Shere Punjab Kitchen — Restaurant in Fredericton

My first foray into Indian food in Fredericton was a disaster. Despite a strong recommendation that it was the best in town, it turned out to be the worst Indian food I'd ever had. Since then, I had been reluctant to try another Indian place. Coming from Montreal, where fantastic Indian restaurants are on every street corner, I had high standards.

Fast forward to today. I planned to make naan and cook Indian at home, but my dad, in his infinite wisdom and generosity, suggested we try one of the other Indian places we'd seen. I went hunting online for reviews and decided on "Shere Punjab Kitchen," which wasn't on my original list. When I called, they warned me that the décor and atmosphere might not be what I expected, but I cared more about authentic food.

Ambiance and Service While "Shere Punjab Kitchen" is not a great sit-in restaurant, they were very upfront about that. The service was personal and excellent. They technically had some outdoor seating, but it didn't look stunning. I recommend takeout for this place, but you will not be disappointed by the deliciously authentic Indian fare with a decent variety.

Food We ordered both chicken and beef samosas and spring rolls to start. We shared butter chicken, Kashmiri lamb curry, and chicken biryani. They also brought out a daily special, a vegetarian dish with green peas and tofu textured like meat, which was excellent.

The samosas were delicious with different spices and excellent pastry. The Kashmiri lamb curry, while not quite the lamb rogan josh I loved in Montreal, was close enough to please my nostalgic side and was a standout dish on its own. We all loved the butter chicken, which had a slightly earthy, almost maple flavour that set it apart from the sweeter, smokier variant we're used to at home. The chicken biryani was also a hit, perfectly balancing the heavily spiced, drier rice with moist chicken. Even the delicately flavoured rice and warm, tender naan were delicious. The spring rolls, although unexpected at an Indian restaurant, were very tasty.

Conclusion Altogether, we were extremely pleased to have found this place so nearby. This place scores an overall 5-star from me. I only wish I'd had room for the...

I had the mini lamb curry, mild, and it was very delicious, fragrant, spicy, and filling. The service size was perfect for the price. I can understand why many reviews say the atmosphere is subpar, but it was a quaint little place. A bit cold, but we didn't mind at all. They are busy, phones ringing off the hook with delivery people and pick up orders constantly coming and going. But again, I don't think this takes away from the atmosphere, I think it actually adds to it. Besides, as busy as they were, the staff was very attentive to us and made sure all our needs were met and checked in with us near the end.

Disclaimer - I am an average Atlantic Canadian British/Irish/Scottish mutt and this was extremely spicy for me. I couldn't finish it. And it was mild. But, I wholly accept the fact that I'm used to my family's food which is generally bland AF. So it was good, it tasted amazing, but, you might want to order an extra serving of raita (the white yogurt stuff) to mix in to cool the whole thing down a bit. But, that's the my advice, coming from someone who can't handle a spicy...

Ordered from this place a few times during our stay in Fredericton. Overall, not a great and reliable restaurant that you can just order with a guarantee that the food would be good all the time. First off, it is amusing that they use the exact same gravy for butter chicken, paneer butter masala and the egg curry. I can understand the similarities between the butter chicken and paneer butter masala, but the egg curry too? Seriously? Secondly, The same item tastes different in different orders. The first time, the butter chicken was good. Later when we ordered again, the chicken was so hard to chew and they just dumped a couple of chicken pieces in the gravy. The chicken Biryani was laughable, seriously. The lesser talked about that, the better. Also, the chai sucked. On the positive side, the samosa chat was amazing. Loved it. The chole curry and dal makhani...