They have a media screen near the bar at Asha’s, for all of the famous people that pass through the doors. Ed Sheeran, Tom Cruise and his entourage of chicken tikka masalas, Ronnie Wood, Bollywood stars, KISS, Dawn French, and Liz Truss amongst but a few. Cliff Richard was happy to pose for a picture with a lithe member of staff, whilst singer P!nk has her own cocktail. I make small talk with the excellent front of staff whilst that ‘Get The Party Started’ cocktail arrives. He wasn’t there for P!nk but he was for Tom Cruise. Incredibly nice he was too. No special treatment and a seat inside the restaurant. Him and all the team masked-up and had a lovely time.
So a standard curry house it’s not, even if the large menu is relatable throughout. There’s poppadoms to start, with four chutneys: chilli and mint, chilli sauce, the most remarkable mixed pickle, and papaya. Then a platter of kebabs, each cooked by the silhouetted chefs in one of the two tandoors. Two excellent types of chicken; a spritely tikka and a more subtle malai, softly scented and allowing the quality of the meat to shine. Fat, ten-a-day smokey prawns, and seekh kebabs, finely minced and heavy on ginger and black pepper. A superb start, albeit a filling one. The kebabs here are genuinely as good as it gets.
I had the chicken tikka masala for mains. Had to, didn’t I, though only one given they are £24.75. I can see why Tom had two. It’s everything the dish should be but never is. Rich, creamy, sauce with a hint of clove. Big chunky bits of marinated chicken. It’s decadent, a little brash. They should put this in a tux and picture it in front of the media screen. Sophie has the crab bhurjee, a dry-ish curry of white meat bound in curried brown meat. It’s full-on, so much so that it almost needs the rice to temper it down. Breads, including a delicate romali roti, are extremely good. It’s all extremely good.
Now, the only sticking point in the meal. It’s not cheap. Quite the opposite in fact, Asha’s is now in the price point of special occasions. The crab was roughly the same price as the tikka masala, the rice £8, breads a fiver each. The kebab platter is £43, and if you order two cocktails like we did they arrive in a treasure chest for another £46. Without including the wine or poppadoms it all adds up to a significant spend. But it’s excellent. Right now easily the best of the high end curries of Birmingham. And food this good should cost, regardless of the antiquated perception that curry should be cheap. As we leave with the last of the meal boxed-up for the following day they say they hope to see us soon. Oh you will, maybe more than you hope for.
9/10
