DINING out in York on a Saturday is a gamble if you haven’t booked - as we realised on our arrival at The Viceroy, only to find it teeming with people.

We’d made a spur of the moment decision to go out for a meal with our sons and chose the North Indian restaurant on Monkgate, just outside the bar walls, from having visited numerous times over the years and never been disappointed.

As we got there at 6pm, we were confident we’d have no difficulty securing a table as it was still early. But the restaurant, which specialises in traditional curries and Pakistani balti dishes, was already buzzing with diners, with early birds already part-way through their meals, along with large groups dominating long tables, who looked like they were settled in for the night.

Thankfully, there was a small table going free and we were able to relax.

Our surroundings were modern and simple, with low lighting and plain walls to accentuate large canvas prints of vibrant sunsets.

The happy chatter of voices filled the air, and restaurant staff greeted many of the new arrivals like old friends, lending a warm, welcoming atmosphere to the place.

The service we received was very polite and attentive, with up to five people waiting on us throughout the evening. We had to ask for extra time to peruse the menu when two different waiters came to take our order within minutes of each other, making us feel slightly rushed, but with such an extensive menu and numerous house specials there was a lot to take in.

To tide us over, we ordered poppadoms (65p each) which were nice and crispy, and an assorted pickle tray (£1.60), each of us diving into our own favourite from the selection of mango chutney, onion relish, lime pickle, and raita.

From there, the sizzle mix (£8.95) seemed like the perfect starter. Designed for two, we felt it would be sufficient for the four of us to share to offer a small taster of some of the different appetisers on the menu - and it was exactly that. The platter came with chunks of tender chicken tandoori and succulent, bite-size pieces of lamb as well as seekh kebab, garlic mushrooms and two onion Bhajis, each gently spiced, but none hot enough to deter our sons who could’ve finished the dish between them. It was a very tasty start and whet the appetite for our main course.

The boys ordered their favourite dish, chicken Rogan Josh (£7.50). As it is normally served as a medium hot curry, they asked for it to be cooked without any chilli at all and happily tucked straight in, mixing the rich, thick sauce and chicken in with their generous portion of pilau rice (£2.95) and finally mopping up the remains with large pieces of the family garlic and coriander naan (£4.95) which was impressively large. They had no complaints, and I had a taste and found the curry to be full of flavour, without being spicy.

My husband went for the chicken dansak (£7.50), which he described as a delicious and filling lentil-based dish, slightly sweet but nicely spiced, with a pleasant, smooth texture to the sauce. Gary was mildly disappointed by the chicken, as on previous visits it has always come in large pieces which have been tender and succulent. On this occasion, however, the chicken chunks were smaller and notably dry in texture. However, he said the puréed lentils went some way to combatting this.

Gary also ordered garlic and chilli rice, a side dish not actually on the menu but one he has had before and which he said was well worth asking for, packing a punch in heat and garlic to compliment the dish perfectly.

From the specials, I chose the Afgani chicken (£9.95), a classic dish from Afghanistan which - the menu tells us - is usually only cooked for royalty because of the expense and efforts involved. The slow, gentle cooking gave a real depth of flavour to the rich, tomato-based sauce, which was served topped with tomatoes and cucumber. It was let down again slightly by the same dry texture of the chicken.

I mentioned it to our waiter in the hope that he might persuade me this was just a blip. To his credit he didn’t side step the question but apologised before explaining that the chicken was cooked beforehand and then finished off in the sauce. As it didn’t sound like they’d changed their cooking style, I can only think the pieces were cut on the small side on this occasion, hence the texture.

We washed our meal down with a Kingfisher for my husband (£3.95 a pint) and table water for the three of us.

We weren’t offered a dessert menu, and for that I was grateful as my sons would still have asked for pudding, given the option, despite us all being very full from the generous portions.

After such swift service between courses we were then left alone for some time as the waiters hurriedly prepared tables around us ready for the next arrival of diners.

Clearly, Saturday is a busy night, no matter how early you arrive, so next time we’ll definitely book.