Diwan

[La Niña]

The next one is whenever somebody organizes something!

Up my sleeve, for one, is a pizza outing to DiFara...

Edited November 23, 2002 by La Niña (log)

[Steve Plotnicki]

Up my sleeve, for one, is a pizza outing to DiFara...

How many course meal is that one?

[jaybee]

The wine I brought that everyone at our table liked is:

Selbach Oster

Zeltinger (town)

Schlossberg (vinyard)

Kabinett

2000

I bought it from Acker Merrill (w 72nd) for about $25.

I just bought a bunch of 2001 reislings from the same area (Mosel).

2001 is said to be a great year for the region.

[Toby]

jaybee, thank you for the information on the delicious wine.

[Rachel Perlow]

Perhaps this is buried somewhere in the thread -- Is someone going to post all the recipes?

The dinner was held at a restaurant. Restaurants typically do not give out all their recipes. However, we have managed to coax a few recipes out of Suvir, they are located in various places on the India forum.

[Suzanne F]

Oh, as a former CH, I am REALLY up for tasting DiFara's Pizza! Would we be able to get the artichoke version? :slobber: I'm also thinking of a place in Brooklyn, but that can be another time.

[Suzanne F]

Perhaps this is buried somewhere in the thread -- Is someone going to post all the recipes?

The dinner was held at a restaurant. Restaurants typically do not give out all their recipes. However, we have managed to coax a few recipes out of Suvir, they are located in various places on the India forum.

And others will be in his book. Which we will all have to purchase through Amazon.com, right?

[nyfirepatrolchef]

only if he does a get together for a signing...I hate unsigned books.

[rstarobi]

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.

[tommy]

And others will be in his book.  Which we will all have to purchase through Amazon.com, right? 

i'm not buying suvir's book because his recipe for curry steak has no, um, steak.

[Suvir Saran]

And others will be in his book.  Which we will all have to purchase through Amazon.com, right?  

i'm not buying suvir's book because his recipe for curry steak has no, um, steak.

And what might it suggest about my Indian food?

[Suvir Saran]

Perhaps this is buried somewhere in the thread -- Is someone going to post all the recipes?

The recipes for the food are available through a meal at Diwan.

Hemant Mathurs food needs no recipe. His foods one basic ingredient is his love and passion of food and his genius as a chef. If you really want to partake in his food, you owe it to yourself to try it at his restaurant.... That is the only recipe I could share for good Indian food.

Truly, Hemant Mathur is a chef unlike any from India. His is a passion for food and perfection that is rarely if ever found in chefs. He cooks without an ego and without need for affirmation. He cooks as he would for himself and those he loves. Food is important to him and food becomes important through his hands and expertise. I will borrow the following quote from Eric Asimov's review in NY Times: "His sense of spicing is acute, a reminder that few cuisines can compete with Indian when it comes to creating complex waves of flavor out of ginger and garlic, cilantro and chilies, fresh curry leaves and black mustard seeds, cardamom and fenugreek. " What more could one say about a chef? Nada!

Eric Asimov goes on to describe the brilliance Hemant Mathur brings to the diner by saying, "Mr. Mathur saves most of his fireworks for his tandoori dishes. Having had my share of dry, flavorless or plain old tandoori seafood dishes, I'm suspicious of the genre. But Diwan's tandoori halibut was a revelation of how a simple marinade of yogurt, ginger and spices, and careful cooking in the tandoor can make this bland fish lively and exciting."

Dstone, if you ever find yourself in NYC, make a trip to Diwan and search for Hemant Mathur. Having eaten his food, you will not need recipes, you will only want a seat at a table at his restaurant for the best Tandoori foods of a lifetime. There are only a couple of other such talented Tandoori chefs. And Hemant is one of that very short list.

[rstarobi]

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.

[Suvir Saran]

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.

The Paneer was made with regular milk. Whatever a restaurant would buy in bulk. Sorry to dissapoint anyone.

And yes it is made as I describe on the website or the Paneer thread in the Indian forum.

IN fact home made paneer is even better. SInce you can control the quality far more easily.

[macrosan]

I'd like to add to my previous post, and comment on a few of the individual dishes.

First, my #1 dish, the Bhel Puri. I'm told this is a pretty standard dish in Indian restaurants in the USA, but I've never had it in the UK, despite having eaten many hundreds of Indian meals. Maybe that's because the majority of "Indian" restaurants in the UK are Pakistani, and Bhel Puri is a Hindu rather than a Moslem dish ? Whatever, I adored this dish. It was fun seeing it made at the table, and the combination of textures (crunchy to soft) and flavors (smooth to sharp) of the individual ingredients made the total dish exceptional.

The Crispy Okra (or Bhindi, or Ladyfingers in English) was amazing. Okra is a strange vegetable, with a good flavour, a hard skin, but a slimy interior. This preparation enhanced the flavor and totally removed the sliminess. I could eat these as a table snack all day and all night long.

The Tandoori Lamb Chop was my #3 dish. I have had Tandoori Lamb many times, but never a complete chop on the bone. Often the marination is too heavy, or the sauce coating the lamb too strong to the point where it overpowers the lamb. Most commonly in my experience, meat (lamb or chicken) can be simply overcooked in the tandoor. My assumption has always been that given the high temperature in the oven, if the meat is left in just moments too long, it gets quickly overcooked, so it needs careful attention by the chef. In this case, in all respects, the lamb chop was perfect. I also loved the apple and cranberry chutney, and the rice.

I didn't try ther crab or shrimp dishes, or the boar chop, altho I have to say they looked superb.

The two dishes that disappointed me were the Spinach and Lentil Cake (great flavor, but too dry for my liking) and the Basil Chicken (again, I loved the taste, but my portion was very dry). The Kulfi was ... well, Kulfi The Indians have a lot to learn from the Italians about making ice cream but the fruit soup it came with was sharp and palate-cleansing, and that was good.

A thought about the menu as a whole is that finishing with three meat chops was a mistake. This really was an enormous meal, and I think most people struggled to finish it. Perhaps serving the lamb/boar chop earlier in the meal, then a couple of small dishes before the venison chop, would have helped people to digest And smaller chops would definitely have helped !!!

In purely food terms, this meal certainly challenged the UK dinner at The New Tayyab, and believe me when I say that this is the highest compliment I could pay to the food. A few of the Diwan dishes were superb. As a total "event" the Diwan dinner was unbdoubtedly the best Indian meal I have had.

Again, my thanks to everyone who made it possible, and to all the eGullet friends I met who helped make the occasion memorable.

[201]

The two dishes that disappointed me were the Spinach and Lentil Cake (great flavor, but too dry for my liking) and the Basil Chicken (again, I loved the taste, but my portion was very dry).

Given the laws of probability, I guess that with 40+ people each eating several courses we were bound to find at least one cooking error. I'm so sorry it was in your basil chicken though! Mine was about the juiciest piece of chicken I've EVER eaten and certainly one of my favorite dishes from the evening. Did you happen to ask the others at your table if their chicken was also dry?

[rstarobi]

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.)

[Suvir Saran]

201 you make a most pertinent point. In fact the Basil chicken is sensational at Diwan. And it is thus no surprise that Eric Asimove highlighted it as such in his review.

We were celebrating a friends birthday at Diwan today and had several courses like the other night. Since we were only 7 people (mostly all super taster and avid foodies), the chef was able to control our meal quite closely. The meal was ethereal as noted by a couple... and sublime by others. The chicken dishes were considered by all to be the best restaurant chicken they have eaten.. and two of those present tonight are people that get paid to write and taste food.

But cooking for 40 people is no easy task. In fact the quality we got was sensational for such a large number. I wanted the menu to be much simpler and smaller and less diverse, but the chef would have it no other way. He was confident and I felt he did deliver better than most could in his place. But mistakes are bound to happen. I feel badly that poor Macrosan (our guest from overseas) got the dry chicken or perhaps cold plate. Sorry!

I asked everyone about their meal, people have written here and PM'd me.. .and the Basil chicken in fact was very well received and mostly for it being so very moist and tender. I wish I had known.. I would have made sure you got a fresh plate.

In the menu as I had designed it, the venison was to come first... But the chef felt he would follow common protocol of ending with heavier cuts of meat. Is that not true? But I agree with so much food... It would have been better... But I wish you all had listened to my pleas at each individual table reminding you that this was a very lavish and generous tasting menu. It was designed to make you see the plates of food as every diner would be served. Sorry I dissapointed you in that sense. Will plan better next time. My sincere apologies.

I am glad that you enjoyed the meal for its entirety Macrosan. I will let the chef know your comments. I am sure he will be honored with the very kind words you have shared here. Certainly they will not be taken lightly. Thanks for posting again. It is so nice reading from someone from the UK about an Indian restaurant in NYC... I was so happy that you took out time to join us. That was very kind of you.

[Stephanie]

Last night I got to have my leftovers (venison chop, potatoes, plus a little daal and some okra), and I very much enjoyed eating that wonderful food again! I shall have to venture to Diwan again on my own. Does anyone know how accomodating they are towards solo female diners?

[Suzanne F]

My guess is that if you call ahead and let them know you were part of the group Wednesday, they'll treat you like a maharanee. But that's just a guess.

[Bux]

And others will be in his book.  Which we will all have to purchase through Amazon.com, right?  

i'm not buying suvir's book because his recipe for curry steak has no, um, steak.

And what might it suggest about my Indian food?

Where's the beef?

[Suvir Saran]

My guess is that if you call ahead and let them know you were part of the group Wednesday, they'll treat you like a maharanee.    But that's just a guess.

Call the restaurant.. ask to speak with Hemant.. or go there.. ask for him.. and tell him you were there for the eGullet dinner..a nd tell him we are fellow eGulleteers... I am sure you indeed will be treated as a Maharaanee.

[tommy]

Call the restaurant.. ask to speak with Hemant.. or go there.. ask for him.. and tell him you were there for the eGullet dinner..a nd tell him we are fellow eGulleteers... I am sure you indeed will be treated as a Maharaanee.

i for one look foward to returning and being teated like a Maharanee.

[Suvir Saran]

Call the restaurant.. ask to speak with Hemant.. or go there.. ask for him.. and tell him you were there for the eGullet dinner..a nd tell him we are fellow eGulleteers... I am sure you indeed will be treated as a Maharaanee.

i for one look foward to returning and being teated like a Maharanee.

And you certainly will be. You have that look.

[macrosan]

The two dishes that disappointed me were the Spinach and Lentil Cake (great flavor, but too dry for my liking) and the Basil Chicken (again, I loved the taste, but my portion was very dry).

Given the laws of probability, I guess that with 40+ people each eating several courses we were bound to find at least one cooking error. I'm so sorry it was in your basil chicken though! Mine was about the juiciest piece of chicken I've EVER eaten and certainly one of my favorite dishes from the evening. Did you happen to ask the others at your table if their chicken was also dry?

Now why don't I think of those things myself ? I have now asked two of my dining companions, and half a dozen others who were there, and I seem to be the only one who had the problem At least now I know what I have to order when I go back there --- chicken !!!!

As you said, producing that quality of food for a party of 40 was indeed a remarkable achievement, and to get one individual plate wrong was inevitable.