Eating out: variety is the spice of life at curry buffet

It’s a question I needed answered, and urgently, this week as I battled with a rather nasty bout of the sniffles.

And so I headed to Ivy India — the latest Indian restaurant on the Newton Mearns block.

The former Malletsheugh Inn on Ayr Road has been transformed into a smart restaurant and bar — inside it’s all sleek seating areas, slick modern decor and dark wood.

There’s an extensive a la carte menu available, as well as takeaway options — but, being a dedicated reviewer, only the evening buffet would do.

The range on offer is good, and there’s plenty to please the fussiest eater. Garlic mushrooms were the highlight for me; creamy, full of flavour...and so good that I couldn’t resist a second helping.

The mushroom pakora was a bit soggy, but an an a la carte sampling of chicken puri was excellent; tangy sweet and sour sauce and tender meat wrapped in a flavourful flatbread.

Onto the mains, and a chana (chickpea) curry was the best of the bunch, but two very tender lamb dishes (perfect for my chicken-hating other half), chicken tikka chasni and a mixed veg dish also stood out.

Ivy India’s buffet includes dessert, and I saved room to sample a few.

Traditional Indian dessert gulab jamun was tasty; sweet and sticky sponge complemented by vanilla ice cream.

A slice of zesty orange tart was also good, and the increasingly popular chocolate fountain option went down a treat — with other diners as well it seems, as it was running low by the time I reached it.

It may not cure the common cold, but the range of flavours and spices on offer at Ivy India certainly eased my symptoms — and I’ll take that chicken puri over a cough bottle any day of the week.

Rating: 7/10

Ivy India

340 Ayr Road

Newton Mearns

G77 6RT

Tel: 0141 639 9779