AS FAR as Ryde takeaways go, we are spoilt for choice.
A friend in Rookley shed a virtual tear of envy as we tweeted our curry from Courtside at Home — and when we peeled the lids from our steaming foil cartons we could sympathise with her.
Delivered to our doorstep for no extra charge we were soon delving into the paper bags to see what had arrived.
Our Thai curry was designed to be reheated at home, and simple instructions were provided.
Our feast began with (Tesco's own) Thai spicy crackers; pleasingly peppery and crispy, plus home-made chicken satay.
Superior to the leathery version that has occasionally been our experience of these coqsicles at other venues, Courtside's own version was more like a chicken kebab with cubes of soft marinated chicken threaded on skewers, which we dunked eagerly in the nutty satay sauce.
We had one of each of the available curries. Thai green chicken (main image above) was an incredibly generous portion; mild yet tasty. With a coconut and lemongrass infusion, minicorns and coriander, the sauce soaked beautifully into the sticky jasmine rice. It was delicious.
Matt's beef massaman was on the hotter end of the chilli spectrum for this traditionally rich and creamy curry. And boy was it beefy! Satisfying chunks of meat jostled with potatoes and chickpeas in that characteristically sweet, warming, massaman sauce.
Matt's beef dish was equally good.
There was plenty of the Thai butternut and sugar snap pea curry side dish to share, in fact this was almost a meal to itself.
With a different spice note to all three curries, its sweetness was a great addition to the meal.
For a tenner each we had such a feast — and delivered to our doorstep as well. This Saturday curry club is one that we will revisit, but if you can't wait for the weekend they do have an extensive pie and stew-style menu, including hearty favourites moussaka, hotpot and even coq au vin.
We are delighted to see the return of Courtside Cafe, if only in a takeaway form. Back in the Before Times, when it was an actual venue, we enjoyed a superlative breakfast in a rather salubrious location.
What was reassuring about the Courtside at Home incarnation was exactly what we concluded when we reviewed our eat-in meal — it is incredible value and competently created delicious food.
Matt and Cat's bill:
Thai curry meal x 2 @ £10 per person, inc. crackers, chicken satay, two curries, two jasmine rice and a side dish
TOTAL: £20
RATING: Four stars: Very good indeed; well worth seeking out.
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