Step inside Scarborough Indian restaurant for good quality food

Nishat Spice has been a fixture of Scarborough's Asian dining scene for many years; unassumingly tucked away from the town centre, at the bottom of Prospect Road and beside Columbus Ravine.On previous visits I've always left feeling satisified, both by the quality and value of the food, but also by the size of the bill '“ which is reduced somewhat by the fact that if you want alcohol you have to take your own.

My latest visit was no different, and equally enjoyable.

I was among a fairly large party which, apart from two other tables, filled the ground-floor restaurant.

The staff were pleasant and accommodating, and soon after sitting down we were handed plates of crunchy poppadoms and pickle trays.

For the purposes of this review I picked out four of the subsequent dishes – to write about the entire order would fill three times the space !

For mains I chose the chicken mackani, which oozed butter, cream and cheese engulfing slices of tender chicken. I added a side of Bombay potatoes and shared a peshwari naan and pilau rice with my dining neighbour, whose chicken tikka masala was equally savoured.

Another of the party started with a vegetable pakora, which was packed with veg and satisfyingly not too greasy, and then opted for two side dishes, plus rice and naan, rather than a main course – sag paneer and dall massala; the former was mainly spinach with small pieces of cheese, but the massala was tasty and plentiful.

The final choice in our immediate group of four was vegetable bhuna with rice and naan – another tasty dish, another clean plate

afterwards.

Portion sizes were spot on, and there were no complaints from up and down the large table. The smiling staff were on hand to serve and clear promptly.

When it came to the bill, which was split equally and included a reasonable tip, I was happy to part with just £13. Good company, good food, and a good night had by all.