As a much-loved staple of the town for over 20 years, Warwick Spice Bangladeshi & Indian restaurant is a local success story worth celebrating.

Situated just a short walk from the town centre, within near reach of the historic high street, this bustling restaurant & takeaway has been a major hit with customers for many a year. Indeed, it earned the accolade of Most Loved Indian Restaurant In The UK in ‘thebestof’ business awards 2018 and a nomination for Bangladeshi Restaurant Of The Year at last year’s English Curry Awards.

So what is the secret to its longevity? As a first-time visitor to the venue in 2023, I think the recipe is simple enough; fresh, authentic food, cooked from the heart, delivered with unmatched hospitality and a genuine friendliness that finds its way into every aspect of the customer experience.

Entering the venue from the nearby high street, we were greeted like old friends by the restaurant’s attentive waiting staff and its charismatic owner, Hosoun Miah, whose genuine warmth and infectious sense of humour made us feel instantly at home.

A brief glance at Warwick Spice’s menu revealed a comprehensive selection of South Asian favourites, individually cooked to order for maximum freshness.

As well as tried-and-tested curry-house dishes - Madras, Dopiaza, Byriani and Dhansak - there were also less familiar ‘chef specials’ available. These included Sorisha (chicken cooked in garam masala and mustard), Manik’s ‘home-style’ special curry, King Prawn Pasanda and Jumri - grilled chicken cooked with kidney beans, hot paprika & fresh chillies. Warwick Spice offers choice enough to satisfy all tastes, whether you’re eager to expand your culinary horizons or content in your comfort zone of a classic korma or masala.

We settled down to our table - complete with fresh linens - and a serving of house special Pinot Grigio. 
My partner’s choice of starter - a Tandoori Mix (£5.25) of Lamb Tikka, Chicken Tikka and Sheek Kebab served with fresh raita and side salad - was chargrilled to perfection and bursting with authentic, aromatic flavour. Marinated in classic ‘tikka’ spices using only the tenderest cuts of meat, this was tandoor cooking at its best; smoky, richly spiced with hints of coriander, chilli and garlic, and boasting a tenderness of texture that can only be achieved by the true experts!

For the non-meat eater looking to sample the authentic taste of tandoori cooking, Warwick Spice also offers ‘paneer’ and ‘salmon’ tikka starters as standard.

My starter of Keralan ‘Aam’ chicken (£4.95) was the perfect marriage of sweet and sour; cooked in a rich mango sauce with a subtle aftertaste of warm spice and served in small, individually marinated chunks that simply melted in the mouth.

With so many great dishes to choose from, it was time to consult the experts. Selecting from the ‘chef specials’ menu for my partner, our helpful waiter was quick to recommend the restaurant’s most popular dish: the chicken ‘Makhoni’ (£10.50). This was cooked in a classic red sauce, flavoured with almond, butter and cream, and served, in this case, with the most generous portion of garlic naan bread (£3.50) that I’ve ever seen. Poised somewhere between a Masala and Pasanda, the ‘Makhoni’ sauce of fresh tomato, cream, onion and butter was delightfully sweet (if a little too rich for my tastes) and incredibly good value at just over £10 per portion.

Choosing instead from the menu of traditional curries, my Lamb Tikka Saagwala (£10.25) - made with spinach and garnished with fresh lemon - well and truly lived up to its ‘super food’ credentials. Bursting with the fresh citrus scents of coriander and lemon juice, and served in a sauce of aromatic spices, the tender chunks of grilled lamb tikka provided the perfect counterpoint to the robust, earthy flavour of the sauteed spinach. My choice of chapati side proved the ideal vehicle for mopping up all that vitamin-rich spinach sauce.

And whilst our stomachs couldn’t quite stretch to sampling one of Warwick Spice’s many and varied vegetable sides and sundries this time around, it’s safe to say we weren’t short of choice; from the lentil-based Tarka Dhal, Saag Paneer and Bombay Aloo, right through to the less common ‘Gobi’ peas (cooked in cauliflower), Egg Bhuna (cooked in a medium-spicy sauce) and Navratan curry, made with cabbage, onions, potatoes, cauliflower, peas, beans, carrots, marrow and okra.

Ultimately, though, what continues to bring Warwick Spice’s customers back to the restaurant again and again isn’t just the authentic South Asian food. It’s the feeling of being part of something indispensable; something solid and timeless.

From its regular charity fundraisers to its three-course Bollywood banquet nights and special-events programme, this is a venue that exists at the very heart of its local community.

Warwick Spice has been serving regulars and newcomers alike with an unswerving pride and genuine ‘passion for people’ for the last 23 years - and long may that continue. 

Four stars
Reviewed by Katherine Ewing