We're back now and I want to talk about Aarpan! Have you been to this relatively new Indian restaurant on 5th Ave? I've gone several times since we saw that they'd opened in May and my lovely companion and I have been suitably impressed every time. The restaurant never seems full, but since they offer free delivery and take every type of credit card, I imagine they're sending a lot of meals out the door. Good news for us! There's always a seat, and the back patio is super cute. (Just don't sit too close to the bug zapper.)
On our most recent visit, we had a concert to get to at the bandshell, so we arrived at 5 like a retired couple. (You'll have to forgive any spelling issues in this post, as I'm taking all of the food names directly from Aarpan's menu...) We had the usual papadums placed in front of us with Aarpan's three condiments. The lentil wafers were crispy with slightly blackened edges, and plenty of bitter caraway seeds inside. The green mint-coriander sauce is bright and fresh tasting every time, and the sticky tamarind sauce is better than most, but still not my thing. The standout, though, is the bright orange onion relish. It's so sweet and hot and spicy that I learned to love papadams for the first time because of it.
My lovely companion ordered the Bihari Kabab. The lamb here is consistently tender, without the gristly fattiness we've found to be the norm at other Indian places here. Marinated in yoghurt and covered in spices before it's cooked on charcoal, it stays super moist and sizzling despite the high heat. The onions and peppers on the sizzling platter it was served on were average, but that lamb was so intensely flavorful...
I decided to try the creatively named "Nonveg Thali" this time, which is hidden at the bottom of the "Briyani Pulao Rice" section of the menu for some reason. Mine came with a Tandoori Chicken Leg, Chicken Tika Masala, Saag Paneer, and Daal Makhnis. Rice and three Pooris were the starches. My waitress said that this was a dish for one, but I assure you that two people could comfortably enjoy the Thali. All of the food was amazing. The Saag was bright green with spinach still recognizable as a separate ingredient, and fresh soft Paneer. The lentils had a nice tooth and plenty of earthy spices, and the Tika Masala was flavorful without being spicy. My tandoori chicken was amazingly moist, and red almost all the way through to the bone from it's pepper spices, and the pooris were little crispy buttery clouds of flavor. I wish I'd had more bread instead of rice, but everything else was really superb.
The rice here is good. It's not amazing though. This is a shame, because everything else is pretty spectacular so far. Especially the breads. I know a lot of people have probably ordered take-out and delivery here, but you are all missing out on the breads if you let them spend a moment wrapped in foil on the car ride home. Aarpan's Rotis, Parathas and Naans are so good you could seriously just eat a basket of bread and not feel like you missed out on much. They are just the right amount of chewy and crispy and buttery and soft and you kill all of the texture when they get wrapped in foil and allowed to steam in their own heat. If you must order delivery, here's a pro-tip: pre-heat your oven to 375 so when the driver gets there you can open the foil and put them in the oven uncovered for 5-10 minutes. they'll get a lot of the crisp back.
Ok. Go. Eat.
-SdJ
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