Pushkar - Birmingham

Very excellent Indian food I recommend starting with the pushkar panorama appetizer.

Birmingham is one of the two capitals of Indian food in England (the other one being Bradford).

Birmingham is one of the two capitals of Indian food in England (the other one being Bradford). It is home to Balti dishes, and Balti houses abound all over the city. With so many great-tasting and reasonably-priced Indian food options around, it is quite impressive that a higher end, pricier Indian restaurant like Pushkar has established a loyal clientele. Pushkar sets itself apart from other Indian restaurants in the area due to its upscale setting, the high quality of its food ingredients, and especially its creative dessert offerings. My first dining experience at Pushkar was purely by chance. I was staying near Brindley Place, and happened to be walking past the restaurant, when I decided to stop and check out the menu. The duck masala sounded interesting, so I decided to try it, and it definitely exceeded my expectations. The thick tomato-based curry had a fantastic flavor profile that consisted of garlic, ginger, black pepper and red chilies. It paired well with basmati rice and a side of raita. Since my first visit, I have dined at Pushkar a few more times, and have always enjoyed everything I have tried. The murgh korma stands out as a rich, creamy, nutty curry dish that is perfect for you if you are in the mood for something less spicy. The innovative desserts at Pushkar are a major draw for me. The gajar ka halwa tart with pistachio ice cream is my personal favorite. The garam masala brulee sounded interesting, but didn't taste too different from regular crème brulee; the garam masala in it was really only a hint of cinnamon. It still was pretty tasty. The chocomosa is a filo samosa filled with chocolate and roast almonds, and is served with a scoop of cappuccino ice cream. Why had nobody else ever thought of creating a chocolate samosa, and if they did, why had I never eaten one before? Friends, if you find yourselves in Brummy, you must treat yourselves to a meal at Pushkar. It is truly deserving of all of the awards that have been bestowed upon it, including the 2015 British Curry Award, the 2015 Best of Broad Street Award, and the 2015 English Curry Award.

Very excellent Indian food. I recommend starting with the pushkar panorama appetizer. It was a wonderful way to start the meal! Note that you can not order food at the bar. I wish i had saved room for desert!

This is my second time at Pushkar and the quality of the food has not changed but my experience this time around did make me rethink about the service and the venue. I was exhausted after a long week and craved their delicious chicken mukhani but didn't want to dress up to sit as a single diner in the restaurant. It's on Broad Street and a 5 minute walk from the Hilton Garden Inn so I decided to grab some take-away. I walked into a PACKED restaurant at 9:45pm. Making me realize that the decision not to dine in was the right one. It was a Friday night so I was not surprised this place is popular. But the noise inside was deafening and I found it to be unpleasant as I watched people lean in and yell to be heard. They may consider trying to dampen the sound. Luckily they didn't have music pounding away in the background otherwise it would have been a lost cause. I then waited. And waited. I had multiple waitstaff walk past me and not acknowledge me for a solid 4-5 minutes. Which isn't a long time, but I clearly was waiting and had to walk up to the bar to try to get attention. Luckily the gentleman at the bar talking to some drinkers noticed and I asked if I could order take away. He handed me a menu and then walked away and proceeded to ignore me. I then had to stop a hostess and ask if I could order my food. She told me to talk to a waiter/waitress but offered to let someone know I was waiting. Another 5 minutes and finally a waiter came and I placed my order. I sat at the bar and my food arrived about 10 minutes later piping hot and generously packed. I had asked for utensils but they forgot and it wasn't worth waiting around to try to get them. I just wanted to get out of the chaotic space and noise as quickly as possible. My deduction is not a full star, more of a half star ding but affected my original 5 star review based on my recent experience. The food is definitely top notch, but make sure to make a reservation especially on a weekend night and keep in mind the noise if you're planning on taking a date!