Indian Summer? Eat your heart out!

I don’t know whether it is just me, but Indian Restaurants in South Bucks never seem so busy over the Summer than when the weather is colder? Having just had yet another Indian Summer in September, I am sure local owners of Indian take aways and restaurant will therefore welcome the onset of Autumn and Winter.

That said, one of the most pleasant experiences one can have curry wise in this country is to sit outside on a warm Summer’s evening at the Spice Merchant in London End, Old Beaconsfield (on the A40 near Rosehill Instruments music shop), where the owner Bashir invested several years ago now in a quite stunning landscaped garden. Not only are the tables and chairs high quality, there are heat lamps to take the chill off as the night draws in, but the most impressive feature is the large pond full of Koi carp with a wooden viewing bridge. Many a Summer’s evening I’ve arrived to find plenty of inside tables available in the double glazed conservatory, but sadly no outside tables.

According to Wikipedia, Koi “carp are a large group of fish originally found in Central Europe and Asia. Various carp species were originally domesticated in East Asia, where they were used as food fish. The ability of carp to survive and adapt to many climates and water conditions allowed the domesticated species to be propagated to many new locations including Japan.”

When I have taken guests to see the Koi carp and walk round the Spice Merchant garden before eating, they have always been well impressed………..oh they’ve also said the cuisine is top notch too!

The Beaconsfield area in Buckinghamshire is blessed with several other excellent Indian restaurants including the Basmanti Indian Restaurant in Aylesbury End, the Old Bengal in Wycombe End, Beaconsfield, the Bombay Dream Wooburn Moor, Mr India in Loudwater, the Spice Society in Amersham, Memories of India in Farnham Common and the Curry Centre in High Wycombe.

Anyhow, with the Autumn fast approaching, I can see me being more tempted to visit my local Indian restaurants more often. One thing is sure, whether you like tasty mild creamy mosalla dishes, or hot spicy dishes, there is a wealth of choice in the region, both in terms of quality, cost and ambience. They say variety is the spice of life, so if you are like me, explore different dishes and eat your heart out!