We found this little gem of a place quite by accident a couple of months ago. It had been sometime since we had East Indian food. We initially wanted to go and try the Himalayan Restaurant at the intersection of Cambie and the No 5 Road. Instead we were drawn to the Tandoori Kona restaurant by the Lunch Special sign that had put out.
There were no one in the restaurant when we visited. Being such a minor strip mall in Richmond, we had not expected this. While it was no lavish in decor but it was quite impressive.
Again, in such an unassuming place from the outside, the place is very clean.
The Lunch Special meal combo came with freshly baked and warm naan. It was some of the best naan we had.
The lunch special was really cheap for what you get. For $7.75, we get a platter that consists of very creamy butter chicken with rice pilaf. For sides, there was also the chickpeas cutty and salad. You just have to try this.
We also ordered the Goat Bryani. This one costs $9.95 but the serving was not really big. Most of the bryani we had in other places have bigger servings. Not a big deal really. However, the rice is slightly on the wet side. It would have been better if it is a bit drier.
Our favourite by far was their Fish Curry Meal Combo which costs $12.95. The combo meal came with naan, rice pilaf and papadam. The fish which was cooked in house curry, have a choice of mild, medium and hot. We chosed the hot version. Whoa … it was very, very spicy. It was so spicy that we can feel a burning sensation on the tongue … and the stomach!! If you love real burning, spicy food, Kona sure knows how to make it.
The rice pilaf was fluffy and goes so well with the curry.
Their Papadam was rather unique. We normally have them in a flat piece but theirs came rolled up. It was very crispy. The tangy and spicy sauce is great for dipping the papadam.
The total bill $36 including tax and tips. I would rate Kona as perhaps the top 3 east indian curry places in the Lower Mainland. The prices were very reasonable and the service was prompt. Well, maybe the reason the service was so good was because there were no one there then. I am kind of surprised why they are not busier. I will come back again.
Related Articles
3 users responded in this post
Thanks to you, we just couldnt resist not checking out Tandoori Kona. It was good! I would never have ventured into the restaurant if I was “strolling” in the neighborhood. Very unassuming indeed. Compared to Vij’s, this was several folds better. Vijs is into fusion, and like my husband said “it looked indian, but tasted western”. I couldn’t have said it any better. BLEND BLEND BLEND! We were missing the spicy touch at Vijs as would have been typical at an indian restaurant; just alittle touch of chilli pepper with a dash of indian spice would have made the difference….would have made it GREAT. The only thing Tandoori Kona was lacking was the ambiance. We ordered to go. The nan bread was alittle disappointing ie too strong taste of ammonia, I kid you not. But all else, it was good! Thanks for blogging about it. We would never have discovered Tandoori Kona on our own.
Hey MammaViv: Glad you like Kona’s too. I’ve never been to Vij’s before although I heard so much about them.
Stumbled across your blog when I did a search for singapore food! Read this entry re Kona and gotta say I love the pics and your review, I live in Lower Mainland and in my work often have to drive to Richmond from Vancouver so next time I’m there, definitely giving this place a try. The thali dish looks scrumptious!
Leave A Reply
Please Note: Comment moderation maybe active so there is no need to resubmit your comments