Review: Razbari Indian restaurant in Eign Street, Hereford

Razbari Indian restaurant in Eign Street, Hereford, faced difficulties after it received a one-star food hygiene rating earlier this year, but it has since changed management and improved drastically.

Its food hygiene rating is now four stars, with new manager Mr Sham hoping to achieve a perfect five-star rating within the next few months.

I am a big believer in second chances, and I think that local businesses that put in the hard work to improve in areas such as food hygiene should be celebrated and supported. So, having spoken to the new manager about the business’ efforts to move forward from a difficult few months, I decided to go and try the food.

Bridie Adams outside Razbari (Image: Ryan Parker)

This was my first time setting foot in Razbari. The interior is trendy and striking, and the service from staff is friendly and efficient. We felt welcomed and at ease from the outset and the hour we spent at the restaurant seemed to breeze by.

Settling on our choices wasn’t too hard, as we both went for our go-to Indian orders. I asked for a butter chicken (£9.95) and pilau rice (£3.50) and my boyfriend Ryan ordered a chicken korma (£8.45) and coconut rice (£3.50).

To drink, we opted to stick with diet Coke as we were driving home and had to work the next day, but there were plenty of alcoholic drink options available. Water is also provided on each table.

The chutney tray (£2.95) featured a delightful selection of six dips, with my favourites being the mango chutney, orange and coconut chutney, and mint sauce. The tray, accompanied with poppadoms (99p each), set us up nicely for our starters.

Chutney tray (Image: Bridie Adams)

We then tried some onion bhajis (£4.25) which were utterly superb. They were crisp and the salad they were served with added freshness.

Onion bhajis (Image: Bridie Adams)

The curries then arrived and looked and smelled delicious. The chicken was as tender as it gets with a great proportion of meat to sauce.

Chicken korma and coconut rice (Image: Ryan Parker)

The korma had a deeply flavourful sauce with just the right amount of spice for a milder curry, but the butter chicken was on another level and was thriving with rich flavours.

Butter chicken (Image: Bridie Adams)

We shared a naan bread (£3.25) which was also amazing.

Naan bread (Image: Bridie Adams)

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We sampled the food for free as we were invited by Mr Sham, but our bill would have come to around the £30 mark in total with the banquet offer applied. Without the offer, it would have been more like £40.

I will definitely be returning to Razbari, as I think the price point is more than fair for such an outstanding experience.

The £14.95 offer also means that you can enjoy a hearty Indian meal for a great deal, with the business also offering a 20 per cent discount for takeaway collections. The offer includes a poppadom and chutney, a starter, a main course and rice or bread.

I hope that more people will give Razbari a second chance after its food hygiene improvements. Those who do not give it a try are missing out.