Royal Kitchen Indian Restaurant & Bar sits on Pollen Street in Thames, on the Coromandel, rated 4.5 stars from 422 Google reviews, with online ordering through royalkitchen.co.nz. Locals call it their go-to for reasonably priced curry, praising the warm welcome and spice matched to request, with the korma and butter paneer ordered often and a busy takeaway trade alongside.
A good Indian restaurant is judged less on its butter chicken than on its spice work: masalas ground fresh, sauces simmered until the flavour is layered rather than merely hot. Heat is normally negotiable — say how fierce you like your madras and a confident kitchen will match it. Regulars venture past the familiar: goat curry and a properly blistered naan tell you more than the mild standards. In a small town, a weeknight takeaway queue is as honest a recommendation as any review.
All of which helps explain why Thames keeps coming back to this Pollen Street dining room.