Saffron Spice is an elegant, stylish Indian cuisine restaurant in Portsmouth with a menu of both crowd-pleasing favourites and a few dishes you might not have heard of before. The space keeps things contemporary and bright. Think on-trend sage green walls, cosy booth seating and a considered palette of orange, mustard and olive, across seating. It works well for meals out with family, friends and even important milestones.
Digging into the starters and there's plenty of choice - so, we'd recommend ordering a selection for the table. For the taste of something a bit modern, tandoori sardine comes lightly spiced and served with yogurt, lemon zest and coriander for a fresh finish, while the baby squid is inventively stuffed with spinach and cheese in a tomato herb sauce. You might also be interested in the crispy chicken malai balls which are served with masala sauce and topped with parmesan, while the paneer tikka is always a winner.
Onto mains and you could try some of the familiar signature dishes such as lamb tikka, masala or pasanda, or go for something a little more out of the ordinary. The Manchurian, for example, should cause a bit of a stir with cubes of hotly-spiced onion, peppers, curry leaves and fried chilli, accented with chicken or lamb. Or, the seafood curry brings together seabass, salmon, mussels and king prawns in a spicy, Goan sauce. But, if you really are a fan of tradition, turn over the page to the likes of dansak, jalfrezi, vindaloo and many other classics, served with chicken, lamb, vegetable, tiger prawn or king prawn.
As for side dishes, you can't miss out on the tangled greens with broccoli, beans, sugarsnap peas and mangetout, the bang bang cauliflower with sweet chilli sauce, or the Badami Begun with sweet and sour aubergine, cashew nuts and sesame seeds.