Banjara

[Pan]

I went to Banjara tonight, for the first time in several months. It was a date. As far as I'm concerned, the food was the same as ever, i.e. very good, and one helpful thing that was done was to fulfill my date's request to have Chicken Mahkani to be made. The menu offers Dal Makhani but not Chicken Makhani, and the result of the substitution was good.

However, there was an unacceptable lapse in service etiquette tonight. The two of us talked a lot and ate slowly, so three different members of the waitstaff came by in sequence to ask us if they could take our plates away or - in the words of the first two - we were still "working on" the food. I glared wordlessly at the second one. The third one simply placed the dessert menu on our table and asked if she could take our plates. Meanwhile, they still had two-tops available the entire time, in case any other couples had come. When I got the bill, the tax was $2.55 and I was not incredibly punitive but did tip slightly less than double the tax - $5 (my date would have tipped $6 if I had let her put down the tip). But that's the last time I have a date at Banjara and I honestly don't plan on going back at all. That rude treatment is not worth dealing with in what I had previously thought was a classy restaurant.

[yvonne johnson]

When it opened around two years ago Banjara (First Ave/6th St) was very good, I thought. The chef was Tuhin Dutta and he had talent, but within a few months he was gone (and I don't think he returned). The chief problem with the food became the over-use of sugar (in the raita and main courses) and this was discussed on CH. The bread wasn't up to much (sugar in that too?) but they used to do an unsual dish called dumpakht, like a pie but with bread over the top. After around five visits we stopped going.

[Suvir Saran]

When it opened around two years ago Banjara (First Ave/6th St) was very good, I thought.  The chef was Tuhin Dutta and he had talent, but within a few months he was gone (and I don't think he returned).  The chief problem with the food became the over-use of sugar (in the raita and main courses) and this was discussed on CH.  The bread wasn't up to much (sugar in that too?) but they used to do an unsual dish called dumpakht, like a pie but with bread over the top.  After around five visits we stopped going.

Yvonne, Tuhin is a sweet young man. Trained at the Taj group of hotels and in Catering School in India, he is as smart as they get.

When they opened they were great.

Tuhin Dutta is still working there. He is doing too much. Chefs need to be able to do what they do best. But for poor Tuhin, I am not sure if it is his own desire or perhaps budgetary concerns that have spread him thin in the kitchen. The food is inconsistent and poor. He is still working there. I stopped by a couple of months ago to check on that fact. I had three very bad meals there and was shocked and not wanting to believe that Tuhin could have had his name associated with such mediocre fare. Unfortunately he was there... we had coffee together at the restaurant.

If he has left in the last two months, that is new to me. I normally get to hear all the politics of the Indian Subcontinental restaurant scene on a weekly basis.

Their service has always been spotty. But for that matter I am not usually too impressed by service at too many Indian restaurant.

[Pan]

One of my Indian co-workers at Polytechnic U. likes the food at Banjara very much and says that the sweetness is an authentic part of Gujarati style. OK, have at him.

[Suvir Saran]

One of my Indian co-workers at Polytechnic U. likes the food at Banjara very much and says that the sweetness is an authentic part of Gujarati style. OK, have at him. 

Yes some parts of Gujarat (Ahmedabad for the most part) are famous for sweeter savory foods.

But sorry, the menu at Banjara is not Gujarati. Maybe a dish or two could be... but it is as far from Gujarati cuisine as any food can be.

Your co-worker ought to share with you what particular dishes they have eaten at Banjara that are Gujarati. It would be great media opportunity for that restaurant.

We have a few Gujarati restaurants. And certainly Banjara has not placed itself as that. Maybe they ought to, if they want to be taken seriously.

Is this friend an NRI (non resident Indian)? Or an Indian born in India who immigrated here? That could make a difference in their palate.

Sugar in raita is a common thing to do in most of India. More common in Western India and Southern India.

[Suvir Saran]

The Dum Pukht dishes that Yvonne mentions are from UP (Uttar Pradesh) a state in Northern India.

And no the bread covering these dishes should not be sweet at all.

[Suvir Saran]

I went to Banjara tonight, for the first time in several months. It was a date. As far as I'm concerned, the food was the same as ever, i.e. very good, and one helpful thing that was done was to fulfill my date's request to have Chicken Mahkani to be made. The menu offers Dal Makhani but not Chicken Makhani, and the result of the substitution was good.

That is so Tuhin.... he is very charming and accomodating.

What was the chicken makhani like?

What is it about makhani that you like so much Pan?

Butter Chicken is one of the most favorite dishes for most Indians. You have great taste.

[Pan]

Is this friend an NRI (non resident Indian)?  Or an Indian born in India who immigrated here?  That could make a difference in their palate.

Sugar in raita is a common  thing to do in most of India.  More common in Western India and Southern India.

Interesting.

Well, my co-worker is from Delhi, and to my knowledge, is an Indian citizen. He is not only a co-worker but also a student at Polytechnic.

[Pan]

I went to Banjara tonight, for the first time in several months. It was a date. As far as I'm concerned, the food was the same as ever, i.e. very good, and one helpful thing that was done was to fulfill my date's request to have Chicken Mahkani to be made. The menu offers Dal Makhani but not Chicken Makhani, and the result of the substitution was good.

That is so Tuhin.... he is very charming and accomodating.

What was the chicken makhani like?

What is it about makhani that you like so much Pan?

Butter Chicken is one of the most favorite dishes for most Indians. You have great taste.

Thanks, Suvir.

I've had the Dal Makhani at Banjara before and liked it. The Chicken Makhani was similar in terms of sauce, though totally different in texture and starchiness, of course. It was in a red sauce, but I don't really know how to describe the dish well, or why I like it other than that it is tasty. Oh well...

[Suvir Saran]

Is this friend an NRI (non resident Indian)?  Or an Indian born in India who immigrated here?  That could make a difference in their palate.

Sugar in raita is a common  thing to do in most of India.  More common in Western India and Southern India.

Interesting.

Well, my co-worker is from Delhi, and to my knowledge, is an Indian citizen. He is not only a co-worker but also a student at Polytechnic.

Maybe he is attributing the sweetness to Gujarat without even considering what dishes they serve.

That could make sense. Gujarati food is VERY different from the food served at Banjara.

[Suvir Saran]

I've had the Dal Makhani at Banjara before and liked it. The Chicken Makhani was similar in terms of sauce, though totally different in texture and starchiness, of course. It was in a red sauce, but I don't really know how to describe the dish well, or why I like it other than that it is tasty. Oh well...

Dal Makhani is a dish made with black beans. They are made with lots of butter and in some places also some cream.

Butter chicken is a dish made with great amounts of butter, tomatoes and again some cream.

They are both delicious. And they are both from Northern India.

The only sweetness either of these dishes should have should come from the dairy in them. No sugar should be added in the recipe.

Like you, I love it. I am not sure I could have said much more myself.

What are some of your other favorite dishes at Banjara?

[Pan]

I've actually liked every dish I've had at Banjara over probably about 10 visits, at least 8. Among my favorites are the Goan shrimp dish with shredded coconut and the Banjara Baingun (sp.?).

The first time I went to Banjara, I ordered that Goan shrimp dish and started asking the waiter "Could they make it..." and he said "Mild?" My response: "No. VERY spicy!" His eyes immediately brightened, and they made it very spicy to order. I was very happy. But from now on, I think Madras Cafe may be the only Indian restaurant in this neighborhood that's suitable for a date, unless I feel like going to Haveli again, and the last time I went there (which must be at least 3 years ago), the service was totally clueless with no-one knowing who should get which dish. Lovely decor, though. If I do take a date to Banjara again, I'll give her a fair warning about the service and let her take that into account in making a choice of where to eat.

Which are your favorite Little India places? And please pardon me if you've already answered this question some time ago.

[Suvir Saran]

Do you want to start a thread on where to eat in Little India?

I am sure we have many members that will have a lot to share ....

[Pan]

OK, I'll do it.

[gaf]

Lost on Curry Row - New York City Entry #6

Looking for mid-range Indian cuisine, six of us journeyed to Curry Row in the East Village. Diners who seek the diversity of South Asian cuisine of Chicago's Devon Avenue must travel further afield to Jackson Heights, but 6th Street, a short walk from NYU, serves in a pinch.

Haute Indian cuisine has now made its mark at such Western restaurants as New York's earnest Tabla and London's astonishing Chutney Mary. But 6th Street tames Indian food for a broader New York dining public.

We selected Banjara, a restaurant with good reports in Zagat's, named after the people from the Rajasthan region of Northwestern India (capital city Jaipur), which, the menu announces is known for colorful clothes and fine jewelry. Unlike other restaurants in "Little India" Banjara eschew the tiresome red Christmas lights that twinkle at passers-by along the block. In contrast, Banjara is festooned with colorful wallcloths, and mirror fragments embedded in the ceiling and walls. For a modest decorating budget, Banjara is a pleasant space.

Each restaurant along 6th Street has its own style and its own chef (Abu Ahmed at Banjara, no longer the highly regarded Tuhin Dutta), even if one might fantasize that somewhere in the bowels of Curry Row a bustling central commissary produce recognizable dishes. Banjara, to be fair, goes beyond the usual suspects of Indian cuisine, with mixed results. The appetizers, particularly the somosas and the murgi shaslik kebab (marinated chicken) seemed most ordinary and rather dry, although the onion bhaji (onions deep-fried in a chick pea batter) was more creative, tasting like potato pancakes as translated in Delhi.

Our six entrees included two that I judged excellent: the creamy and tropical Shrimp Pappas (shrimp in spicy coconut sauce with curry leaves and smoked tamarind; one of the specials of the evening) and the hearty vegetarian Bay Goon Ka Koon (pureed whole eggplant, pureed with fresh onions and tomatoes). In contrast the Chicken Biriyani was uninteresting, dry, and less complexly spiced than often found. Similarly dry was the Banjara Karahi, a local dish that consisted of overcooked pieces of lamb (cooked in "very high heat") with tomatoes, onion, green pepper and assorted herbs and spices.

The Chicken Balti, another local dish from the Northwestern frontier was much better with a definitive taste of coriander and a complexity of other Indian spices. The Pasanda Lamb was a suitable, if not striking, dish of marinated lamb in a yogurt-curry sauce.

The evening's surprise was the red plastic ring (harvested from a milk container) that my son discovered in his lamb. No persuasion could convince him that Indians serve a curried stew borrowed from La Galette des Rois, Mardi Gras' King Cake. Banjara, I suggested, was touchingly honoring the battered residents on the Gulf. Another remarkable idea that required the proper audience.

With several regional dishes and a decor that surpasses their neighbors, Banjara deserves some applause. Yet, Banjara can not be classed as a destination spot for either haute and authentic Indian cuisine. And, as my son would stress, sometimes the best surprise is no surprise.

Banjara

97 First Avenue

New York, NY 10003

212-477-5956

My Webpage: Vealcheeks