One of the perks of taking the GO bus on a route that goes through downtown Oshawa is I get to survey the cuisine moving into the city.
Taking over what used to be a subpar Thai restaurant on King Street, just across from the Scotiabank, steps west past Centre Street is Spicy Affairs - a brand-spanking new Indian restaurant. I noticed the grand opening earlier this week and mentioned it to my husband. Tonight we checked it out.
The building itself is old but the owners have done their best to "spice" up the decor. Authentic copper cookware, glass-topped tables and water glasses at the table lend to a fine-dining, Indian experience.
Our server was pleasant, gracious, welcoming and very accommodating. Service was prompt and the food - OH MY GOD - so good. We ordered the Chef's Platter (I would highly recommend it), naan bread, raita, lamb biryani, butter chicken and saag paneer. The Chef's platter came with saag chicken tikka, samosas, paneer tikka and pakora. The paneer (which is like a thick cottage cheese) were large and perfectly spiced. In fact, the level of heat was just perfect all around. The chicken was tender and marinated to perfection. I've eaten Indian from Peel Region to York Region to Durham Region. It truly was one of the best Indian dining experiences I've had in years. The naan was moist yet crispy. It was done the way I like it. No burnt spots although many people like naan served that way. I like mine chewy. If I wanted toast, I'd order toast.
The bill came to $56 which was fair and reasonable for three people. I don't normally use the blog as a means to freely advertise a business but I am a big supporter of local, family-owned businesses setting up shop in Durham Region, especially when it's food. I loves me some food.
Finding good Indian this side of Pickering as been challenging to say the least. There was a place in Oshawa that we used to go to but the food tasted like it was microwaved.
ReplyDeleteThanks for letting us crazy train peeps know. Nothing wrong with a little chat about food. It can't all be about GO Train, GO Train, Go Train. LOL
Drool!!
ReplyDeletePlease stick to reviewing sub-par Shawa restaurants with conditional passes.
ReplyDeleteWha?
ReplyDeleteWhat happened?
I looked it up. It has a full pass, with one infraction at the last inspection which was only a few days ago?
ReplyDeleteYou can see for yourself at www.durham.ca/dinesafe.
I'm looking forward to trying it. Indian is very difficult to find east of Pickering. Unless you make it to Kingston -- there's awesome Indian restaurants there.
So before it opened ... well, I'm not a restaurant industry expert but I would think some things are never perfect right out of the gate.
ReplyDeleteI'm still alive this morning. That must count for something.
I appreciate people taking the time to research the safety of the place. We noticed the green placard on the window before we went in. That's why we opened the door.
I just looked it up. So the pop wasn't cold enough. Meh
ReplyDelete:)
No, seriously, the ratings are important. They made the fix and now they've passed. Good on them! We're going Saturday night.
Want a real scare? Look up Signature Indian Cuisine in Whitby. We used to go there all the time until one day the Chef came in from having a signature and immediately after our samosa smelled like they'd been rolled in an ashtray.
ReplyDeleteHaven't been back since.
http://www.durham.ca/dinesafe/DineSafeInspectionResults.aspx?FacilityID=067-0034
*cigarette
ReplyDeleteDamn auto-correct!
It's okay. I knew what you meant.
ReplyDeleteSaw your comment on the facebook. We were there last night, too. Very good! Also saw the green pass. Not sure what the issue is?
ReplyDeleteI think ExGO is jealous. Too far away for him!
ReplyDeleteExGOTTC raises a point. People never think to check for previous infractions but the place is too new.
ReplyDeleteThai King was a dump. Looking at this place's Facebook page, you can see how they had their work cut out for them to bring that place to an acceptable standard.
Sorry Golden Thai (had Thai King on the brain).
ReplyDeleteIt actually was a crack at the many shitty dining establishments in the fair city of Oshawa.
ReplyDeleteS'ok Ex. It was still a good crack because it reminds people to check before they eat. :)
ReplyDelete