The sweet smell of success?
The Oakham Curry Club (OCC) is a well-respected Institution with multiple international
Franchises. Thus review of ‘Aroma of India – The sweet smell of success’ being the latest by our Singapore branch. The OCC takes pride in searching out the finest Indian restaurants and providing impartial reviews of Curry Houses all over the world.
Members vote anonymously without being influenced by other members (we call this “no
swaying”) on 5 categories, and an average score out of a maximum 10 is given to each
restaurant we review. For full transparency, see below scores (out of 10). The voting is based on the votes from OCC members. Restaurants must score an average of 7/10 or above to receive the OCC sticker of recommendation. All OCC members have been through a rigorous selection process to gain entry into the Club. In short, we all know our curries.
Aroma of India
Meet on the 27th August 2020: 60 Race Course Road. 218567
Quality: 7.67
Customer Care: 8.89
Value: 8.44
Service: 8.39
Atmosphere: 6.5
Overall: 7.98
Aroma of India IS AWARDED the OCC badge of recommendation with atmosphere the only score coming in below 7
“Aromas of India is a "Theme Restaurant" and our theme is "Ultimate Client Satisfaction".
A distinguishing feature of the Aromas of India is its bright, family atmosphere in the daytime, transforming into an elegant brasserie in the evening.”
Aromas of India had definitely nailed their colours to the mast that their theme is Ultimate Client Satisfaction so we went in expecting to be looked after.
First impressions of the restaurant itself – it is medium sized with plenty of space for socially distanced eating so no need to call the Korma Police on this lot. It is certainly brighter than most curry houses and actually quite chilly in there - not as cold as Singapore cinemas – but cold enough that a second layer or some trousers wouldn’t have gone a miss. Having said that the welcome we received on arrival was very warm and we were immediately made to feel at home.
“Poppadoms with THREE sauces and bonus onion bhajis today to set us off!”
“the provision of sauce with poppadoms was the best I've seen”
So we were off to a good start. The eagle eyed amongst us had eyed some beers taps but we were informed that they weren’t yet working. But the beers were soon flowing with regular rounds of cold bottles of Kingfisher arriving hastily at our table.
“My glass was never short of beer, felt like a free flow!”
Anyway soon enough the starters soon arrived comprising of Samosas and a sizeable non-veg platter which a good selection of meat and seafood. One of our quieter members (despite playing the drums) is a vegetarian so the platter was big enough for the remaining 4 of us to share.
“I thought the starter were great. Generous portions of samosas. Personally I’m not a huge fan of seafood tandoori but the rest of it was delicious”
“Tandoor platter was a bit dry apart from the lamb.”
On to mains which were Yellow Dal, Channa Masala, Chicken Tikka, Jhal Frazi, Butter Chicken, Lamb Vindaloo, Bhuna Gosht and a lot Garlic Naans.
“The curries were all spicy and delicious winners and the garlic naans were spectacular, maybe the best I’ve ever naan I’ve ever had.”
“Fantastic food. Incredible bread and vindaloo. I think maybe there was a bit of stinginess with the meat in the curries but a very very good meal.”
“Butter chicken was outstanding as were the naans.”
“Curries were OK, but a bit samey.”
By the end of the meal there was very little left on the table (except a stray green chilli) and we had all eaten our fill. In the past the OCC has been a little shocked when receiving the bills but on this occasion it was about $80 per head which with many beers included is excellent value and this is reflected in the scores.
“And then the bill was very reasonable.... Great great venue!”
As a club we want to give special praise to the staff who went over and above not only in terms of service but also customer care, one highlight being the provision of free shots to an esteemed member who had recently turned 40.
“The manager could not do enough for us service stood out here.“
“Very good service. Great customer care.”
“Customer Care better than the actual curry.”
“Very impressed. Service and customer care really stood out, though a bit suspicious that they knew what we were all about and stepped up their game. But after all we are the OCC and deserve nothing less!”
Final reflections on Aroma of India. The website claims that a guest is compared with the presence of God. Our chairman is actually convinced that God is a DJ which is why he couldn’t attend, instead opting to ‘chase the vibes’ on an 18-30s holiday in Ibiza. However I’m sure he will be disappointed to have missed this
“Although not a date night restaurant, if you’re looking for good food and great service you can’t really go wrong.”
“The customer care and value was pretty damn good for what was, all in a very decent curry. Not one for date night, but for a curry and a pint, I’m in!”
“What a tremendous curry house”