Dastaan, Leeds: ‘I went to one of the best Indian restaurants in Yorkshire according to the British Indian Good Food Guide - the bhajis were to die for’

From well-known Gordon Ramsay-praised Prashad in Drighlington, to Lavang and Urban Choola in Sheffield, there are almost too many to mention.

But for good measure, you can throw in Leeds’ Aagrah and Dastaan, as well as My Lahore, EastZeast, and Mumtaz in the ‘Curry Capital’ of Bradford itself.

Unable to try every single one during British Indian Restaurant Week, our reporter decided to head to Adel in Leeds to try the food at Dastaan.

Some of the best Indian restaurants tend to be small independents off the beaten track.

Adel is one of the wealthiest areas in Leeds lined with incredible mansions.

I immediately assumed a popular Indian restaurant in this ‘Bel Air’ neighbourhood would be upmarket, and over-priced, not mentioning the fact that its sister venue down south is Michelin-recommended.

Dastaan is on Otley Road, a short distance from Hickory’s Smokehouse.

The menu here has a mixture of Indian street food favourites such as samosa chaat, pani puri, and contemporary high-end twists on Indian starters, such as chicken lollipops and saufiana octopus served with fennel salad, and red grape chutney.

We tried spring onion and spinach bhaji, tandoori broccoli with apple chutney, and lamb chop with beetroot and lime murabba, and mustard mooli.

We also ordered a poppadum and pickle tray for good measure, as we always enjoy this staple when we go out for an Indian meal.

Dastaan is cosy yet stylishly furnished with customers coming for special nights out, while others have clearly nipped in for a craft beer and ‘bite to eat.’ It has what you call a ‘smart casual’ dress code.

I’ll be honest I felt like this would be more of a ‘testing my tastebuds’ with tiny portions-place rather than somewhere I would enjoy eating, but the starters surprised me.

You were served with one lamb chop as the menu stated, which was a quality cut, and we had a large bowl of bhajis and another of tandoori broccoli.

The bhajis were to die for - light flavoursome bites rather than the usual greasy affair.

My husband devoured the lamb chop, and as a former butcher, he appreciated the quality of it.

It was cooked to perfection rather than cheap meat smothered in sauce. For me, the broccoli blew me away. I never realised how broccoli could be the star of the show but the tandoori spice was rich and unapologetic. Wow.

We had almost filled ourselves up on the starters, so we asked for any leftovers to be put in a doggy bag for us later.

My husband went for the chicken makhani and cheddar and blue cheese naan whereas I went for the jackfruit, paneer and pea biryani served with cucumber and pomegranate raita.

The spices are rich here and have an authentic kick. Jackfruit is pretty bland so it has to be seasoned right, and this was.

Everything tasted fresh and wasn’t lathered in too much fat either to mask the taste. The cheese naan is compact but full of flavour, and was a real hit.

The prices are higher than a standard Indian restaurant but value for money with the starters costing between £12-£15 and the mains from £16.