IN A small town already well catered for with Asian food outlets, any new kid on the block is going to have to be either exceptionally good or radically different in order to cut the mustard (seed).

In the case of Aroma, founders Nij, Sammy and Atikul Hoque say they aim to make a good stab at both approaches.

Firstly off, there's the name. Ditching the familiar lions, dynasties and spice from the name of your Asian restaurant instantly sets you apart from the crowd.

Neither does the tasteful refit of the of the Zetland Street premises (most recently Woody's restaurant) give it away as a restaurant serving Indian and Bangladeshi food.

Comfortable high-backed leather chairs and an open and well-lit environment give a more modern feel than that usually associated with curry houses. No flock wallpaper, no stylised paintings or pictures of elephant gods, although the latter omission is an obvious one in a restaurant established by proud Bangladeshis.

But once sat down in front of the menu, seasoned curry-lovers will regain a comforting sense of the familiar. All favourites are there in the massive selection, as well a few new styles and combinations.

The luxuriously large range extends right through to side dishes and breads, and vegetarians will not run out of options until a great number of visits.

Indistinguishable, overcooked dishes are too common among curry houses. But on the evidence of a few of dishes alone, Aroma is clearly striving for quality, and easily avoids the curry curse of the bland.

To kick off, apart from the obligatory popadoms and chutneys, my wife had sabzi puree - a deep-fried bread, not unlike a small chappati, stuffed with mixed vegetable filling (£2.60), while I had aloo chana chat - very tender chick peas and potatoes in a delicious sauce, also enveloped in a puree (£2.60).

For the main course, I opted for chicken saagwala, described as a Bengali-style dish with fresh spinach, garlic and tomatoes (£5.30), while Anna had a prawn biryani, which came with a vegetable curry as a side dish - a welcome addition to what can be a fairly dry dish (£5.50). I also had plain boiled rice (£1.40) and a paratha, another delicious variation on a chappati, layered with ghee (£1.50), and we shared a side order of tarka dhall, a sort of thick, garlicky lentil soup (£2.15) - the quality of which you can often judge a curry house by (this one passed with flying colours).

There were no puddings on the menu, but that was just as well, given the quantities we'd eaten.

A couple of pints of Cobra draught lager and some fizzy water for the driver took the bill for two extremely full stomachs to £28.70.

Service was attentive and prompt, even on a busy night with full tables and some large parties.

Perhaps not the cheapest curry going, but for well-cooked, tasty food, it was a fair price.

If I had to be picky, I'd certainly get rid of the nasty plastic table flowers and turn down the ringer volume on the telephone and dumb waiter intercom. But those are minor misdemeanors when the food tastes good.

So after a couple of months in business, with all 50 or so covers full last Friday night and bookings only on the following night, things are obviously going well for the Hoque boys.

And so it should. Despite their youth, Nij explained how he'd been in the restaurant business for about ten years, since he was 14, following in the footsteps of their late father.

Having worked in Leeds and Wakefield, customers had cajoled him to open up further north, suggesting Northallerton as an ideal location.

Six months spent searching for the right place, and here they are.

And, I suspect, here they'll stay. And flourish.