It has unfortunately become ever more prevalent that a new BIR opens, and is either a disaster from the outset or becomes one as soon as the founding chefs leave.  What has fortunately been less common is for well-established BIRs to lose their way.  Sadly one close to me has done just that.  In a town not far from where I live, there were two very traditional BIRs on which one could depend.  I have visited both of these recently, and both continued to live up to their reputation.  But not this evening.  I went to the one that I prefer, and the one at which most visitors from the sub-continent who stay at my wife's hotel choose to dine.  Until this evening, it had never let me down.  But this evening I ordered a dish at which they have excelled in the past, and a dish that is close to my heart — chicken bhuna.  And it was a disaster.  We all know that good BIR is characterised by multiple layers of flavour.  This evening's bhuna had at most one, if that — maybe zero.  It was the most bland, boring, chicken bhuna I have ever had the misfortune to eat.  I took 50% home, in the hopes of livening it up tomorrow, but I am afraid that I won't be going back to that BIR again.  Farewell, T**** o* I****, I will miss you.
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** Phil.

Thats a shame Phil. I had the same experience at Christmas.

It also no longer has the T**** o* I**** - more like the T**** o* Blandness

Regards

Mick

I know what you mean Phil. As stated before on here, I had been going to Adils,the (alleged) first balti house in Birmingham in the early 80s and visited it regularly for a number of years, it going from a real basic resturant  to moving further up the road and completely gutting the original place to rebuild on the old site and eventually moving back to a lovely modern up-market balti house. They must have spent a fortune. Obviously the prices went up to get in line with the type of eatery that it had now become, the clientel started to disappear slowly. Then came the lock-down and it has never re-opened and sadly has now been sold,
I always classed it as the best balti in Birmingham so sadly we went to another one nearby that had a decent reputation with the Hairy Bikers giving it some publicity, but the twice we went there we were disappointed in the food, although the place appears to be popular,  I wonder whether this is because most of the balti restaurants appear to have all closed down in the balti triangle in Brum now and choice is virtually non existant.