Elegant Indian dishes in Aoyama

Perhaps surprisingly, we have many Indian restaurants here and there in Tokyo. However, I don't know the reason, but most of them are cheap and the atmosphere is very casual (sometime shabby...) like fast food shop, unfotunately. The other day, I found an elegant Indian restaurant with reasonable price in Aoyama (青山). On the underground of a building along the Kotto-dori Street (骨董通り), there is "SITAARA (シターラ)."   

SITAARA

Inside

Wine (red:France, white: Italy)

Tandoori chicken and curry of spinach and cheese

Butter naan

Butter chicken curry and plain naan

Lassi

Despite the good atmosphere, SITAARA offers reasonable set meals at lunch. They are JPY1,050, 1,350 and 1,600. Even so, I noticed they used good ingredients for dishes. Chicken for tandoori was the best one ever I've had at Indian restaurant here. Salad was fresh. Lassi was rich. Curry was not so spicy and hot. Though it seemed adjusted for Japanese preference, the taste was delicious. Service was also good. I hope such a good Indian restaurant be more increased in Tokyo! My rating is 4.0 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita!

SITAARA (シターラ) http://www.sitaara.com/index.html

Indian restaurant in Jinbocho which receives media exposure

"MANDARA (マンダラ)" is a popular old-line Indian restaurant in the basement of a building near the Jinbocho (神保町) metro station. Jinbocho is old book shop district as well as curry town. Curry includes not only Indian curry but also Japanese curry and others. Among many curry shops, MANDARA is famous as an old restaurant which Indian chefs cook authentic curry. Often, gourmet TV programs introduce their curry. 

Entrance of "MANDALA"

Inside

Kingfisher beer

Curry, naan, rice with tandoori chicken and shish kebab

Singha beer

Yogurt 

Before, my office was temporarily located in Jinbocho and I used to enjoy lunch of MANDARA with colleagues. After so long, I visited for branch. Even at late lunch time, 80% of tables were occupied. A set meal comprising a curry, a naan, saffron rice, tandoori chicken shish kebab and yogurt costs JPY1,575. 

The most popular curry here is chicken butter masala which uses tomato and rich cream. The taste was....good but not so impressive as my memory...Maybe Indian chefs changed? Before, the taste was more rich and complex. But now the taste of tomato is strong..And naan was too thick and some part was just like block of flour. 

Even so, of course the taste itself is not bad and above than average. But their fame might be the one of past. My rating is 2.6 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita!

MANDARA (マンダラ)  http://westindia-group.com/mandala/     

Nearby Indian restaurant in Nezu

Tokyo has more Indian restaurants then you expect. Though I've lived in the center of London before, we have much more than there. For instance, even within 10 minutes walking distance from my home, I can count seven Indian restaurants. But quality....are quite varied. Few is very delicious, most of them are moderate and some are not good...

Padma Palace

Lunch meal of curry with naan and lassi

Shish kebab and tandoori chicken

One of my favorite among moderate ones near my house is "Padma Palace (パドマパレス)", located on the second floor of a building just near the Nezu Station (根津駅). Their lunch set meal is available from JPY 650. If we pay JPY1,100, shish kebab and tandoori chicken are included in addition to two types of curry, salad, naan/rice and soft drink. You can eat naan as much as you can.

Their grilled meats are strong taste. They may dip meats into much spice and sauce for long time. Curry is rich taste. They may use much butter or cream...which makes us fat. But it is always true fatty food makes the taste better. Their naan is thin and crispy. I prefer this type of naan to thick one like bread. If you expect spicy curry, this restaurant might be different. But it's not so bad. Suitable for lunch. My rating is 2.8 out of 5 Gochiso-samadeshita!

Original Indian curry cooked by Japanese

In Yushima(湯島), we have an Indian curry shop called "Delhi(デリー)" which was opened by Japanese more than 50 years ago. Particularly men love this spicy curry and I see many men make a queue outside. One night, I tried to taste after so long. 

Exterior of Delhi

Inside of Delhi (very narrow)

Tandori chicken

Curry with fried onion and chicken

Curry with vegetables and coconut 

The inside is very narrow like a ramen shop. People eager to eat the curry and rice. Different from usual Indian curry restaurants, Delhi does not serve naan. Only rice, Japanese main staple is served with curry. A lot of spices are used in curry and we get sweat after eating. The curry using fried onion and chicken was particularly yummy. My rating is 2.8 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita! 

Delhi(デリー) http://www.delhi.co.jp/

Strange but delicious Indian in Sendagi

Near Sendagi(千駄木) Station of Tokyo Metro and along the Shinobazu Street(不忍通り), there is an apparently unusual Indian restaurant called "Darjeeling(ダージリン)."  Without any information on this restaurant, you may hesitate to open the heavy wooden door...

Both of the interior and exterior are very decorative. Dazzling atmosphere. But this is a very delicious Indian restaurant. Moreover, different from ordinary Indian restaurants, they have many kinds of alcohol all over the world. For instance, we can enjoy Vietnamese beer together with curry. One of my favorite, Hoegaarden(Belgian beer) is also on the list. 

Exterior of "Darjeeling"

Interior 

Belgian beer and Indian beer

Fried cheese 

Two types of curry and a naan 

Garlic naan 

The selection of curry is wide. Even if you have any dietary restriction, you can choose one curry which suits your preference. We ordered two curries, a  coconut-based and a tomato-based. They were sooo tasty! Creamy, strong and profound. The taste was complex with many spices and ingredients. I was touched by this taste! As for naan, Darjeeling's is the best as far as I know. Outside is a bit browned and very crispy, but inside is soft enough. Usually I can't eat up one naan by myself, but I can eat up this naan. Price is average as Indian restaurant(each curry costs around JPY1,000 and a naan is JPY300). 

My rating is 3.9 out of 5. This rating is for the Sendagi branch. Darjeeling has several branches in Tokyo, but each shop has different taste. I like Sendagi. Gochiso-samadeshita!

Popular Indian dishes among women

Near the JR Okachimachi(御徒町) Station, there is a South Indian restaurant called "Andhra Kitchen (アーンドラ・キッチン) " which has obtained a name through word of mouth on the web. The restaurant is located on the semi-underground in a building and not so large for 20 customers at a miximum. At a night when we visited, many female customers including individual woman enjoyed eating.

Exterior of Andhra Kitchen

Inside of Andhra Kitchen

Dosa, crepe made of rice flour 

Sheek Kabab 

Fish Tikka

Two types of curry and naan

The atmosphere of Andhra Kitchen is casual and a waiter is kind and very chatty, that anyone can enter and be relaxed even alone. Reasonable variety of set meals seemed to attract female customers (though we ordered from a la carte menu). For instance, a set of four different curries, rice, naan and some side dishes is around JPY 2,000. 

What I liked was a dosa, thin crepe made of rice flour. The taste and its distinctive texture was really nice. I suppose few Indian restaurants in Japan likely provide dosa. On the other hand, other standard menus like curry, naan and grilled ones are average. If you want to try South Indian dishes or a bit different ones like dosa, Andhra Kitchen might be recommendable.

The waiter is always trying to talk to each customer and it greatly contributed to a cheerful and good atmosphere. I felt that service is more than the taste. My rating is 2.5 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita!

Andhra Kitchen (アーンドラ・キッチン) http://andhra-kitchen.com/index.php?page=home

Indian curry near the office

In the 5 minutes walking distance from my office, there is an Indian curry restaurant called "Grand Darjeeling (グランドダージリン)" , located on the underground floor of Shobo Kaikan (消防会館) in Toranomon (虎ノ門). Cooks and waiters seem Indian or those who from other south Asian countries, but this restaurant also serves Thailand cuisine as well...(I haven't seen so much the combination of Indian and Thailand dishes...)

Inside of Grand Darjeeling

Sag-chicken (spinach curry) and naan 

In my memory, the taste of curry in this restaurant had been relatively better than other ones around here, but the one I ate was not so delicate as the previous memory. The curry was a bit sloppy and not rich enough. I felt something crucial was missing...So, this time my rating is 1.5 (sorry!) out of 5. Next time, I wish the ordinary taste will be back! Gochiso-samadeshita! 

Grand Darjeeling (グランドダージリン) http://r.gnavi.co.jp/a193102/  

Delicious Indian dishes in Ginza

In Ginza (銀座), a posh shopping district in Tokyo, generally we don't have image to taste Indian dishes there. But Ginza is a place of gourmet where wen can taste cuisines all over the world and actually there are several famous Indian restaurants there. One of those is "Gurgaon (グルガオン)",  located on the underground of a building five minutes away from the Ginza 4 Chome intersection. There are many clothes shops which are closed at night and the circumference is silent. So, if you go down to the downstairs, you will be surprised to see many customers enjoying curry.  

Signboard of Gurgaon

Inside of Gurgaon

Their specialty, cheese culcha

Grilled Lamb

Two types of curry and naan

The service is friendly and the taste was so good! In particular, their specialty, cheese culcha is super! The combination of grilled naan and plenty of cheese is so nice. I heard it was delicious but it is indeed so and much better than my expectation. The selection of curries are vary and difficult to choose. Each curry's taste is very profound, rich and complex. I am always impressed by the rich taste of any kind of Indian curries, but even so, I felt the level of Gurgaon's curry is definitely high. We can enjoy those tasty curries until 23:00pm. The taste could be a bit addicted. My rating is 4.3 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita! 


Gurgaon (グルガオン) http://www.dhabaindia.com/gurgaon/

Nepali-Indian food in old downtown

In the neighborhood of my house, there are many ethnic restaurants, particularly Indian, in spite of the old downtown of Tokyo. This might be because a lot of people from various countries live around here and Japanese like new and different things. Japanese tend to easily accept things from other countries if they deem worthy. 


Thus, I can easily taste diverse foods at my door. For example, "mirmire(ミルミレ)" in Sendagi. This is a Nepali-Indian restaurant, whose cook is a Nepali woman speaking fluent Japanese. As it is located on a small street, we need to be careful not to pass by. The inside is decorated by Nepali sundry goods and accessories that we can also buy there. Only looking at those goods is interesting while dishes are prepared. 


As for food, it seems much spices are used both in soup and curry, but the taste is not so hot but mild and sophisticated. Delicious! Oil is less used comparing to other Indian restaurants and healthy. But considering that the portion is not so big, the price is a bit higher than average. My rating is 2.8 out of 5. Gochiso-samadeshita! 


mirmire(ミルミレ)  http://r.gnavi.co.jp/b846900/

Spicy tomato soup (JPY800) and Samosa (JPY400)

Spinach and cheese curry (JPY950) and Butter-nan (JPY300)  

Interior