Big Flavor at Tiny Tadka
tadka is the smallest restaurant i've ever reviewed. seating just 12, mostly cheek-by-jowl, the dining room would easily fit in my manhattan bedroom. but somehow, the room feels spacious, thanks in part to a floor-to-ceiling front window. there are olive-colored walls, dark wood-planked floors and even darker wood tables arranged in a row along the west wall, under several complicated lanterns hung from the high ceiling.
owner/consultant shiva k. natarajan owns a number of other indian restaurants in the tri-state area, including the marvelous nearby chola, the flagship of the chola group, of which tadka is among the newest members. at two-and-a-half-year-old tadka, under the watchful gaze of manager and often-solitary waiter nisar shoddo, runs smoothly-even when there are 12 diners ordering their many dishes.
you would think that the diminutive size of the restaurant would persuade chef francisco vaz to limit his menu, but there are dozens of northern indian classics on hand, several dishes you don't encounter very often, and not a few "indo-chinese influence" offerings. furthermore, vaz told us that most of the food he cooks is for delivery; indeed, the phone seldom stops ringing, and bag after bag sails out of the kitchen. i've found that certain indian dishes-beyond the marvelous stews-don't travel as well as certain other cuisines. the wonderful breads and roasted meats get steamed into textural submission. but apparently tadka's food doesn't have to go far at all, because the delivery fellow departed and returned in just minutes.
we began with the usual crispy pappadam, the paper-thin large wafer discs made with lentil flour and here studded with fennel seeds. i gather that in india these are eaten plain, but most americans love to dip the pappadam in one of the chutneys or sauces usually offered, to punch up the flavor.
shoddo recommended a dish that isn't on the menu, though it certainly should be: lassoni gobi, chunks of cauliflower braised in a ruddy rich gravy that amply demonstrates the nearly unique level of deliciousness that indian cuisine coaxes out of vegetables, due, of course, to the fact that less than 30 percent of the indian population are frequent carnivores, and an estimated two-fifths are strict vegetarians.
onion pakora (fritters) are frisky, spidery lumps of beautifully battered onion chunks.
tawa paneer is a stewy affair featuring cubes of that wonderful homemade cheese (paneer) in a spicy, salty mélange of bell peppers, onions and scallions, all flavored with tawa masala, a haunting roasted spice blend that is ground to a fine powder.
those beloved indian breads are all on hand. best was paneer chili paratha, a soft dense flatbread stuffed with spiced cheese and fairly mild green chilies.
lamb vindaloo is forehead dampeningly hot, with hunks of lamb, potato, serrano chilies (ouch!) and red onions. rarely have i had hotter vindaloo.
one of tadka's signature dishes is "butter chicken," which is even better than it sounds. an engulfment of heavily buttered tomato-cream sauce enrobes toothsome hunks of chicken. we overheard a couple at a nearby table, obviously regulars, both order butter chicken. it's quite easy to see why.
we finished with soothing and creamy rasmalai, soupier than usual, with rumors of saffron, cardamom and honey inflecting themselves on the rice and homemade paneer.
many are the pleasures to be found at tiny tadka. if you're lucky enough to live nearby, you already know that. if you don't, you would do well to plan a visit soon. and don't miss that butter chicken! -- tadka 229 e. 53rd st. between second and third avenues 212-355-9660 entrees: $14.95 to $23.95 (most under $20)