rstarobi

I went to Diwan again on Friday night, avoiding the issue of the buffet. My girlfriend Alexis and I arrived at around 5:45, beating the majority of the dinner rush. The restaurant was empty except for a couple of people at the bar and the staff. We were promptly seated at a table looking out at the window on 48th St. Alexis enjoyed the paintings that were to my right and her left, saying that she liked their use of color (she's an artist and picks up on these things - they're pretty much background noise to me). We were provided with menus and asked if we were interested in the wine list - as neither of us are wine drinkers, we declined, but I'll take Fat Guy's word that the wine list is now viable for a restaurant of Diwan's caliber. I asked the waiter what types of lassi were available and was told mango, sweet and salty. Not being adventurous enough to try the salty, and having already tried the mango, I ordered the sweet lassi. We then ordered: Alexis had a Tandoori mixed grill as an entree, I had the Tandoori Halibut, and we split a bread basket. The drinks arrived, and were quickly followed by two pappadams with tamarind sauce and the green mint sauce. Alexis quickly regretted not ordering a lassi herself after trying mine, and I was only willing to give her so much of it. The lassi was served in a tall glass, slightly iced, with a mild yogurty aftertaste, and a lightly sugared initial flavor. The papadums were excellent - crunchy and spiced, as they should be. Question Suvir, or anyone else who knows, are the papadums at Diwan made freshly there, or pre-packaged? They were really nice, and if pre-packaged, I'd like to buy some more for myself somewhere. The waiter then came out with our main meals. The halibut was plated with a broccoli, turmeric and salt dish, as well as a bell pepper salad and tandoored peppers. The mixed grill contained large prawns, chicken, seekh kebabs and lamb over a bed of lettuce. The breadbasket contained three varieties that I could discern - plain naan, paratha and an onion naan. A quick note on service: it was transparent - glasses were filled, empty plates taken and check provided and processed with no need for flagging or even turning. In addition, we were left alone while eating - no one came up to us with our mouths full at any point to ask if we were enjoying the meal - an annoying experience that I've suffered many times in the past. The halibut was in three pieces - soft, succulent fish meat with a wonderful paste on it. I was curious to try the fish as I hadn't had any at the egullet feast at Diwan. It lived up to almost all the other dishes I'd had, though it still paled before the lamb chops for leg-numbing goodness. The broccoli dish was sensational - I'd tried to make this once from Julie Sahnie's recipe and absolutely butchered it, so it was great to see it in front of me and taste how it was meant to be. I also ravenously partook of the bell peppers, despite my normal distaste for them - a testament to the preparation. The mixed grill was universally excellent - I only know this from a seekh kebab and one of the prawns, as Alexis fiercely defended her plate from my invading fork. The bread basket was good, but not exceptional - the breads were flavorful and tender, but didn't star in their own right (which wasn't the intention, so maybe I'm not judging them fairly). After the main course was complete, we looked at the dessert menu and decided on the chai pot de creme, which is attributed to Suvir in its description. This dessert was exceptional. The flavors of the spices contrasting with the smooth cream blew both of us away. Suvir - thank you, this dish was sensational. Diwan repeated its quality - this time with no forewarning (not that I'm a restaurant critic who needs to hide his identity - we decided to go there after the rain began to fall, and Beyoglu (our first choice, as I haven't been there yet) seemed too far away)).

My favorite seasonal beer that's easily accessible in my region (New York) is the Brooklyn Brewery's Black Chocolate Stout - they produce it towards the end of October, and sell it through January, I believe. One of the richest, most flavorful stouts I've ever had (much more interesting and less cloying than Young's Double Chocolate). This one is made without actually using any chocolate, I believe, just chocolate malts.

Suvir, I did a quick search on the back threads for Jhal Muri, but all I saw was that it's a Bangladeshi street food that sounds vaguely similar to Bhel Puri. Are there any recipes for it around? How does it differ from Bhel Puri? Would I be able to get it at Dimple?

Sorry about the delay, long weekend - I ended up making an Aloo Chaat (largely from Julie Sahnie's recipe book) which went very nicely with the Hummus, Baba Ghanouj and other dips that we had for dinner. It turned out to be spiced well, but I undercooked the potatoes slightly, giving them more crunch than I wanted. From Monica's advice, I added pomegranate seeds to the mix, which my mother (admittedly a devoted pomegranate junky) thought was a great addition. It was especially fascinating to use asafetida and black salt for the first time and see how they interacted with the other spices to form a pleasant flavor out of conflicting smells that were sometimes unpleasant.

Went to GS East (56th & 2nd) yesterday for lunch. It was pretty unappealing, relative to the Hell's Kitchen branch (only other one I've been to). The service was lackadaisical (no napkins for 1/2 the meal) and the food was bland. I ordered the shredded pork with garlic sauce, which tasted of szechuan peppers, but had no other flavors at all. No pork, garlic, ginger, anything. My girlfriend had the beef with broccoli which was up to the standards of a neighborhood joint, but not exceptional. Definitely not a chip off the old block if this one *is* derived from the Hell's Kitchen branch.

Actually Suvir, I was hoping someone else would come up with a recipe! I'm decent at the conceptual aspects of cooking, but I'm still working on the fundamentals of actually making things.

Corn and Turkey? That's so pre-post-modern, Jason In seriousness, my family's thanksgivings have always been open to experimentation - this is my first year cooking anything more complex than cranberry sauce for a holiday. I don't know if there are many Native American recipe books around, but it'd be interesting to start a thread on them somewhere else - I'll go hop onto the cooking thread.

Not tried and true, but I'm doing an aloo chaat for my contribution to my family's thanksgiving dinner (we've got a couple of English vegetarians with a hankering for Indian food). I'll post with a post-dinner report on Thursday or Friday.

Oy vey, this thread is being shortened to "Source for inexpensive Bris" on my browser. That's not something I'd want to skimp on.

Of the two breweries, I prefer Sierra Nevada's flagship beer, the pale ale over Anchor Steam's Steam Beer. However, when you get past the flagships and into all their other beers, I prefer Anchor Steam's catalog (mmm... old foghorn.. best beer I've yet had).

Maybe to fit the theme, some sort of corn utthampam? With a cranberry chutney perhaps..

Cheapest one I've found online so far was around $650 (USD) from Canada. Mainra Traders This is for their "domestic" model, whatever that means in terms of size/quality. Their site says they also offer gas versions for around $200 additional.

For anyone who knows, is it possible to find a home-use tandoor in the US? Particularly in New York, or via mail order. As is, I'm thinking about trying my Foreman grill for making tandoori chicken, but I know it's going to come out strange if I do.

Macrosan, I'm not sure how close you are to London, but try Diwana Bhel Poori house over by Euston Square some time. Their Bhel Poori wasn't as fresh as what we had, but the flavors were still excellent. Also had a good Aloo Papri Chaat. (I think they're either on, or just off Drummond St.)

Ok, I've got my Michael Jackson "Great Beer Guide" out now. For French beers, he lists the following: Aldescott Noir (Dark Whiskey malt lager - sounds interesting) Castelain Ch'ti Blonde (lighter Biere de Garde) Castelain Ch'ti Brune (Biere de Garde) Castelain Ch'ti Tripel (stronger, golden Biere de Garde) Duyck Jenlain (Biere de Garde) Heineken Kylian (Irish Red Ale) Jeanne d'Arc Ambre des Flandres (Biere de Garde) Jeanne d'Arc Belzebuth (Belgian-style Strong Golden Ale) Jeanne d'Arc Grain d'Orge (Biere de Garde) La Choulette Ambree (Biere de Garde) La Choulette Biere des San Culottes (Biere de Garde) La Choulette Brassin Robespierre (strong, golden Biere de Garde) La Choulette Framboise (Biere de Garde with fruit) Pelforth Amberley (Whiskey-Malt lager (sounds interesting) Pelforth George Killian's (Irish Red Ale) Saint Sylvestre 3 Monts (Biere de Garde)

Les Amie de la Biere This looks to be a French beer appreciation society. They may have some advice on where to find beer.

No reference materials at hand at the moment for beer, but I think the style known as "Biere de garde" evolved in France and is supposed to be better there. In addition, you can probably find many Belgian and German beers there.

As a recompense for helping to hijack the thread, I'll try and put it back on course. Suvir, I also loved the paneer. I think Suzanne F said it was made with goat milk, but I'm curious as to more detail. Was it raw goat milk or pasteurized? Was it made using the buttermilk starter you describe on your site? This Paneer (for those who weren't there) was the most flavorful rendition of the cheese I've ever had.

Nina, I'd definitely be up for a DiFara's event. I meant to get down there on my B-day weekend for my first visit, but events conspired to prevent it. Definitely on my list of places to eat at, and good company for the trip to the boroughs makes the idea even more appealing.

Not having a good stomach for it, I avoided the wines, but brought several beers instead. The only two I got around to drinking were "Maharaja" brought by Bklyneats, I think, and a Belgian, "St. Bernardus Abt. 12." The Maharaja was a traditional lager. Unfortunately any flavor it had was completely overwhelmed by the food, turning it into alcoholic seltzer for all practical purposes. The Belgian ale on the other hand was flavorful enough to remain distinct from the food and provided a nice, dark, coriander spiced contrast to the food. If anyone else had beers with the meal, please let me know how they went. I'm specifically interested in the Kriek beer that I brought, and how it went with things.

What did you like about this dessrt and the sauce?What worked for you? The acidity of the sauce, while still having a nicely spiced flavor was what I really appreciated. I think you'd have to go back to the Bhel Poori to get a dish that was particularly sour (and my tastebuds tend to run towards sour) with the exception of the tamarind sauce that I could put onto everything. The sauce was also very light, which was a relief at the end of the meal. I couldn't bring myself to eat more than a bite or two of the Kheer, but I finished my entire bowl of Kulfi.

You're welcome, Suvir - though the job was made easier by MHesse's kind assistance as well. I left right after the meal to get back to Westchester and didn't get a chance to say thank you for the wonderful experience. I've eaten Indian food many, many times prior to this and never had a meal that even approached this one. I don't think I have too much to add, but I will say that the kulfi dessert came in a sauce that was absolutely wonderful. This sauce (particularly when not matched with the kulfi and just spooned into my gullet) zinged across my tongue and woke me up again as I was starting to nap after being bombarded with excellent course after excellent course.

I'm not quite sure how to quote smilies.. And don't worry, I wasn't terrified of you - just horrified of any more lists - going insane with work right now, trying to get it all done quickly so I can leave early to be at the pre-dinner schmooze.

Eep - Sorry, Suzanne!