THEY say you can have too much of a good thing, but when it comes to curry I beg to differ. Tikka, kurma, pathia or phindi - I just can't get enough. And it must run in the family because my father's rather partial to a spot (or should that be a big fat dollop) of the spicy stuff too.

So whenever he's in town we always try to indulge in a bit of Indian cuisine. And as variety is the spice of life, we thought we'd try the award-winning Indian Paradise in Boscombe.

With its black and white décor, red carnations and candles it doesn't have the traditional feel of an Indian eatery. But the sitar music and elephants (adorning almost every trace of wall space) give enough of an oriental ambience that the rest of the furnishings don't feel out of place.

Obviously you don't expect Wednesday to be the peak of the commercial week but I'll admit we were a little concerned by the complete lack of any other diners. As it turns out we needn't have worried.

The most important aspect of any restaurant is its menu - and Indian Paradise didn't disappoint. Boasting everything from bhuna to birianies, tikka to tandoori and even a six-course banquet on Tuesdays and Thursdays for less than a tenner we were hard pushed to decide.

After much discussion we settled on some onion bhajis and chicken tikka to start. Diced, marinated, spiced and then grilled in a charcoal oven, the latter was soft and succulent and served with scrumptious caramelised onions. The former were a little crunchy for my liking but all in all, we agreed, a very good beginning.

Onwards and upwards, to the mains. I opted for a vegetable dansak and egg fried rice whilst my old man also went meat free with a vegetable balti served with a peshwari nan.

I've discovered a great deal of variation in the spiciness of dansaks over the years and this was definitely on the hotter end of the scale - although not so fiery that I couldn't finish it.

The balti, on the other hand, was a little milder but if my Dad's wiped clean bowl was anything to go by I'd say equally as delicious. Despite turning up a little late in proceedings (about 10 minutes after the rest of the meal) the nan was declared practically perfect in every way' - soft and doughy on the inside, and delightfully crunchy on the outside.

With a Kingfisher (or two) to wash it down with our meal came to just over £30, a slap-up meal with a sensible price tag, complete with a complimentary Baileys that finished off the evening a treat.

1:09pm Monday 7th April 2008

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