Curry Vault Indian Restaurant and Bar

20 Bank Pl 
Melbourne, VIC 3000

http://www.curryvault.com.au/

I’m all about the weird and wonderful. Usually when I go out to restaurants, I always pick the most unusual and unique dishes on the menu, hoping for a new way to tingle my tastebuds. But when I go to an Indian restaurant, I regress to a state similar to a family from a small country town, trying Mexican food for the first time. I try, I really do, but somehow I always end up choosing a curry with medium levels of spice and an inoffensive mix of sauteed tomatoes and onions. 

I do love Indian food though, and it makes a lot of sense. Though the flavour palate is entirely different to Southern Chinese food (aka what I grew up on), you get the similar concept of spices and more spices, and bold flavours that linger on for hours. Forsaking the cheap and cheerful, Ethan and I decided to have our dinner at Curry Vault, a slightly more upmarket Indian restaurant carved into the masonry on the broad and beautiful Bank Place. It really does feel a little bit like a vault, in the best way possible. 

Papadums/Raita

Just moments after we sat down, a cold pitcher of water was set on the table, along with a complimentary pair of airy Papadums for us to snack on, dipped into a cool and minty Raita. 

Aloo Gobi ($15.5)

Under the excuse of getting something with vegetables in it, I chose the Aloo Gobi ($15.5), a dry Punjabi-styled curry. Though filled with spices and the heat of ginger, this dish of fluffy potatoes and cauliflower was comforting and mild, and exactly what I had been looking for. 

Chicken Madras ($20.5)

The aloo gobi was good, but the Chicken Madras ($20.5) was better. Though I usually tend to avoid coconut-based curries, finding them either too sweet or too cloying, this one was heavenly. The chicken was slow-cooked tender, and the sauce rich, creamy, and flavoured with pungent mustard seeds and curry leaves. I knew I shouldn’t have, but I finished up my entire serve of Basmati Rice ($3.9pp) scooping up the dregs of the sauce.

Aloo Gobi ($15.5)/Chicken Madras ($20.5)

The food at Curry Vault was very pricy for what it was, coming to almost $25pp for a meal that was on the smaller side. But our meal was delicious, so I saw no reason to complain. I may not know all that much about curry, but I know a good one when I taste it.

Rating: 13.5/20 – vault 713

This rating reflects my personal experience at the time of visit.