For a long time now, I've shied away from Indian food. A couple of nasty encounters in KL (think Delhi belly) left me with a very bad impression and with no desire to eat Indian food again. However, when my uncle made a trip to Oz last year, he invited me out to dinner (with no knowledge of my Indian aversion) and I found myself at Jewel of the Park, a little Indian gem.
So what makes Jewel so good?? Well, firstly (and most importantly), I've eaten there half a dozen times or more now and NOT ONCE have I gotten even a whiff of Delhi belly. So that already places them high in my books!
To review them on all those things that make a dining experience complete though (and in order of importance to me)...
1) Food + flavour
The first time I came here, we had a really helpful waiter (sorry, I've forgotten his name) and from his recommendations and what we've tried since, these are our faves:
** The Chicken 65 is a must! Really nice hot juicy tender chicken pieces, lovely flavour and it even got a thumbs-up from Piggy's Aunty Winnie (and she's an Indian food virgin)!
** Lamb Madras is really tasty and not too spicy.
** The Beef Vindaloo (if you can tank it) is a spicy delight that slowly builds a fire in your belly. Some places have vindaloo which burns straight away; from the moment it touches your tongue, all the way down. Jewel's vindaloo on the other hand, doesn't seem hot at first and so you get a chance to taste the flavours, but the more you eat it the more it starts to burn...
** Palak Paneer - I've only had this once at Jewel, but I would definitely have it again as it balances nicely against all the spicy dishes. If you're not a fan of spinach or cheese though I'd give it a miss!
** Whenever I go, I like to get the Mango lassi (kind of like a yoghurty milkshake). It's very filling, but it tastes great and definitely helps calm the fires of a spicy vindaloo!
** I recommend the naan and Piggy goes for the biryani rice every time!
Just a quick note. I generally keep away from seafood at Indian places because I find the spices too overpowering for the delicate seafood taste. However, meat and potato dishes work fantastically well as they are robust enough to stand up to those Indian spices.
2) Atmosphere & Service
Jewel is nice and bright, has indoor and outdoor seating area. I find service is generally good, although I do sometimes find it hard to get the attention of the waiters once you've ordered. I can't speak for all the staff, but our waiter was really friendly and very knowledgeable about the dishes - he happened to be a Malaysian Indian, originally from JB, and he knew exactly what sorts of dishes would suit our palates!
3) Price
There are definitely economies of scale to be had here. Piggy and I have gone together ($30 a head), in a group of four ($25 a head) and in a group of 10 ($20 a head) -- all times included drinks.
The servings seemed small to us when we first went, but Indian food is somehow very filling and we always struggle to finish our food!! (I have subsequently found that to be the normal serving size at Indian places.)
4) Location
Jewel is on the brightly lit cafe strip of Albany Hwy in East Victoria Park where we have since found a few more food gems. There's plenty of free parking nearby; if you can't find parking directly on Albany Hwy, Park Shopping Centre is right around the corner and there's also lots of street parking down the side roads.
Since Jewel’s positive experience, I have been tempted to try out other Indian eateries. Other than a special mention for The Elephant Hut’s eggplant curry (exceptional!), my favourite Indian place would still have to be Jewel of the Park!!
Posts
Comments (2)
cat this post made me so hungry (and I just finished dinner too)! Mmm. I love beef vindaloo and biryani rice! Will have to check this place out.
hey sonya! yeah, this is one of our favourite places to eat out at, and definitely the best indian! there's a few other nice places in east vic park, but i'll save those for another post...