North Indian fare in South Goa

Chicken legs stuffed with minced meat

If you are in South Goa and have an appetite for the north indian cuisine, here are a few suggestions. 

Tavir in Margao city is a great option and one of my favorite restaurants in Margao city. While it's menu borrows from the entire subcontinent, their comparative advantage probably lies in their North Indian dishes. I tried their kababs, chicken legs (tangdi chicken) stuffed with minced meat, and butter chicken. All were well above average. 

Many of the three-star and five-star restaurants have a buffet option with a wide variety of vegetarian and non-vegetarian north indian items.

Pao bhaji at Tato's

I tried the buffet at Taj Exotica's Marble Arch. If you are not a big fan of Goan cuisine, this might be your best bet given the sheer variety of dishes on its menu. It is certainly good enough to justify the (not low) price. 

There are few exclusively vegetarian options in Goa. Those with an aversion to meat might consider visiting Cafe Tato (in Margao and Panaji), a fast food chain whose menu is very diverse with respect to casual Indian dishes on offer. These include sukhi bhaji, pao bhaji, chole bhature, vegetable cutlets, as well as a vegetarian thali.

Goa for the seafood lovers

Prawn stuffed papad at Martin's Corner, Betalbatim

My top picks for establishments in South Goa, India which serve Goan cuisine include:

Chef Fernando's Nostalgia is a very popular choice for those looking for authentic Goan. I tried their prawn rissois, prawn stuffed papads and other specialties including ambot tik (fish curry), chicken xacuti, and prawn balchao. This garden restaurant is nested in a forested area which results in a nice ambience. 

However, my favorite Goan full service restaurant was Sharda Classic Bar and Restaurant, located in Margao. It offers a take-out option that is a tad cheaper than the dine-in menu. The fish was fresh and their fried shrimp was mouth-watering. Other dishes including chicken sukha, chicken xacuti, and chilli chicken, all of which I preferred to have with freshly baked Goan bread called pao. Of all the restaurants I visited which served Goan shrimp curry, Sharda's was one of the best, being the most similar to what one would expect if it was prepared at home.

Rawa fried prawn at Sharda Classic

Besides the full service options located in the larger cities, most Goan beach resorts have at least one food shack in close proximity which offer a variety of Goan dishes. I generally prefer the dishes served in these establishments to the Goan dishes on offer at the more polished indoor restaurants. Joe Corns near Taj Exotica in Betalbatim beach offers authentic Goan cuisine at reasonable prices. Joet's on the Bogmolo beach is located a stone’s throw from the Bogmolo beach resort.  

If you are a seafood lover, don’t miss out on their comprehensive seafood platters which feature fried fish, shrimp, mussel, lobster and calamari. The fried seafood in Goa not only sport the spices that define Indian cuisine but, somewhat unique to the subcontinent, the seafood is served fresh - thanks to the proximity of most parts of the state to the coast.  

Ravi Kabab

Ravi Kabab

Kadai chicken

250, North Glebe Road,
Arlington, VA

This family-run establishment in Arlington serves very authentic Pakistani (or, depending on your perspective, Northern Indian) cuisine.

Most dishes feature meats which are marinated in spices, cooked in a tandoor (kababs), and served with a freshly cut salad and rice.

Large groups may prefer the chicken and beef curry dishes which are served in a kadai with a side of vegetables. The portions are such that these items can easily feed a family of two or three. We tried the chicken kadai, which comprised of chicken with bones and cooked in a spicy gravy. The spice levels were not overpowering and would probably be suitable for non-Indian palates.

There is nothing particularly fancy about this place in terms of the ambience, but the dining experience (and very reasonable prices) will likely evoke memories of the sub-continent to a greater degree than many of the more polished Indian restaurants in the region.

Brief reviews of 88 China & Woo Lae Oak

Chilli Fish

88 China,
Chantilly

One of my favorite local Chinese restaurants is China Star, located in Fairfax, Virginia. We recently went to 88 China in Chantilly, whose management used to run China Star. This new establishment serves similar fair for a very decent price. 88 China specializes in a particularly spicy take on Szechwan cuisine. We tried their Chilli fish and crispy duck. The duck was served with a tangy and spicy sauce. They also provide complementary boiled peanuts as an appetizer. Highly recommended if you miss the old China Star.

Chicken and veggies being barbecued

Woo Lae Oak, Korean Barbecue
Leesburg Pike, Vienna, VA

My trip to Woo Lae Oak served as my first experience with Korean barbecue. The meal began with fried calamari and cucumber kimchi. The kimchi was spicy and perhaps an acquired taste. We were not particularly fond of it. The calamari was bland, which was mitigated somewhat by a spicy side sauce.

Korean Kimchi

We opted for the platter of four types of meat : chicken, shrimp, scallop, pork and beef. This item was priced at $56 but was intended to be shared by two. The meats were marinated and barbecued at our table. Several types of vegetables were served on the side along with fresh lettuce, a bean sauce, and sticky rice.

My bottom line is that this was not an experience I would go out of my way to repeat, though I can see how it could appeal to lovers of red meat.

The New Haven experience

Crunchy shrimp

On a recent trip to New Haven, I stopped at Weehawken New Jersey for dinner. There we found Chart House, a seafood restaurant overlooking the Hudson River. The meal began with a crab stuffed mushroom baked in a white sauce. This was a nice appetizer that went well with the warn complementary bread. We also tried their coconut crunchy shrimp that was served with crab fried rice and a chilli sauce served on the side. I did not like the sauce much and  without it  the dish came off dry. The meal was pricey but worth it for the ambience. 

Andhra chilli chicken

While I stayed at Milford, Connecticut I had the opportunity to visit Coromandel, a South Indian sea food restaurant chain in Connecticut. I would without hesitation declare that this place is one of my favorite Indian restaurants in the country. I had the best Andhra chilli chicken that I've for quite some time. This was served with some masala papad for appetizers. Their menu also had other ethnic specialties from the Malabar coast of India, including Goan prawn balchao, Kerala fish moillee, Nilgiri chicken and Mangalorean prawn . I tried their Halibut curry cooked in a Kerala style and loved it. It was spicy and delicious. When I left this place I wish I had gone with a larger group so that I could try more dishes on their menu.

I ended up spending a day in downtown New Haven. Two of the three establishments (Oaxaca kitchen and Roia) in this university town had the most obnoxious service I have ever experienced in the United States. Perhaps due to their student clientele, the servers were blatantly rude and so inconsiderate that I decided to go to another restaurant next door to Pacifico Restaurant, a Latino restaurant for Sunday brunch. For $20, the meal was filling. I tried their sundried tomato chimichurri with bread as an appetizer. I also tried their shrimp and corn chowder, which turned out to be pretty good. For the entree round, I had the plantain crusted tilapia served with a green mole sauce, corn salsita and shrimp enchiladas. The brunch was capped with a sorbet. Although the wait for the food was longer than I would have liked, the meal was worth the wait and the price point was reasonable. The tilapia with mole sauce, which was a complete novelty to me, was especially good. 

A culinary journey to Montreal

Poutine

No trip to a new city is complete without visiting its local restaurants. Here are my notes from the culinary journey to the city of Montreal in Canada. 

Tire sur la neige

Though only open during Spring, Cabane-a-sucre Constantin, located outside the city of Montreal should be on your itinerary if you happen to be in the cit y in search of a cool May. Dishes included cretons (breads) with a pork based marinade, omelettes with fried bacon and ham, pork sausages (Jambon), beans, a pea soup, sweet crepes, pudding (pouding chomeur), sugar pie (tart au sucre), and the meal capped with tire sur la neige (hot maple syrup on a cold snow that had to be rolled on to a stick to be eaten). Every dish was served with maple syrup and a variety of other sauces. It is not someplace I would likely visit again, but I will chalk it up as a cultural experience.

Poutine is another Canadian specialty that comprises of French fries served with cheese. Not something I particularly enjoyed.

Bellagio in downtown Montreal. Italian. I tried their shrimp pasta, and complementary bruchetta. It was very flavorful. A little pricy but completely worth it.

Pork sausages

Gandhi, in Old town, Montreal. Indian. Bland and over-priced. The most lousy Indian food I have ever eaten.

Seafood: Butterfly shrimp and salmon with baked potatoes, and veggies at Holiday Inn's Ace Deli and Bar Grill Restaurant. The seafood was fresh and cooked well with spices. Edible but quite mediocre in taste when compared to the price.

Finally, if you are in Canada and a wine connosieur, don't miss the taste of Peller iced wine. It is a Canadian specialty, made from grapes picked in the winters. I had to bring a bottle back to the States to tide me over until my next trip north.

A Taste of Morocco

A platter of entrees

Marrakesh

2147 P St NW, Washington, DC 20037

Washington D.C offers such a wide variety of ethnic dining options that it is very possible to develop a culinary blind spot. A recent visit to Marrakesh, a Moroccan restaurant in downtown DC., gave me the opportunity to fill one such gap in my dining experience.

Marrakesh has a set menu for $35. We tried this along with several items on the a la carte menu.
Among the cold tapas, we tried their zaalouk (eggplant cooked with mild spices), spinach, and hummus. Among the hot tapas, we tried their shrimp in a tomato sharmola sauce and a hot vegetable soup.  If you have never tried the chicken bastille, it is recommended for those who enjoy the combination of savory and sweet flavors. It is available as both a tapas and an entree. The shrimp was a bit spicy and went well with the complementary bread.

For entrees, several kinds of couscous, (chicken, lamb and fish) and tagines are available. We tried their vegetable couscous,  a fish tagine, a mildly spiced chicken and a lamb dish served with prunes and apricots. We capped our meal with some fresh fruit and moroccan tea.

While the food was reasonably priced compared to the DC standards, it might come off as a bit bland for those with an Indian palate. Having said that, it is worth trying at least once. The establishment had a cozy ambience. If you go an a Saturday, an entertaining belly dancing act starts after 8:30.