Spice Exchange

I’m always a bit dubious about Indian restaurants with very English sounding names, but Spice Exchange in Cotteridge is quite a gem.
Of course, you are completely spoiled for choice for Indian food in Brum (especially lie you are over by the Balti Triangle situated in Moseley and Balsall Heath) but for every great place there is a duff one, so I think it helps to point out the particularly good ones.
It has a more high end décor than usual, more along the lines of Moseley’s Kebabish, clean and bright and modern. The menu is pretty extensive with a few things I have not seen on menus before which is no small feat considering the amount of Indian restaurants I’ve eaten at over the years! While it’s a bit more pricey than usual it’s definitely worth it, the fresh vegetable biryani that I had was absolutely delicious.
The staff are all friendly too, eager to help you out with your choices. Definitely recommend checking it out if you are in the area.

The curiously named Spice Exchange (I’ve been in a couple of times and I’ve never been asked to give them any spices in exchange for those that they put in my food), located in Cotteridge is an excellent Indian restaurant. Obviously, the city of Birmingham is famed for its curry houses, and I’ve been to plenty of them. Spice Exchange is easily one of the best, with the eponymous spices being perfectly blended into rich, tasty sauces, with an always fair serving of meat. The prices are by no means the cheapest (dishes are around £7 — £8 eating in, and a couple of pounds cheaper if taking away), but it’s certainly one of the tastiest. The interior is very nice, with a lovely bar area to sit and have a drink at before you head to your table. The service is always friendly and chatty, which just tops the experience off. Highly recommended.

I have been going to Spice Exchange for more years now than I care to remember. Located in Cotteridge (which unfortunately I think has a dirth of good indian restaurants) this is a great restaurant. It was probably one of the first smarter Indian restaurants in the city. The food is fresh, interesting and really good and the staff, some of whom have been there for a long time, are friendly and efficient. The best dish they do is the chilli fish — more Indian restaurants do fish now but when they first started, many didn’t and this was really unusual dish for its smokey flavours. They also do fantastic tarka dall.
We have taken many friends here and I can honestly say that not a single one has been disappointed.
After many years of trying the other disappointing restaurants in Cotteridge/​Stirchley for takeaways, we have finally decided it just isn’t worth it and now have takeaways from here as well even if they are slightly more expensive. You can’t compromise on quality!

This is a great restaurant really good food, friendly staff and cobra on draft, décor is modern. I have become a regular for both sit in meals and takeaways, slightly dearer than most, but worth the extra and still great value.

I am used to the kind of Indian restaurant where the décor is rather dated — all dark red with flocked wallpaper and chintz, tropical fish in tanks and the like — so the Spice Exchange came as a very pleasant surprise when I first visited. The décor is modern and vibrant, and the food is fresh and fabulous! The staff are polite and attentive, and able to accommodate requests — for example if you are tentative about a more spicy dish they will take the edge off it with some yogurt. Again having tasted pre-​prepared Indian cuisine for many years I was somewhat surprised to taste the range of fresh spices and flavours — a real eye-​opener!
Over the years I’ve been many, many times to the Spice Exchange and have never been disappointed. It is the kind of place that you return to time and time again for a reassuringly good meal, but it is also the type of place you are happy to take visiting friends to to ‘show off’ something a bit different.