Restaurant Review: Indian nosh on the beachfront

Spizealand Indian Restaurant, Marine Parade, Mt Maunganui. Photo/supplied

On the menu: Spizealand has plenty to choose from, with a huge menu of varying Indian dishes plus a few others under a section of Indo-Chinese specials. Vegetarians can rejoice. In addition to the plentiful chicken, beef, lamb and seafood dishes are 16 vegetarian main options (instead of the standard one or two as often offered when eating out).

All the Indian favourites such as vindaloo, korma and rogan josh are here but so is an exclusive Spizealand Specials selection. We're told these dishes are the chef's own creation or a take on more traditional and less well-known dishes and are unique to the restaurant. With options such as Beef Fry (Kerala-style) - a dry dish with beef and lots of fresh coconut, curry leaves, mustard seeds and pepper - or Banjari Gosht - lamb with yoghurt, crushed coriander and whole red chillies - it's safe to say we were licking our lips trying to decide which to have.

Sadly, we failed to reserve enough room in our bellies for dessert but the choice between Mango Kulfi or creamed milk dumpings for $6 each was incredibly tempting.

The buzz: Spizealand is set up in a former beach-themed cafe located at the Mauao end of Marine Parade and the atmosphere remains breezy, relaxed and casual. Other diners included an older couple dressed in shorts and shirts, three generations of one family and several other older holidaymakers enjoying the Mount beach lifestyle. Indian-themed music, including an Indian version of Adele's hits, helped add to the atmosphere.

I'll have: We dined as a group of four and chose a non-vegetarian platter to start. What came out was absolutely sumptuous. The platter offered four different versions of meat including a tikka fish, lamb seekh (kofta-style sausage) and garlic chicken. For my main I was recommended the Chicken Tawa, a popular dish apparently, and I was not disappointed.

The tawa came out on a sizzling plate and was packed full of flavour. I haven't had a dish like this before and felt its rather standard description on the menu undersold it a little. Clever use of cabbage leaves prevented the dish from drying out on the sizzling plate. It was a smidge light on the spice level for me, personally, but that did not take away from the dish at all. It was the favourite among everyone at the table.

He'll have: Hubby helped share the non-vegetarian platter, picking the tikka fish as his favourite. For his main, he chose the Banjari Gosht. A flavoursome and moreish dish quite different to the standard Indian curry. It got two thumbs up and the creamy dish was a nice contrast to the tomato-based tawa.

Value for money: Starters range from $3 for poppadoms to $22 for full chicken tikka or tandoori chicken, with plenty of options for both carnivores and vegetarians. Likewise, there are many different main dishes to choose from which sit around the $19 mark. At $21, seafood mains are the most expensive mains on the menu.

The mains prices include rice and complimentary poppadoms at the beginning of the meal help whet the appetite.

The staff: Friendly and attentive. We were given water as we sat and, as we perused the menu, we were offered recommendations to suit our table's varying degrees of heat preference. Drinks were well presented and poured for us and we did not have to wait long for food. The staff checked on us and ensured we were comfortable, offering to open nearby sliding doors for some breeze since it had been a hot day.

The verdict: Delicious! While the atmosphere is not exactly that of your traditional Indian restaurant (but it would be hard to imagine one down on the beachfront anyway) the food is first rate and incredibly tasty. We'll gladly go back to try more dishes, if I can peel myself away from the scrumptious Chicken Tawa that is.

Spizealand is relaxed and easygoing but doesn't scrimp on delivering top-notch food packed with flavour. Two thumbs up.