Cinnamon, Pelsall

I consider myself to be a bit of a connoisseur when it comes to sampling Indian food. The Cinnamon Indian restaurant, definitely fits into the excellent category.

I consider myself to be a bit of a connoisseur when it comes to sampling Indian food and have dined at poor, good and what I consider to be excellent restaurants.

The Cinnamon Indian restaurant, in Wolverhampton Road, Pelsall, definitely fits into the excellent category. I spent an evening this week sampling the fabulous delights of the Cinnamon.

Shaque Zakaria and three partners opened the restaurant in January last year. It was formerly a pub but they have since spent £200,000 modernising the restaurant and adding a touch of class to its interior. The decor is modern, light and welcoming with a relaxing ambience.

In many cases a plush restaurant will come with inflated prices but we found this not to be the case at the Cinnamon.

The prices were comparable to more downmarket restaurants and Mr Zakaria said keeping prices down for customers is important.

The quality of food on offer must be attributed to the head chef who has brought his expertise and knowledge of Indian food to the Cinnamon from Bangladesh.

Many of the dishes on offer, including the chefs specialities, are often closely guarded secrets but home made spices and the very freshest ingredients eyes are the recipe to success at the Cinnamon.

The menu has a wide and varied selection of dishes available and the problem is not lack of choice but too much choice.

There is a huge selection of curries available and as well as chicken and lamb dishes there is a wide selection of fish dishes to choose from as well. The vegetarian diner is also well catered for.

For starters my friend and I shared a celebration mixed starter priced £4.50 which consisted of a vegetable samosa, onion bhaji and mixed kebab.

I like a hot dish so Mr Zakaria recommended chicken nagarshari which originates from Bangladesh for my main course. The dish consists of marinated chicken, with a combination of tandoori spice and other home made spices cooked in a clay oven. The cost was £7.95.

I have to say, chicken nagarshari was one of the tastiest curries I have ever sampled in any restaurant. I like my curries fairly hot and this was just right. The taste was delicious.

My friend prefers milder curries and Mr Zakaria recommended to her one of the chef's specialities chicken anarkali.

The chicken is stuffed with mince lamb and cooked in a clay oven. It is then fried in batter and cooked in a special homemade sauce. Once again she commented about how tasty the dish was. We also shared pilau rice and naan bread.

For pudding I chose sylhet star which consisted of nougat ice cream with a caramel type base and tasted delicious.

My friend chose the dessert Fantastica which was a combination of ice-creams with a biscuit base. Both cost £3.50.

There was a wide selection of wines available on the list all of which were well priced. Beers are cheap compared to other Indian restaurants I've visited, with lager and bitter at £2 a pint and bottles priced at £1.85. The service at the Cinnamon is second to none. The staff are polite and friendly and the food arrives in good time.

The restaurant also has a takeaway menu with a home delivery service available and has CCTV on its spacious car park.

The Cinnamon restaurant is excellent and I would fully recommend it to people who love their Indian food. I will certainly be going back there again.

ADDRESS:

The Cinnamon, Wolverhampton Road, Pelsall

Tel: 01922 685550

By Andy Richardson