Star of Asia is an Indian restaurant in Portsmouth. The interior, with its red tablecloths adorning long tables in a compact dining room, is typical of countless Indian restaurants throughout Britain. These institutions are staples of villages, towns and cities throughout the country, repeatedly serving dishes that are as much part of our national cuisine as the likes of fish and chips and a Sunday dinner. Star of Asia is no different and it also operates as a takeaway - orders can be placed online or over the phone.
The starters cover familiar ground. Pakoras, samosas and bhajis all feature, as do sheek kebas, puris and a range of tikka dishes. The two platters (Asian or mixed) are the best way to sample a mix of what’s on offer.
Main course dishes are headlined by all the usual suspects, including korma, dansak, pathia, balti, vinadloo, bhuna, madras, rogan josh and dansak, all of which can be served with chicken, lamb, prawn, duck, vegetables or mushrooms. There’s also a selection of chef’s specials, such as ceylon, saag, malaya and shalimar. Away from curries, you’ll find a strong tandoori line up. This includes whole or half chicken tandoori, king prawn tandoori, mixed tandoor and chicken shaslik.
Three set meals are also on offer. Set meal A is for one person and is a quarter tandoori chicken, meat bhuna, mushroom bhaji and pilau rice. Option B is for two. This is two lamb tikka starters, two chicken dansak, two bhindi bhaji and two pilau rice. A vegetarian selection is the final option.