All Comments

Neil - After enjoying numerous pints of Green King's Jubilee Beer in the Lord Raglan we set off for the Coriander, a new curry house for me as I hadn't visited its previous incarnation: The Barbican Tandoori. Décor was modern and we had a cosy corner downstairs, this with lots of other customers all made for a good ambience. Service was a little odd as they wouldn't take our order for a while as 'the kitchen was too busy'. They did eventually see to us and it wasn't too slow in the end (no need for another picture of me pointing to my watch). My starter of marinated paneer and main 'Chicken 65' were both good, the main only let down by some very dry rice. Stuffed paratha wasn't stuffed(!) but managed to hit that sweet spot of doughy and crispy so I expect Dom will mark it high as well. A good night out and I'd certainly go back.

Graeme - My first impression of this place was that it was very busy. As it turned out, too busy for the staff to be able to service us in a timely manner. The waiters were also very matter of fact - they didn't engage at all. The food was generally good, it certainly wasn't a bad meal. My ordered King Prawn Puri starter was downgraded to regular prawns (the waiter did at least tell me before serving it). My main of Garlic Chilli Chicken was a bit disappointing, short of garlic but too fiery with the chillies, not enough actual flavour. Everything else was OK. I can't remember what we talked about but I do remember having a good time!

Tim - The restaurant has an interesting layout with separate rooms downstairs, and I rather liked the decor with some interesting wallpaper and light fittings. The service was quite slow to start with, they held off taking our order for longer than usual and they eventually admitted there was a backlog in the kitchen. Of the two wines I tried, the Pinotage was rather thin, but the Cabernet was good. The Jhal Puri starter was good and spicy, but I would have liked some salad with it; fortunately Mark was happy to oblige. The main course of Kachila was apparently a Nepalese dish - it was fine, but I wouldn't have recognised it as being particularly different, although I'd had quite a few drinks by this stage. Dom's dish was described as being very spicy, but didn't seem hot at all; even the extra chillies that were brought out seemed quite mild. The Peshwari nan was fine, but Neil & Dom's stuffed paratha, while pleasant, wasn't stuffed. A free round of Baileys to finish was welcome. Overall I thought it was a good meal, and apart from the slow start, there were no problems, so I'd be happy to return.

Dominic - This was to be my first outing with the club to this venue, although I'd been several times before when it was known as the Barbican Tandoori and I worked nearby. The decor is now more upmarket, however you still get the feeling that you are dining in an underground bunker. They didn't have our booking when I arrived due to "systems problems" and quickly made up a table of 8 near the bar which felt less than ideal. And a reluctance to take our order after several attempts was finally explained away as the kitchen being too busy … all leading to low service marks. For starters I went for the lamb chops which were reasonably tasty but were tiny portions. For main I selected the Lamb Jhal which was described as hotter than a Vindaloo, however I found it to be quite mild and therefore disappointing. Of the rest the Stuffed Paratha was the standout and it was good to see my partner-in-crime back to share this item once more. Despite a free round of Baileys, due to me being a long-standing customer (to the previous name), and an ever so slight Taste Card discount, the VFM was considered poor. Certainly not a venue to which I'd be rushing back. But it has to be said, another top night of being amongst a collection of club members even though the food side of things was a let down.

Richard - For old times' sake it was good to be back at The Rag and the Barbican Tandoori as was. The place has been smartened up into The Coriander although prices are reasonable for the location. Poor old Diggers was drinking alone until I turned up but then, soon after, we had a good turnout including The Legend and Mr Dom getting their attendance averages back to their high standards. I had very good tandoori lamb chops to start, followed by high quality chicken balti main with peshwari nan and plain rice.

Jon - Not my favourite meal, but perhaps something to do with my choices.  The Salmon starter was nice but lacking in any real bite while the king prawn dish, the Jingha Hara Jhul, was advertised as hot, but wasn't, while the prawns' tails were still attached - a pet hate of mine for a dish in sauce.  The service was also a little haphazard.  However, good value with the Tastecard discount and it was good to visit the Lord Raglan once again.

Mark - My first outing for a few months so I was glad to be back out with the crew and meeting in one of our old haunts for a couple of pints of (not) IPA to start. Short walk to The Coriander to find Dom protecting a table for us as they had 'lost ' the booking. Not a good start and made worse as they kept avoiding taking our order which meant we ran late and I had to shoot off before the end of the evening. I had the Mitaas to start which was something new but perhaps a touch sweet for me. Main was better but nothing too exciting. Before, during and when we got the bill I reminded them we had a TasteCard 2for1 discount that should have lead to 3 meals discounted (max number) but in the end they only reduced 1. Is it good or bad that the beer in the restaurant now costs about the same as in the pub? There used to be a big difference but no longer.

Brian - Lord Raglan was very busy, too busy really. My lamb tikka starter was a tad on the tough side, although the bengal fish main was delightful. Veg, chapati and pilau were all good. Enjoyed the evening as always.