March 2010
Mountain View, Blackheath
This is a great building for an Indian (Nepalese really, as the comment points out below) restaurant. Spacious, with high ceilings, and a classy bar area, it certainly makes a change from the tight, flock-wallpapered dens that most curry houses favour. The former Natwest Bank building, right across from Blackheath station, has a certain French feeling about it even, which is fitting as it was chosen by Mr Melange, our Parisian curry fan.
Warmed up by beers in the Railway opposite and a tongue tickler taste of the Dragon Slayer (see previous post), orders followed thick and fast after the complimentary sherry (sherry, in an Indian? That’s a first).
Scallops (£5.95), another Indian first, were spicy and great, Momos (£3.95) the minced-meat balls wrapped in soft pastry discovered in the Gurkha’s Inn on a previous meeting were back in action, along with Stuffed Pepper (£4.95). Thankfully, some sanity was restored to the starters by an order of Onion Bhaji (£2.95).
Ian, as usual, ordered something a bit different (Rapti Salmon Tikka, £7.95) and had to watch as everyone had a taste and his plate disappeared before his eyes. Fish is much underrated and ordered in Indians, I reckon, and the scallops and this salmon proved it shouldn’t be. Go on, next time try something other than chicken or lamb.
There was plenty of that on offer, notably Garlic Chilli Chicken (£6.95) ordered with extra chillies on the side no less, the good old Lamb Rogan (£6.95), and Lamb Jalfrazi (£7.95). And this being curry night, spinach had to appear on the table (cue, a plug for our first recipe, see previous entry…). It came in the form of Sag Aloo (£3.95) although Mr Parisian declared the potatoes got in the way. Addicted to spinach, now I’ve heard of everything.
• Mountain View, 1-3 Lee Road, Blackheath, SE3 9RQ. Tel: 020 8318-9912.
Mountain View snapshot
Food ① ② ③
Decor ① ② ③ ④ ⑤
Value ① ② ③
Atmosphere (Tuesday night) ① ②
Service and friendliness ① ② ③ ④ ⑤
Small [rather pedantic] correction – it’s not an Indian, it’s a Nepalese but that just doesn’t sound right does it?!? Did you have that Khukhuri beer with your meals?
I think you would fish in Goan restaurants aso that should be your mission to find one, should you choose to accept it 🙂
London eating has very mixed reviews of Mountain view which I find that so odd – how is a restaurant great one day, rubbish the next.
Please can you add a guide to your ratings as my old brain just can’t figure out what your symbols mean 🙂
And finally, has your french curry loving bod been to La Porte Des Indes?
p.s. I apologise for the appalling grammar in the comment above. Not drunk I promise.
You’re right, it is a Nepalese, that’s me being lazy and lumping the food from the whole Sub-Continent into the ‘Indian’ bracket. I’ll put that in the post though. I quite like the availability of slightly different dishes in the Nepalese restaurants as well as the usual dishes, I must say.
Yes that’s strange how it seems to swing in reviews from rubbish to brilliant. Each restaurant experience is different (I rated our two Moghul visits differently) but that’s a bit of a big fluctuation.
Er ratings, I shall think up a fun way to grade them but I suppose braodly speaking ① is rubbish and ① ② ③ ④ ⑤ is excellent, and the others are somewhere in-between.
La Porte Des Indes looks great. Rustling up a trip to Blackheath was a major leap though, Marble Arch will take an almighty effort!
Thanks. You need a bank loan to go to Porte Des Indes too. I’d quite like to go to Guru (another french indian…my sister in law is french hence the interest) but it’s in NSW and Mr Plummy Mummy has no interest whatsoever in going over there.
I know what you mean about getting bods together..it’s a bit of a nightmare but at least you all manage.