Top in Town Indian Restaurant & Biryani House

2 Reviews on “Top in Town Indian Restaurant & Biryani House”

• Atreyu

  TL;DR: Indian may be on of the most common and abundant options when it comes to dining anywhere in this town, and it possibly has gotten to a point most folks here think they have tried it all. That is not even debatable, since they are mistaken – especially if they have not gone into here. While it lacks any of the aesthetic, it makes up for that with a real experience of curries that are unlike what is served anywhere. It is the Miss India style of service and setting with the quality and kind of curry for those wanting something else. If a Little India (or whatever the Indian version of Chinatown or Little Saigon is) existed, you could bet your bippy dozens of these would fit in and be right there. Something of an institution around this part of town, there are about three of these sucker in a row each serving some home-style Indian curries. It is about as much of a curry house experience as you could get without having to travel afar. While each very much aims for the same sort of vibe, they are also able to be distinguished with a unique character from the others, along with what they serve. Clients can travel from one to the other easily, giving a slightly apparent vibe of the hawker store. At the Biriyani and Curry House, they focus on the Hyderabadi region, and a close to no frills version of curry. That is something else. It was a Saturday night, the time was fairly late, and business at the soup kitchen had wrapped up for the night. One of the guys there – the boss, with lack of a better word – had told us about this Indian place which he had really taken an interest in, and had suggested it a few weeks ago. Things happened and got in the way over time, eventually it all aligned well one week and it was all a-go. For me, there was not anywhere to be in the following morning, and for something a bit different, this as a good idea. Tagging along with three other guy, it was off to here for a tasty eat. In actuality, thus far this has been a twice-off, both times being pretty good. Awards won’t be given much to the decor of the place. It is really simplistic in design, with a row of tables on one end of the room, and a long bain marie with all the choices of meals on the other. Indian music plays a little quieter than it normally would from the loud-speaker, some neon lights add a little mood, and at any possible time during opening hours – particularly at the closing stage – all sorts of delivery services await last orders, along with stragglers getting a late night feed. Like it was decided, the aspects of a restaurant haven’t really being given a score since it would vary to much. Service here might be around a C-grade overall … never-mind. It is a bit better than the usual curry house kind of service, even if the demeanour might be all over the place. Into the late of the night, a hard work ethic is apparent. With most of the food already prepared well in advance – thank you bain maries – the ordering process is quick and easy. Just point to what looks good, a good one or two scoops of curry later, and the goodness awaits. You can have all the Miss Indias you want in town, but they fall flat in comparison to here in many ways. The first reason is the range of curries available at Top in Town. Dozens of varieties are available, with the majority of the curries being meat and lamb (vegetarian options are right next door). Additional curries include a goat one, and some fish curries, plus they offer a few kinds of naan to go with the curries, along with the house special biriyani. It bucks the trend of how most restaurants go with the spice levels, in which this adds at least one or two more levels of intensity either way. For wetting the whistle, a moderate range is right there in the fridge – the usual kinds of soda, water, juices et al – along with the classical lassi.Fortunately in part, they have several standard deals which can allow patrons to order several types of curry to sample. That, and having a rounded meal for a-steal. Whatever the name of it was – it escapes me at the moment – what I had got the choice of any two sorts of curry that was available, along with a serving of their Hyderbaad biriyani, and some raita. The two curries I ordered from here were the fire chicken and the pepper chicken. By sheer insanity, seeing the very hot label on the former was very tempting to me, and after weighing it up in my mind I went ahead. The pepper chicken was merely hot. Second time around, it was the biriyani thali again, this time with kadhai chicken and lamb rogan josh. Each one of the curries was quite good, and this is a long way away from what I am used to. When they say hot curry, they mean hot and even a medium results in things heating up majorly. Especially the fire chicken, which turned out to be more of a slow burn than anything else. This allowed the flavours of the chillies used to be tasted, and the sauces usually had pieces of onion and tomato swimming in them. Sometimes they can be a little creamy, though that is not commonplace here. Meat used is often quite tender, and selected from the good parts of the animal (e.g. thigh from the chicken), and is tender from getting cooked over a long period of time. Not sure about the milder sauces, but when it comes to the hotter sauces the curries become real firecrackers – don’t say you weren’t warned. With the biriyani, overall it was a little on the bland side. Nothing wrong with how it was cooked, the rice was definitely cooked well and had the spices hugging it well. What did work was having big bits, and I mean big bits as well – possibly larger than any of the curries, of chicken throughout it. Both times when going here, one of the other boys ordered a basket of garlic naan to share around and use to wipe up the sauce. As always, lovely choice and the basket that they give is pretty generous – these sorts of places vary with quantity with how much they give, the amount that was given easily fed the three or four folks in the party. It could be inferred that the waitstaff take an estimate and go from there, if so that is even better. As well as that, a round of mango lassis was gotten as something to drink. They were effective in keeping the spice of the curry subdued. Nothing can be said here that hasn’t already been said dozens of times about the classic lassi. Smooth and creamy texture, the mango seeped through with its characteristic taste, and it is something I make sure I order each time at Indian. To round it all off, during the first visit here there was also some desserts gotten from the fridge. I can only vaguely recall what the two were, and am no expert when it comes to desserts either. There possibly was the kheer, and most certainly some gulab jamun was ordered as well. Nice, smooth and sweet, they did finish it all of quite well and was sort of sweet, the kind with a bit of honey on the side but not so much some sugar. Close to an acquired taste, but it should do most people well. As good as Indian is, and as reliable as a choice it is as a group, this is definitely one for the friends you are already familiar with. The setting is a bit rough, and it is my no means glamorous. Still, in itself that has something of a charm in taking the no-nonsense approach. Each one of the curries is assuredly hot in a thermal manner, and enough is present to ensure something is available for all the different tolerances to spice. It is definitely a departure from the standard old Indian place, with curries that are far less creamy in texture and when it is spicy, the effect is more of a slow-burn. Overall, it is a good choice for those liking Indian and it delivers without any bells and whistles attached, and is a step outside most people’s comfort zones – that is where I love to tread. Final rating: 3.5

  November 12, 2020, 6:05 am

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• Deepti Kujur

  This place was a second home to my then bachelor husband. Whenever he missed indian food this was the closest to satisfy his urge for indian spicy food. some days the food is finger licking good but some days its not up to the mark. Nevertheless u can always taste before buying. My personal favourites are fire chicken, chicken Hyderabadi, chilli chicken. Decent quality biryani and some days they serve fresh sweets which we always add on to our plate.

  March 13, 2019, 3:24 pm

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