My visit to Rajah Indian restaurant in Inverness was magical in every sense.
The fact that it is the longest established Indian restaurant in the Highlands – it opened in 1982 – inspired me to select it for my first P&J review.
I visited the restaurant with the best company possible, my girlfriend, on a dark and freezing Sunday night.
As we were chilled to the bones, we were craving something warm, and the staff at Rajah gave us the warmest welcome possible.
After descending an elegant staircase, a waiter offered to hang up our coats for us, which was a lovely touch.
Enchanted by the atmosphere and decoration, we were accompanied to our table.
The restaurant was fairly busy for a Sunday night, but our table was in a nice, quiet corner.
It was time to decide what to eat but it took me longer than usual due to the huge variety on the menu.
We decided to go for a wide range of dishes to try a bit of everything, three starters and two mains.
We were not disappointed.
Out-of-this-world onion bhaji and delicious prawn puri at Rajah Inverness
We kicked off with a plate of onion bhaji (£6.95) and prawn on puri (£7.95) – spicy prawns in fried Indian bread.
We also ordered some mixed pakora (£7.95) (as we could not decide between chicken and vegetable).
I really liked the taste and crunchiness of the onion bhaji.
My girlfriend had tried it many times, and she said it was the best she had ever had.
The prawn puri was delicious, very moist and with a slight spicy punch.
I thought the prawns were a bit hard, but my girlfriend disagreed: to her, they were on point.
Meanwhile, the pakoras were my least favourite appetizer, not because there was anything wrong with them, but I didn’t think they were anything out of the ordinary either.
All starters came with with a wee lettuce and tomato salad on the side.
‘Best curry ever’ but ‘disappointing’ naan bread
Although our starters were satisfying, we definitely still had room for the mains.
My girlfriend ordered a Lamb Tikka Mahonwala (£14.95) while I went for the Chicken Rogan (£12.95).
We were not shy and asked for pilau rice (£3.50), plain naan (£3.50) and garlic naan (£3.95) too.
I found the Rogan incredibly tasty with a refreshing herbal aroma.
I particularly enjoyed the big chunks of tomato, which went very well with the chicken, supplying the dish with a juicy kick.
The sauce was light and creamy, but there was still a slight heat to it.
Meanwhile, the lamb on the Mahonwala was extremely tender.
The sauce, containing coconut milk and cheese, was heavier than mine, but delicious, nonetheless.
My girlfriend and I have had many curries in the many years we’ve been together, and she said this was the best one she has ever eaten.
Not much I can add to that. High praise indeed!
The fantastic mains were accompanied with pilau rice, which great too, however, not everything was up to those standards.
As a bread lover, we found both the garlic and plain naan a bit disappointing.
We both thought these were quite hard, as opposed to the soft, fluffy consistency we’ve come to expect at Indian restaurants.
But that did not spoil the overall experience, which was one to remember.
Finally, we were so full after the generous portions that we had no space left for dessert.
Hopefully we’ll try them on our next visit, as we definitely want to come back!
Verdict:
After hearing so many good things about Rajah, it was time for me to try it out, and it did not disappoint.
The food is of a really high standard, with good quality, fresh ingredients.
Maybe the continued success of the restaurant is down to their award-winning chef, Kabir Hussein, who has been preparing great dishes for 42 years, ever since the restaurant opened in the Highland Capital.
It is not possible to have nicer staff than they do.
Special mention to our waiter, Sadiq, who made the evening even more unforgettable.
Scores:
Food: 4/5
Service: 5/5
Surroundings: 5/5
Information:
Address: 2 Post Office Ave, Inverness IV1 1DN
Tel: 01463 237190
W: https://www.rajahinverness.com/
Price: £70.55 for three starters, two mains and sides.
Disabled access: No.
Dog friendly: No, except for guide dogs.
Read our other restaurant reviews online here, or every Saturday in The Press and Journal’s food and drink magazine, The Menu.
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