Bay Leaf Restaurant & Curry House — Restaurant in l'Alfàs del Pi

Last Wednesday. I found myself with one of those conundrums that often besets us all. Where to eat? I once read an argument on how humanity is ECONOMICALLY defined. It went like this. What are the most significant signs of a countries economic growth. The answer was HOW, WHAT and WHERE. HOW SHALL WE EAT WHAT SHALL WE EAT WHERE SHALL WE EAT. I was in ALBIR (My home town). Near to some of my favorite restaurants. Due to parking problems. I finally found a spot near the end of Carrer Rupurto Chapi. Opposite THE BAY LEAF Indian restaurant. I had heard about this through word of mouth and all of it was good. So being a lover of Indian food. (I spent 30 years working in India and whilst there i developed an absolute love of the culinary delights of that continent). So YES i will give it a go. Luck was with me. I did not want to spend too much. So i checked out the chalk board outside. 13.95 for their special menu. OK sounds good. Indside i was met by a lovely lady called SUMAN. She took me through the menu.on offer. First course a taster of four different Bay Leaf specialties. Chicken Tikka, Sikh Kebab ( Yes SIKH not SHEESH). Don't you love a restauranter with humour. Onion bhaji and Veg pakora. Along with a salad. Plus two sauces. Before it appeared; by magic, i found in front of me poppadoms and three sauces. Good start i thought. Then after ordering my usual beer. The first course was presented.The chicken tikka moist and spicy, the bhaji and pakora crisp and tasty. Sikh kebab meaty and just what i remembered. There were two sauces Green and pink artfully displayed on the plate. Reminded me of a picasso painting. Then basmati, pilau rice with lamb curry. ( Strength as desired). Yum Yum. I chatted with Suman who told me that she and her husband came from the Punjab. I had worked with the Punjabees and they are a fun filled honest people. She very politely on my asking, allowed me to check out the kitchen. Where i met her husband and his two assistants. Clean and immaculate with the three busy chefs mixing and stirring. Back to the table and the bill. As advertised along with two beers 21 Euros. Excellent worth every penny. Before leaving i was offered a free drink and accepted with alacrity. I noticed the other tables were also liberally partaking of the offer. Next night i was passing by and noticed i think a private party. There were three indian girls dancing around the tables and the place was bouncing with fun and good food. An easy five stars. TERRIFIC MARVELLOUS...

Best Indian/Nepalese restaurant on the Costa Blanca. The food is superb, location is great as its close to the main road but not beside all the traffic and the service from the staff is second to none. We chose the special menu which was mixed starter, any curry, rice, nan, and dessert for less than 14 euros (there was another special menu for less than 17 euros or you could just order from the menu). So we had mixed starters (vegetable pakora, chicken tikka and shish kebab, with plenty of fresh/tasty salad and sauces), chicken tikka masala, chicken tikka bhuna, rice and garlic nan bread. Also included was ice cream /gulab jamun /etc but we couldn't manage that as we were totally full from the first 2 starters. I hate leaving anything on my plate but just couldn't manage it all. Almost forgot, poppadoms and three dips (spiced onions, mango chutney and mint yoghurt) were provided whilst we waited on the starters arriving.

We also had 2 lagers, which were served in pint glasses which had been put in the freezer beforehand, a nice little touch in my opinion.

The staff are all very friendly, speak English, and have a very good understanding of what customers expect from them. They were very attentive, making sure everything was OK and offering to provide more lager, water, etc as well as providing more dips for the poppadoms (spiced onions disappeared quickly as they were my favourite). Genuinely felt like they cared as opposed to just asking because it's their job.

It was quiet when we first went in (at around 7.45) with only another couple of tables being used but the place soon filled up and most tables were in use by the time we left, although the level of service was just as good when it was quiet as it was when busy.

The restaurant has only been open for 2 months, although you'd think they've been doing it for years due to how professional they are. One of the owners, Sumit, explained how they came to own the business and he obviously has lots of hospitality experience.

It's just a shame that the majority of people who come to benidorm won't get the chance to experience this place as many don't leave benidorm. It's only about 3 euros return on the number 10 bus from benidorm or 20 euros return in a taxi. My advice would be to make a day of it and go to Albir during the day then bay leaf in the evening before returning to benidorm at night.

Compared to the Indian restaurants in benidorm, bay leaf is so much nicer in every aspect and I can't rate it...

The house wine was very good, but the food and service - not really. The steamed momos were simply put into microwave so the pastry, especially at the edge, was very tough. The tandoori prawns and main meals were cooked basically. We asked about hot and medium dishes sauces for both were very bland. When I told this to waiter he brought me "very hot" stuff - red chilli peper with olive oil. But its not a sauce! When doing an order we asked about menu for 2, but nobody asked us about any dessert. After waiting for 10 mins we asked about the bill - it was counted as a la carte. The waiter which took an order told, probably he didn't understand well, though I showed him a proper page. I could accept this when the restaurant is busy, but when it's empty better to understand...