Amma

[prasad2]

I am amazed, thrilled and what a surprise to find the duo team of chef's, Suvir and Hemant at Amma. No wonder Hemant is been missing in action at Diwan Grill.

Click here to see the opening of Amma in Manhattan an article in New York Magazine by Gael Green.

Suvir:

Is the restarant's menu, a glimpse in to your book "Indian Home Cooking" by Suvir Saran and Stephanie Lyness?

How would you descibe your menu at amma? Regional? Modern? Fusion? Authentic?

I saw some amazing accompaniments like eggplant pickle? and Pear chtney with Lamb chops? Hmmnnn....

How does, Amma's menu differ from the rapidly growing Indian Restaurant scene?

As a passionated chef (good or bad or average) myself, my inspiration and obsession comes from my mom, how does it feel to be obsessed from generations such as your obsession from your grand mother?

How does one find a menu of Amma? May be you can give as a link to Amma's website?

[tommy]

that's so cool! i can't believe he kept it under his hat all of this time. unless he didn't and i just missed it.

[rozrapp]

that's so cool!  i can't believe he kept it under his hat all of this time.  unless he didn't and i just missed it. 

Tommy, Looks as though you have not been paying strict attention to the NYC board. First there was the information that Hemant was "missing" from Diwan. There followed postings that when the restaurant staff was asked about his absence, the answer was that he was "on vacation." Then the truth came out that he was gone for good. Someone then posted that Suvir had hinted about a new venture. And, finally, there was a post that Hemant could be found at Amma.

[Richard Kilgore]

Congratulations, Suvir! You certainly can keep a secret. The brief description in the review sounds wonderful.

"The fabulous slivers of eggplant pickle that spike savory stuffed chicken legs, peppery fried spinach with mung beans, and the sweet-and-sour pear chutney with lamb chops are his (Suvir's) memories of home, " Green writes.

Do tell us more about the menu.

Richard

Edited September 29, 2003 by Richard Kilgore (log)

[maggiethecat]

Suvir and Hemant: What a great start to your new enterprise. Congratulations.

[Richard Kilgore]

Just in --- Gael Green has a preview review in New York magazine of Amma, now chefed and owned by Suvir Saran and Hemant Mathur.

"The fabulous slivers of eggplant pickle that spike savory stuffed chicken legs, peppery fried spinach with mung beans, and the sweet-and-sour pear chutney with lamb chops are his (Suvir's) memories of home, " Green writes.

Congratulations, Suvir! You certainly can keep a secret.

Edited September 29, 2003 by Richard Kilgore (log)

[guajolote]

more here

Maybe some one can merge these?

Congrat's to Suvir and Hemant

[hitchmeer]

Congratulations Suvir:

I just read Gael Green's article in New York magazine. I can't wait to hear how the first evening went. Even more, I can't wait until I'm next in New York so I can visit Amma!

Matthew in Minnesota

[BBhasin]

Suvir,

Congratulations & Good Luck

I was wondering why you were so quiet recently now we know of your distraction or attraction.

Best

Balraj Bhasin

[Suvir Saran]

First Courses and Sides

Appetizers

Bombay Bhel Puri - 6

Spinach Chaat (sprouted mung bean salad) - 6

Goan Shrimp (hot tangy tomato sauce) - 10

Stuffed Chicken Breasts (spicy chicken filling) - 10

Achaari Chicken (tandoor-grilled, pickling spices) - 8

Idly Upma (rice and bean cakes, curry leaves and mustard seeds) - 7

Trio of Samosas (peas, chicken and potatoes) - 9

Trio of Stuffed Vegetables (mushrooms, potatoes, sweet peppers) - 9

Rice

Trio of Southern rices (mint, lemon and tomato) - 8

Jackfruit (kathal) Biryaani (cauliflower, potatoes, whole spices) - 16

Chicken Biryaani (pickling spices) / Lamb Biryaani (oranges and garam masala) - 17

Bread

Naan (plain or garlic) / Roti - 4

Crab Kulcha - 10

Onion Kulcha / Spinach, Peas and Fenugreek Paratha / Potato Paratha - 6

Sides

Daal Makhani (creamy black beans) - 9

Bhindi Ka Raita (crispy okra and yogurt salad) - 5

Basmati Rice (spiced with whole garam masala) - 4

Cumin Scented Potatoes - 6

Amma’s Mixed Green Salad (toasted cumin and balsamic vinaigrette, naan croutons) - 7

Main Courses

Vegetarian

Paneer Kundan Kaaliya (Indian cheese patties, aromatic tomato sauce) - 14

Saag (spinach with paneer or chickpeas) - 12

Bagharey Baingan (stuffed baby eggplant, spicy peanut-curry leaf sauce) - 12

Kararee Bhindi (crispy tangy okra, tomatoes and red onions) - 12

Laukee Ke Kofte (zucchini dumplings, aromatic tomato gravy) - 14

Manchurian Cauliflower (garlic marinated cauliflower, Indo-Chinese style) - 14

Dum Aloo (braised baby potatoes, onion-tomato sauce) - 14

Seafood

Parsi Halibut “Paatra Ni Machi” (mint coconut chutney, lemon rice)- 23

Malabar Salmon (spicy tomato chutney, Southern Indian potatoes) - 25

Whole Tandoor Grilled Pomfret (pompano, eggplant pickle) - 26

Tandoori Prawns (jumbo Sri Lankan shrimp, mint rice) - 26

Chicken

Farm Raised Madras Chicken (Malabar pepper sauce)- 20

Butter Chicken (chicken tikka masala) - 18

Tandoor Grilled, Farm Raised Basil Chicken (tomato chutney, lemon rice) - 22

Tandoor Stuffed Chicken Legs (zarda pilaf, eggplant pickle) - 21

Lamb

Tandoor Grilled Lamb Chops (sweet & sour pear chutney, curry leaf potatoes) - 28

Apricot Stuffed Lamb Fillets (fennel- apricot stuffing, aromatic sauce, lemon rice) - 24

Paalak Kaa Keema (minced lamb, spinach and mint)- 19

Gilafi Seekh Kabab (tandoor grilled lamb sausages, cased in sweet peppers)- 20

Chefs Hemant Mathur and Suvir Saran

[Suvir Saran]

7 Course Tasting Menu

Bombay Bhel Puri

rice puffs, cilantro, red onions, mint and tamarind chutneys, potatoes

____________

Crispy Fried Spinach

mung beans, potatoes, onions, tamarind and mint chutneys

____________

Pea Stuffed Samosa & Stuffed Mushroom

Ginger-cilantro peas in pastry, cheese-chile stuffed mushrooms

____________

Tandoori Shrimp

Sri Lankan jumbo shrimp, hung yogurt marinade, crispy okra

Tandoori Stuffed Chicken

chicken breasts, spicy chicken stuffing

____________

Manchurian Cauliflower

garlic marinated cauliflower, Indo-Chinese style

Malabar Salmon

spicy tomato chutney, Southern Indian potatoes

or

Parsi Halibut “Paatra Ni Machi”

mint coconut chutney, lemon rice

____________

Tandoor Grilled Lamb Chops

sweet & sour pear chutney, curry leaf potatoes, jackfruit biryaani

____________

Mango Cheesecake

or

Kulfi (Indian ice cream) with Citrus Soup

____________

Fifty Dollars

Eighty-Five Dollars with Wine Pairing

Chefs Hemant Mathur and Suvir Saran

[Suvir Saran]

7 Course Vegetarian Tasting Menu

Bombay Bhel Puri

rice puffs, cilantro, red onions, mint and tamarind chutneys, potatoes

____________

Crispy Fried Spinach

mung beans, potatoes, onions, tamarind and mint chutneys

____________

Pea Stuffed Samosa & Stuffed Mushroom

ginger-cilantro peas in pastry, cheese-chile stuffed mushrooms

____________

Idly Upma

rice and bean dumplings, curry leaves and mustard seeds

____________

Manchurian Cauliflower

garlic marinated cauliflower, Indo-Chinese style

Crispy Okra

red onions, tomatoes, chaat masala

Laukee Ke Kofte

zucchini dumplings, aromatic tomato gravy

____________

Jackfruit (kathal) Biryaani

cauliflower,potatoes, whole spices

Bhindi Ka Raita

crispy okra and yogurt salad

____________

Mango Cheesecake

or

Kulfi (Indian ice cream) with Citrus Soup

____________

Fifty Dollars

Eighty-Five Dollars with Wine Pairing

Chefs Hemant Mathur and Suvir Saran

[Suvir Saran]

A friend called and asked if I could post a menu.

Shall add more later. Thanks all for your encouraging words.

[tryska]

hee hee good to see butter chicken/CTM on the menu.

Congratulations and good luck with your new venture!

the goan shrimp and the idli upama sound fabulous....

[tommy]

suvir, could you provide some info on the wine list? specifically, what might be paired with the tasting menus?

congrats. this is good news. bad news for diwan, though.

[bloviatrix]

Congratulations on the restaurant. I look forward to sampling your vegetarian offerings.

[Jinmyo]

Best of luck to you Suvir on this new departure for you. Sounds wonderful. And with your book coming out soon as well!

[BBhasin]

Congratulations Suvir, and Good Luck with the enterprise. Now we know why you were kind of laid back on the forums of late. I know its a busy time for you but we look forward to your posting some pictures menu highlights etc.

[foodie52]

Mango cheesecake? Like at the Clay Pit in Austin?

I think I want the Idly Upma just because of the name....

[Episure]

Congratulations Suvir,

This puts a lot of our posts in perspective now. I would never have been able to keep it a secret.

I bet the food uses less oil

This is what impresses me the most:-

Crispy Fried Spinach

mung beans, potatoes, onions, tamarind and mint chutneys How do you keep it crisp?

Trio of Southern rices (mint, lemon and tomato): A superb idea

Crab Kulcha

Apricot Stuffed Lamb Fillets (fennel- apricot stuffing, aromatic sauce, lemon rice)

Amma’s Mixed Green Salad (toasted cumin and balsamic vinaigrette, naan croutons) Getting adventurous arent we?

Kulfi (Indian ice cream) with Citrus Soup Please explain

Amma dekh tera munda bigda jaye!

[Suvir Saran]

I am amazed, thrilled and what a surprise to find the duo team of chef's, Suvir and Hemant at Amma. No wonder Hemant is been missing in action at Diwan Grill.

Click here to see the opening of Amma in Manhattan an article in New York Magazine by Gael Green.

Suvir:

Is the restarant's menu, a glimpse in to your book "Indian Home Cooking" by Suvir Saran and Stephanie Lyness?

How would you descibe your menu at amma? Regional? Modern? Fusion? Authentic?

I saw some amazing accompaniments like eggplant pickle? and Pear chtney with Lamb chops? Hmmnnn....

How does, Amma's menu differ from the rapidly growing Indian Restaurant scene?

As a passionated chef (good or bad or average) myself, my inspiration and obsession comes from my mom, how does it feel to be obsessed from generations such as your obsession from your grand mother?

How does one find a menu of Amma? May be you can give as a link to Amma's website?

Thanks Prasad for your quick posting of this announcement by Gael Greene. Hemant and I as well as our restaurant Amma, are so very fortunate to have been able to share our food with Gael and her friends. Ms. Greene unlike many outside of India, is no foreigner to the many intricacies that form Indian cuisine. She knows more about Indian culture and food than many who have lived in India for a lifetime.

As a curious and fortunate traveler, she has had exposure to India unlike what many Indians could ever imagine. She has done what tourists can enjoy, she has seen what only tourists with an endless budget can enjoy and her acquaintances have given her the added advantage of discovering an India that is home to its very foremost tastemakers and cultural elite. All of this and her own curiosity to always discover what the villagers are enjoying and celebrating, has given her a study of India not easily possible for the most of us even after a lifetime of living and being Indian.

It is this no easy task to cook for such a person, and more importantly, to share something that would be both near close to perfect and also somewhat novel. Hence the menu you see, it was planned to be authentic, fresh, seasonal, regional, of the times and with traces of fusion. My own travels across India and those across other nations and cultures, has always left me searching my own heritage for stuff that can be easily translated for my times and yet evoke the aura and meaning these dishes had in times past. Hemant and I are able to share a partnership that has been tested by time. I met him soon after he first came to the US. We became friends and what many would call "mutual admiration society" types very quickly. It took only a few meals, prepared by both of us in our own kitchens and then together, for us to realize we had a shared vision and similar thirst for an India both old and modern, living and breathing and pulsing in harmony. We have spent the better part of the last half a dozen years exploring our own ideas and those we each picked up in our travels, from tastings with other chefs, at their restaurants, and in their homes. Our food today, is a culmination of a yearning to share something we each have created in equal measure and with respect for each other and for our own heritages and our shared vision.

Does the menu have glimpses from my upcoming book? Certainly, many actually and will keep coming out. The menu shall change four times a year and each menu will have recipes from the book.

The menu is regional, modern, authentic and has elements of fusion, even if only of authentic but surprising partnerships of tastes and textures.

Eggplant pickle, pear chutney, laukee ke kofte (zucchini dumplings in a runny tomato sauce), kararee bhindi (Crispy okra salad) and crispy okra raita are just some of the many dishes borrowed from home recipes.

Ammas menu may not differ much from the rapidly changing and growing Indian restaurants across the US. It does change in that it is our own version of both new and old dishes. And with some we have had to translate them for a restaurant kitchen, and some restaurant classics have been changed to become what a loving mother would prepare when emulating a restaurant dish. We really did not spend much time trying to make our menu different, we only tried to make a menu of dishes we really each love to eat.

My obsession for food comes from the obsessions of many generations in my family. Early in the morning, they begin speaking of lunch, before lunch about dinner, and around dinner time about breakfast. Weekend foods are planned days in advance... Grandmas (both of them), their siblings (all of them and their spouses), their kids and my own parents have each left a lasting culinary impression. My parents traveled a lot both within and outside India, and we kids were always a part of the travel. Food was one if not the most important part of any holiday. And yes it is a great gift to have been born into a family that enjoyed food, and was fortunate to have it in ample supply.. and I wish each day, that someday, I can make enough money to share a lot of it with every child that is starving... Food is essential. And I was lucky to have it both for nourishment and as a thought provoking feast. I know I was in a much better place than millions far less fortunate. I never forget that, and this knowledge, always leaves me thanking life and all that it brought into mine.

There will be a website, and I shall give you all a link. Sorry that I cannot give you that tonight. I have posted above menus for you.

I am no Steven Shaw, SuzanneF, Jaymes, Aurora, Maggiethecat or Steve Klc, words are not what make me able, my apologies if I have represented myself and more importantly Hemant in verbal inadequacy. If you give us a chance at Amma, I shall ensure you enjoy food as we do. And perhaps, you will enjoy what we enjoy. And that will make us really happy.

[Suvir Saran]

Congratulations, Suvir! You certainly can keep a secret. The brief description in the review sounds wonderful.

"The fabulous slivers of eggplant pickle that spike savory stuffed chicken legs, peppery fried spinach with mung beans, and the sweet-and-sour pear chutney with lamb chops are his (Suvir's) memories of home, " Green writes.

Do tell us more about the menu.

Richard

Thanks Richard! The menus are posted above.

[Suvir Saran]

Suvir and Hemant:  What a great start to your new enterprise.  Congratulations.

Thanks Maggie!

[Suvir Saran]

Suvir,

                    Congratulations & Good Luck I was wondering why you were so quiet recently now we know of your distraction or attraction.

Best

Balraj Bhasin

Balraj,

My silence may not have been entirely because of the restaurant. In fact, the restaurant has kept me going.

Thanks for your good wishes. If you visit NYC, do come share a meal with us.

[Suvir Saran]

hee hee good to see butter chicken/CTM on the menu.

Congratulations and good luck with your new venture!

the goan shrimp and the idli upama sound fabulous....

Thanks!

The Idli Upama became a hit even as we were doing random sales of the tasting menu. People that ate it as an amuse, ordered it as an appetiser... some ordered another portion. It is something so easy and yet tasty and addictive.