Royal India

Being averse to spicy food, we usually steer clear of Indian restaurants (fact check: out of our 800-plus posts in the past two years, only eight featured Indian cuisine). Nevertheless, Royal India had a trump card to tempt us: a long list of cocktails.

More on the booze later, but to kick off, can't go wrong with crunchy papadum.

Mulligatawny soup. An Anglo-Indian favorite, made creamy with lentils and aromatic with a blend of cumin, coriander, cloves & cinnamon.

Nandu rasam. Alas, terrifyingly spicy, but generously infused with crab meat.

Tandoori jhinga (charcoal-grilled jumbo prawns in an ajwain-flavored mix of yogurt, red chillies, turmeric & garam masala). Springy enough to recommend, though less satisfyingly smoky than we had anticipated.

Murgh Makhanwala, a tangy, mouthwatering Punjab recipe of grilled chicken gently simmered in a thick tomato, butter & cream gravy. Terrifically tender meat in the most sinful of sauces.

Briyani Tajwar _ lamb marinated with yogurt, brown onions & spices, then cooked with basmati rice in a sealed handi (earthen pot) with saffron & cardamom. Fluffy, fragrant and fabulously flavorful, but too steeply priced at 60 ringgit.

And finally, the main attraction: Bailey's Shake (bailey's, kahlua, milk) & Moon River (bombay sapphire gin, apricot brandy, cointreau, galliano, lime juice).