Tabata Noodle in Hell's Kitchen, NYC, New York

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With the weather we had these days, ramen was definitely the perfect dish to warm us up. This time, we decided to try Tabata Noodle, located few steps from Port Authority. 

It is not a big place and we did not mind being seated at the counter, allowing us to watch what was happening in the kitchen.

Looking at their ramen menu, they offer the usual: shio, miso or shoyu ramen. But they also propose the Tabata ramen with coconut milk that sounds more Thai than Japanese. I admit that I hesitated between this one and the shio ramen. I went for the later one.

I ordered it with an egg that they forgot. No problem: they brought me one couple of minutes later, apologizing for having forgotten.

The soup looked good and appetizing, with its bean sprouts, bamboo shouts, scallions and noodles. Unfortunately, the pork was bland and with lots of cartilage in it. The egg was perfectly cooked, the white being soft and the gold a bit runny and I liked the noodles. However, the broth had nothing fantastic and I did not even finish it.

Jodi ordered the vegetable ramen:

It was composed of napa (cabbage), carrots, onions, bean sprouts, shiitake and shimeji mushrooms, scallions, snow peas and broccoli.

We did not like it, the entire dish being overpowered by a very strong taste of celery. This was so disappointing, the presentation being so promising.

So, definitely, Tabata noodle is a miss for me. I prefer Ivan ramen located few blocks away, even if a bit pricier.

Enjoy (I did)!

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Restaurant Information

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	* Restaurant Name
	Tabata Ramen
	* Overall
	★★☆☆☆
	* Neighborhood / Cuisine
	Hell's Kitchen / Japanese / Asian Fusion / Ramen
	* Street Address
	540 9th Ave , New York, NY 10018
	* Phone
	(212) 290-7691

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Bibimbap at Korea Spoon in KTown NYC, New York

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If you follow this blog, you know that I love bibimbap, this Korean rice bowl that comes pipping hot! As we were out on a very cold day, we decided to look for a place in Korea Town. We noticed Korea Spoon.

It is a huge place with very high ceilings and another dining room on the second floor.

When you are inside, you immediately get a modern feeling.

So we got seated at one of the tables on the first floor and handed a menu that was full of appetizing photos of the dishes.

After we ordered, they brought us some barley tea:

And the banchan, these little side dishes:

There, we had:

Some greens:

Some pumpkin salad:

Some radish:

And again radish (different way, spicier):

Some anchovies:

Some soy:

Some kimchi:

My favorites were the radishes and kimchi. I truly appreciated the pumpkin salad as it counterbalanced the heat of some of the dishes.

For bibimbap, Jodi ordered the mushroom one:

On my side, I ordered the bulgogi one (with marinated slices of beef).

When the dishes arrived, we were a bit disappointed because there was no egg and, looking at the photo on the menu, we were expecting one. Otherwise, my bibimbap was pretty good, tasty and I definitely finished it. The one from Jodi was good too, but missing flavor, despite the abundance of mushrooms.

I liked Korea Spoon: they have a decent bibimbap, but I still prefer the one at Bann, Don Bogam or Korea Palace.

Enjoy (I did)!

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Restaurant Information

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	* Restaurant Name
	Korea Spoon
	* Overall
	★★☆☆☆
	* Neighborhood / Cuisine
	Flatiron / Korean
	* Street Address
	39 West 32nd St. (Between Broadway & 5th Ave.), New York, NY 10016
	* Phone
	(212) 560-9696

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Brick Lane Curry House in the East Village, NYC, New York

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It has been a while since I wanted to try Brick Lane Curry House, the restaurant being on my list after I saw an episode of Man vs Food where the challenge was to eat the Phaal, a very hot curry, so hot that you need to wear a gas mask to cook it, the fumes of the ten different chili used being too intense. But it was not for the Phaal that we went, and the disclaimer below did not change my mind, even if I can get a free beer...

Brick Lane Curry House takes its name from the neighborhood in London that is supposed to have the best curry houses outside of Asia. I have never been there, maybe one day.

It is also a subway stop, so no wonder why you can see some subway signs (underground as they say in the UK) or subway maps.

The place is like a labyrinth with three different dining rooms, the two main ones being separated by bottles of wine.

As soon as we sat, they brought us some delicious papadum:

For appetizers, we decided to try some classic vegetarian dishes: pakora.

These are vegetable fritters served with a tomato chutney that had a nice kick. The pakora were good, but missing a bit of crunch.

Then, we had aloo (potato) samosas:

Served with the same tomato chutney, it was just ok for me, as they mainly tasted the potato that was a bit bland.

The shell however was deliciously crispy.

Then, we shared the Chana Masala (Vegan):

It is a dish made of chickpeas, tomatoes, onions and spices.

I usually love chana masala, but did not like this one that was missing texture and flavor.

However, the lamb madras curry was perfect!

The waiter told us that it was spicy, but in fact, it just had a bit of a kick. The curry, made with a gravy prepared with mustard seeds, curry leaves and finished with coconut milk was very good and flavorful. I could have eaten that even without meat (the lamb was perfect), with just rice or better, with naan.

Both dishes were served with some rice:

And we also ordered some naan that was freshly made:

As usual, I ordered a sweet lassi that was pretty good: thick but not too much and not too sweet, it was perfect to extinguish any heat coming from the dishes.

The food at Brick Lane Curry House was just ok for me and I think that it is overpriced. I definitely prefer Baluchi's or The Masala Wallah over this place.

Enjoy (...)!

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Restaurant Information

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	* Restaurant Name
	Brick Lane Curry House
	* Overall
	★★☆☆☆
	* Neighborhood / Cuisine
	East Village / Indian
	* Street Address
	306-308 East 6th St., New York, NY 10003
	* Phone
	(212) 979-2900

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My Trip to India - Bukhara in Delhi

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What you are going to witness is one of the best Indian dinners I ever had. It was at Bukhara, a restaurant located at the Luxury Collection ITC Maurya Hotel in Delhi that, for more than 30 years, served the same menu made of dishes from the North Western part of India. 

The restaurant itself is bursting with a mix of tourists, expats, business men and Indian clientele in a decor made of stone walls, dark wood beams and red rugs.

In the back is the kitchen, visible from the dining room, where you can see the Chef and cooks prepare the dishes in their tandoori ovens (clay ovens).

We got the privilege to visit the kitchen, where many skewers were ready to be put in the ovens.

So I was ready for my meal, bib on, wine in one hand and menu in the other.

The wine was an Indian wine called Sula from the Nashik region, 180 km Northeast from Mumbai.

After we sat, they brought us some papadam:

And red onions:

But was I was waiting for was the family naan, a giant naan perfect to share with the entire table that was the attraction of the restaurant.

Then, the food came...First was this incredible dal.

Made with a blend of dark lentils, tomatoes, ginger and garlic, it is slow cooked for 24 hours on a charcoal fire, finished with cream and some unsalted butter, giving it a creamy texture and an amazing taste.

Then was the tandoori salad:

It was composed of onions, capsicum, tomatoes, fresh cottage cheese and pineapple seasoned with yellow chilies, garam masala, black cumin and malt vinegar.

We also tried the paneer tikka, that is cottage cheese marinated in fresh cream, gram flour, ajwain (caraway) and yellow chillies.

We also ordered a fish called pomfret that was cooked in the tandoor with yellow chillies, garam masala, turmeric and caraway.

Then, we got the slow cooked leg of lamb - Sikandari Raan:

It is a whole leg of lamb that is braised in a marinade of malt vinegar, cinnamon, black cumin and red chili paste. It is then finished in the tandoor, giving a nice char on the outside. The meat was very tender and moist: divine! If you love lamb like me, this is definitely a dish to order. In fact it is close in concept to the gigot d'agneau de 7 heures, a French dish that is also slow cooked lamb.

Chicken:

ok, I admit that at some point lost track of the dishes as they all came at the same time and I was trying to take my photos...This was a good chicken, served in a creamy sauce that was not spicy at all.

After this feast, we still had some space for dessert...First was the gulab jamun that were quite big!

Phirni, a dessert made with milk, basmati rice and cardamon, quite close to rice pudding (besides the texture).

And Rasmalai, poached dumplings of cottage cheese in a saffron flavored reduced milk sauce.

I admit that I was full after this, but thrilled that I got the opportunity to dine at Bukhara. If you are in Delhi, this is definitely not to be missed.

Enjoy (I did)!

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