5337 Valley View Road, El Sobrante | (510) 243-7442 | Catering: (925) 451-4518 | vegannchickenca.com Chicken Masala but keeps it on the menu due to
its popularity, especially with American
customers.
My guest and I both liked the
Chicken Tikka Masala, but we did not
find it as appealing as the other dishes
that Abassi had ordered for us. We both
agreed that the Chicken Tandoori was
our favorite of the chicken selections.
It was cooked to perfection—tender
chicken legs with thighs attached,
cooked to a golden-brown crispness
on the outside and juicy and moist on
the inside. Abassi informed us that the
chicken is marinated for 24 hours in
various herbs and spices before cooking,
which gives it the wonderful flavor
and tenderness. It was served on a bed
of red onions and lime wedges, and
was topped with jalapeno slices and
cilantro. It will definitely be my “go
to” meat selection when I return to
dine at Vegan N’ Chicken! My overall
favorite of all the dishes we were served
was the Palak Paneer. The tender
cooked spinach was served with chunks
of homemade cheese (made on-site
by Abassi) and topped with slivers of
fresh ginger. It was hard to discern the
flavor of the cheese specifically, but the
combined flavor of the spinach, cheese
and ginger was excellent. The Punjabi
Curry was a yellow colored dish served
with vegetables and a thick, creamy
curry sauce. The flavorful spices used in
all of the dishes was so appealing to us,
and every bite we took was delicious!
We enjoyed the Basmati rice because
it was light and fluffy and not thick
and stuck together like steamed white
rice tends to be. And of course—who
doesn’t like Naan? Besides plain Naan,
Vegan N’ Chicken serves 8 other types
of Naan. Ours had fresh garlic and
cilantro generously spread atop the
Naan and cooked in the clay oven.
The end result was a delicious goldenbrown
26 MARKETPLACECONTRACOSTA.COM SEPTEMBER 2018
flatbread that was wonderfully
garlicky and irresistible! My guest and
I both really enjoyed all of the food
we sampled. Although the food was
moderately spicy, it was tolerable and
did not overshadow the flavor of the
food—but I’ll admit that the spiciness
did make my nose run!
Healthy eating is of great
importance to Abassi, both personally
and for his customers. All items on the
Vegan N’ Chicken menu are always
cooked fresh from scratch. Nothing
used in the preparation of their meals
is processed or frozen. As previously
mentioned, Abassi makes cheese
in-house that is used in some of the
entrees, and also makes his own yogurt.
Remarkably, he also makes his own
dry spices following a secret family
recipe. Nearly everything on the menu
is Gluten Free, and very little oil is used
in food preparation. There are plenty
of vegan specialties on the menu, and
contrary to the restaurant name, Vegan
N’ Chicken also specializes in entrees
made with lamb, beef, and seafood.
Whether customers order food to go or
to dine at the restaurant, regulars know
to allow at least 20 minutes for the
“from scratch” food preparation. Based
Tandoori