PUNJABI CURRY ORIGINAL INDIAN RESTAURANT BAR — Restaurant in Calp

13 April 2023 update: This is truly a great dining experience. From the very first welcome, the quality of service throughout and the incredible dishes served, this place is a cut above any other restaurant we've experienced and by a significant margin. I don't know who schools the staff in how to greet and treat the customer but it is the most enjoyable and heart-warming, culinary experience! Customer etiquette is unrivalled. Many local restaurants have indifferent staff, despite their best efforts. Some, have staff who can play the part but it seems very 3rd rate, like a local drama group experience. The Punjabi staff excel. Their welcome is warm. It's welcoming. It feels genuine. Jose (the J pronounced loud and proud, in the Portuguese fashion) is a gem of a Maître D'. It NEVER fails to impress. Outstanding on all levels. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

16 March 2023: I've been around these last 3 decades. Multiple visits to the Eastern Seaboard and the Carribbean to Europe and the Middle East. In all these countries I've been coerced time and again into enduring an Indian by friends and family. I never understood the draw. Until I visited the Punjabi in Calpe. On entering the premises, the staff were very accommodating, steering us to one of the few vacant tables. Clearly a very popular venue, even on a midweek evening! Right from the start, the poppadom and accompanying sauces stood out. They were absolutely delicious. Made with the freshest ingredients, the various flavours danced on the tongue! What a great start! A short time before the main courses were served we were offered a taster bowl with the sauce of our main dish to check the spice level. We both love our spicy foods so we opted for a little more heat in the dish, but not too much. The resulting dishes were spot on! I had the chilli chicken and my wife the king prawn bhuna. In both meals you could distinguish the individual herbs and spices used to create the dish. An incredible gastronomic delight. At last I understood everyone else's craving for this style of cooking! Jose and his team were exemplary in their service, so much so that we are now planning our next visit later this week. I can not sing highly enough of the service, quality of food and ambience we experienced on our visit. Truly...

I went there last night and several times last year. Some of the same staff, possibly all of them were still there from a year ago. Last night the restaurant was full apart from a couple of tables around 10pm. I went there from a recommendation left at our apartment and the good reviews from here. The poppadom and pickle tray (Choice of 3 - Onion, a mango chutney based one I think, and a milk based one to calm the pallet - (I really should learn the names) ) Very good. I had the Sheek Kebab starter. It was very tasty. It was a different texture to what I'm used to, more like sausage meat texture than mince meat. Like I say, very tasty all the same. I had a Chicken Bhuna , Garlic Naan and Pillau Rice. I was given some to taste before the meal arrived. There was plenty of food and it was very good. The naan served hot and easy to break, of the right consistency and the rice delicate and easy to consume. Very good. Throughout the meal I'd had a couple of small beers and finished with a white coffee. To give you an idea of the good size portions. I'd not eaten much during the day and after the meal I couldn't eat anymore. After the meal I was given a small fruit based drink (Just larger than a thimble) and aniseed sweets the size of 100's and thousands to aid digestion. One of the waiters made a point of engaging me in conversation. If you go here you're pretty much guaranteed a pleasant...

Really good. We shared a Prawn Puri and a couple of poppadoms for starters which came with a mint raita, mango chutney and mixed chilli. Very nice, with good sized juicy prawns. Main course we went for a chicken jalfreezi, tarka dhaal, peshwari naan and pilau rice. We were given a sample dish of the jalfreezi and shall to check our taste preference regarding spicing. The initial offering of the jalfreezi was like a traditional korma, so it was amended and re offered with an appropriate spice level. While this can be a great idea as Spanish v. English spice tolerances vary hugely, we're always a bit wary as the end result can be a sauce with chilli powder added. This fear, however, was unfounded as the final dishes seemed well cooked out and rounded. The peshwari was spot on - moist with balanced filling. 660ml bottles of Cobra were avaliable, served nicely in a proper Cobra glass, which is always nice to see. Two glasses of white for the Memsahib. On paying we were offered chupitos - we chose pacharan (patxaran). Bill was €47.95 which was perfect value for money. Finally, the staff are hugely friendly and welcomed our two dogs, supplying water for them (as long as they didn't bite the important waiter! ) Highly, highly,...