Purplemint restaurant review ...
I was quite recently very lucky to be invited to an evening at Purplemint in Penarth Road Cardiff. My husband and I were excited to visit as we have previously visited their sister restaurants Purple Poppadom and Mint and Mustard both are amazing Indian restaurants.
From the outside it is very unassuming you would easily miss it if you were walking or driving past but inside it is a treasure, Although quite a small venue this makes it feel even more friendly and intimate. The welcome was lovely and the atmosphere very relaxed and then there's the food....
I'm sorry I don't have pictures of all the food we were lucky to sample but everything was so delicious I was really impressed, We started with various small starters which included some chicken tikka bites which instead of the usual dark orange colour were light with tarragon and coriander and served with a fresh coriander and mint sauce. My husband especially enjoyed the small paneer and pepper kebabs which had been marinated in a garlic and honey marinade before being cooked in a tandoori oven and served with a mango chutney he isn't normally a fan of paneer but cooked this way he thought it was amazing (think I will have to try this at home in the oven). We also sampled the salt and pepper prawns served with a cocktail sauce which were mouthwatering it was hard to stop to make room for the next course.
This was calamari served with a lamb kofta and a tasty sauce made from mustard, lemon and passionfruit. The calamari was everything it should be crisp and the squid tender not chewy and the soft lamb kofta and fruity sauce made everything come together.
I was really impressed by the basket of naan breads (see photo) not your usual enormous slab of dough but light slices of crisp naan bread studded with fruit and chili for the peshwari and the others with my favourite chili, onion, garlic and coriander.
The next course was a lamb rogan josh served with saffron pilau rice and a dish of beautifully stir fried green vegetables with coconut and cashew. The lamb rogan josh was fantastic no oil slick on the surface just a deep flavoursome medium hot curry, the lamb just fell apart it had been so well cooked. It was a lovely change to have the dish of vegetables something which I find is sometimes lacking in Indian food the freshness of the mangetout, broccoli and green beans with the crunch of the cashew nuts was delicious with the warmth of the curry and the fragrant saffron pilau rice.
The dessert was a showstopper, A ramekin of steamed yogurt with rosewater which was creamy but light as well topped with a fresh raspberry and not too sweet. This was served with a quenelle made from semolina and pineapple which again wasn't too sweet or overpowering with a beautiful hazelnut in caramel.
All in all we had a wonderful evening from the warm welcome and everything was cooked beautifully and was tasty and delicous. The prices were all surprisingly very reasonable too for such high quality food. We will definitely be back and haven't stopped raving about it to friends and family ever since we visited. Well worth a visit if you are ever in Cardiff.
From the outside it is very unassuming you would easily miss it if you were walking or driving past but inside it is a treasure, Although quite a small venue this makes it feel even more friendly and intimate. The welcome was lovely and the atmosphere very relaxed and then there's the food....
I'm sorry I don't have pictures of all the food we were lucky to sample but everything was so delicious I was really impressed, We started with various small starters which included some chicken tikka bites which instead of the usual dark orange colour were light with tarragon and coriander and served with a fresh coriander and mint sauce. My husband especially enjoyed the small paneer and pepper kebabs which had been marinated in a garlic and honey marinade before being cooked in a tandoori oven and served with a mango chutney he isn't normally a fan of paneer but cooked this way he thought it was amazing (think I will have to try this at home in the oven). We also sampled the salt and pepper prawns served with a cocktail sauce which were mouthwatering it was hard to stop to make room for the next course.
This was calamari served with a lamb kofta and a tasty sauce made from mustard, lemon and passionfruit. The calamari was everything it should be crisp and the squid tender not chewy and the soft lamb kofta and fruity sauce made everything come together.
I was really impressed by the basket of naan breads (see photo) not your usual enormous slab of dough but light slices of crisp naan bread studded with fruit and chili for the peshwari and the others with my favourite chili, onion, garlic and coriander.
The next course was a lamb rogan josh served with saffron pilau rice and a dish of beautifully stir fried green vegetables with coconut and cashew. The lamb rogan josh was fantastic no oil slick on the surface just a deep flavoursome medium hot curry, the lamb just fell apart it had been so well cooked. It was a lovely change to have the dish of vegetables something which I find is sometimes lacking in Indian food the freshness of the mangetout, broccoli and green beans with the crunch of the cashew nuts was delicious with the warmth of the curry and the fragrant saffron pilau rice.
The dessert was a showstopper, A ramekin of steamed yogurt with rosewater which was creamy but light as well topped with a fresh raspberry and not too sweet. This was served with a quenelle made from semolina and pineapple which again wasn't too sweet or overpowering with a beautiful hazelnut in caramel.
All in all we had a wonderful evening from the warm welcome and everything was cooked beautifully and was tasty and delicous. The prices were all surprisingly very reasonable too for such high quality food. We will definitely be back and haven't stopped raving about it to friends and family ever since we visited. Well worth a visit if you are ever in Cardiff.
