Indian elegance as standard in contemporary surroundings

About the restaurantOojam is a contemporary styled restaurant in the heart of Hemel Hempstead’s Riverside Shopping Centre and prides itself on offering fresh flavours from across India.

Atmosphere and d�corCosy booths, lime green chairs and a glass walled kitchen in a light, bright modern space. A calm environment away from the busy shopping centre.

ServiceA very friendly welcome is sustained throughout the meal with our waiter full of smiles and continuously helpful.

The menuTraditional dishes you would expect to find in an Indian restaurant are combined with new offerings I have not seen before. And even the traditional dishes are not what you would expect, seeming to be that much lighter.

To startI chose the Dill salmon kebab (�4.95) which was lightly seasoned and melt-in-the-mouth delicious. My companion chose the Chilli and ginger lamb seekh kebab (�4.25) which was full of flavour with just the right edge of spice.

For mainSticking with tradition, I picked the King chicken korma with rice (�6.75) as I wanted to see how they served this classic. I was not disappointed as it was delicious and fresh with a creamy textured sauce that was light and tasty. My companion chose the Meat thali (�8.95) which could have been overwhelming with six components but each turned out to be just the right size for a hearty lunch, and included dishes of lentils, lamb, raita and curry. Each bursting with flavour.

For dessertNot able to manage a dessert at lunchtime, we instead chose another of the drinks we had picked at the start of the meal – a refreshing Tamil Tropic mocktail for me with guava, mango, pineapple, orange and fresh citrus (�3.50) and a vanilla and poppyseed lassmoothie (�3) for my sweet-toothed companion. Both were delicious, hence the need for two each. Had we chosen dessert the menu included home-made ice-cream in a variety of flavours.

Our experienceThis was one of the best lunchtime meals I have experienced in a long time and I was delighted by how fresh and full of flavour all the dishes were.

The cost of a two-course lunch for two was �42.79 including four soft drinks.

OojamHemel HempsteadHP1 1BT 01442 255085www.oojam.co.uk