opEN 7 dAyS A WEEk | LUNcH: 11:30 - 2:30 | dINNER: 5:30 - 9:00 kASHMIRI cHIckEN september 2015 MARKETPLACEcontrac osta .com 35 exposure further increasing his passion for excellent food and cooking. Armed with his vast knowledge of Indian cuisine and the experience he’d gained cooking for himself and friends for many years, Lachu quit his engineering job in the US in 1987 and opened a predecessor restaurant to Ajanta, the New delhi junction. The restaurant was located on Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley, and for five years, this engineer-turned-chef continued to hone his Indian cooking skills. He offered a variable menu in addition to his standard offerings, featuring selections from different Indian regions, which kept customers coming back to try new items. He also developed a monthly newsletter to announce and describe the new menu offerings. His success at New delhi junction, led him to seek a larger venue, and he opened Ajanta at its current location. From the outside, Ajanta blends in with the other businesses surrounding it on the busy street, and appears to be a pretty small venue. However, upon entry, the spaciousness of the interior and the unique décor welcomed my guest and me into a comfortable, yet elegant, atmosphere. The restaurant was nearly at capacity when we arrived at 7:30 pm on Sunday evening, filling nearly all of the sixteen tables. Each table was covered with white tablecloths, decorated with a lovely vase of fresh flowers, and was illuminated with candle light. The only windows at Ajanta are the two large front windows facing the street; however, in spite of the windowless dining room, the décor was pleasing and provided a spacious and open feeling. one wall is almost completely adorned with mirrors, and the opposite wall boasts murals and paintings, replicas of some found in the Ajanta caves in India. Similarly, the soft overhead lighting adds a unique touch to the décor, appearing to be parchment lamp coverings featuring actual photographs taken in the Ajanta caves. LAcHU MooRjANI We were promptly seated and given menus and a wine list. Also provided was a chef’s Tasting Menu, a fixed menu offered as both non-vegetarian and vegetarian, offering customers the opportunity to try smaller portions of several appetizer and main dish selections. Several accompaniments and a choice of three desserts are also offered, all for a nominal cost of $25.50 (vegetarian) or $28.50 (non-vegetarian). We began to peruse the large tri-fold menu, pondering what to order, when we were greeted by Lachu Moorjani. He graciously welcomed us, and highly recommended that we try the chef’s Tasting Menu so that we could sample several appetizers and entrees. We were given a choice of five spice levels for our meals: mild, low-medium, medium, high-medium, or hot. We chose low-medium, and were astonished to learn that there is also a "very hot" selection that is not on the menu! Lachu delivered our order to the kitchen, and returned with two glasses each of red and white wines, which he had specifically selected to pair with our meals. As we sipped each of the wines, waiters began arriving with our appetizers. We tried the Samosas first, which are reminiscent of plump fried pot stickers, filled with finely chopped chicken and spices, served with a blended sauce of mint, cilantro and tamarind for dipping. These were crisp on the outside and extremely flavorful, and the dipping sauce was yummy, a perfect accompaniment. our other appetizers included, chicken chaat and Tandoori Scallops. I asked Lachu about the meaning of “chaat”, and he explained that the word means “to lick”, and is a term generally used to describe Indian street food. The chaat was a highly seasoned mound of tender, shredded chicken which tasted delightful. The scallops were plump and appeared to be lightly breaded and fried, and were soft and buttery. They were served with a sweet sauce made of cashew powder, yogurt, sugar, tamarind, salt and pepper—an original Lachu Moorjani recipe—which added a pleasant flavor to the morsels. Next up were our main dishes—kashmiri chicken, Lamb Rib chops, Green Fish curry, and Baadal jaam—served with Basmati rice. other accompaniments included Naan, mango chutney, carrot pickles and hot pickles. It was such a treat to be able to try such a nice array of Indian foods. It’s hard to describe how delicious everything was! Many of the spices used for this cuisine were new to me, but all were appealing! I typically do not eat lamb, but the rib chops looked so enticing, I had to try
Contra Costa Marketplace - Sept 2015
To see the actual publication please follow the link above