Restaurant review: Jewel in the Crown in Aberdeen is a diamond of an Indian restaurant

By Julia Bryce

June 2 2022, 6:00 am

Some of the dishes.

You know those restaurants you only ever visit for a special occasion?

The ones where you don’t seem to return for ages and then when you do, you have a word with yourself and say ‘I need to visit here more often’.

That is Jewel in the Crown for me.

This Aberdeen restaurant on Crown Street has been the centre of many a celebration in my life. Whether it was friends’ birthdays, promotions, or even an end of exam period night out, the Jewel in the Crown was the place.

It is familiar to me. It is comfortable and reliable, and always puts a smile on my face. The staff are friendly, and their immediate welcoming grins are infectious. The kind you find yourself cheesing back to.

Jewel in the Crown

My boyfriend and I were celebrating some positive news and there was only one place I wanted to take him. He enjoys a good curry, and although pizza is his go-to, Indian felt like the better option.

I’d phoned earlier in the week to book for Friday at 7.30pm.

My hand clutched the phone tightly when the man on the other end said he was going to check their availability. There’s something about someone having the power to make or break your night that is slightly nerve-wracking. But luckily he could fit us in.

The sign marking the restaurant’s entrance.

Jewel in the Crown is on the basement level. A black iron gate with large signage indicates the entrance and a short stairway down leads you to the front door.

Immediately the burning incense hit as I inhaled and walked in. The restaurant looked oddly familiar. I couldn’t put my finger on it at first. The same chairs, same tables and same layout presented itself. But something was different. Something had changed.

“It’s the walls,” I exclaimed. My boyfriend’s face was consumed with confusion. “The walls have changed colour, they’re blue now, not red.”

The food

My eureka moment was quickly followed by one of the team seating up and then bringing some poppadoms and condiments to the table.

My boyfriend’s Cobra Indian beer was refreshing and crisp, and went well with the lime pickle which he loved. I’m more of a plum or mango chutney fan and prefer the sweeter dips. The fresh chopped onion was sharp but it subsided quite quickly when paired with the chutney, although I feared for the poor man who would take our order.

The menu used to be a huge big leather book but that had been replaced with a smaller A4 piece of paper, which I can only presume is because of the pandemic.

Murg chat had piqued my dining partner’s interest, and the king prawn puri sounded perfect. Prawns spiced with medium hot sauce served on Indian bread. Yes please.

The bread was in fact a softer poppadom and had air bubbles in it similar to its harder counterpart. We dipped the bread into the tangy, tomato sauce and forked out the large prawns one by one.

The chat was made with chicken and was in a hot and sour sauce. It was probably my favourite of the two. It was a substantial portion, too, with juicy chicken and fragrant spices.

For mains it was the murg gulshan that made the cut pretty quickly, while I took forever to decide on the lamb pasanda.

I’d asked the waiter what his thoughts were on a few dishes and he suggested they added extra heat to the pasanda as a compromise. I was sold.

The meat was cooked perfectly. It was soft, full of flavour and there was plenty of it. There was larger chunks of meat, rather than smaller pieces, which I much prefer.

My boyfriend’s murg gulshan was a Tandoor dish. He hadn’t quite realised it would be a more dry dish (without sauce) and had realised that maybe a naan wasn’t the best side.

However, he certainly made the most of it and the chicken was so incredibly succulent and juicy. You could tell it had been finished on the grill with the grill marks present, but the chicken was phenomenal, which says a lot about the chef’s skill as chicken isn’t the most exciting of meats.

The spices and light sauce drizzled on top added to the flavour and the grilled onions were a welcome addition.

While the wall colours may have changed, the size of the naan bread most certainly has not.

For those who have never experienced them, they are huge. Hanging over the basket when they arrived, my peshwari version looked incredible. Desiccated coconut and pieces of sliced almond were placed on top, and the garlic naan looked just as delicious with garlic butter drizzled over it and coriander sprinkled on top.

We struggled to finish them and were glad we hadn’t ordered rice. I much prefer dipping my naan into a curry than filling myself up with rice.

Service throughout had been great, with the team checking in every course and refreshing our drinks when needed.

We couldn’t have asked more of them and while the restaurant was a little quieter when we first arrived, it had certainly picked up by the time we were on our way out.

The verdict

Jewel in the Crown is a real diamond in Aberdeen’s food and drink scene.

Not only has the family business been around for decades, which is a testament to its success, but the quality of the food has remained consistent since I first graced the restaurant at 15.

Every time I visit the warming ambiance completely consumes me. The familiarity of it all makes me feel safe, even when it does throw the odd surprise at me (I’m talking about those walls), but my one pitfall would have to be the interior.

While they have definitely given it a lick of paint since I was last there, I think brightening the place up a bit and bringing some artwork into the space might just be the golden ticket.

I really need to get back there more often…