June - Junction 14 ,
MILTON KEYNES
The
Jaipur Restaurant
Grafton
House, 599 Grafton Gate East
Central
Milton Keynes
MK9 1AT
01908
669796
M1CurryClub
Chili rating
M1CurryClub Reviews
Review
by Dave
Emwon had known for
some time that the Jaipur in Milton Keynes was expanding
to new premises, reputed to be the largest purpose built curry house in the
land, and as a visit to MK was overdue it seemed to be an obvious choice.
Emwon's recollection of the old Jaipur was that it was not exactly the best
place ever visited, "overpriced" and "average" was the consensus.
Wetherspoons is the closest hostelry to meet and by good fortune they were
selling beer at 99p a pint. Most of Emwon were happy with this bargain and
the author conceded to try one second time around but wished he hadn't.
There's no accounting for taste, or lack of it.
The distance from Wetherspoons to the new Jaipur, a purpose built palace
which could be mistaken for a Hindi temple or a Spanish villa, is just about
walkable but caused much indecision and cumulated in a drive.
The establishment is indeed impressive and has a exchange-your-coat-for-a-ticket
cloakroom in the foyer. We were invited to a waiting
area where drinks were served and menus issued. The waiters were
very polite and the waitresses elegant in their fine silks. The
restaurant is on two floors and is big by any
standards. All very pleasant. All very posh.
I must confess I cannot remember much about the food although I believe most
of Emwon participated in the usual feed-us-for-a-fixed-price. The food must
have been fairly typical as it has left no lasting impression, neither good
nor bad. This is not the place for aspiring gourmets, it is the place for
an upmarket treat or to celebrate an occasion.
Indeed, the party on the adjacent table were celebrating their mother's
birthday. The son, unkindly, referred to the birthday girl as "you old bag"
and when the Emwon choir joined in with "Happy Birthday" one of Emwon, who
shall remain nameless to protect the guilty, sang "Happy Birthday Dear Old
Bag" and a fight nearly ensued. The son took exception as only he is
allowed to insult his mother. Mother, however, despite being Glaswegian,
took it in good part and averted any unpleasantness and even seemed pleased
that we had sung to her.
When Emwon had eaten it's fill, the bill, the most expensive ever incurred
by Emwon, was called for and paid. The manager was summoned to be presented
with the plaque which resulted in the customary free drink and at these
prices a real success and no mistake.
We returned to the waiting area to relax and we compared notes with the
party of ladies who thought we were firemen(??). Their bill was an order of
magnitude larger than Emwon's on account of no fixed-price-feed-us policy
and drinking cocktails instead of the house beer. There must be a moral
here somewhere, but I can't see it.
All in all, a good, memorable and posh night out, not because of the food,
but even so, most enjoyable.
M1CurryClub detailed rating
Ease
of parking
?
- 5
Ease
to locating
?
- 5
Extent
of menu
?
- 4
Quality
of food ?
- 3
Taste
? -
3
Speed
of service
?
- 3
Any
special beers
?-
4
Value for money
? -
2
Environment
?
-
5
Waiters
?
-
4
Manager
?
– 5
Paul's closing comments
- Well this was the first time we
nearly got into the fight with the next table. The Jaipur can't be called a
curry house, its a restaurant with prices to match. Our bill was well over £200
for 10 of us. The 8 girls on the table next to us knocked up a bill of £480
(this must be the first time we have had girls talking to us at a meeting)
As its the biggest curry
restaurant in Europe, a visit is a must to the serious curry fan, even
though its in MK
Sorry no
photos
Visits 2002 - June 