Review: Aberdeen's 8848 is worth climbing a mountain for

We have been climbing a mountain lately to try to find a decent curry.

Everything we end up ordering seems a bit bland and somewhat less than satisfactory. Maybe our tastebuds are more fussy as my wife and I get older; I just don’t know.

Now, at last, we have found what we were looking for. And it was at the top of a really big mountain – the biggest in fact.

We came to rest at 8848 metres or around 29,000 feet.

In other words, the Nepali-Indian restaurant known as 8848 in Union Street, Aberdeen. Named after the height of the biggest mountain on Earth – Mount Everest in the Himalayas.

Or Sagarmatha in Nepal and Chomolungma in Tibet, as it’s also known in this region of the world.

We discovered after our visit that it also occupied a lofty position in the pecking order of local curry restaurants – as one of the best you will find.

8848 Restaurant

It soon became obvious to us that 8848 has a large number of loyal followers. It was a good job we booked in advance for our Friday night treat.

We were early – our table was reserved for 6pm – but within an hour or so it was heaving with diners.

But it didn’t seem overcrowded because there was something very deceptive about this place. It was a kind of Tardis effect from Dr Who.

From the street it looks quite small. But once inside it stretches back as far as the eye can see to the kitchens in the distance, and with a high ceiling it has enough space to breathe – so it doesn’t feel overcrowded even when busy.

There was also a large flight of stairs to overflow seating on the next floor. Blue crushed-velvet seating and white walls gave it a cool comfortable feel.

Our reviewer was impressed by the interior of the restaurant. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

The man who was leading the waiting team gave us a warm welcome. He told us he had only just arrived in Aberdeen after working in Qatar, Dubai and Oman.

He must have said “Oh, man” when he got here as the weather was hovering around freezing again.

A young colleague of his looked after us for the rest of the night and he was also charming and professional in equal measure.

A diplomat, too, especially when it looked as though we were getting carried away and about to order everything on the menu.

I think he had to concentrate hard on not allowing his eyebrows to hit the roof after we ordered three starters between us before turning our attention to a couple of big mains and assorted sides.

Tactfully, he said something about seeing how we got on with our starters and then he’d come back to check we still wanted to go ahead with the main courses.

I thought this was a nice touch to push the pause button; he was such a smooth operator I thought he might have trained at The Savoy.

But we were only at the foothills of our culinary trek to 8848, so pushed on with our trio of starters.

The beautifully presented king scallop starter from Aberdeen’s 8848. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

The food

Before that we tucked into a plate of poppadoms, with a mixture of pickles and sauces on a delightful tree-like condiment tray with separate small serving dishes.

The starters looked like a feast in themselves as they arrived at our table. Laid out before us were king scallops, seekh kebabs and Himalayan lamb momo.

Momo is traditional street food served as a soft dumpling: a small tasty chunk of lamb is wrapped inside and topped with a spicy tomato chutney sauce to add some heat.

Juicy tandoori-style masala scallops, marinated and served with mango salsa, and two classic spiced lamb-mince kebabs, with caramelised onions and peppers, rounded off a delicious set of starters.

The Himalayan lamb momo was like a work of art. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

On cue, our attentive waiter was at my elbow to check that we were still on course for the twin peaks of mains.

Yes, we were, but we were looking for something different from standard curries. So it was lamb shank for my wife and fillet of monkfish for me, and both lived up to expectations.

Served with rogan josh sauce, using tomato and yoghurt with ginger and mace powder, the tender lamb meat just fell off the bone.

My chunks of monkfish were served with a balti sauce and sautéed vegetables. We shared a serving of pilau rice and garlic naan bread.

Both mains were crowd pleasers and we were happy with our choices.

The main courses were just as delicious as the starters. Image: Kath Flannery/DC Thomson

We glanced around and noticed there was a good mix of ages among the diners, but if anything, on the night we visited, people of a certain vintage – like us two – were well represented.

We felt it was time to ask for the bill, not expecting desserts. But then our waiter re-appeared with a list of irresistible Nepali-Indian dishes. And that was it, we were hooked.

Kulfi – traditional Indian pistachio ice cream – was heading my wife’s way, but with a western twist: served with cream, strawberry and chocolate sauce.

For me, a delicate sweet Nepali rice pudding.