Our recorder group branched out again the other week and tried another new place in Newington (Edinburgh) – Tanjore. I checked the menu online and couldn’t wait to go and eat there. It came with a recommendation from an Indian friend – a good start! We always have to be quick, but I enjoyed what I had and was soon back for a more leisurely full 3 course meal with Andy. Total price for two people for 3 courses, plus lassi and tea – £35. Bargain!

This is South Indian cooking, so it is quite different from the usual Indian restaurant fare. So far, I’ve sampled the Tanjore Special Dosai and the Kothu Parotta with egg. The first is a big pancake stuffed with mild curry and served with delicious sauces (tomato, coconut, mint), a sambar and podi. Podi is a tasty spice and oil mix – a bit like dukkah – if you’ve ever had that!

Dosai and sauces. Ours came wrapped round the curry rather than in a pretty cone shape!

The Kothu Parotta was totally different from anything I’ve had before. It was chewy little pieces of parotta (a type of bread) with tomatoes, spices and eggs served with sauces.

We also tried new things for the starters – paniyaram (little savoury cake things – also available in a sweet version for dessert) and vadai (lentil doughnuts!).

After we had finished our main course we saw a huge puffed thing going to another table. Turns out it was “channa batura” – I’ll be having that next time!

Early on a Tuesday it was very quiet and the waiter was just a little too attentive. However, we were served quickly :-). On a Saturday evening there was a steady flow of people and the room was filled with chattering diners. Our waiter was very friendly and did a good job.

Tanjore is BYOB and cash only.

I can’t really do justice to the food with my descriptions and there are all sorts of other tempting dishes that I’ve never heard of before on the menu. My advice? Just go there and try it for yourself!

Tanjore South Indian Restuarant
6-8 Clerk Street,
Edinburgh,
EH8 9HX
Tel: 0131 478 6518
http://tanjore.co.uk/index.aspx