Food 10/10 Service 10/10 Ambience 10/10

IF A spicy dish is your idea of a top-notch meal, then look no further than this award-winning Ruabon-based curry house.

It comes as no surprise that the Maahis Indian Restaurant was named the Asian Restaurant of the Year in Wales in 2019, adding to a list of top accolades it has picked up over the years.

You will be hard-pressed to find better Asian cuisine on offer in the region, coupled with excellent service and a truly traditional Indian atmosphere.

With the last of the staff Christmas parties occupying a large part of the room and the remainder of the restaurant almost full on a busy Saturday night, it could have been forgiven if guests were made to wait for a table; but the hard-working, friendly staff members ensured this was not the case.

We were promptly sat at a table for two and had drinks with us in a matter of minutes.

With dry-January in full-swing, we ordered two cokes, but for those who want to kick off the year with some alcohol, there is a chance enjoy a pint of the locally-brewed Wrexham Lager.

Once settled, we were then offered some poppadoms and five chutney dips.

If I’m honest, I’m not entirely sure what flavour the chutneys were, but there was enough variety to satisfy everyone’s tastebuds.

We made our way through the poppadoms as we debated over what to choose for our starters and mains.

To kick things off, I decided on the mixed starter dish, and chose to have the lamb tikka jalfrezi with egg-fried rice and naan bread for the main meal.

As I mentioned, it would have been understandable to have to wait a short while for our food, but the starters were in front of us within 10 minutes.

The mixed starter was very good value for money for £4.50 – the dish consisted of chicken and lamb tikka chunks along with a seekh kebab and an onion bhaji.

The portion size, for a starter, was very generous. The bhaji was crispy and well-cooked, and the meat was very tender and full of flavour.

Then came the main meals which also failed to disappoint.

Brought to the table on a sizzling hot skillet, the jalfrezi was a rich orange colour and smelt incredible.

It was nice to have the curry, rice and sides brought over separately to a clear plate, allowing you to plate up your meal as you wished.

Restaurants can often be guilty of being stingy with the meat in a curry, but the ratio of lamb to curry sauce was perfect.

As with the starter, the meat was excellently cooked, and the curry sauce was thick and definitely had a kick to it.

The menu displayed spice ratings next to some dishes on a scale of one to three chillies (the jalfrezi had two chillies).

Rice is not often the talking point of a meal, but it has to be mentioned that the egg-fried rice was also fantastic.

For those who do not eat meat – my partner had a vegetable curry which was equally as nice.

And finally, the naan bread was excellent and not too dry.

With a couple of drinks each as well as two starters and two main dishes (no pudding – there was definitely not enough room), the total cost came to just short of £45 which, considering the portion sizes and quality of food and service, I felt was very reasonable.

I cannot recommend this restaurant enough for those who enjoy Indian food.

If some people in your group are not too keen on spicy foods, there are plenty of milder options available, and there is even an English section of the menu which includes a sirloin steak, roast chicken and omelette among other dishes.

Alternatively, if you enjoy the challenge of taking on a hot curry, the naga sizzling dish or the vindaloo will certainly get you sweating.

Just a 20-minute car ride from Oswestry, this place is a must-go!