Indian Summer, Stillorgan.

Not so much Rogan Josh as Rogan Posh, Indian Summer is one of Dublin’s better Indian restaurants. They are very much in the more contemporary vein, with striking décor and an exciting menu that provides a fresh take on Indian cooking. The name makes me think of meals I have been lucky enough to enjoy looking out over the Indian Ocean, which usually is enough to put me in a good mood. If you can’t enjoy that association they have recently added a new wine bar. Situated in the same row as the Mill House pub in Dublin’s Stillorgan, this first floor restaurant is one to try. Here is a sample of the last review we did.

For the last few weeks, I have gone out for a meal with my teenage daughter, Abigail on Friday nights. Abigail invited her friend Afric, and I called my friend Martin Halion. We fancied something a bit exotic and decided to go to the Indian Summer, up the road in Stillorgan. I was here before with my wife for a meal, but always intended to return. Indian Summer is part of the new breed of restaurants that have taken Indian food to new heights, so I thought it would make a nice night out for us.

This isn't your average curry house, so in order to get a good cross section of the menu we asked the manager Jonathon's for some suggestions, with just the proviso of a mild, medium and hot combination. For the starter he suggested the mixed platter, with an extra dish of Kastoori Kabas, chicken breast marinated in a creamy sauce and cooked in the Tandoor. The platter itself contained an array of delights including, lamb kebabs, deep friend baby spinach and potato barrels stuffed with cottage cheese, dried fruits and mashed potato. We all tried everything, and finished every morsel, a good choice so far.

The main courses arrived with individual coriander naan and the fluffiest Puloa. The dishes were a Murg Kali Mirch, marinated chicken in a gravy of poppy seeds, almonds and cashewnuts. There was Rarha Gosht, a spicy lamb dish and Chingri Malai, a prawn curry. The mixture of textures and levels of spices meant all tastes were catered for, with the kids concentrating on the chicken and myself and Martin doing the macho bit with the lamb, and just generally fighting over the prawns. After polishing this lot off, the two girls still felt like a dessert so while the adults had coffee, they shared a chocolate brownie.

Indian Summer serves very good food indeed, and they normally have a food festival later in the year which is worth checking out, check their website for details.