A taste of… Coriander's Ethnic Indian Restaurant, 30 Conical Hill Rd, Hanmer

We'd heard… This popular Christchurch restaurant was a hit in Hanmer during winter.

We started with... A phone order from the car at the turn-off to Hanmer. We were arriving to Hanmer a little later than expected thanks to Friday night rush hour traffic, and the option to dine in was gone. We thought ordering 15 minutes out of Hanmer would be plenty of time, but were told orders had a half hour wait time.

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When we finally got it, the food was up to the same high standard we'd become accustomed to when patroning Coriander's city joints in St Asaph St and Edgeware.

The butter chicken was just as creamy and rich and satisfying as always, with plenty of chicken and sauce. A lamb madras, served medium, was perfectly hot but flavoursome and the lamb was melt-in-the-mouth. Plain naan bread polished off our meal and soaked up the sauce nicely, but was a little undercooked in the middle.

All in all, this is a great option if you're late to Hanmer and would rather skip the cooking on arrival. If you pop into the restaurant, you'll find it's modern, busy and nice and warm.

The service was… Not very friendly but efficient.

The vibe was… Bustling. Four groups waited for orders while diners moved in and out of the restaurant. It certainly is popular.

If you go… Order well before the turn-off.

We didn't like... The wait time, but it wasn't a deal breaker.

Rating out of 5: 3.5