Restaurant Reviews
Jaipur (Woking, England)
5 reviews, average rating: 
70%
80% Reviewed by chriliph70 on 27 Feb 2006The restaurant was visited on Thursday, 23rd Feb 2006 in the evening.
The food ordered was: Poppadums, Mixed fish starter (for 2), Lamb Passanda and Raj Batak (Mild duck dish).
Quality of food 
Food was VERY good - excellent fish dishes, well cooked, the meat (lamb and duck respectively was very good - no bones, fat, gristle, just beautifully well-cooked in good sauces.).
Quality of service
Service was OK, not too fast (though we were eating on a Friday night, and the restuarant was packed). The head waiter was friendly and charming, and the staff were polite.
Variety on menu
A very good selection on the menu, plenty to choose from, even for my non-curry fan wife.
Decor & ambience
Pleasant subdued lighting, relaxed atmosphere but too many tables packed in to not enough space - I could overhear all the conversation from neighbouring tables, and I'm sure that they could hear ours, which was a bit inhibiting.
Location 
In the centre of Woking - parking could be tricky, but thats another issue.
Cost 
The food was very good (remember that scene in the Matrix, where the traitor has dinner with Agent Smith - the food was that good) but the portions were not very big - for the seafood starter (£12 for 2 people) there were 2 squares of haddock (4cm x 4cm), 2 squares of salmon (same size) and 2 King prawns - all very well cooked and served, but still...
And the rice - £3.50 for a small bowl seems a bit steep. On the bright side, the beer was reasonably priced (£3.50 for 660ml of Cobra. We spent about £50 on food, and £10 on drinks, for poppadums, 2 starters, 2 mains and 4 beers.
In summary
Food was excellent, the portions a little stingy. If you want a good, "special occasion" meal this is the place; as a regular curry house it may be a bit pricey. Atmosphere is very "civilized", definitely (thankfully!) not a place to go after the pub. If you want to go on a Friday/Saturday I'd guess you'd need to book as it was very busy by 8:30.
74% Reviewed by MrsC on 2 Jun 2003The restaurant was visited on Saturday, 24th May 2003 in the evening.
The food ordered was: Lamb Biriani, Chicken Tikka Massala and Bombay Aloo.
Quality of food
Food was extremely tasty.
Quality of service
Variety on menu
Decor & ambience
Tables were of a good size and not too close together.
Location
In the centre of Woking - parking can be a bit of a nightmare during the daytime though.
Cost
In summary
Food was extremely yummy and the overall experience enjoyable. Service was excellent.
60% Reviewed by johnd on 10 Sep 2002The restaurant was visited on Thursday, 29th Aug 2002 in the evening.
The food ordered was: Duck Balti.
Quality of food
The addition of duck on an Indian menu was quite a refreshing change.
The meal did disappoint.
The portion of duck was small and dry when it came.
Either overcooked or left too long lying around waiting to be eaten.
Quality of service 
i wouldn't say it was unfriendly but it was slow.
Variety on menu
Decor & ambience
Location
Cost
Why a main intricatly cooked and prepared meal can average £7 to £8 and then simple rice average close to £3 is beyond me.
In summary
Everyone seemed happy with their meals, but that could have been due to the beer?
I on the other hand was sober and well aware of everything that was going on.
The meals took eons to arrive. When they did mine seemed spoilt buy the standing time.
One noticable point was the cost of simple rice. Very expensive and not flaked with gold as the price would reflect!!!
66% Reviewed by dgareth on 3 Aug 2002The restaurant was visited on Friday, 2nd Aug 2002 in the evening.
The food ordered was: Lam Gosht and Chicken Dhansak.
Quality of food
Both main dishes - the lamb Gosht and the chicken Dhansak - were overloaded with spices to the detriment of balance and taste. The menu was helpfully divided according to heat/spice including a "mild" and a "hot" section with additional 1,2 or 3 chilli icon marking to denote heat/spice. Unfortunately this subtle and creative menu format bore little relationship to the actual food served: the Dhansak being hotter than the Gosht and both lacking in the taste department with no obvious taste other than chilli. The texture of the food was however very good indeed and the meet was clearly very good quality and tender. This however added to the frustration that so much was lacking in the taste department. Possibly a good bet if you crave chilli above (almost) all else. An interesting pickle tray involved a spiced cottage cheese as well as the more traditional chutneys.
Quality of service
Rather curt service from somewhat lairy waiters - not unfriendly exactly but no smiles, warmth and little willingness to elaborate on dish descriptions. A kind of "wide boy" approach which may well work for some people but wasn't to my liking. Service seemed to be a tad slow (although the restaurant was busy) and there was no mid meal request from the waiter to know if everything was okay.
Variety on menu
A great variety was described on the menu with some unusual poultry dishes - duck for example. The menu had clearly been planned for ease of use with some customer centred creativity and was sectioned in terms of spice/heat levels.
Decor & ambience
The restaurant was certainly interesting to look at in terms of internal decor - a wide open centre space/walkway with white plaster/marble effect wall coving and a generally modern feel. Tables were very closely cramped together however and there was no pretence at providing privacy. It was however a Friday evening and I suspect that the restaurant has a different ambience mid week. Certainly to be avoided if you want to here your companion(s) speaking.
Location
Central and within 2 minutes walking distance of train station and central bus stops.
Cost
Not really value for money in any department: both food and drinks were expensive and the service was lacking panache and the basic quality of friendliness.
In summary
My experience tells me that Jaipur is on the pricey side in that it lacks value for money: service was functional and the crowded ambience and lack of privacy reminded me more of cafe culture than a mid/high end Indian restaurant price. I suspect a mid-week visit may produce a slightly different impression.
The meat and chicken was of excellent quality - possibly the best I've ever tasted in terms of tenderness but lacking in taste and if you're looking for something more than in your face chilli then certainly avoid the dishes I ordered.
All in all Jaipur needs to try far harder. The ultimate impression is of a rather pretentious setup lacking the core skills of friendly customer service and lacking a menu that corresponds to the dishes actually served.
71% Reviewed by Dicky on 28 Mar 2002The restaurant was visited on Saturday, 5th Jan 2002 in the evening.
The food ordered was: Poppadoms followed by Cumin Chicken and Chicken Tikka for starters. Main courses were Duck Jalfrezi and Chicken Saag with pilau rice, washed down with pints of Kingfisher.
Quality of food
The cumin chicken was really moist with loads of cumin seeds (a favourite of mine).
The duck jalfrezi was nice and hot and had plenty of chilli flavour without actually being overloaded with chillies; not too rich considering it was duck.
The chicken sag was a simply a good chicken sag; not outstanding but very tasty and satisfying.
Quality of service
The staff are always polite but not exactly ones for smiling, and the service was possibly a bit on the slow side. That said, it wasn't really something we noticed at the time.
Variety on menu
A pretty extensive menu with lots of specials. I've certainly never seen duck jalfrezi anywhere else!
Decor & ambience
Jaipur has certainly made an effort with the interior. There are white-washed walls with lots of greenery and faux columns in an obvious attempt to create a subtropical feel. And it almost works, particularly the back part of the restuarant where we were seated.
The clientele are more of your 'young professional' types, which makes for a civilised, if quiet atmosphere.
Location
Situated in the middle of Woking, it's a short walk from the main car parks and the same street as most of the eating places in town.
Cost
Jaipur is probably one of the more expensive restaurants in the area, however for the choice and quality of food it is well worth it.
In summary
We had an thoroughly enjoyable meal at here, not for the first time. I would recommend Jaipur to anyone in the area, just so long as you promise to try some of their specials!