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Cuisine from the Indian subcontinent always makes me think of exotic places, delightful spicy flavours and the many scents of curry. So it’s not surprising for a restaurant providing that very cuisine to choose for its name the ingredient of food and beverages that is known as the Queen of Spices.

Cardamom restaurant opened its doors only on February 1, taking over the site in Harare’s Sam Levy’s Village occupied for the past couple of years by Delhi Palace. Cardamom is universally known for its gentle but effective flavouring; what is probably not so well known is that it is the third most expensive spice in the world, after vanilla and saffron, and that it is made up of seeds from different plants in the ginger family. By the way, black pepper is known as the King of Spices.

It hails naturally from all over the Indian subcontinent as well as Indonesia, but in the past century or so has also been grown in large quantities in Guatemala in Latin America and, closer to home, in Tanzania. Interesting, too, is that it is a popular ingredient in Scandinavian baking, for reasons I could not find out.

The restaurant is owned and operated by Ian de Grandhomme, whom I know best as the man behind the food at The Jam Tree in Mount Pleasant (which he continues to be), and Bhavesh Patel, until recently the man in charge of conferencing and banqueting at Cresta Lodge in Eastern Harare.

At lunch I had a chance to catch up with Bhavesh, who is always on site and whom I know to be an efficient hospitality professional; he trained at Meikles Hotel and later worked at Wild Geese Lodge and then Cresta Lodge.

He is excited at prospects for his new dining venue and, like so many positive people in our negative environment, chooses to focus on moving ahead despite obstacles rather than let these obstacles weigh him down.

The site of the restaurant is the eastern-most corner of Sam Levy’s Village, adjacent to the Food Lover’s Market, and which has been home to previous restaurants like 360 Degrees and Delhi Palace.

Delhi Palace closed a few months ago after Peter Marchussen called it quits; previously this name was held by Bob and Nicky Savania’s popular restaurant in Greystone Park, although it later moved to the front of Sam Levy’s Village before heading to this site.

The venue has a fresh new look of greens of varying shades, and it has a welcoming and cheerful ambience, looking out to the busy car park area as well as to a colourful garden dominated by a waterfall and pond.

I was pleased to see some of the staff previously at Delhi Palace, including Stanley Mashanyare, who looked after my guest and me so well when we dined on a hot Thursday lunchtime.

The menu is smaller than one usually gets from Indian restaurants, with several unique dishes weaved into a selection of dishes that are known and enjoyed by many diners.

My guest selected a vegetable samoosa for her starter, while I chose the prawn masala; both were well-portioned and very tasty.

For mains I had the chicken tikka masala, while my guest chose lamb korma; we both asked for mild, which I always find preferable to the zing of medium and hot (or very hot!).

These dishes were really good, accompanied by lovely basmati rice and a naan bread for my guest and a roti for me. We also had desserts: I had the cardamom (what else?) and lime zest ice cream, while my guest went for a similarly-flavoured milkshake, both of which were great contrasts to the flavours of the main meals but which had their own distinctive set of spiced flavours.

My chicken tikka masala and the prawn masala both had that superb infusion of the smokiness and woodiness imparted by the tandoori oven in the kitchen. I did not have wine with my meal but would love to have tried a strong cabernet sauvignon with it.

Prices are very reasonable, especially after recent increases all round caused by turbulent economic times. The menu features starters from $8 to $15, lamb dishes from $33 to $49, chicken dishes from $17 to $24, prawn meals at $33 and $35, vegetarian dishes from $12 to $18, children’s meals at $10 or $12 and desserts at $6.

Chef Sydney from Delhi Palace is still in place and I like his take on so much of the cuisine we want and expect in a restaurant featuring a mix of styles from across the vast Indian subcontinent.

A Sunday lunch special is in place, run as a buffet at $35 per person. Draught beer is served at the bar, which is always a great thing for an Indian restaurant, in my view. A plan is in place to offer some simple treats served quickly at lunchtimes.

I was delighted with the service, food and ambience of Cardamom, which is situated in the eastern section of Sam Levy’s Village in Borrowdale, Harare, and is open daily from 11.30am to kitchen close at 9.30pm.

Booking is a good idea for weekends and some weekday nights. Call 0718 791635 and 0778 482612 or e-mail [email protected].

Feedback on your own dining experiences is welcome, as well as ideas, comments and suggestions. E-mail [email protected]