Pondicherry, Ironbridge

Star rating: ****

What could be better on a cold February night than enjoying some warm Indian cuisine? In fact, we had been thinking for some time of trying the Pondicherry restaurant in Ironbridge.

The restaurant opened about a year in the Old Police Station and has built up something of a reputation for its Indian cuisine, described as offering a new twist on traditional cooking.

I was also intrigued to see what had been done to the Victorian building to give it a contemporary feel.

So on a Sunday night I set off with my husband, Bill, to sample some fine dining, Indian style.

The old building has been given a new look, with glass panels now enclosing the front of the building, and we were welcomed into the downstairs cafe bar.

We were then shown into a comfortable lounge, with black leather chairs and very modern round white tables. The room, complete with cast-iron Victorian fireplace, has been given a real up-to-date feel.

I have to say I was a little concerned that we might be the only people venturing out on such a cold night - and a Sunday to boot, but there were a few other diners already mulling over the menu with a drink.

The friendly waitress produced a drinks list and menus and duly left us for a minute to choose some wine. Having got our wine, we settled down to studying the wide-ranging menu.

Choices made, we were soon shown to our table in the restaurant upstairs.

This had been the old courtroom and we had been there for Sunday tea under a previous ownership. And what a transformation there had been - it is no longer full of Victorian atmosphere, but is a comfortable and elegant dining room, with Pondicherry’s iconic logo, a depiction of the Iron Bridge, on a huge mirror and some striking paintings by Rod Willis.

Seated at our table, our starters soon arrived. I plumbed for the char grilled salmon tikka, marinated and roasted in mustard oil (£5.75) and I was not disappointed.

A good-sized portion for a starter, the salmon was moist and full of flavour, the tikka seasoning combining well with the chargrilled tasted.

It came with delicious baby sweetcorns, treated in the same way.

Bill’s choice was the cheese, garlic and herb mushroom pakora (£3.95). These were also full of flavour, but he was a little disappointed in there being only three. He was just getting to enjoy them when they were gone.

A nice touch was the fruit that came with the salad on the side.

For my main course I had stuck with my favourite, lamb shank (£15.95), but this was of course lamb shank with a difference.

It was marinated in yoghurt, cumin, and coriander, then roasted and basted in a saffron gravy.

Bill’s choice was the pasanda firdous, which he chose to have with king prawns (£15.95), grilled in a tandoor and served in a coconut cream sauce with flaked almonds.

It can also be ordered with chicken or lamb. As with such meals, it is good to share and the portions were more than ample.

The lamb was moist and tender and had in fact been stripped from the bone. It offered enough zing to set my mouth tingling without setting it on fire.

But the pasanda proved to be a little too sweet and rich for our tastes. However, Bill was very impressed with the meaty and juicy king prawns.

Of course, to do justice to the sauce we had ordered some garlic naan (£3.80). I find the naan that we normally buy from the supermarket to go with curry at home, is so stodgy that I eat very little of it.

But this was light, with a crispy edge, and still soft enough to fold and scoop up my lamb sauce. There was probably enough for four but the two of us saw it off.

The meal came with a pyramid of flavoursome pilau rice and a garnish of salad and, yes, more fruit.

A nice touch as we pondered whether we wanted a dessert was two wedges of a juicy orange, which cleansed the pallet for a sweet.

On reflection we should probably have passed on dessert, already being pretty full, but we were keen to do justice the full range of meals on offer.

So Bill plumbed for the Ras Malai, a rich creamy, desert, with paneer, nuts and saffron.

I chose the Gajar Ka Haiwa, a sort of fudge made with carrots, nuts and honey.

While very tasty, the carrot desert was a little sweet for me, and as a dessert it was just too large a portion to finish off.

Bill manfully ate most of his pudding, but decided that he would rather have had more of the starter and less of the sweet. We decided to forego the coffee and finished off our wine, an Argentinian fruity red (£14.95), in an unhurried manner, while we paid the bill of just over £73.

The restaurant boasts a considerable range of dishes. We had in fact considered sharing, as our starter, The Pondicherry mixed BBQ special for two £9.95. This is made up of chicken tikka, spicy wings, seekh kebab, lamb chops, fried onions, mushrooms and raddichio leaves. But we really did think that might be just a little too much - even for us.

And as well as the chef’s signature dishes, it also offers tandoor dishes, served on a sizzling platter, with rice and curry sauce, from £8.95, and a range of biryani dishes, from £9.95.

It also has “old favourites”, chicken, lamb and prawns madras, bhunna, rogan, jalfrezi, or vindaloo style, and some English staples, like steak and fish and chips, but that really would be defeating the point.

It was a pleasant and relaxed evening, although I suspect there would be rather more atmosphere on a busier night. The staff were friendly and welcoming and the service was efficient, with just enough checks on whether everything was to our satisfaction.

With chef Sanjeev Kumar, the aim of The Pondicherry is to offer “innovative cooking” combining “eastern flavours with a western twist” and it certainly did that.

By Shirley Scott

MENU SAMPLE:

Starters: Tikka Murg or Gosht, with either chicken or lamb

Main courses: Pondicherry Kebab; Dal platter (Vegetarian Dish)

Sides: Tarka Daal

ATMOSPHERE: We visited on a quiet Sunday night. But the restaurant had been fully booked on the previous Saturday night.

Service: Good. Staff friendly and efficient, without being obtrusive.

Disabled Facilities: Facilities to the actual dining area are restricted as it is a listed building, but has groundfloor toilets and cafe bar area.

CONTACT: Pondicherry, Waterloo Street, Ironbridge (01952) 433055