A smorgasbord to try at a bargain price thanks to Reading Tandoori on the Oxford Road

Not many Indian restaurants do Sunday buffets, but those that do offer good value dining if you are prepared to accept your meal won’t be winning a Michelin star.

Years ago, there was a restaurant in Cardiff that offered a deal of £3.95 per person – it was perfect if you didn’t mind getting more sauce than meat, and lower quality cuts at that. It was perfunctory and that was one of its appeals, great for value hunters.

Fast forward two decades and £10.95 per person (£4.95 for children under 10) for as much curry as you can eat is a real bargain.

That’s the proposition from Reading Tandoori on Oxford Road: it delivers value for money, but it’s no frills and not the full Indian experience.

Does it matter? Not a bit.

The restaurant is on the parade of shops about halfway down the Oxford Road – a short walk from the town centre, and on the, among others, 17 bus route.

The team behind it have worked hard to create a warm, welcoming space.

There is a secluded outdoor area at the front of the restaurant, no mean feat given this is the Oxford Road, while inside the décor is attractive, with cloth tablecloths and nice cutlery, everything spotless and well looked after.

Tables are also a decent size, and if you were having a meal from the menu there would be plenty of space to add every dish, drink and side without having to play plate Tetris.

On Sundays, the middle tables are converted into space for the buffet.

It is an impressive selection and changes every week.

On our visit, it included onion bhajis, vegetable or fish pakoras, chicken wings, vegetable spring rolls, plain and pilau rice and … should you fancy it … chips and a salad.  

One of the plus points for a buffet is it allows you to try items you wouldn’t normally eat, and having six curries to choose from ensures this is the case at Reading Tandoori.

They included chicken tikka masala and chicken korma – two old favourites – plus chicken khorhai, lamb jalfrezi and paneer chana khorhai.

Sag aloo, naan bread and tarka dahl completed the good selection of options ensuring there was something to suit most tastes.  

All curries were very meaty, and protein lovers would be very pleased with their plates.

The tarka dahl is usually a lentil heavy dish, creamy and melts in the mouth. Here it was more like a soup. Nothing wrong with that, but it shows some of compromises chef makes to hit that £10.95 price point.

A polite notice asks people not to take too much that food is left on the plate and wasted. With the option to keep going back to the buffet when wanting more, that shouldn’t be an issue.

The Sunday buffet is available from 1pm to 9pm, while on Wednesdays, it offers a £12.95 happy night deal: any starter, main, side, rice and naan for a fixed price. It increased by £2 if the main course is £9 or above.

The venue is fully licensed with drinks on tap including Cobra and Kingfisher, plus Bombay Bicycle and, for those that need it, Stella. Our Diet Cokes came in bottles, so it was nice and fizzy.

Its website says it has a five-star food hygiene rating but Reading Borough Council have given it three stars on its last inspection, of May 2023, saying everything was ‘generally satisfactory’.

Service was friendly, the welcome was warm, and the food pleasing.

If you want a budget buffet experience, this is good value for money.

Reading Tandoori
262-264 Oxford Road,
Reading RG30 1AD
0118 950 0524
www.readingtandoori.com