Dragonel in Hackensack (CLOSED!)

[Jason Perlow]

Some new photos from the weekend Lunch Buffet at Dragonel:

Indian Chinese Style Vegetable Fried Rice

Tausi Chicken Wings

Szechuan Chicken

Tandoori Chicken

Chicken Korma

Vegetable "Manchurians"

Wall artwork

[jwjojo]

Had dinner at Dhaba the other night. We had Bhangan Burtha (Eggplant) and a Shriimp dish. We also ordered the yogurt app. The yogurt was just okay...The entrees were very fresh and very good. Service was okay, if not a bit pushy to order things we did not want, or his insistence on how we wanted things to arrive. I like the bread first (stupid American), and he just would not do it! The tables are a bit too close, and the music a bit too loud...but the food was enough to go back again. Some of the better Indian in NJ.

[Jason Perlow]

Some new photos from Dragonel:

[Ryderpond]

Enticed by Jason's latest photo shot from Dragonel, we headed off Thursday night, 2/10, to sample the cuisine. The food (Corn Pepper Salt, Dragon's Fire, Chicken Manchurian and Drunken Pig) was spicy and an interesting blend of flavors but not a cuisine I would want to eat on a regular basis. Maybe that is one reason why the restaurant was empty when we arrived at 7 and had only one other couple come in while we were there though they seemed to either know or be guests of the person in charge who sat at the table with them.

Street parking was difficult to find as it always is in the library area. I managed to snag a spot in the library lot and thought myself lucky because I could see the signs for both Dragonel and Dhaaba on the rear of their building. However, the rear entrance was for employees only. A curious thing is that the building backs up onto a large gated parking lot which was virtually empty. I wonder if negotiating evening parking privileges and providing restaurant access from it would increase business. Dhaaba, by the way, was empty when we arrived and when we left.

Would I go back? That depends on how the restaurants fare over the next few months. Without seeing tables filled and turning over, I begin to question the freshness of the ingredients.

Sue

[Jason Perlow]

That sounds like a rather unusual night, I've seen Dhaaba and Dragonel fairly busy most of the time, especially on weekends.

As to the spicing, its different and is not meant for an American clientele. If you like Indian food and very spicy stuff, you'll enjoy it immensely, but if you are not used to it, the spicing can be overwhelming.

[jhlurie]

was spicy and an interesting blend of flavors but not a cuisine I would want to eat on a regular basis. Maybe that is one reason why the restaurant was empty when we arrived at 7 and had only one other couple come in while we were there though they seemed to either know or be guests of the person in charge who sat at the table with them.

I suppose this is an example of a statement than can be both true and wrong at the same time. True, that Indian food of any real spicyness might keep American palates away, but wrong in the sense that it's a crying shame if it's actually true.

[tommy]

i didn't read anything into ryderpond's comment on the level of spiciness as far as how it relates to the restaurant being filled or not. i'm in the same camp as ryderpond and find this type of food isn't something i'd return for very often. it has nothing to do with levels of spice. personally, i find the food too sweet. regardless of if it's supposed to be that way. no, not something i would fit into my monthly schedule as i might meals at vietnamese restaurants or C46, for example.

edit: i'm referring to dragonel, not dhaaba. having 2 resturants in one thread might be a tad confusing.

Edited February 13, 2005 by tommy (log)

[Jason Perlow]

There are some Indian Chinese dishes which definitely are cloying and repulsively sweet to the American palate. One such dish that we tried, the "American Chop Suey" , which is the second to last picture above, was absolutely disgustingly sweet and gloppy -- but apparently, Indians LOVE it. Andy Kapoor, owner of Dragonel, hates it and finds it disgusting, but its a big seller so he won't take it off the menu. However the Chili Chicken, which is also a riff on sweet and sour, is actually a huge improvement over the American version and I could eat that dish on every visit -- I wish every Chinese restaurant could do its Sweet and Sour chicken that way. The crispy chilli baby corn is also a winner of a dish.

[Jason Perlow]

Here's a few more photos:

Dragonel front entrance

Szechuan Fried Rice -- the primary flavor element of this is Sichuan Peppercorn (a good amount of it) plus ketchup and a few other spices. I liked it, but you really need to like Sichuan Peppercorn to appreciate it. This is the favorite dish of Sunil, Andy's business partner in Dhaaba and Dragonel.

Chicken Malai Kabab from the Dhaaba menu. We ate the whole plate of these, they were so tender and good.

[jwjojo]

Went to Dhaaba for the second time last night, Friday night. Both restaurants were relatively empty, one or two tables. We were seated, but prior to my sitting down, or even taking off my coat, the waiter, whom neither I nor my friend could understand, told of us some specials, without prices. We never figured out what they were. I finally sat down, opened a couple of beers, and we didn't see the waiter for awhile. I had to call him over to get a couple of glasses, because we had already starting drinking out of the bottles :) We sat at a four-top, and he never cleared the extra silverware, etc.

We ordered, which was very daunting because he was just not understandable. However, everything came as ordered. Whew. We had a roti, eggplant dish, and shrimp curry dish. The ingredients were fresh, the taste was wonderful, but they were soooo spicy hot that we did not finish them. Usually, waiters in Indian rest. ask if you want the dish spicy or not. Not here, and even if he did, you would not have understood him. I enjoy spicy food, even spicy hot food. However, I like to know it will be spicy prior to ordering, and I like the choice of how hot I like it.

Our food sat for some time after we finished before the table was cleared in an abrupt manner. And the kicker, they add 15% gratuity to every bill. No incentive for the waiters to provide decent service. In most Indian restaurants service is great. Not so here. I tip well for good service, over 15%, but not for bad service.

[jhlurie]

My recollection of the service in Dragonel (I've yet to go to Dhaaba) was that if the owner got interested in you--came over to talk to you or just happened to be walking by and you caught him--the service was good, because he not only answered questions, but he ASKED them as well.

But I also recall that before he did so, we just kind of sat there like lumps. It's a small space, but nevertheless that happened. It was even more peculiar, because I was meeting Jason Perlow there for lunch, and Jason is a very imposing and distinctive figure. At the time we justified it as a lunch-time thing and didn't worry too much about it.

So yeah... the service could be better. Luckily the food made up for it, and as I said, once you've engaged the owner, assuming he's around, things did indeed get much livelier. Then again, on my visit, Jason had already been to the restaurant and the guy already knew him.

On a second visit to Dragonel (a nighttime visit), I was with a group and our service seemed more responsive. Then again, we pretty much knew the menu and ordered straight off.

These visits were all last year, as well as technically not being in the adjoining Dhaaba space, so your milage may indeed have varied.

[jwjojo]

After seeing pics of the owner here on egullet, the first time I went I told him "egullet sent me", and he did take an interest, and service was better...but not good. He didn't recognize me this time, and I didn't feel the need to go through intro's again. He sat with a couple behind us during most of our meal. He was oblivious to the horrible service.

[Jason Perlow]

Andy Kapoor, the owner of Dragonel and Dhaaba, has decided to re-structure the restaurants a bit. Most of Dhaaba's original menu will be incorporated into Dragonel's -- so that Dragonel will become a full service Indian and Indo-Chinese restaurant, and the less popular dishes at Dragonel will be dropped, with more interesting nightly specials to be offered. The Dhaaba dining room will be closed for renovations, and will be re-opened in one month as "Blu", a modern Mediterranean-style casual upscale restaurant, with pasta dishes, salads and light fare.

It was determined that people wanted to order from both sides of the menu and both Dragonel and Dhaaba were not operating at capacity, so combining the two restaurants made the most sense. The kitchen at "Blu" will be headed up by a veteran sous-chef from Le Bernardin in NYC.

[Rosie]

Jason--Do you know the name of the new chef?

[Jason Perlow]

Jason--Do you know the name of the new chef?

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I heard it mentioned last night when Andy spoke to me, but I'll ask him again this weekend. You might want to call Dragonel though and ask Andy directly, though.

[pbrodsky]

Andy Kapoor, the owner of Dragonel and Dhaaba, has decided to re-structure the restaurants a bit. Most of Dhaaba's original menu will be incorporated into Dragonel's -- so that Dragonel will become a full service Indian and Indo-Chinese restaurant, and the less popular dishes at Dragonel will be dropped, with more interesting nightly specials to be offered. The Dhaaba dining room will be closed for renovations, and will be re-opened in one month as "Blu", a modern Mediterranean-style casual upscale restaurant, with pasta dishes, salads and light fare.

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I drove past Dhaaba yesterday, and the sign in the window says it will reopen as a new Indian restaurant.

Also, has anyone seen what Dragonel's updated menu is like?

[Jason Perlow]

Both Dragonel and Dhaaba have closed. It has been reported to me that Andy Kapoor is out, and Deepak Singh his original partner in Dragonel, who had since parted ways , is going to be opening a new place in the same location, in partnership with Vishu Sethi, the owner of "Indian Chef" in the International Food Warehouse in Lodi on RT 17.

I have somewhat confirmed this by driving by Dragonel tonight, it was completely dark on a Wednesday night and the phone lines were disconnected.

The new restaurant is to be tentatively called "Tandoori Chef".

[pbrodsky]

Both Dragonel and Dhaaba have closed. ...

The new restaurant is to be tentatively called "Tandoori Chef".

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Thanks for the info. It's too bad - their food was really good.

[Curlz]

Interesting...and based on the reports about the place in the International Food Warehouse, this isn't a bad thing!!

[NJ2FLA]

Eviction notice was on the door at Dragonel tonight. This place caught my attention after having supper at Bangkok Garden. I thought I remembered seeing it on here.

[Jason Perlow]

The space has now re-opened as another Indian restaurant, Tandoori Chef