Indian cuisine that brings back memories

The Host

Where: 12 Lighthouse Road, Umhlanga Rocks

Open: Daily 12.30pm to 10pm (closed Tuesdays)

Call: 076 780 8339

We’d heard about a new Indian restaurant in Umhlanga called The Host. The Poet even insisted we hold off until she got back from India to try it.

And we weren’t there long before a familiar face came to welcome us to the table. It was Vivek from Mali’s, the acclaimed Indian restaurant that for many was Durban’s top pick. He and his family had sold and left for Canada, but they missed home and on the return dusted off their tried and tested recipe. With many of the original team back in the kitchen. And it’s paying dividends.

It’s a smart modern restaurant. Gone is all the grunge and black tiles that I remember from its days as Mexicola and The Dutch. It’s comfortable and helps raise this side strip of restaurants up a notch or two. It also adds a good quality Indian restaurant to the Umhlanga mix. Much like Wandering Seoul which we also enjoyed recently does for Asian cuisine.

It’s a worthy addition.

Joining us are Vivek, Trevor and the Advocate. The Poet also did a little research online to find out which were the most popular dishes. The Manchurian mushrooms have everyone getting excited, as does the lamb pepper fry. We would have to try both.

I suggested the former as starters along with the chicken tikka. The other popular dish arriving at just about every table was their potato dosa - the large crisp rice pancake cooked on the hot stones (dosa) and stuffed with a potato curry. I’ll have one of those next, because The Poet insisted this was not a starter as such. The chicken tikka was succulent and moist and beautifully spiced - full marks. And as for those mushrooms, the batter was wonderfully crisp and they were tossed in a sauce that was both sticky and fiery. Spring onions added freshness. We were impressed. Even Vivek who normally thinks mushrooms are terrible things.

Mali’s was always famed for their chilli crab. We asked about it, but he said they didn’t have any that day. He encouraged crab curry fans to order in advance and then they can make it fresh.

I wanted to try the chettinad prawns, the Advocate, the lamb rogan josh. We contemplated the paneer and potato balls in a tomato chutney but our waiter persuaded us to try the mixed vegetable curry instead. Plus there was the pepper fry and a selection of naan and paratha.

The Poet ordered some spicy papadums thinking they were just papadums that had been spiced up. Instead they came laden with spicy sambals. Enjoyable the fresh veg against the crisp papadums, but nearly impossible to eat, and more difficult to share. 

The lamb pepper fry was the highlight, rich, still moist yet fired up with pepper and spring onions. Topped with a soothing raita and mopped up with a flaky paratha that one Indian restaurant owner once called the croissant of India, this was a very fine dish. The dish reminded me of my late friend from Johannesburg, The Director. He was down and we had shared this in the early days of Mali’s. He was so impressed that every time there was a bridge function in Durban, the entire Joburg gang would pack the restaurant out.

Also all the curries had their own distinct flavours. The rogan josh, while ordered hot, was probably more medium, but nicely balanced and rounded. It wasn’t just dumping some spices in buckets of tomato. I enjoyed the prawns complete with the fiery flavours of peppers and chillies from Kerala. Even the veg curry was enjoyable with chunks of paneer adding interest.

Afterwards The Poet enjoyed her cappuccino while us boys all had kulfi for dessert. We could have had golab jamun. But the homemade kulfi was deliciously creamy and not overly sweet. It was a fitting end to a good meal.

Food: 4

Service: 3

Ambience: 3 ½

The Bill: R2412 for five