I love being by the sea; the sound of the waves and the sea breeze, which is why I frequently stroll along the seafront, which has become more enjoyable in recent years with the extension of the stretch along Piale Pasa towards Makenzie. And there is now another new entrant to the Larnaca dining scene, a hip and trendy looking Indian restaurant Masti Indian Bar and Restaurant. The location and the cuisine combine two of my favourite things so I had to pay a visit.

The interior is very modern with sprinkles of Indian culture and tradition. Walking along the seafront and looking in, you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a stylish beach bar, especially in the evening with the sign glowing from the somehow subtle yet bright turquoise backlight. However, the delicate sound of traditional music in the background definitely put paid to any misconceptions we were anywhere other than an Indian restaurant.

My assumption that the menu would present me with the same old classics, available with chicken, lamb or prawns was correct but I was pleasantly surprised that Masti is mixing it up a bit by offering different variations of dishes suited to the meat they are made with. One thing I definitely have not seen before on a starters menu at an Indian restaurant is keema tacos! Chef Jasminder has definitely made an attempt to offer some dishes that have a twist. Something else that caught my eye was the Chicken Korma made with chicken dumplings.

We asked our friendly waiter a few questions about various dishes and it was good to see they had knowledge of the menu and was confidently able to help us out. After much deliberation, we were ready to order. Poppadoms and Chilli Chicken for starters. Two of us both opted for the Lamb Rogan Josh, one Delhi Butter Chicken with a spicy preference of ‘madras’ and a medium spiced Karahi Chicken. Needless to say we accompanied that with pulao rice (mushroom and regular) and both chilli and garlic naan.

The Poppadoms and Chilli Chicken were out pretty sharpish which was good because all the aromas in the air were really whetting our appetite. The Poppadoms were as expected, can’t really go wrong with those. The Chilli Chicken had a lovely crunch to it while the chilli flavouring was just right for my liking but not spicy enough for others.

The main dishes came out and one thing that caught my eye immediately was the vibrant colours of the rice! The mushroom pulao was a reddish pick and the regular was a bright yellow. They really added a nice pop of colour to the table. Who needs decorations when you can brighten up the place with the food! The chicken dishes looked great, a nice healthy serving of chicken stylishly placed across the bowl on a small skewer.

However, the lamb dishes looked like a bowl of soup. It was disappointing that there was plenty of chicken but the lamb portion was a little measly, to the point where my friends awkwardly asked if we would like to share theirs. This did not take away though from the evidently high quality ingredients, succulent lamb and delicious sauce. It was really good. The naan was a little bit of a let-down though. Whilst the flavours were great, it was a little flat and not the fluffy texture that I was hoping for.

One positive that came out of a smaller serving of main was that there was room for dessert. I had scouted out the Masti lemon cheesecake when I was perusing the menu but didn’t know if I’d be able to fit it in. There were a couple of more traditional desserts on the menu but I made a brilliant choice. The cheesecake was top notch and a perfect ending to the meal.

VITAL STATISTICS

SPECIALTY Indian

WHERE Masti Indian Bar and Restaurant, 8 Piale Pasa, Larnaca

WHEN 12:30 – 02:00 (kitchen open until 23.30)

CONTACT 24 333633

HOW MUCH lamb dishes €16, chicken dishes €15, rice €5-6, desserts €8