Shree Ram
A very strong argument for vegetarianism
- Saldanha (Linha Amarela/Vermelha)
- €€
- Av. Duque de Ávila 11-13, 1000-138
You don't have to be as committed as Greta to know that the way the developed world industrially farms meat is bad for the climate. Deforestation and water use for the feed we plough into cattle and hog to fatten them up quickly are extremely compelling arguments for giving up the carnivorous proteins. Of course, they find an equally compelling counter argument in the fact that delicious matters. This is where the lazy and ill-educated disparage vegetarian and vegan food as being inferior. However these dullards simply haven't been to Shree Ram in Saldanha yet.
This Gujarati restaurant stands out amongst Lisbon curry houses for actually being Indian and not Nepalese (no criticism!). Specifically only vegetarian and vegan in its offerings, it's a restaurant that has supreme confidence in its cooking and we can assure you that confidence is superbly placed.
Wanting to buy some time to peruse the menu we immediately ordered some onion bhaji and mixed pakora to keep us interested during this time. Crisp and delicately spiced, these classic snacks disappeared in a matter of seconds, which only led to hyping the main courses.
Feeling ambitious and with a firm view to breakfast the next morning, we went all in on three curries, two breads and a rice. Much to the amusement of the waiter, who even brought an extra table over to ours ready to load with food. A mild and creamy Aloo Gobi, loaded with cauliflower; Chana Masala in a lush tomato sauce, with layers of cumin and garam masala shining through and the star of the show, the signature Paneer Angara, chunks of fresh paneer in a smokey, spicy sauce. One buttery tandoori roti, one flakey paratha and jeera rice. We took a lot home.
Maybe one day, those of us left on the burning rock called Earth will be forced to give up the steaks and ribs to afford ourselves another trip round the sun. Needless to say, the likes of Shree Ram are going to make that sacrifice easy to tolerate.
Don’t forget to order: Ask for "Indian spicy", not "Portuguese spicy". Unless of course, that scares you.