Went for a bite to eat tonight at the India House in Cam. Earlier posts and comments regarding Indian food in England continue to resonnate. I tried a chicken curry; which tasted gritty and sugar cane like sweet. The one upside to the meal was the King Fisher on the menu which I happened to order... We have not yet covered the history of beer in India and pale ales and we will certainly get to that - which should be exciting! There is nothing like a good Kingfisher on a hot day, or to accompany a less than desirable meal. The beer orignates from a handful of small breweries in South Indian. The oldest, Castle Breweries, dates back to 1857. In 1915 the breweries were combined under the United Brewery label. The beers remain popular in Madras and other locations. The lore is that the beer was particularly popular with Brittish troops stationed in India. When we cover beers in more detail we'll also go in to khaki pants and India as well as what it means to "cut the mustard." I am starting to think the tolerance for sub-par Indian food in England is partially influenced by the abundance of drinkable and often delightful beers (which I understand some consider a food group by itself). L'Chaim.
Lisa will be making some posts this week while I'm in the UK on more eatable and interesting food things :)
Gah! Michael! India House is hopeless. While you were contending with gritty curry you were, unfortunately, only two doors away from some of the best Indian food in Cambridge. Rice Boat (same street, just walk in the opposite direction from the pub on the millpond), is a Keralan place doing some very authentic Southern Indian stuff. Small portions, but excellent nosh.
ReplyDeleteWhen you're unencumbered by exams and you have a free evening here, we'll drag you down Mill Road to the Calcutta Club - I think you'll find it much more to your taste.