Indian Fine Dining in Cheltenham: Prithvi

Prithvi is one of those places that's on every local food lovers bucket list. It's the swish Indian restaurant that won't fill your letterbox with takeaway leaflets, won't give you shoddily made curry, and certainly won't let you order chips as a side for your main (not that I'm a chip-o-phobe or anything).

Despite being so unassuming, it's the place that everyone in town talks about. The place at the top of most Cotswold based 'best restaurant' lists. The place in all the national food guides. The place that is notoriously hard to get a table at on a weekend... Essentially, it's the place.

Although I've been on a handful of occasions (see my post from '14), every time I walk past I find myself peering in at the lucky diners sitting in the window, desperately trying to see what they're eating. It's no good. I never get there at the right time. I only ever see empty plates - sigh - or people casually quaffing their wines - jealous - and the blinds are always drawn to the perfect height so I can't see any further in - humph. Still, it makes the green-eyed monster in me hungry for another visit and at the end of last year my luck came in.

You've probably seen all the posts from various local bloggers about 'Lunch with Prithvi' already - I hope you're not bored of reading about it - but because I couldn't attend the event, I did get an invite to return for dinner at a later date. Side note: Tuesdays and Wednesdays often have availability if you want to avoid the wait.

Prithvi has had a spruce up since our last visit - new furnishings, jazzy carpets, classy wallpaper - and it feels much better for it. Greeted by the owner Jay as you walk in, it all just makes sense. He's young, softly spoken but sharply dressed. There's not a thing out of place - both on him and the restaurant - with all the staff moving like clockwork. Seamless and suave, not stuffy.

The Chap and I hastily ordered a glass of the Brut Rosé fizz from Luxembourg (£8) recommended by the guys over the road at The Grape Escape (best place for pre dinner drinkies FYI), and then decided that we'd splurge on the wine flight to accompany the tasting menu. The only way to do it, right?

Appetisers arrive. A Quaver-like rice cracker with crispy kale and a cinnamon, mango and chilli gel, followed by panipuri; hollow chickpea puffs filled with spiced chickpeas and a fresh chutney. A tart tamarind sauce was poured in then down in one (as instructed). A whole host of textures and tastes, I'd order more if I could.

First course was pan-fried sea bass, white truffle oil, smoked tomato and mulli salad paired with Fess Parker Santa Barbara County Chardonnay, California 2014. The truffle hits you first with the spice creeping in after - an interesting combo which gets revisited later - but we couldn't help but feel that the fish was overcooked. Crispy skin, yaaaasss, but as the piece of fish was so flat, it was just a little dry. The wine match was the redeeming feature, no surprise considering my love of Cali Chards; the smoked tomato hit it off with the oakiness and the flavours lingered long after the last mouthful.

Next was tandoor Welsh lamb, cous cous and legumes with another USA wine, Smoking Loon Old Vine Zinfandel, Lodi, California 2013. Blushing lamb, so tender, with a green coriander sauce to add extra oomph. The dark berried wine was another good pairing, soft with subtle cedary notes bringing out the nuttiness of the cous cous.

Upping the game, Newent chicken, wild mushroom, whole coriander, anise sauce with sultana and almond rice. So succulent, and with the jewelled rice and glossy sauce it actually felt richer than the lamb. Never underestimate the chicken dish.

As for the wine, Jay tested us out with a few. Firstly, Domaine Roger-Joseph Belland Les Champs-Gains, Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru, France. An absolute beaut Burgundy, big with complexity, and with the buttery chicken alone would have ticked all the boxes. However, as soon as the fragrant anise made itself known, then it all got rather lost. It had spice, just without heat, yet we still agreed that it craved a wine with some sweetness. Jay then brought us over the Charles Sparr Gewurztraminer “Tradition”, Alsace, and the Werner ‘Annaberg’ Riesling Kabinett, Mosel, to try side by side with the dish. Styles you'd probably find us drinking on a weekend anyway, and like choosing children it was a tough choice. Both awesome, but the sweet spice and floral notes of the Gewurz did it for me. Save the Riesling for something hotter.

The star attraction was venison, butternut squash, ginger and cinnamon reduction served with a truffle oil naan bread. Indian and truffle aren't a likely coupling, but having it twice in one night has made me think otherwise, and truffle naan breads should definitely be a thing. Definitely. Chunks of rare venison and squash scream Autumn/Winter, and with a generous pour of the punchy ginger sauce, they'd well and truly been given the Prithvi magic touch. My one qualm would be the fact that our meat portions weren't quite even. I got the better deal with two thick pieces, but The Chap had one thick and one thin. Ah well. Quickly forgotten about whilst sipping the Pacifico Sur Carmenere Reserva, Curico Valley, Chile 2015, full of blackcurrants and black pepper.

The Tour of Prithvi ended with Passion fruit cream, mango gel, coriander and honey crumble. I think we're all more accustomed to an After Eight being brought out with the bill, but here we had an assortment of sweet treats. Fresh and fruity, with cream to soothe those taste buds and coriander to add a herbal citrus note; we're still in an Indian restaurant after all. Lenz Moser Prestige Beerenauslese, Burgenland, Austria, was our final wine of the night. Equally sweet with velvety honey notes to tie in with dessert. Happy endings.

Whilst we're not short of fine dining options in The Cotswolds, nor places to scoff a Ruby Murray on a Friday night for that matter, the unique line that Prithvi draws between the two certainly is something rather special. The food and service sure have gone up a notch or two since our last visit, so it's no surprise that tables are still so sought after and the dishes remain memorable.

Jay's pride beams throughout, making it an utter joy to experience everything that is Prithvi. Let's just keep our fingers crossed for more truffle naans when we return.

Prithvi is open for dinner Tuesday - Saturday and lunch on Thursday and Saturday. The tasting menu is £53pp, and they reopen from their annual holiday on January 19th. Get booking!

Prithvi: The Bath Road Gem

It was The Chap's birthday last week; given the freedom to choose whatever and wherever he wanted to eat - my treat - he predictably chose Indian. You could probably put the most expensive cut of steak in front of him, but next to a plate of curry, he'd always go for curry.. I've given up.

Anyway, we'd been desperate to try out 'Cheltenham's Number 1 Restaurant' (on Tripadvisor) for ages, Prithvi on Bath Road, and as luck would have it, it's Indian cuisine. Two birds, one stone. I'd heard it was pretty tricky to get a table on a weekend, so having an excuse to go out mid week for dinner, because of a birthday, worked out perfectly. What with it being race week, Cheltenham was heaving, and as flocks of people were making their way through town, we quickly darted over the road into Prithvi. The serene environment, with murmurs of people eating and relaxing after a lengthy day at the racecourse, was a far cry from what was occurring on the other side of the door.

The restaurant, just 2 years old, prides itself on being 'all about the detail', offering a sophisticated approach to dining Indian, and upon entering, you immediately get these vibes. Decor is minimal, no ghastly gold printed, tacky/ornate stuff hanging on every inch of the walls (those things have their rightful place in many other Indians, just not here); tables are well spaced out, so even though it's a small restaurant, you don't feel as though you're on top of anyone; it's low lighting, very moody, and the wine glasses are a decent size - hooray! It's probably my biggest pet hate when going out to eat/drink; small, stubby glasses, with thick stems, are just horrible to drink out of. End of.

We went for the tour of Prithvi, a five course tasting menu of a selection of their favourite dishes, which at £39 per person, was such a good deal; in reality, with all the little in between nibbles, it was more like a 9/10 course dinner. To go with it, we chose a bottle of Viognier, which our waitress said was the perfect match; fragrant foods with lots of spice generally go best with white wines, and it's best to avoid ones which are very sharp and acidic. So whilst Viognier is predominantly dry, it has a much smoother, fuller finish. (.. see, I'm learning!)

In true Indian style, our dinner began with poppadoms; first, a tiny 2 pence piece sized one, which was presented to us on a slate, with a dollop of spicy chutney spooned on by the waiter table-side, then out came the big guns with a selection of dips that we demolished pretty quickly.

Our 'amuse bouche' was a cube of marinated chicken, served with a swipe of coriander sauce; there are a lot of swipes, splashes, smears, blobs, edible flowers and micro herbs here, which I wasn't really expecting, but I love all that jazz, so I was in my element.

Next was the first dish off of the menu, a cayenne pepper coated scallop, a tandoored butterflied prawn, with a coriander and mint coulis. If I were to be picky, I'd have liked my scallop to be a bit caramelised, as it was it had a very raw texture; but eaten with the charred prawn and herby sauce, the textures and flavours balanced out well.

Following this was The Chap's favourite of the night, a piece of smoked lamb fillet, sauteed okra, fried onions, with a coriander and chilli chutney. The lamb looked a bit unfamiliar, I don't think I'd seen a thin rectangle of meat like this before, at least not one which hasn't been processed within an inch of it's life, but it was super tasty despite appearances. And as for okra, I've had it way too many times where it's been flavourless and a little slimy - gross - but Prithvi has converted me, and I'll not bad mouth it again.

Another in-between-er came out: a crisp like puff, filled with something that I really cannot remember, but, it was brought to us in a little tear drop shaped bowl, a sauce was drizzled in by the waiter, and we were to instructed to eat it in one. It was kind of like eating a non-oyster.

The next course was one of two 'mains'; a plate of monkfish, potato juilenne, and fried purple sprouting brocolli; 'whole mustard jus', as they called it, was poured over at the table, and it was served with lemon saffron rice. I think this was probably my favourite, maybe the addition of edible flowers swayed my judgement, but there was something so delicate about it, and the citrus scented rice was the perfect accompaniment.

Having had our glasses topped up throughout, and being fed pretty much constantly, I didn't have a clue where we were up to on the menu, so the other main came as a bit of a surprise - we were getting full! Braised duck breast, cumin and honey crust, and chantenay carrots, in a creamy coconut 'jus', served with the most melt-in-the-mouth nan breads I've ever tasted. Though the duck looked a bit grey and dry and, it was actually really succulent, and it basically fell apart as soon as you got near it with a knife. The sauce; sweet, spicy, and if I'd have had any more bread, I'd have mopped up every last drop.

Our dessert was a saffron scented doughnut, saturated in syrup and served warm, with pistachio kulfi and a lime-y sauce. It was sweet vs sharp, and warm vs ice cold, the only thing missing was perhaps something crunchy to counteract all the soft elements. I tend to associate doughnuts with 'stodge', and would definitely not choose one after an lengthy meal, but this was just the right size, and the saffron infusion made it an interesting dish.

In all the theatrics of dinner, we'd not noticed how busy and noisy the restaurant had become; champagne was popping at the big table at the back, and tweed-clad gents were sinking beers with their curry behind us. The fact that we were unaware of the stream of people that had come in says a lot about the food; it was stunning. We asked for the bill, and in a sneak attack style, out came a couple of truffles; milk chocolate and hazelnut, and white chocolate and raspberry; a deliciously creamy ending to a spice-tastic dinner.

A late night curry feast takeaway - where you've over-ordered massively, and you spoon as much of each thing as you can on your plate - will always have a place in my heart, but for something fancier and more refined, I'd recommend Prithvi. The Chap was happy, and no turmeric stained plates for me to wash up either. Winner.