Having sampled the cuisine of Abul Monsur at four British Fusion Festivals, the Curry Life team was keen to see the executive chef at work on his home ground, so it was with a sense of pleasant anticipation that we headed off to Taj Cuisine in North Kent in the Medway town of Walderslade.
Walderslade was quiet on a Sunday night and the Walderslade Shopping Centre was even quieter - the only thing lacking was the tumbleweed blowing across the deserted car park. Fully prepared to be the only diners in the restaurant, we could not have been more wrong. Entering Taj Cuisine was like being transported into a different world altogether – a world that was full of colour, life and people. It was only 7pm but the restaurant was already abuzz with customers and smiling waiters bustling about brandishing dishes heaped with mouth-watering fare with tantalising aromas.
In the midst of all a beaming executive chef Abul appeared from the kitchen to offer a warm welcome. It’s always good to see Abul who’s one of the most modest and quietly accomplished chefs we’ve had the pleasure to meet. This rare attribute is probably one of the reasons for his nickname – Jewel. Winner of the 2005 Medway Curry Chef of the Year competition, Abul beat off competition from all the other Asian restaurants in the area – and there are a lot of top restaurants around Medway. Nevertheless, in categories of good hygiene and the appearance, aroma, texture and taste of dishes, Taj Cuisine was judged the best.
Abul has also represented British curry chefs at the Taste of Britain and British Fusion Festivals held in Dhaka, Kolkata and Madrid when his award-winning fusion recipes were showcased at five-star hotels and top restaurants to international acclaim.
Throughout 2010 Taj Cuisine received yet more accolades, awarded Outstanding Restaurateur of the Year from the Federation of Bangladeshi Caterers UK and nominated for the prestigious Spice Times Restaurant Awards and BCA Best Caterer of the Year awards.
The chef is typically generous and modest when asked about his numerous awards; “I feel both happy and proud to have won, but everybody is winner,” says Abul.
Established for ten years now, Taj Cuisine has its own indelible character. Situated in one of the main commercial outlets of the area, the Walderslade Centre, the interior of the restaurant has a local atmosphere and is warm and refreshingly different without being ostentatiously flashy.
Plush blue carpets make sound levels pleasantly muted, lead up to a green lit bar area which divides the space and gives a feeling of intimacy. Blinds and high back black leather chairs, alcove lighting and marble effect wallpaper complete the picture.
The menu itself is a work of art, presented in book form with representative dishes from the three main regions of Indian cuisine; Persian and Muglai dishes rub shoulders with Thali and Ceylonese and of course, Bengali.
Abul believes that cooking should come straight from the heart and the unique range of world fusion dishes created by the master chef himself is perhaps what lifts the menu from the very good category into the extraordinary.
As Abul tells us, a lot of this stems from his experience at the international food festivals where he has the opportunity to research and learn from other types of cuisine. “When I go abroad, I learn new ideas and then back home, try them out and develop them,” he told us, “Then I experiment with samples and get customer feedback to find out how successful they are in the restaurant. If it’s good, I incorporate the dishes into the menu.”
Chef’s Delicacy Dishes include a very interesting concoction of dishes and flavours with an international emphasis. English Lamb Shank – cooked on the bone with a hint of mint and aromatic spices, green peppers with coriander, ginger and mustard – was one of the dishes we were fortunate enough to sample. Having encountered several versions of the dish in the past, this one, with its rather more exotic tang, was superlative.
From the Scottish highlands, the Salmon Sharisha, marinated for several hours and shallow fried with herbs and spices, served with lemon, was given a new dimension.
The traditional Bangladeshi and Bengali dish of Sobij Machti - Bengal fish fillet medium spiced and cooked with mustard, capsicum – is, unusually for the UK - served in a steamed leaf. Sehmoli Gosht consists of a specially spiced lamb dish cooked with Shatkora, green chillies, ginger and garlic. But the Chingri prawn dish which we had as a starter – gigantic king prawns deeply fried and served with a mixture of Abul’s special herbs and spices was perhaps most memorable and succulent of all the dishes we tasted.
In spite of the present economic situation, Taj Cuisine seems to be faring very well indeed. We asked Abul how he has managed to achieve this.
“Yes, business has been good,” he agreed, “I think our strength lies in the fact that we have a very good name locally. We’ve become known as a more family friendly establishment which means we’ve had to discourage the pub trade and turn away people who’ve had too much to drink - although it’s good business, unfortunately we can’t cater for everybody in that instance and in the long run, it’s paid off.”
Taj Cuisine is one of the brightest gems in the Medway crown and, no doubt, will go on to win many more awards in the future – with an executive chef named Jewel, it’s hardly surprising!
Taj Cuisine, 1 Sherwood House, Walderslade Centre, Walderslade Road, Chatham, Kent ME5 9UD
Running from 6th to 14th
March in the Spice Haat and Focaccia restaurants at the 5-star Hyatt Regency,
the festival sees Michelin starred chef Mark Poynton of Alimentum in Cambridge
join top curry chefs from the UK to create a spicy smรถrgasbord of British curry
dishes.
Now, all chefs are looking forward to showcasing popular dishes from the UK
including Chicken Tikka Masala and (aptly, for the city of Chennai which was
formerly known as Madras), Madras curry.
