Generous cornucopia of new Asian delights

LE JARDIN PUNJABI, LICHFIELD: From being an exotic example of eastern promise to a staple of the high street, the journey of Indian food has been a triumph of tasty proportions.

With homegrown dishes booming out from Brum's balti belt, everywhere has its own favourite curryhouse – perhaps to the point of cliche.

So it's high time to be reminded of the genuine wealth of culinary excellence from whence the legend came, and Lichfield's Le Jardin Punjabi is just the place to cash in.

'Executive chef' JP Singh has worked at prestigious hotels in Delhi, top Indian restaurants in London and has even cooked for some bloke called Blair (?) at his farewell banquet.

Marrying the intricacies of Indian cuisine to the flair of the French, Le Jardin Punjabi presents authentic north Indian cuisine in a fine dining experience.

And fine it certainly is, from the gracious welcome and prompt service to the stylish surroundings which manage to be at once impressive but not intimidating.

There's also a bar and Champagne lounge, and the restaurant's individuality is finely marked by a gleaming spiral staircase leading downstairs.

Settled at a comfortable ground-floor table, we couldn't resist snacking on some pappadoms before the meal.

Instead of the more traditional plate-sized fare, we received a basket of trendy – and tasty – small lentil crackers, served with a trio of super chutneys and sauces.

There was also a complementary amuse bouche, courtesy of the chef.

I opted for a starter of seekh kebab dhabba – sumptuous spicy minced lamb kebabs, mixed with fresh herbs and cooked on skewers in the restaurant's clay oven.

The generous amount of kebab was supported by a large helping of fresh salad and the kebabs themselves were everything I'd hoped for and more.

Succulent, tasty, tender meat with just the right amount of kick to get the taste buds watering but not the eyes.

My partner chose the chowk ki tikki vegetarian starter, authentic pan fried potato cakes lightly spiced and flavoured with pomegranate seeds, topped with yoghurt and chick peas with sweet and sour tamarind sauce.

Again accompanied by a generous salad, the cakes were pronounced 'fantastic' in flavour and portion-size.

Presentation of both dishes was excellent, with the emphasis on modern fine dining complementing the best in Indian cuisine.

For the main course, we were bamboozled by the fantastic array of options available.

It wasn't that the menu was too overwhelming – it's just we wanted to try a bit of everything.

So the only realistic option was to plump for thalis. A real bonus to any Indian restaurant's menu, thalis allow the diner to sample small portions of various main courses.

I went for the Le Jardin Punjabi thali, offering a mix of vegetarian and, as the menu puts it, 'non-vegetarian' curries.

The assortment came out on a huge circular silver tray, crammed with bowls of delightful choice cuts from the menu.

There were curries featuring chicken, lamb, black lentils and potato, plus a generous bowl of salad, lashings of yoghurt, fragrant rice and a large basket of triangular-sliced naan bread.

My partner opted for the vegetarian shakahari thali, which by some unusual quirk of fate was actually 5p more than the meat option yet did come with a delicious creamy lassi drink.

As well as vegetarian curries with onion, powerful okra, lentils and potato, the giant tray carried rice, vegetables, salad and lots of yoghurt.

Both thalis came with a serving of delicious ramalai for dessert, a delightful milky rich sponge cake dipped in sweet-flavoured saffron milk with pistachio nuts.

Surprisingly filling yet light as a feather and probably the best Indian dessert I have ever eaten.

The thalis were a great way to get to know an unfamiliar menu and we both left fit-to-burst – with the feeling we'd found our new favourite restaurant.

* Cost of meal, excluding drinks: £57.29.

* Le Jardin Punjabi in Bird Street, Lichfield.