Big Chilli Resturant, Blakenhall

Where is Big Chilli?

It is a short away down Dudley Road in Blakenhall, in the same building which once housed The Ship and Rainbow pub, and more recently Billa's Bar BQ.

What kind of first impression does it make?

Neon. The restaurant's logo is the name Big Chilli in a font similar to the wobbling flame of a Bunsen burner or a flickering candle light, with a blue neon lit background. Arriving at the restaurant in the evening, it is the only establishment that stands out nearby, like a beacon against the background of the red-brick school and the faded frontages of older neighbouring businesses. The restaurant itself is upstairs.

So you know how it looks from the outside, what's it like indoors?

As you walk through the restaurant's glass doors at the top of the stairs, your first thought is, is how large it is, and how fresh and new it looks. The dance floor of the former bar is now home to a giant buffet, and the waft of delicious spices hits your nostrils as soon as you walk in. The smell is so good it gives you that self-satisfied feeling of knowing the food is going to taste pretty great. Bollywood movies were playing on a screen to the left-hand side of the restaurant as well, in a bit of an unusual touch to the feel of the place.

What's the food like?

The smell I mentioned earlier immediately gives away that the food is varied and really well spiced. This might sound daft but I really like curried food and have a theory you can judge if a restaurant is going to be good by the sauces and pickles that accompany the poppadums. I really rated the mix Big Chilli offered – there was a spicy and tangy tamarind and red chilli sauce, which was slightly sticky like a syrup, but had a delicious kick to it. The mango chutney was flavoursome and the raita and yoghurt were also tasty.

When it comes to your main meal, you can choose to go for the buffet or a la carte. On the night I went, the buffet had a good range of meat and vegetarian spiced options, and also covered a range of different heats of dishes. My girlfriend and I went off the a la carte menu and between us we had a harilayi chicken tikka and lamb shammi kebab starters, each with a side salad.

There was a vast difference between the two dishes, but despite the fact these were large chunks of meat cooking over hot coals, presumably on skewers, the spices in the respective marinades were cooked perfectly (rather than burnt on a BBQ) and were very flavoursome. Our mains of chicken tikka makhani and kastoori methi gosht (lamb) were excellent too – the chicken was rich and buttery and the lamb had lots of fenugreek, so it tasted very fresh. The rice was fluffy and the naan was puffy too.

But you're a seasoned curry eater who has grown up with the Balti Triangle on your doorstep, what makes this restaurant so good compared to others?

You're going to come away thinking that was money well spent. For those who start hankering for a curry from about 4pm on a Friday, this is the exact sort of place to go because it hits all the right tastes when you're thinking of the perfect tea in your head – striking the balance of spicy, rich and filling.

The pricing is pretty excellent too. There are a lot of curry houses now which are pushing a certain style of dining – with overly elaborate descriptions of their food on menus and newly fitted out, modern dining areas, and then hiking the price up a few £s. The average meaty main course was around £6.95 which gives you some idea of the price of a trip there.

Would you go back?

Definitely. The service was very attentive and all of the staff who served us were polite, as well as the owner who came over to check we were enjoying both our courses unaware that he was being reviewed at the time! I think you could easily entertain a group here and the food was top nosh.

ADDRESS

Big Chilli, 480 Dudley Road, Blakenhall, Wolverhampton

Tel: 01902 458844