Diwan

[La Niña]

We had a grand time. The food was very, very good, the company fun, and the room lovely. Thank you very much, Suvir.

[Rachel Perlow]

I'll add the photos directly into this post when I have more time. For now, the pictures of the food only are in the Diwan Album on Imagestation.com.

Here is the menu which was passed out at the dinner. I missed a couple of the items, those with photos in the album are marked with an asterisk.*

Spinach & Lentil Cake*

Bhel Puri on Tawa

Samasas Chaat on Tawa*

Beggars Purse* (papadum stuffed with lump crabmeat, my favorite)

Shrimp Balchao*

Basil Chicken*

Lahsuni Gobi* (Cauliflower cooked in indo-chinese style, my other favorite)

Lamb and Wild Boar Chops* (with Apple cranberry chutney and mint rice)

Karai Bhinidi* (Crispy Okra)

Venison Chop* (Fenugreek scented venison, cranberry sauce, spiced potatoes)

Raita, Dal, Naan bread

Sheer Khurma* (Vermicelli pudding with pistachios, charoli nuts, almonds and saffron)

Malai Pista Kulfi* (Indian Ice Cream with pistachio and cardmom)

Edit: I am adding the photos here so that they don't get lost in the middle of this already 5 pages long thread, and of course they are all viewable in an album format by clicking the link above. If there is anyone who didn't manage to get out of frame and doesn't want their photo online, please PM me and I'll blur you out.

First the food then the people...

Spinach & Lentil Cake

Samasas Chaat on Tawa

(Potato Samosas with Chickpeas)

Shrimp Balchao (Spicy Goan Sauce)

Beggars Purse of papadum stuffed with crab

Suvir's Tomato Chutney

Lahsuni Gobi

(Cauliflower prepared Indo-Chinese style)

Basil Chicken

(Breasts marinated in basil with grilled Paneer and chutney)

Karari Bhindi

(Crispy Okra)

Lamb Chop and Wild Boar Chop

with Apple-Cranberry Chutney and Mint Rice

Venison Chop with Cranberry Sauce and Spiced Potatoes

(Fenugreek scented venison)

Malai Pista Kulfi with Citrus Soup

(Indian Ice Cream)

Sheer Khurma

(Vermicelli pudding with pistachios, charoli nuts, almonds and saffron)

From Left: Lowell Saferstein, Bara Sapir, AHR, Rosie, Tommy, Macrosan

Double O in the center, flanked by his guest, Howard, and StefanyB

From left: BklynEats, La Niña, CathyL, Nina's beau

From left: MHesse, Alan Levine, rstarobi, StefanyB, Sandra Levine

Yvonne Johnson, Toby and Laura

The Saferstein Family, along with all the wine on our table!

Site Coordinators in the House

Suvir Saran, RPerlow, Rosie, Fat Guy, Ellen Shapiro

A Tour of the Kitchen: Damian, Chef Hemant Mathur

demonstrating his tandoor oven, G Johnson is hidden behind him,

Ann (Mrs. Damian), Alan Levine, Cakewalk, Yvonne Johnson

[Sandra Levine]

Many thanks to Suvir, the staff of the restaurant, Suzanne and Yvonne for arranging this wonderful event. There was a copious amount of extraordinary food, nicely presented. Some of the dishes were Suvir's own creations -- his way with okra is unique, turning a slimy vegetable into crisp, flavorful, shards that even okra-haters devoured. The tandoor meats were perfection -- imagine a rare lamb chop or moist chicken coming out of the tandoor!

[Rosie]

"Everyone brought an overabundance of drinks and shared them generously, including Tommy, regardless of what Rosie says."

Well Tommy didn't offer me any wine and there were too many people at his table to steal it!

Steve P--I kissed you good-by??? That was a kiss from the spider woman.

A BIG THANK YOU to Suvir for the outstanding job he did last night. The love and care that he put into organizing and presenting this dinner is greatly appreciated. The food was so different than the Indian food I have had in the past. I especially liked the chutneys, the spinach & lentil cake, the cauliflower cooked in Indo-Chinese style, the crispy okra and the beggars purse.

What a friendly crowd. It was wonderful meeting everyone. Again--thank you Suvir.

[Stephanie]

Oy I am STILL full. What a wonderful dinner and many thanks to Suvir for the all the hard work he did in planning this event. My only complaint: a bit too much fried food at the beginning and finishing the meal with 3 successive chops led to heavy stomaches all around. (As much as I loved the boar chop, I could not finish it because at that point in the evening it was just too rich.) I took my venison chop, potatoes, and scoop of dal home.

I want that okra to snack on at work--just amazing. Cauliflower was superb--my favorite too. Lamb was sublime. And what a revelation to taste freshly baked naan hot out of the oven!

It was also great to meet so many people for the first time, including Mr. Plotnicki and the Fat Guy himself. Everyone was so nice, especially in sharing their booze (thank you Johnsons for the taste of 12-year old Scotch). I knew this was going to be the social event of the season and I was not disappointed.

[Wilfrid]

Hmm, the Professor must have been hiding that Scotch up his sleeve when I stumbled across him in a louche meat market earlier in the evening.

[Steve Plotnicki]

I should add that it was loads of fun. The food was delicious and they served full sized portions of things when with the number of dishes they served they could have served tasting size portions. I didn't get to eat the cauliflower which the people at my table annointed the best dish, but in my gluiten free world I want to mention the bel puri as being particularly special, and the crab beggar's purse with Suvir's chutney being special (as well as hot) too.

[Suvir Saran]

I am humbled by all the very generous posts. It was much fun arranging things. Hemant Mathur is one of the finest chefs I know... and so very generous. He could have fed you many more courses. I had to keep saying it is enough. The love and passion with which he cooks has no limits... and that comes across brilliantly in the food.

My role was little more than what a Yenta (sp?) would do. I made an introduction.. and left the rest for the chef and you all to share together.

It was great seeing how a large number of us (many complete strangers) could gather in one place and have what seemed like a fun evening. It says a lot for eGullet. Rachel (Jason was missed... sorely by me for he really has a great passion for food.. and knows a lot about Indian food) and Steve Shaw were very kind in making it to the dinner. Thanks Rachel for making the trek into the city minus Jason. And thanks are due to Ellen Shapiro for indulging Steve in his desire to make an appearance after what certainly must have been a full evening before.

And thanks to Yvonne for making this happen. It was she who planted the seed. Thanks to Nina for all her help in making sure there were plenty of spirits worthy of us eGulleteers. And many thanks to Suzanne who robbed herself of quite a lot of schmoozing time by doing the dirty work that I should have done. Thanks!

And thanks to each of those members that found time in their schedules to come join in this dinner. It was really fun meeting everyone in person.

Thanks also to Wilfrid for helping us before the dinner...

Macrosan amazed me by taking time out from his full schedule and making it to Diwan. Thanks! The chef was moved by the generosity of our members.

And I would be a fool not to thank Jason and Steve for providing us with eGullet. For if we did not have this great forum, we certainly would not have enjoyed last night.

[Schielke]

All of that looks so amazing! I wish there was not 3000 miles seperating us last night! It must have been a great time!

Ben

[CathyL]

It's all been said, so I'll just add my thanks to Suvir for orchestrating an extraordinary evening, and for his superb commentary on everything we tasted; to Hemant and staff for their gracious hospitality; to Yvonne, Suzanne and Nina for doing all the hard work; and to everyone who attended, for reminding us why we love eGullet so much!

[MHesse]

Yaay. Umm. Good. <--(sound effects to go with the photos and descriptions)

12 hours later, but still thinking about (and digesting) the meal.

Thanks to Suvir for making this happen and to all the helpers.

Nice to meet you all in person, hope to do it again soon.

Very hard to pick a favorite item...don't think I will. I liked them all.

Will be having difficulty re-adjusting to "normal" diet. Fortunately full enough such that I don't need to worry about that until tomorrow.

--Mark

[Charles Smith]

I'll just add my thanks to those above- simply an astounding meal, both in taste and amounts!

[Monica Bhide]

Wow, sounds so delightful, I wish I had lived closer so I could have attended ... someday!

[cakewalk]

I think there are going to be a lot of echoes in here.

It was a wonderful, even magical, evening, and for me quite a special introduction to Indian food. Suvir, thank you so much for organizing the entire evening, and especially for the attention you gave to my vegetarian dishes. I appreciate it so much, and I am staggered at the amount of work the evening must have demanded from you and your friends at Diwan. Thanks to Nina and Yvonne and Suzanne for their work in making this evening such a success. (And many thanks to Suvir's friend Charlie, who patiently answered all of my "what's this" and "what's that" stuff, of which there was a considerable amount.) It was a pleasure to meet more eGulleteers and put faces to your names and avatars!

More later, I just wanted to add my thanks!

[tommy]

Steve P--I kissed you good-by???  That was a kiss from the spider woman.

steve, just so there's no confusion, rosie's the very tall lady.

great night. great food. what they said. thanks to all for being.

rachel, i'm glad you took photos of the food. as soon as the first course came out i knew we needed photos.

suvir is a most gracious host. as were his guys at diwan. i've never eaten so well for 50 bucks in my life.

so where's dinner tonite?

[Damian]

A great, great evening out. A thousand thanks to everyone who worked to organize this. Thanks, especially the ever-amazing and ever-generous Suvir who never seemed to stop working all night and yet somehow managed always to be nearby with a quip or a piece of info. Ann and I simply had a wonderful time - excellent food and engaging company.

My god, what an enormous feast. A couple of general observations - the fried dishes (okra, cauliflower, lentil cakes, samosa) were extraordinary in that they were crisp but still very light. The meats from the tandoor (chicken, lamb, boar, and venison) were moist and simply delicious. I've never had tandoori meats like that before and what a treat to have the chef show us his tandoors up close. The venison in particular was perfectly cooked - left very rare and flavorful (Ann's leftover chop will make a great dinner for me tonight). The chutneys were outstanding - tomato chutney and the apple chutney (vinegary and sweet) stood out as particular favorites. So full, I could only have a taste of the fiery daal when it came by, but I could have made a meal out of that alone - OK maybe with that tasty minted rice and some okra. Finally, the sweet and tangy "kulfi soup" was a perfectly refreshing finish.

Thanks to all who were so generous in sharing various libations, you know you are. Really, really nice to step out of the anonymity for a night and meet the actual people behind the avatars and screen names - there was a real spirit of generosity and welcoming.

Edited November 21, 2002 by Damian (log)

[g.johnson]

Given the obvious care with which Suvir and Hemant planned and prepared the meal it¡¯s not surprising that it was the best Indian meal I have ever had (and I¡¯ve had a lot of Indian meals).

The crab papadom* thingy was particularly good, the shrimp dish too.

And Suvir's tomato chutney was as good as advertised.

*What is the preferred transliteration? And does Indian script have a name?

[Suvir Saran]

Given the obvious care with which Suvir and Hemant planned and prepared the meal it¡¯s not surprising that it was the best Indian meal I have ever had (and I¡¯ve had a lot of Indian meals).

The crab papadom* thingy was particularly good, the shrimp dish too.

And Suvir's tomato chutney was as good as advertised.

*What is the preferred transliteration? And does Indian script have a name?

Hindi Script - Devanagari

Papadom/Papadam/Papad/Pappadum... whatever you like...

And thanks for your kind words. Hemant will be happy reading this thread... I will see how I can make that happen.

[Haggis]

Everything looks scrumptious and beautifully plated. I am curious about the handful of those who opted for the vegetarian meal. Were they served their own vegetarian entrees, or were they simply given larger amounts of the vegetable dishes already listed?

[Suzanne F]

What a great evening! The food, the company, the drink, the place -- it was well-worth any effort. Of course, it was Suvir who put in the biggest amount of work, which resulted in a phenomenal meal. Thank you, Suvir

The only thing I have to add about the food is to mention the slab of paneer (cheese) that came along with the chicken, but didn't get listed on the menu. While opinions were divided, I found the smoky flavor fascinating, and it made a good foil for the sauces. But then EVERY item had a fascinating, distinct flavor, like nothing I've ever eaten before.

To elaborate on what MHesse said about the sounds: roryrabbitfield's husband Daniel (who, btw, came dressed in a very handsome Indian silk suit!) suggested that in addition to posting pictures of the food, we should try to record and post the SOUNDS of each dish -- the "mmmm" and the slurp and the crunch. Does anyone have the necessary equipment? That way we can have a slightly more complete sensory record of events. Just a thought.

[tommy]

we should try to record and post the SOUNDS of each dish -- the "mmmm" and the slurp and the crunch.  Does anyone have the necessary equipment?  That way we can have a slightly more complete sensory record of events.  Just a thought. 

there were some sounds at my table that were best left unrecorded.

[Suvir Saran]

And I ought to thank and commend those spouses that came... How nice of them. It makes me so happy... (Pollyanna that I am). But really, not many spouses can go through such a food obsessive meal and endear us foodie types... But all present last night (Alan who I met for my 3rd time) were most charming, encouraging and engaging in their own right. What a treat to have made their acquaintance. Thanks for coming... It is my hope that my thanks will be appropriately shared.

[Suzanne F]

we should try to record and post the SOUNDS of each dish -- the "mmmm" and the slurp and the crunch.  Does anyone have the necessary equipment?  That way we can have a slightly more complete sensory record of events.  Just a thought.  

there were some sounds at my table that were best left unrecorded.

I'll bet there were!

[Suvir Saran]

The only thing I have to add about the food is to mention the slab of paneer (cheese) that came along with the chicken, but didn't get listed on the menu.  While opinions were divided, I found the smoky flavor fascinating, and it made a good foil for the sauces.  But then EVERY item had a fascinating, distinct flavor, like nothing I've ever eaten before.

Interesting that you bring this up.. As she was leaving with her most charming Hubby... Yvonne (I think it was her) questioned the pairing of the Chicken and the Paneer. It was fun chatting with the Johnsons and Hemant about that.

I was telling them about a dear friend who is mostly vegetarian but always eats the chicken prepared by Hemant and thinks to herself that she is eating Paneer.

The textures go very well I think and give a great comparitive study between the use of meat and non-meat ingredients to find a similar texture and taste.

Paneer (Indian Cheese) alongside the basil chicken and the tomato chutney forms a pairing similar to the holy Italian trio.

[yvonne johnson]

Thank you Suvir and Hemant for a terrific banquet. For those not there, the photos of the food give a little flavor of the dishes, but if you can imagine the food tasting ten times better then you'll have some idea of how fantastic the courses were. My favorites were 1. wild boar and 2. the shrimp with Suvir's chutney. Good to see Fat Guy and Ellen. At the end of the evening, Hermant gave those who just wouldn't leave a tour of the kitchen and he made us a naan. I had one tiny bit of room for a lovely bite of it straight out of the oven.