Here in Southampton, we’re spoilt for choice when it comes to great curry houses.

But there’s a new kid on the block which is turning heads and bagging trophies - so I thought I would pay it a visit and see if it lived up to the hype.

In less than a year of being open, The Chennai Lounge on Terminus Terrace won best new Indian restaurant at the Asian Restaurant Awards, rubbing shoulders with eateries in Mayfair, Birmingham and Cardiff, and was named one of the country’s top 100 restaurants.

Upon entry we were greeted by owner Kannan Tathinavel and shown to our table.

He explained his wife had masterminded the decor: bold and full of warm reds and yellows, I felt like I was sat in the midst of the Hindu festival of colours.

Before we even had a chance to look at the menu, the friendly team brought over a bottle of wine on ice - an unconventional choice with a curry.

But it turned out to be an Indian wine; a Sauvignon Blanc from Nashik in the west of the country, and delicious too with the obligatory chutneys and appalams - a regional variant of the classic poppadom.

READ MORE: Meet the chef at the UK's best new Indian The Chennai Lounge

This was a hint of what was to come: Indian authenticity pushed to the fore.

Take the starters for instance.

Not pakoras or samosas but instead gongura chicken (crispy, salty chicken with spinach); spicy roasted cassava; meltingly smoky mutton, slow cooked in ghee for four hours; and sambar vada - spiced doughnuts - dipped in a coconut chutney.

My favourite though was an eyebrow-raising inclusion: crispy cauliflower in a sweet chilli sauce.

It looked (and tasted) like it should be from a Chinese restaurant, and for good reason - there were strong trading links between the area Kannan hails from and China, which also influenced the cuisine.

This was followed by a south Indian classic that is not such a common sight in the UK.

A gloriously yellow potato curry wrapped in a crispy pancake shell, dosa is a lunchtime staple dipped in sambar, a lentil stew.

While it was well-executed, the carnivore in me was more excited by what was to come. The main event, the make or break of any curry house worth its salt.

I opted for a classic curry as a benchmark - butter chicken - along with one of the chef recommendations: a meen moilee, which is a fish fillet cooked in a spiced coconut sauce.

Both were tasty, the chicken sweet and creamy from the honey and cashew base, but what made them was what I dunked in the sauce.

I’ve never had a paratha before, but now I'm converted. I'll be ordering the pastry-esque cousin of the bready naan wherever I can.

Often what lets down a curry house is its dessert options, so I was pleasantly surprised to see a decent selection beyond ice cream.

We tried the Apple Jalebi - battered apple slices, fried and soaked in a sugar syrup, they had a caramel crunch akin to the top of a brûlée.

Instead of a coffee to finish, we were treated to a theatrical flourish in the form of a masala chaya, a south Indian spiced tea boiled and served with milk.

Served in a brass cup piping hot, we were somewhat dumbfounded as to what the brass dish it sat on was for - until we were shown how to pour the tea from one to another at a height to help it cool down.

Rich and indulgent, it was a great way to end a delicious meal.

Although I was sad for it to be over, there was a silver lining - in the form of the bag of leftovers from the feast which I could savour the next day.

On a side note, there are decent options for vegetarians and vegans to boot - a highlight was an aubergine curry which my friend described as having a creaminess you rarely find in vegan dishes. 

To conclude, The Chennai Lounge had everything I would want and expect from a curry house, but with a menu different enough to make it feel more special and filled with unique dishes that will force you come back again.

Well worth a visit.