The Spice of Life in Inverurie was a go-to restaurant for special occasions growing up.
I was brought along by family friends around ten years ago, and it was likely one of my first tastes of great Indian food.
Now, having recently moved back to Aberdeen, I was keen to find out if the restaurant still had that spark.
Accompanied by my parents and boyfriend, we set out on a Friday evening to Inverurie, hungry for some good curry.
The Spice of Life, Inverurie, is cosy, friendly and nostalgic
With a drizzle starting outside, we were delighted by the warm and inviting reception at the Indian restaurant.
The venue has clearly been remodelled since my last visit, but it still has a certain homely charm to it.
But with black and yellow accents in the décor, the restaurant is simultaneously elegant.
The staff seat us at a table by the window, and are friendly and attentive immediately.
The menu is huge – usually a bit of a red flag in my eyes – but this makes it easy for each of us to find something that we fancy.
Our starters weren’t just pretty
After the usual round of popadums (£3.96) and their delicious tray of chutneys (£1.80), our starters arrive.
We’re all surprised by just how nicely these are plated.
Three out of four starters are arranged on the plate with pretty smears and dollops sauces – even the herbs are expertly placed.
Possibly with chef tweezers à la The Bear.
Sometimes, though, pretty presentation doesn’t indicate a tasty meal.
Restaurant can use a food’s appearance to hide its unsatisfactory taste.
But I’m happy to say that this is simply not the case at Spice of Life.
My dad surprised us all by choosing a veggie option. But he was intrigued by the aloo brie (£5.75).
This was an unusual but delicious dish.
Reminiscent of arancini (Italian stuffed rice balls), these breaded flavour bombs were packed with smooth mashed potato and brie cheese.
The filling was nice and salty, and the breadcrumb casing was crispy.
My mum’s starter, the veg combo for one (£5.96), went down a treat too.
There was heaps of variety in this – which was great for the affordable price tag.
My boyfriend chose the crispy chicken in a hot garlic sauce (£6.50).
This was tangy, sweet and spicy, and paired well with the green dollops of a creamy, garlic sauce.
And I went for the chilli prawns (£6.95).
My starter was faultless. The portion was generous, and there were plenty of prawns.
The crunch of cashews added a lovely variety in texture too.
The prices of these starters were excellent, considering starters at some restaurants these days are often around £12.
Although as I said a big menu usually makes me a bit wary – as it can often mean meals are pre-cooked or frozen – these dishes tasted freshly made.
Spice of Life review: Were our mains equally delicious or disappointing?
Again, the prices of the mains were very affordable.
My mum’s main was venison chettinad (£16.45). This was another surprising but delicious dish.
There was a smooth, creamy texture to this plate, loaded with softened, silky veg and tender venison.
My dad ordered chicken tikka Ceylon (£12.95). This was the perfect mixture of spicy and creamy, and made for perfect dunking with the chapati.
I had to go for my favourite dish at an Indian restaurant, chicken korma (£11.95).
Sometimes the taste of this can be off. I’ve been at an Indian restaurant which shall not be named where the korma sauce was incredibly salty, and tasted more like a can of Heinz cream of chicken soup.
But my korma at Spice of Life did not disappoint.
It was smooth, sweet and balanced. The tender chunks of chicken were full of flavour, bathed in their creamy, coconut sauce.
The glacé cherry on top did little to stifle allegations from the table that I’d ordered a desert for my main.
And my boyfriend, Michael, had the North Indian jalfrezi, with lamb (£13.95). The meat was tender and succulent, in a rich, tomato-based sauce.
We ordered three rice to share mushroom rice (£4.95), coconut rice (£4.95) and palak rice (£4.95).
Each of these were fluffy and flavourful, with my favourite being the coconut rice, which paired deliciously with my sweet main.
Verdict:
Our visit to Spice of Life confirmed that the Aberdeenshire Indian restaurant hasn’t lost that spark.
The staff were efficient and saw to our every need, even though the restaurant became pretty crowded later into the evening.
The prices really were excellent, and very affordable for the high standard of these dishes.
15-year-old Joanna who was wowed by a proper curry ten years ago would undoubtedly still be impressed by Spice of Life, and so am I.
Information:
Address: 56 Market Pl, Inverurie AB51 3XN
Tel: 01467 621144
W: https://www.spiceoflifeinverurie.com/
Disabled access: Yes.
Dog-friendly: No.
Price: £122.65 for four starters, four mains, popadums, naan breads, chapati and three rice.
Scores:
Food: 5/5
Service: 4/5
Surroundings: 4/5
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