Having lived in Abbotsford just shy of a year, I am constantly amazed at the quality (and quantity) of local dining establishments in this city. Aug 26th, my wife and I had just come home from our latest exciting culinary discovery: Maurya Bistro. Nestled just south of South Fraser Way, it seems Maurya could very well be one of this town's best kept secrets.

We were greeted at the entrance by the beaming and gracious Adeep who promptly found room for us in the cozy yet sleek dining room. Before even tasting the food, I marvelled at how easily the chairs glided back from the table-simple luxuries for simple folk, I guess. As my wife struggled to deny her eyes their inevitable backward roll, I reluctantly plucked myself from the throes of my own idiocy.On to the real point of this review: the food. We started with the Vegetable Pakora served with both Mint and Tamarind accompaniments. Wow. I can honestly say I have never, and by that I mean NEVER had pakoras this good. In my life. Ever. The mint variation was so clear it cut above all of the other tastes and stood it's own ground. The pakoras themselves were light, crispy, plentiful and bursting with flavour.

Our main course included a Pea Pilau (a pea and cumin rice blend suggested by Adeep), Tandoori Chicken and Chicken Tikka Marsala with Garlic Naan. The rice was the perfect compliment to our perfectly rendered entrees. The Tikka Marsala was rich, gorgeously coloured and generously portioned. The Tandoori came out sizzling and each bite was an earthy explosion of "charbroiled" (tandoori chicken is often referred to as India's version of barbecued chicken) goodness.My only regret is not having room for a dessert of Galubjamins, but thankfully Maurya's does not appear to be going anywhere anytime soon. Thanks very much to Maurya Bistro and our compliments to the chef!