196 replies to this topic

[Orik]

http://thumbs.ifood....es/dum murg.jpg

I'll write later about dinner last night. Still baffled by the tamarind, five spice, saffron, rum cocktail.

[g.johnson]

I thought Bonner was right about dum pukht. Regional variations?

[splinky]

http://thumbs.ifood....es/dum murg.jpg

I'll write later about dinner last night. Still baffled by the tamarind, five spice, saffron, rum cocktail.

that cocktail sounds scary

[Sneakeater]

Still baffled by the tamarind, five spice, saffron, rum cocktail.

I'll also write later. I believe the descriptor I used for that cocktail was "improbable".

[Anthony Bonner]

http://thumbs.ifood....es/dum murg.jpg

I'll write later about dinner last night. Still baffled by the tamarind, five spice, saffron, rum cocktail.

It's quite convenient to my office, hopefully going for lunch soon.

seems reasonable internet sites disagree on what dum pukht means. My original source was Julie Sahni.

[Orik]

I've had both versions (neither at Tulsi). I don't really know if one of them is more authentic but maybe mongo will elucidate.

[mongo_jones]

goat dum biryani (an Indian potpie of sorts, sealed with a naan-dough crust)

what the fuck?

Isn't that a reasonable description for dum pukht cooking?

pot pie implies the whole top is dough based, dum pukht the dough seals the cover on no?

dum pukht just means the pot in which the thing is cooked--biryani or whatever--is sealed such that the dish is cooked (pukht) in its own "breath" (dum). the dough used to seal it is removed and discarded before the dish is served. which leads me to ask: is tulsi really using naan dough to seal their pots?

[g.johnson]

goat dum biryani (an Indian potpie of sorts, sealed with a naan-dough crust)

what the fuck?

Isn't that a reasonable description for dum pukht cooking?

pot pie implies the whole top is dough based, dum pukht the dough seals the cover on no?

dum pukht just means the pot in which the thing is cooked--biryani or whatever--is sealed such that the dish is cooked (pukht) in its own "breath" (dum). the dough used to seal it is removed and discarded before the dish is served. which leads me to ask: is tulsi really using naan dough to seal their pots?

There was a nominally Gujurati place at the end of 6th Street, the name of which is escaping me but which Orik will remember, that did do that so it wouldn't surprise me.

ETA: Banjara

[mongo_jones]

oh, and food in tightly sealed pots (without the use of any dough) cooked on low heat are also cooked on "dum"--as with the regular dum-aloo/alur-dom. there does not have to be dough based sealing for it to be dum pukht.

i suppose tulsi may make their dum biryani in the style of a pot-pie (though i hope they're not encouraging people to eat biryani with some kind of steamed dough/bread) but dum biryani is not in general anything like a pot-pie.

[Suzanne F]

And here I thought you were just calling Hemant (or someone) a dumb fuck.

[Sneakeater]

I'll get around to writing some day, but Tulsi confirms that (dish names notwithstanding) nobody is going to ever call Hemant a dumb fuck.

[Suzanne F]

Just checking. But you know, the older we get, the more our eyes play tricks on us.

I really have to figure out a way and time to get there. I've never, ever had as good tandoori food as Hemant's.

[Sneakeater]

I was disappointed to be told, when I walked into Tulsi Monday for opening night, that they don't serve the full menu at the bar, but only bar snacks. I figured, however, that the dining room -- which is just beautiful, BTW -- would be packed full of people I know. In the event, it wasn't packed, and the only people I knew were Orik and Sivan. But they graciously let me impose myself on them. So the meal would have been a social pleasure irrespective of the food.

But the food was really good.

Just as a technical cook, Hemant leaves the competition in the dust. Even as accomplished a restaurant as Tamarind Tribeca seems a bit imprecise compared to this. As soon as I sat down, Sivan passed me a piece of something the kitchen had sent out to them -- I'm thinking it must have been the walnut chicken roti roll -- and I was immediately struck by how well-made this rather lowly dish was: the textures were clean and were expertly set to contrast with each other, the flavors distinct, no greasiness or sogginess or other artifacts of inexpert preparation. You eat mediocre versions of this kind of food so often that it can be almost shocking when you encounter an excellent version.

And so it was with most of the remainder of what we had (some ordered, and some sent out as comps to Orik and Sivan). Flavors were subtle and complex, the cooking expert. I'd say the tandoori boar chops were especially -- even triumphantly -- good. But I'd also have to say that Orik's tandoori lamb chops and, especially, Sivan's duck curry looked fantastic.

First night I'm not going to go crazy on this place, and to be sure everything wasn't absolutely great. But lots of it was.

So against the rest of the NYC Indian competition, Tulsi rules. As against Devi, though? Well, the mozzarella samosa (which I, at least, didn't try) notwithstanding, the food at Tulsi seems more traditional than the food at Devi. Tulsi is more like Tamarind Tribeca in that it develops traditional Indian cuisine, but doesn't engage in the kind of conceptualizing that Suvir contributes to Devi. You're not going to see any Indo-American takes on southern fried chicken here. Now how much you miss that is a matter of taste. But I miss it.

But you can't criticize a restaurant for not doing what it doesn't try to do. On its own terms, Tulsi is already a great success, and I'm sure it will only get better. You've all got to hightail it up there.

[Orik]

That it was as empty as it was on opening night shows two things:

1. Suvir is an invaluable PR machine.
2. There's about as much genuine interest in serious Indian food at this price level as in North Dakotan square dancing classes.

My reaction overall is similar to Sneak's - Tulsi is significantly more grounded in proper Indian cooking than Devi was, the tandoori technique is expectedly excellent (although if I had to bet I would put some money on the oven being a bit colder than at Diwan/Amma/Devi, but that may require some tweaking), and that duck curry (from Pekin duck I imagine, based on the size of the breast) with coconut and curry leaves was really very good, and a gigantic portion.

Several of the appetizers - the chicken rolls Sneak mentions, the shrimp and crab stuffed papadums, and pesto marinated tandoori chicken (not really an appetizer but appeared at the table) were lovely* and (I'm not sure if this is a compliment) much better than they looked like they were going to be. Galawati kebabs had a texture g. johnson is going to love to hate - I think they'd really be much more appealing served with something crispy.

The cocktail list needs some serious attention - the tamarind peculiarity isn't bad, but is hard to recognize as a cocktail - more like a fancy version of the tamarind drinks you can find all over Asia. A second cocktail allegedly contained gin, key lime juice, lychee nectar, and some other ingredients, but tasted primarily like a near room temperature Margarita. Breads need some work too. I imagine in a couple of months it'll all be superb but even on its first day it's better than other nyc Indians (haven't tried Tamarind Tribeca yet).

Comp disclosure - three appetizers, desserts, sparkling wine, crispy okra, maybe some other stuff. Still not inexpensive by any measure.




* that chicken was so good I would order it, even though it's, you know, chicken.

[taion]

Is anyone else seeing HTML tags show up in Orik's posts?