Masala Bay in Christchurch

Absolutely delicious! My Partner and I come here very frequently and we always receive top service and fantastic food. We've been to many local curry houses in the past and this is by far our favourite! Highly recommend 😁

Amazing food, easily best on the island. Waiter Syed was super helpful and made the experience that much better. Highly recommend!!

We chose a delivery as we were a bit under the weather. The chicken korma was very nice, plenty of it. The mixed kebab starter was massive and very tasty. I was very impressed by the complimentary poppadoms, salads and two mint sauces. The meal was delivered exactly on time and piping hot. I will certainly be back.

6 of us girls went on a tuesday night, i was given the round table which i had asked for. The staff were so polite and friendly from the moment we arrived. Bringing your own alcohol made everything seem so relaxed and easy. The food WOW, it was superb, presentation, taste and brilliant portion size. The naan bread was cut into triangles, so much easier as we were sharing it. The best indian sit down meal i have had in a long time. We all loved it.

As someone familiar with good Indian cuisine, this was my most disappointing restaurant experience. The general belief is that the best Indian restaurants thrive where Asian patrons frequent. Unfortunately, this small, cramped place had poor service and dreadful food – I should have sent it back. My advice: steer clear if you can.

Delicious food and atmosphere, would recommend! Lovely poppadoms, and would recommend the chicken saag and the vegetarian Dhansak.

We ordered from masala bay and the delivery was on time and the food was absolutely beautiful. Everything was cooked perfectly with the curry dishes abundant with meat along with a wonderfully cooked sauce. Would never go anywhere else if you want an expertly cooked and authentic Indian dish.

Had a lovely meal..asked for red onion with my chicken shishlak as white onion upsets my stomach...a really lovely meal...generous portions and all very tasty and polite and attentive staff. Very impressed! A bonus is being able to take your own alcohol. They do add a service charge but it's so nice you'll Def be happy to leave a tip!

Had a group meal for30+, they managed it well. Food was good and not overly expensive. Byo alcohol helped to keep cost reasonable. Would definitely use again

Good food. Nice service. Been there a few times and always had nice food. They are happy to amend anything to veggie too which is great

Ordered a curry on New Year’s Eve from Masala Bay - this was the second time I’ve ordered from them as I’m new in Christchurch! The first delivery the food was very nice, lovely flavours, came hot and was very fresh. Unfortunately £70.00 paid on New Year’s Eve and I can honestly say I won’t be going back to Masala Bay, the Chilli Paneer was nice (the only dish that was good) the chicken shashlick was very dry and the pieces of chicken seems not fresh like it has been re-cooked, no flavour completely unbeatable and was left, same for the chicken korma and chicken masala, the rice was also watery! The potato & cauliflower dish was terrible, watery and no flavour too. Sad to leave this review as the first order was nice, but upset & angry I wasted £70.00 on a takeaway that couldn’t be eaten on New Years Eve! Maybe - they pre-cooked everything in advance of new years & reheated as required, but if that was the case, the food was a huge let down!!!

You can bring your own beer and wine, which helps keep the costs down. Very child friendly, nice people to deal with.

WOW!! Food was amazing, service was amazing, had to take our own drinks which was ok, staff served our drinks on request, food was nice and fresh, staff really accommodating, polite and helpful, food was served quickly, and really hot! Good quality for money! Highly recommend, if you want an Indian 100% be going back!

Great tasting food. I had the masala blast (naga 🌶)

The food is incredible here And the staff are fantastic we had a baby recently so haven’t been in a while but got takeout still so tasty. Highly recommend

Awesome service, delicious food and a fantastic atmosphere. The staff go above and beyond at all times. We were a large group of 35 and they met each individuals needs and more. Looking forward to the next visit already.

Where to start ! Fantastic restaurant. The food was authentic, clean and well presented. The waiting staff are amazing, attentive and helpful. Will be back for sure !

Brilliant food & outstanding service. Nothing else to say.

Great food, service and atmosphere. Fantastic flavours make for an excellent dining experience

Amazing atmosphere with friendly staff providing a high quality service. Best in class

a very elegant setting with well crafted dishes presented in a amazing manor. Even the takeaway service is always fresh and hot.

Excellent food exceptional staff x

A wonderful supper, 10/10 experience.

Very attentive and allowed us to order at our own pace. We like to take our time and order starters first and then order mains afterwards which they didn't have any issue with. Lovely food and many options you don't see in other Indian restaurants. Would highly recommend.

We regularly visit here and the service and food is always 5 star. We feel very welcomed. The After Eights after dinner are an added bonus 😁 We shall keep returning. Many thanks Mishu and your amazing team

Excellent food - very obliging and friendly staff.

We absolutely love it here! The food is fantastic, all the staff are welcoming, polite, and very friendly, and the restaurant is lovely to dine in. We eat here once a week and have done so for the past year and never once experienced a single problem. 5+ stars from us!

Beautiful food, I have a nut allergy also but Raj and his team cater to your every need. I cannot recommend this place enough. 5 stars

Our favourite local restaurant which just gets better each time. Superb food and service is outstanding. Being able to take your own choice of alcohol is a real bonus.

Great food and wonderful service from these guys - always a lovely evening here!

Absolutely delicious, will be back.

Not a bad curry to be fair. A little different which I like.

Delicious food in a cosy restaurant. Great buzzing atmosphere and very good service.

Fantastic can’t be faulted…we keep coming back every time we’re in the area!

Superb, fresh, clean - fantastic 10 stars

Exceptional food, the staff are all very lovely and genuine. Amazing place for authentic Indian Cuisine!

Good food, good team, service can be somewhat hit or miss at very peak busy times, but they are all a great hardworking team. I’d argue the best Indian that’s close in terms of walking distance to the high street.

Don't bother ordering food from this place 20.37 ordered food 11 o clock still not delivered!! They took my money and still did not deliver my food! Disgusting service!! I gave clear instructions on how to find my house step by step instructions! I don't believe they even tried to deliver my order! Never ever again will I give this restaurant the chance to screw me over! I now have to try get my money back!!...

Great food, excellent service and very good value.

Few problems with the order but the staff did what they could to compensate

We have just enjoyed a thoroughly pleasant evening, we had the alcove table for 5 just by the bar. All the dishes served were tasty, the naan was the best we have ever had! The restaurant was very busy and the staff were obviously working hard so you have to allow for this!

My partner and I ate because of the good reviews there. I expected something more...normal food and good service but the tables were very close together, the waiters gave me a coat hanging on the chair when they passed by, it was full and there was a lot of noise. I would not repeat for the price it has, it is not cheap.

Very good restaurant. Good food and attentive service. You can take your own alcohol to keep the bills low. Highly recommend the channa masala.

Excellent food choice and great value for money, make sure to book and arrive early as very busy and a wait for food. The choice to bring your own alcohol makes this a very affordable night out.

Staff are very friendly and the food was nice. I would recommend

One of the best choices and tasty curries I have had we were a group of 4 and everyone enjoyed what they had

Fabulous evening at Masala Bay, greeted at the door by excellent attentive staff, very busy!, the tables were at little squished but oh wow 🤩 the food ! Superb a starter of veggie samosas, sheek kebab was delicious 😋, followed by a wonderful dinner, vegetarian thali was incredible, so delicious! Bring your own alcohol! But staff will serve it to you, also alcohol can be provided on request.

Food 4/5 overall food was tasty, just a shame the prawn purée (purées were too bite size for my liking I prefer my purée standard size). Service 5/5 Mr Alam was a great host offered drinks and onion bhaji on the house as we completed our bike ride from Aldgate, London to Bournemouth. Atmosphere 4/5 buzzing with customers

Lovely dinner for two. Vegetarian-friendly

What a delicious meal and such good service from all the staff. I loved the Kerala fish curry, very authentic and the extra after eight mints were very welcome! Thank you 😊

Absolutely lovely place to come with friends or family or your partner! Great food , great service and you can bring your own drinks ! Couldn’t recommend more , the best Indian around and would definitely recommend.

poor hygiene it's been down graded to 1 by the food agency people

Friendly staff good food and great service

Been here multiple times and each time we visit, the staff is very welcoming and the manager is also very friendly. Delicious 😋 food of course! 🙌

Went for a very early meal, and we had the restaurant to ourselves initially. Everything was lovely, but obviously quiet in an empty restaurant (which was our fault for being early).

This restaurant has such a lovely interior with great lighting and table spacing. They have bring your own alcohol, but was happy to arrange some alcohol to be brought to the restaurant for our table. The staff were so welcoming and made sure to check everything was going well. They were very friendly and explained all the dishes when asked. One of the staff members informed us that all the dishes could be made vegan, including the naans! I tried the vegan Masala Bay Special and the plain rice and naan. It was all delicious and was packed with flavour. The veg was cooked thoroughly and the sauce was slightly spicy. I would highly recommend this restaurant!

Delicious Indian food and lovely service. After I asked for one dish to share with my girlfriend accidentally, they happily brought out the second on very quickly. Also, a great place for vegans as they can do any dish vegan. Definitely would go again and I have to recommend to anyone who does the nasal bay special curry.

3rd time visit here, absolutely superb. Caring waiters, they realized some noisy people in restaurant, so sat us in quiet area, food was honestly top quality and we know the difference having eaten curry hundreds of times. Will definitely be back, would fully recommend.

We had a lovely night in masala bay; the food was authentic- great chicken tikka & daal! The Atmosphere was great & the staff were exceptional as they went above & beyond for our party- tweaks to our dishes & extra wine 👍🏽 Thank you all

Great meal and so much better than Mela - staff very friendly and food was delicious. Nice atmosphere inside too

The mixed grill was the best I've ever eaten. Bring a bottle of your favourite wine and enjoy the delicious food.

Excellent friendly service, nice ambience, flavoursome food, great value. A Bonus is you take your own drinks at no cost. My favorite Indian restaurant by far. Brilliant 👏. They deserve to thrive.

Great place for an evening meal. Gets very busy Fridays and at weekends so would highly recommend pre booking a table. Staff are very friendly and welcoming. Service on food is fairly quick but is well worth the wait as it is very delicious. A great extensive menu and good atmosphere, tho does get noisy when busy with people talking. You bring your own drinks either alcohol or soft drinks. Would recommend getting there early. No parking but a paid car park down the road.

Don’t know what the recent bad reviews are about Masala bay. Either the IQ of a shoe or only eat fast food. We had an outstanding meal tonight at Masala Bay. Starters and mains were so tasty and staff were attentive clearing plates etc. 10/10 will be regulars now. Don’t let recent reviews put you off.

Ordered a take away. I collected. I had chicken korma with plain rice. The sauce was lovely but the chicken was very very dry, which thoroughly spoilt the meal.

Having seen some of the recent reviews of this curry house, my wife and I were intially a little apprehensive about booking a visit here. Fortunately the poor recent reviews were unfounded and we really enjoyed our Friday evening meal there. The food was excellent and the service impeccable, so we will definitely be returning soon. It was quite busy when we were there so it's probably wise to book in advance..... just in case!

I don't eat Indian curry because ghee upsets my stomach but I was in a group so I ordered grilled lamb chops. £14.95 for 3 skinny pieces of fat and bone dyed red with tandoori spices so it looked edible, trust me it was not edible or enjoyable.. Also we had pre ordered a table for 10 but they stuck us on a table just about adequate for 8 people, certainly not 10! By the time the plates and meals arrived in red hot dishes, it was almost impossible to eat comfortably without everything ending up on the floor or in your lap. I know they are only interested in packing in as many people as possible but it will discourage a return visit and ultimately your greed will kill your trade.

One of my favourites when I’m in the area

A really tasty eat-in Curry and enjoyable evening. Thank you to the Team at Masala Bay!

Lovely people, food so good. Really nice atmosphere.

I was really looking forward to this meal based on good reviews but it was absolutely appalling. As mentioned by another review, the cooking lacked any finessse, huge chunks of onion and peppers in a greasy runny sauce. Tandoori meats were bland and badly cooked. So so disappointed

Food is always exceptional. Accustics could do with looking into as you often can't hear yiurself think its so loud and perhaps re-jig the seating arrangements so there's more room to move.

Steer clear of this place. This is only an excellent curry house IF you like bland and tasteless curries! Be prepared to be ripped off when the bill comes.....the menu price unlawfully excludes VAT 20%, plus 10% is added for gratuity! Hope they get shut down, they havent a clue how to cook.

I came from USA and they had very tasty food. Customer service was great. 10 out of 10 recommended.

Nice food and atmosphere, your average Indian meal. Disappointed to find that the menu prices on display are all plus vat! The final bill was 30% more than I was expecting (20%vat plus 10% optional but added to the bill service charge! ). Soft drinks are extortionate £5 for a coke plus vat. I won't be a returning customer sadly.

Sat outside, mobbed by stag party smoking. Not the best and expensive for standard curry

Unable to get a table booking advisable.

They accommodated us late on Saturday night when everything else was closed, good meal, great service, good value.

Fantastic food. Great service. Highly recommended.

I would have given this place a one star but it was my fault for travelling to Bournemouth and not eating at a Fish and Chips joint. All the dishes were bland or sugary. They add a banana to their mint sauce for the poppadoms. Not too sure why, as it doesn’t seem to do much, other than change the colour of the sauce. The staff were lacking and slacking too. Waste of a good location. Microwaveable Tesco curries taste better... please stick to Fish and Chips when in Bournemouth.

I absolutely love the place and you can bring your own wine which makes it a lot cheaper. Very romantic, clean and food is delicious.

Amazing food and the staff was very attentive and would absolutely eat here again

One of the best Indian meals I've ever had. Quick delivery and the food was perfect. Not greasy in the slightest, perfectly spiced and flavoured, good quality meat. This is my new go to for Indian food!

Excellent..because there is no alcohol licence the food has to be paramount..and it didn't disappoint...great Indian Tea as well which I wouldn't normally go for in an Indian Restaurant!!!

Lovely food and a great service with a lovely atmosphere 😀

We had the loveliest Valentine’s dinner here last night. The restaurant was decorated romantically and they even gave us a free gift (heart shaped photo frame) at the end of our meal. The food was amazing and staff were very friendly. We didn’t realise it was BYOB, but the waiter kindly organised for some alcoholic drinks to be delivered, and they served them to us as if they’d been purchased there. Would 100% recommend!

Great food ordered as a takeaway that arrived very quickly!

Went for dinner here. The tables for 2 are very small. The meal was nice except for the biriani which was very bland. The staff were polite, but within minutes of finishing our food we were presented with hot cloths and then the bill! We felt pressured into leaving quickly as the staff hovered around😧🙁.

A disappointing take away meal that lacked any finess and depth of flavour. The starters were oily and the onion raita lacked any flavour. Easy to order and delivered on time but not one we will go back to. Expensive for the quality delivered.

Fantastic food as always, slight issue of 1 bit of order but promptly and perfectly sorted, fantastic customer service, thank you again..

Food was nice and restaurant cosy. Didn’t like the rushed service and/or over priced soft drinks. A once in a blue moon place for when really fancy an Indian meal for me sadly…

Love this place , good curry . Great atmosphere, guys are great that work there . 👏

Well known dishes tasted fresher. Restaurant felt & smelled cleaner than most Indian restaurants. Could not falter the service. Well done Masala.

Love Masala Bay. Raj is very welcoming and the food is great. Bring your own alcohol!

Poor.. Limited flavour to curry dishes..but plenty of chillis. Little else going for the mains tho. Dry dishes. Of limited flavour. Plenty of burn though. Need to calm down on the oil too. As for vegetable curries. One in our group ordered one? Served a bowl of oily mush. Can’t recommend Masala bay myself. Maybe they were having an off night. But no thanks.

Superb service and food great that you can take your own drink

Food lovely. Party of 10 thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Negatives; Service was rather slow, waited well over an hour for food & asked for water which never came. Restaurant was very hot inside with no windows to open, and rather claustaphobic inside with tables close together. Despite this, would definitely return.

Unfortunately not the best experience here on our recent visit . They were understaffed and couldn't cope with a full restaurant resulting in a very long wait for service and an even longer wait for food . Two of the plates were dirty as well . Some drinks ordered were forgotten , and the water I asked for arrived 2 hours later after we had finished our meal ! The chicken was a bit chewy and a real let down after such a long wait . There are much better places locally and would definitely not recommended Masala bay .

Easily one of the best Indian restaurants around. The food quality is spot on every time. Be prepared for a loud atmosphere if you’re dining in.

We went for a meal here on Saturday night. The food was delicious, service was excellent and staff so friendly. You can take your own alcohol and the bill was reasonable. We will be back again...thanks.