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Chilli Chaps Curry Club
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Mango Tree
57.3
53 Church Street, Crowthorne, Berkshire, RG45 7AW
01344 777771
/100
Sorry everyone for the delay with this review but I thought I would keep you all waiting like we were on our Monday night special at the Mango Tree. Would you like another beer? Er no thanks but my main course would be a good idea before I get dizzy and pass out.
This restaurant is at best a mediocre Curry house serving plain and run of the mill dishes in the rather shabby surroundings of a tired english pub. Yes i get that they are going for that effect and yes it is a bit of a novelty to be reminded how we all used to spend our teenage years drinking warm beer and trying not to fall over in the toilets but I'm not sure i want that when i go out for a meal.
The poppadoms were tasty but I found my mixed starter a bit bland I'm afraid. The mains were a mixed bag to say the least.
I had a lamb thing which was nice but nothing special. The salmon that Chap 3 ordered was good and I tried a bit of Chap ones Achari Ghost which was also pretty good. I then had the misfortune to taste Chap fours Chicken Tikka Masala, although to call it that must be in breach of some kind of ancient curry law? Hands down the worst example of the one dish that any self respecting curry house needs to get right. Unforgivable.
If you like your masalas cold, watery and served complete with a leathery skin on top and you don't mind waiting for at least an hour while drinking your own body weight in expensive lager then the Mango Tree on a Monday night special is for you.
Based on: 2x poppodoms, 1x condiment, 1x main dish, 1x rice, 1x side, 1x naan, 1x beer.
£ 23.13
So we thought we’d Mango Tree it up as Chap 1 received a leaflet through his door stating their very generous £10.95 offer of a Monday evening, so this fitted in well with our normal Monday excursions so off we went.
Parking was very good round the back with a large car park; we were a bit early on entering, so decided to sit at the designated bar area and have a beer before we ate and all the signs were positive at this stage.
We had 8 x doms to start with (not included with the deal FYI) – the doms were warm and fresh, however the selection and size of the pickles available were quite poor, so we had to get them refilled again as we made light work of the initial lot fairly quickly.
There was a slight delay before our starters arrived – I had Salmon Tikka which was very good – however from finishing our starters our anxieties began…. We’d noticed a lot of people arriving, ordering, getting served, eating, paying and then clearing off and we were still waiting for our main courses!
It was getting late and we were very close to saying something but remained calm – our main courses eventually arrived and I have to say my Salmon Khorai was very good, however the rice was quite crispy as though it had been kept under some form of heater to keep it hot…
We deduced during our debrief afterwards that we felt it could have been some form of delaying tactic to keep us there drinking, as it’s likely that the £10.50 meal isn’t very profitable for them, so they chose to try and keep us there drinking for longer than we have done to date.
I had 3 ½ pints which is not ideal on a Monday night, but the other choice was to sit there twiddling my thumbs..(guess I could have gone onto Cokes ?? )
Anyway: all this kerfuffle definitely spoilt things for me, so I won’t be recommending the Mango Trees Monday night special I’m afraid.
This was the chaps latest adventure, so onto the Mango Tree in Crowthorne.
It was our usual Monday night and to add to our delight, it happened to be "Deal Night"
This meant 1x starter, 1x main, 1x side and a rice or naan for £10.50.
Parking was easy with a small car park at the back of the venue. This used to be an old pub and they have tried to keep it looking in that style.
We got there early and opted to have a drink before we sat down. We were handed menus with our drinks. A tip for this would be to order before you take to your table as it seems to be the way things are done at the Mango.
We took our seats at a table for four but felt a bit small.
Normal process of poppodoms to start with and normal dips.
We noticed quite quickly that as a group of lads that the staff were on a mission to ply us with beers, which chap 3 took on as a bit of challenge. Usual beers with a couple of pub favorites thrown in with Guinness on draught.
Service was a bit on the slow side for us but a few couples were being treated to a star rated service, meanwhile we were just offered more beer!!!
Starters were ok but a bit small for my liking but did pack a lot of flavour.
We waited for about 40mins for mains to come out, but we were offered more beer to make up for the fact that couples around were coming in and being served starters and mains before we were even thought about.
Mains finally came out. I had opted for the nations favorite of chicken tikka masala. It looked like it was a Lidl micro meal for 1 that had been on the hot plate since lunchtime and didn't taste any better. Chap 3 went with a salmon dish that was beautifully cooked and was full of taste.
I get the feeling that the Mango tree is a bit of a mixed bag, as for me the whole experience was a let down but others seemed to enjoy what it had to offer. Although I would not recommend it to anyone I know, I did enjoy the feel of eating for less than £15.00 in a pub type environment.
The chaps visited The Mango Tree in Crowthorne, taking advantage of their excellent Monday night deal of any starter, any main, rice or naan and any veg side dish for just £10.50.
Our expectations weren't very high as we anticipated smaller portions of a lower quality, but how wrong we were.
On arrival the first impressions were good with a decent curb appeal and a very marmite interior. The building used to be a local pub which has been sympathetically transformed into an indian restaurant with a nice bar area which opens up into the actual restaurant ... you will either love it or hate it !
The food in general was of a decent quality and portion size. The poppodoms were warm and crispy and were followed by a tasty kebab starter.
My main dish of Achari Ghost was spiced really well and packed lots of flavour.
.......But before you start rushing down to The Mango Tree for their Monday night special there is something you need to be wary of . Between each course they keep you waiting an AGE !!! So long in fact that other diners who were obviously regulars were seated after we had ordered received their starters,mains, paid the bill and left before we even received our main course !!!
Now we can only assume that this was a ploy to try and make their money on drinks as we were constantly asked if we needed another lager. Now whilst I understand that a business needs to make money and there are different ways to do that, it left the Chaps with a very sour feeling which spoilt what could have been a very good review. My score reflects our feelings and as such deters me from recommending this restaurant. If you want to visit The Mango Tree, my advice would be to avoid Mondays !
£10.50 MONDAY NIGHT OFFER
Poppodom
£0.60 ea
Condiments (chutney, pickles etc)
£0.50 ea
Main Dishes
£6.95 - £14.95
Rices
£2.50 - £3.25
Sides
£3.25 - £3.95
Naans
£2.10 - £2.75
Beers
£4.25- £4.50
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