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Indian
food fans in and around Kingston upon Thames were granted an early
Christmas wish with the opening of Roz Ana meaning 'come back every day'.
Occupying the
site on Kingston Hill near Kingston Hospital previously enjoyed by
Café Rouge, the restaurant is welcoming and elegant with
modern décor and a relaxed atmosphere. If the quality of the
team is a major factor for success then Roz Ana will soon be amongst
the awards.
The
restaurant is the brainchild of an experienced City accountant
supported by a kitchen team headed by Deepinder Sondhi of the stylish
Chor Bizarre, Sitaraay and Tamarai. He is supported by an ex Chef de
Partie from Michelin starred Tamarind providing a powerful team whose
abilities are reflected in the delicate spicing and presentation of
the food.
Front of
house is under the guidance of Winston who, himself, has 12 years
experience as a chef plus managerial experience in such prominent
outlets as Slug & Lettuce, All Bar One and Fine Line before
becoming a restaurant chain general manager.
But what
about the food? Scallops are simple to prepare and equally as simple
to ruin so we had to check out the Roz Ana effort as a hint to the
kitchen's spicing abilities. 10 out of 10 - gentle spicing and nicely
seared on the outside yet soft and succulent within - what a start!
The pakora with spinach and cheese also gets the thumbs up as does
the aloo dish with tangy tamarind.
We tried a
selection of dishes for main course and the prawn dish was the star
with wonderful spicing that left the palate tingly nicely. Deepinder
seemed to approve of our selection but said we really ought to try
his signature dish, soft shell crab. How right he was. The crab was
cooked to perfection and the dry spicing just perfect and even the
one amongst us who normally hates crab agreed that it was wonderful.
The meal wound up with a Darjeeling Crème Brulee putting the
seal on a first class experience.
Roz Ana is a
success waiting to happen. Local fans have obviously found it already
as the restaurant was quite full, but one gets the feeling it is
still in the settling-in phase, like a thoroughbred horse champing at
the bit at the start of an important race. For me the wine glasses
(Hock style) are a little too big and the staff, enthusiastic rather
than stylish, but these are minor observations. The main thing is the
food is wonderful and with a kitchen team such as theirs, who knows
what heights can be reached. Undoubtedly a contender for Newcomer of
the Year.
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