the Wimpy) or a light side salad (most coffee shops) and definately lacking in salt. We both felt our lunch would have been better if we had made it at home. The Grinch went for the Liver pate. He remarked that it was ok but nothing to write home about. My boets kids that we were entertaining enjoyed a vienna and chippies. I couldn't resist - for the sake of the blog - I sampled a chip and found it to be dissapointing, flowery and on the oily side so lunch can do with improvement. Tea time treats are a different matter altogether. K had the Apple Strudel - wonderful she said. The Grinch went for an all time favourite of his, Lemon Merangue. He commented that it was good. I went for a scone and lapped it up with strawberry jam and cream. We all remarked at the end of our day that we would be back for tea at a later date. The service is efficient, but don't expect things to be done in a hurry, it's not that kind of place.