9075 people reached on Lassi with Lavina FB page – 157 Likes and 803 post clicks
Chandini Dayal, Ritu Thamman, Sangeeta Malik and 22 others like it on Lassi with Lavina FB page
1275 views on Linkedin – 16 Likes

Hemant Mathur & Surbhi Sahni’s Saar Indian Bistro

Meet Me at Saar Indian Bistro!

The noted husband and wife team of Chefs Hemant Mathur and Surbhi Sahni has probably birthed more new restaurants than anyone else!  Their latest creation Saar Indian Bistro is the newest in the line of eateries which have included Tulsi, Chote Nawab, Chola, Malai Marke, Haldi and Sahib. This one has moved more uptown from the Curry Hill area of Little India. It is in the theater district (241 West 51^st street) so is  a real spicy alternative for diners looking for more drama on their platters (the only other Indian restaurant in the theater district is Utsav, a long time staple of the area.)

Hemant’s winning combination includes many innovative small plates which seem to be what diners want nowadays for a casual meal, more than the whole nine yards of a full desi meal. The bar is a sleek combination of black and brass accents. The ambiance is understated with pink floral wallpapering and black leather seating – indeed, the décor does not give away any clues to what the food would be, unless you consider the deep Indian pink of the restroom to be a giveaway!

The food is definitely something to write home about, and you may not have tasted many of the dishes before. We had the cauliflower latkes accompanied by cranberry chutney – I would have liked them to have more heft but they were succulent with ginger flavoring and a comfortingly home-made taste. The Kerala Egg Puff was also something new on Indian tables in New York and of course spicy chaat is always a treat, especially with surprise ingredients added in, such as Shakarkandi Chaat which is Charcoal smoked Japanese sweet potato with cilantro chutney and roasted cumin.

The vegetarian choices were fewer in this edited menu but the Kashmiri Gucchi Truffle risotto was a real winner with its earthy richness and basmati grains – it’s comfort food elevated to luxury food.

 

Some of the fresh tastes on the menu included a Mango Coconut Soup with yogurt, mango and mustard seeds and Turbuj Pachadi which is a light summer salad of tomato and watermelon with a fennel-ginger dressing.

Just like many diners I am also trying to avoid bread but who can resist a huge platter of succulent laccha and methi parathas?

What’s really  appealing and informal about Saar Bistro is that you have many choices, depending on your mood and appetite. You can make a small commitment with the small plates if you have to rush to a performance or aren’t ravenously hungry. The small plates include such Indian delicacies as Begun Bharta – smoked eggplant served with roti chips;  kulchas with fillings of  chicken keema, goat cheese and spinach or potatoes and onion; or even try a quintessential Samosa tasting comprising of fillings of cheese, potato-peas and minced lamb and peas.

Hungrier? There are medium plates serving Basil Paneer, Lasooni Kebabs, and Murg Kesar. Large plates include Pindi chole & Amritsari Aloo Kulcha as well as Kerala Coconut Plantain curry, spicy lentil soup, rice, pappadam and yes, even Delhi ka Butter Chicken and Murg Kesar Kebab. The ample menu travels all over the map of India, finding little known pleasures from different regions including  Kosho Mangsho & Luchi slow stewed Bengali goat curry; Salli Boti which is  a Parsi lamb stew; Vazzaka Thoran & Sambhar – – Kerala coconut plantain curry, served with spicy lentil soup, rice, and pappadam.

Desserts are Surbhi’s forte and the ones on the menu include such unusual flavors as Cashew Kulfi, Indian cashew ice cream served with tagmo chili chocolate crackle cookies, and Fig Firni – Rice custard, orange & garam masala poached figs. There’s also unniyappam – sourdough banana fritters with a guava-mango-curry leaf dipping sauce.

Saar Indian  Bistro is a welcome addition to the theater district – the language of Indian cuisine is changing radically and an Indian meal doesn’t have to be a full heavy feast which can put you into a food coma or at least a must-have nap!  Saar captures the light, contemporary trend perfectly with small bites plates and interesting cocktails and mocktails, as well as a full dinner menu with many regional specialties.The meal begins with pasta nibbles but Indians will recognize these as the rice kheechas which they grew up snacking on. And that’s the charm of this intimate little space – a bit of the old, a bit of the new presented in Hemant Mathur’s sure hand.

As Surbhi says, at Saar Indian Bistro they cook as they themselves eat every day, making authentic home food, using fresh ingredients and innovative ideas, adding in global borrowed spices and tastes from other cultures  – the way modern Indians eat at home today. Indian food is much more intricate than Chicken Tikka Masala, and this newest Indian outpost in the Times Square area proves it.