Piquancy — Restaurant in Melbourne

Great. And truly awful. Had plenty of lockdown take away from here and it’s always great. But went on last Monday night to celebrate a birthday. Meat Free Monday for $26 per person. Our first issue - the waitress couldn’t explain how the menu worked and it turned out that in spite of us being vegetarian we couldn’t order food that met the conditions for the $26 deal because she didn’t seem to know how it worked. No combination of vegetarian dishes seemed to qualify for Meat Free Monday. In fact the answer to any question seemed to be ‘the $49.90 menu’. So we order - two of us ordered just for them and then we ordered for the other 4 of us. The starters came after a bit of a wait. Despite there being 2 starters per person we seemed to get one. Which meant one onion ring croquette. Over 75 minutes later the mains arrived. Our group of 2 received the same amount as our group of 4. And the group of 4 ordered additional things. The 2 group got 1 plate of papadums -so did group of 4, one small bowl of rice for 2, one small bowl of rice for 4. One small bowl of main each. One of the plate of ma’am for 2, one plate for four. There was very little food. I had one piece of naan, no rice as there wasn’t enough and a small main. And I mean small. Disappointed I went to pay. $360. $360 for what I would pay around $75/80 from the same place in take away. I queried the bill. I explained we ordered 3 of the meals for the $26 deal. No - didn’t qualify. ‘That’s the price’ I was told. I haven’t felt this ripped off for a very long time. Particularly from a business I went out of my way to support during Covid. Firstly, the service is very poor. Next the food takes unacceptably long to serve. Thirdly, the quantities and cost are at odds. And lastly, have a menu that can be explained by your staff. Ours couldn’t. A costly and unfortunate venue to celebrate a birthday. We all went home and had something to eat. $360. $360. $360. No it still seems like a lot of money for very...

Piquancy Restaurant served up a vibrant and diverse culinary experience that evoked memories of India. Despite minor service hiccups, the $49 set menu provided an enjoyable and flavorful journey.

Starting with sides, the pappadum with mango, mint, and tamarind chutney stood out, especially the delicious mango chutney that was a definite wow!

The menu was creatively divided into "Street Food" and "From the Pot." The Beef Pepper Fry burst with tender beef, vibrant veggies, and a delightful blend of soy sauce, ginger, and garlic—a colorful fusion cuisine that pleased the taste buds. The Prawn Momos, though slightly milder in chili for Western palates, delivered freshness and delicious flavors, even with the use of fibrous ginger.

The "From the Pot" section had its highs and lows. The Lamb Rogan Josh, while tender, lacked the traditional Indian curry essence and carried a taste reminiscent of peanut butter or canned tuna. On the other hand, the Kerala Fish Curry, a personal favorite, was light, creamy, and moderately spiced, a hit with everyone at the table.

For dessert, the ice cream with cardamom and vanilla flavors was a rich, creamy delight that was perfectly balanced in sweetness. A refreshing frozen yogurt concluded the meal on a delightful note.

Piquancy Restaurant offered a diverse and enjoyable culinary expedition, weaving together flavours that traversed various highs and, despite minor misses, took us on an enjoyable journey through Indian...

After eventually finding a park on this stretch of a busy road, we went inside, sat down and began to peruse the extensive menu that does offer a few different things than you'd normally find on a typical menu at an Indian restaurant. It is a shame, however, that the staff don't know what the items are, because when bringing out entrees, they gave the wrong items to the wrong people as a result, and they missed out on trying what they wanted (which could be problematic if you have an allergy or something). My samosas (which were SO GOOD) came out first and only after some questioning, the other items came out, but by that time I was done with them, because the wait was quite extensive. In spite of those hiccups, everyone loved their food.

The mains were good. The food came out all at once this time, which was great, but there needed to be some juggling as the table sizes are small. The kitchen accomodated the few requests we had which was nice, and everything was delicious (except we just could not taste the garlic on the naan or see the chives, which makes me think they gave us plain naan instead).

Basically, other than a few glitches with staff not being spot on that night, the food was great and the atmosphere was nice (along with nice, modern decor) and definitely worth trying again. Parking can be tricky, and so it might be best coming for an early sitting. Would I come back again? Yeah, if I'm in the...