Bedi's Indian Restaurant

8 Recommended

Food  8      Value  8     

We went for the vegetable samosas to start, lightly spiced, crispy outside, yummy inside, it’s quite hard to take a picture that really portrays this! There are also Onion Bahjia, tandoori chicken, kebabs and lots more. I had my first ever kashmiri naan and it was great, nothing like lots of lovely bread to scoop up the curry! The plain naan was also really good! The butter chicken was a generous serve of great chicken in a wonderful sauce and lots and lots of it, cue naan!

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Dec 17, 2011 

4 Below Average

Food  4      Ambience  4      Service  5      Value  3     

Back in the years before 2003, good Indian restaurants were few and far between. Whatever Indian restaurant you could find were pretty expensive and not reflective of the actual cuisine - sort of like "Honey Chicken" found in Chinese restaurants in Australia.

Bedi's belongs to the 'old school' Indian restaurants where food is highly adapted to suit Aussie's tastes. For entrees, I had the Chicken Tikka ($9.50) and Samosas ($6.90). The Chicken Tikka portions were very generous with onion rings and coriander garnishes over the top. They were juicy and tender, but lacked the strong, marinated and "Tandoor fresh" taste I personally was looking for in a Tandoori baked dish. Samosas were fairly typical - soft potatoes and peas encased in a crusty casing and served with cold 'chutney' style dips.

For Mains, I tried their Butter Chicken ($17.50), Baigan Bharta ($11.90) together with Garlic Naan ($3.50) and Chicken Biryani ($13.90). I was especially keen to try their famous Butter Chicken after having heard so much about it. It was quite disappointing - Indian dishes are not meant to be sweet - unless they are served as a sweet dish.

I found the gravy to be far too sweet in taste for my liking. However, it had a curious and pleasant addition in it - must be their secret ingredient to make it taste quite distinct from other ordinary Butter Chicken dishes - I could taste roasted jaggery (unrefined cane sugar used in Asian sweets) in it and I guessed that was one of the ways they use it to sweeten the dish as well as add that distinctly different flavour. Nevertheless, the Butter Chicken was basically Chicken Tikka smothered in their "Butter Chicken" sauce.

The Baigan Bharta, pureed roasted eggplant, whole peas and spices, was very mild and had a pleasant creamy consistency that went well with the Chicken Tikka, using Butter Naans to mop up the sauces.
It was slightly sweet - again - but not as terribly bad as the Butter Chicken.

The Chicken Biryani was underwhelming. But then again expecting a good biryani from a North Indian restaurant is like expecting an French chef to belt out Char Kway Teow with full on wok hei.
Don't get me wrong, it was very generous in portion, with large chunks of chicken buried in a mountain of flavoured rice, but far, far too mild to be considered anywhere near authentic.

It would make a good starting point for "beginners" who want to be introduced to Indian food but not die of spice overload or overly 'strong' flavour. The winner of the evening was the Garlic Naan. Soft, pillowy and very pliable, it made the whole 'mop up' experience a pleasant one. I ended up eating most of the Garlic Naans with the Chicken Tikka and some of the Baigan Bharta.

Bedi's is apparently a reputable restaurant which has a solid reputation and one of the rare icons of old which has survived till today, open for business. This is one of the reasons why despite me thinking they should up their ante a little, we shouldn't be too quick to raze them down because compared to all the 'dhabas' (Indian street hawker standard eateries) that has mushroomed all over Melbourne serving cheap and fairly authentic Indian food, this icon maintains good standards and hygiene.

Its good for a casual dinner with an acceptably seasoned ambience with safe food you can bring your conservative parents and friends to. Just be sure to ask them not to make their dishes sweet, or you'll be wondering what the difference is between their kulfis and their curries.

Sep 25, 2011 

3.3 Below Average

Food  2      Ambience  5      Service  4      Value  2     

I haven't been here for a long time, it use to be good, not so good this time. We went on a Sunday, my birthday, and found no matter what we ordered (Garlic naan the exception) it tasted bland. I attempted to ask my waiter if they made something with a lot of cardamon (my favourite) and he just stared at me blankly.

I wish I tried the vindaloo but chose the rojan josh, my fault. The meat was well stewed but the sauce had nothing going on. And my sister whom ordered some vegetable curry also received what looked and tasted like the same dark brown flavourless sauce. The patrons seated next to us said only order the butter chicken as that's all they get because it's the only decent meal.

One of us did have it, the others wish they had. We ordered dry and rubbery tandoori prawns that looked like they simply had red dye dripped over them. Food is a little expensive for Indian so we demand it should be tasty, sadly it was far removed from that. I know Bedi's can do better than this, I will try their food again once more. Starting to think dining on a Sunday is verboten!

Mar 15, 2010 

8 Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  7      Service  8      Value  8     

We love eating at Bedi's. This is probably the best option for Indian food southside. We go here at least a couple of times a month and still have a little giggle at the 'shower recess' entry way (what is that?). Sure the decor isn't overly sophisticated but who cares when the food is so good.

My only suggestion to Mr Bedi would be to remove the old awards and good food guide clippings from the wall, when your last 'award' was 5 years ago it probably has more negative connotations than positive (and that would be unfair because the food really is very good!). The Tandori platter to share as an entree is superb and I always go for one of the prawn curries, big prawns and alot of them. Highly recommended.

Oct 28, 2009 

7.5 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  5      Service  9      Value  8     

Really good Vindaloo.

Aug 26, 2009 

8.3 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  7      Service  9      Value  8     

My wife and I and have been going to Bedi's since about 1988 although in the last few years due to having very young children we have rarely dined in and instead buy their takeaway (I particularly like that the owners usually still recognise my voice on the telephone when I call my phone order in).

The decor is somewhat spartan and the tables and chairs are quite tightly packed in, but the quality of the food more than makes up for the lack of space and the humble furnishings. Chicken butter cream is their signature dish and is nothing less than superb, although my palate extends more to the hotter dishes such as the beef madras (my usual) and the occasional beef vindaloo. Also love their Aloo gobi (curried potato and cauliflower). The entree platter is also fantastic as a sampler of their different entrees. My 7-year-old daughter loves the chicken tikka.

We love Bedi's and its food, and despite it being almost 25 kms away from our home, when it comes to Indian we have never even bothered trying anywhere else, at the risk of being disappointed.

Jun 02, 2009 

9 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  9      Service  9      Value  9     

This place is great! Its just like being at home in your living room. Unpretentious, food is delicious without being heavy! If you want good indian with family service, go!

Mar 06, 2009 

4.8 Average

Food  7      Ambience  5      Service  4      Value  3     

Food very nice one of the best I've tasted, but service is fraught with staff hurrying up their workers, this was a hugh turn off. We stopped going after a long time of going because of this. Ambience and decor were also very small and not appealling.

Jul 14, 2008 

9 Highly Recommended

Food  10      Ambience  9      Service  9      Value  8     

Very nicely done, family owned and run. Food is consistent and full of aroma and taste. Service is very good and quick, we love going there.

Apr 15, 2008