Takeaway orders at Indian Restaurants around the country have run hot since lockdown ended – and restaurants are urging Kiwis to break out and try something other than butter chicken.

More than 40,000 curries were ordered on food delivery platform Menulog since lockdown ended with Indian restaurants such as Bolliwood in Auckland's Blockhouse Bay and Own Masala in Tauranga saying demand recovered quickly to pre-COVID levels as Kiwis craved warm, comforting food.

Butter Chicken is by far the most popular curry ordered on Menulog with one Gisborne restaurant selling more than 1300 butter chickens since lockdown ended.

The Butter Chicken obsession has led Menulog restaurants to recommend Kiwis step outside their comfort zone and open their minds to all Indian food has to offer.

Sita Aryal, owner of Own Masala Restaurant in Tauranga, says Indian food is special because there are many different flavours.

'Every dish is different and there is a curry for everyone, no matter their taste.

'The secret to making a delicious curry is ensuring every aspect of the meal is top notch quality.

'Every Indian restaurant will use different cooking tricks and techniques to create their curries. At Own Masala, we only use high quality ingredients for everything in the dish – right down to the cashews and the tomato paste.”

Sita says after lockdown was a very busy time for Own Masala, which helped it get back up and running successfully.

'Menulog was very helpful to have during this period when demand was ramping up again. About half of our regular customers use Menulog to order, with the other half ordering in store,” he says.