Estado Da India serves a creative blend of Portuguese and Indian dishes in tapas style portions. The restaurant which is still fairly new to Harborne caters to everyone with a selection of meaty options, veggie options, and dare I say it, even something for those who struggle with spice like myself.
On my Sunday night visit I ate with a group of people who have very different tastes and so I'd like to think we put the Estado Da India menu to the ultimate test.
We ordered :
- Wild Mushroom Croquets £5.25
- Prawn Rissol £7.95
- Iberico Vindaloo Pork Ribs £6.95
- Pork Arroz £9.95
- Tomato Naan £4.50
- Goan Cauliflower £4.95
- Masala Fries £3.95
- Goan Lamb £9.75
- Lemon Rice £3.95
- Duroc Pork Belly £8.95
- Lamb Espetada £8.95
Our waiter recommended each of us to order two dishes and then a further two to share across the table. As we don't often order tapas we were grateful for the recommendation, however we did order an extra sharer which gave us the perfect amount for the four of us to gorge on.
We also ordered a few drinks between us :
- Limao Spritz (Mocktail) £5.50
- Tropic Like It's Hot (Mocktail) £5.50
- Madri Excepcional Beer (Pint) £4.95
So what did we think of the Estado Da India...
The food really was full of flavour, and although sometimes it was on the cusp of what I could tolerate when it comes to spice I was pleasantly surprised. I asked for all of my dishes to come as mild as possible and without chilli which I did worry would potentially ruin the taste, but I can confidently say no flavour was lost. I will mention that some of the meats are soaked in a chilli marinate so it's impossible for them to be completely chilli free, but I found the dishes much milder than I was expecting. My family was also surprised by how mild the Vindaloo Pork Ribs were which was perfect.
The Pork dishes really were the stars of the show for me, the Pork Arroz in particular was fantastic. A juicy Pork skewer which is served resting on a bowl of curried rice, both of which were full of flavour. Although I'd admit this isn't the cheapest dish I left wishing I had ordered two as it was just so mouthwateringly tasty.
Another of my favourite plates from the Estado Da India menu was the slightly less adventurous Tomato Naan. Everyone in our group enjoyed a quarter of this fluffy bread which complimented our other bits very nicely. I would recommend ordering at least one of these to share with the table, or even eat completely to yourself.
For the drinks I usually order something fairly boozy, however I opted for a mocktail on this visit and I am very glad I did. I chose the Limao Spritz which according to the menu is a mix of Raspberry, Lemon and Lime, and topped with a sparkling soda. It was very refreshing but after trying a sip of my sisters mocktail (Tropic Like It's hot) I wish I'd have ordered one of those too. Hers was a combination of Passion Fruit, Coconut Cream, Pineapple, and Mango juice which is something I would never pick myself but it just worked so fantastically well together. The creaminess of the Coconut was extra delicious after wolfing down so much savoury spicy food.
All in all we had a fantastic evening in a beautifully decorated environment which we all admitted would be a lovely spot for a birthday treat or other special occasion.
Have you been to Estado Da India, the perfect Portuguese Indian in Harborne? I feel this one might soon become a favourite of Birmingham food bloggers.
Thanks for reading!