One thing I learned on coming home from India with regional cookbooks and investing in esoteric spices and a kadai was that this is a cuisine best experienced in restaurants. It\u2019s not about a main and a side and\/or a salad. It\u2019s an experience. The one home meal we ate on our three-week trip in 2004 was courtesy of my former consort\u2019s fixer in Kerala on his National Geographic shoot. And she had a full-time staffer to get the right array of dishes and bread on the table.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So Rudraks<\/a> opening four blocks from our kitchen has been the best thing since warm naan. The lunch special in particular is Indian to the max: papadam with three relishes, main, dal of the day, rice (with peas), a basket of bread and a tiny dessert. We\u2019ve only ever had the vegetarian option, and it is a whole lot o\u2019 food for $15. The mains are a bit on the dainty side, but they\u2019re always packed with flavor, especially the okra and any with paneer. Dals are always sensational, well-spiced and ghee-tempered.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n We\u2019ve only been once for dinner, but I will say it was nice to have good wine with the tandoori salmon and bhel poori in a lovely room. The servers are very sweet and remembered us from the first visit on. WIGB? We have at least five times.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" One thing I learned on coming home from India with regional cookbooks and investing in esoteric spices and a kadai was that this is a cuisine best experienced in restaurants. It\u2019s not about a main and a side and\/or a salad. It\u2019s an experience. The one home meal we ate on our three-week trip in… Continue reading