Sunday 28 April 2013

Maveli, Sheffield

South Indian food has well and truly hit Sheffield. East & West and Dhanista's were the first on the scene, with Urban Choola and Maveli opening their doors within the last couple of months. If you haven't tried this style of food before, it's completely different to the British style curries that we've been used to. Don't be scared by the menu though. Just pick a few things, go for it and keep an open mind.

As is the way in Sheffield, most of the more 'interesting' food establishments are located on London Road and Abbeydale Road, but Maveli has set up shop on Glossop Road (town end - next to Hui Wei and in the old Tamarind venue). And as I live in town this pleases me very much!

After a few beers we headed over to Maveli for about 8.30 on a Friday night. It was busy and we had a short wait before being seated, which didn't bother me as we hadn't booked and a busy restaurant is always a good sign. There were quite a few Indian customers in too, which was an even better sign.

For starters we decided to share 3 dishes on the basis that Gav was 'starving' and I was eager to try as many things as I could. I picked Sundal which was described as a 'warm salad made up of cooked mixed pulses and lentils and grated coconut' (£2.50). This was a healthy and filling starter with a good level of spice.



Gav chose Cauliflower Varuval, or 'florets of cauliflower marinated and fried in a light batter' (£3.50) which was fresh and well cooked cauliflower florets (with bite and free of grease) with a couple of dips.




We fancied Sambar Vada because we recognised the dish from East and West. Here the vada (a savoury doughnut) was chopped up and served in the samba sauce. It was good, but I do prefer the way it is served at East and West; i.e. separately as this allows for a crunchy texture of the vada. This is just my personal preference though.


Onto mains and the Maveli Egg Masala really appealed; 'boiled quail eggs cooked in spicy gravy' (£5.50) and I'm so glad that we went for it. Quail eggs had soft, but not runny yolks, which meant that they didn't get lost in the delicious gravy. I could have eaten this dish 26 times over and I can't wait until I can try it again.


Kovalam Meen Kolambu was 'fisherman's style fish curry from coastal Tamil Nadu' (£6.50) and it didn't disappoint. The fish was soft and moist; there's nothing worse than dry and overcooked fish.


All this with chappathis, rice and two Kingfishers came to the grand sum of £34.50 which is in line with the other South Indian restaurants in Sheffield and it was worth every penny. The decor is smart (or at least it's smarter than East & West and Dhanista's) and the staff were very friendly and welcoming. I've a feeling that we may become regulars here...

Like Maveli on Facebook and follow them on Twitter for updates and info.

9 comments:

  1. the egg curry looks great! my mum makes a lovely egg curry

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  2. Good to know Sheffield's finally getting something else other than the usual Chicken Tikka Masala. Shall take the family to check out this place. On Sambar Vada ,generally speaking, the Vada is dunked in the Sambar and served. Whereas if you asked for a Vada, it would be served separately apart from the sauces.

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  3. Komal - I must try making this at home...!

    Anonymous - Thanks for the info - I'm sure readers of this blog will appreciate that litle nugget of knowledge too.

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  4. Looks great....

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  5. Nice Review its a pity you didnt get to try the other lovely dishes on the menu

    YOU NEED TO GO BACK !!!

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  6. We went last night for the second time and I'm glad I saw your recommendation for the quail's egg curry as it was wonderful. I think this may well become one of my favourite restaurants in Sheffield and I can't wait to go back. Good to see that it was busy

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  7. Fab! I'm so glad everyone seems to be enjoying Maveli! MOFFATS, you are right. I NEED TO GO BACK!!!

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  8. Saddest thing is nobody realizing. The chef who cooks in marveli used to work for east and west and dhanisthas. So you all fail to recognize the taste. Anyway they haven't changed much in deco since they took over from tamarind. Stop comparing with others, if you all do. Then go to London Wembley, Eastham and Southall to taste the real south Indian and srilankan food. In here it's all slightly modified to suite northerners taste

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