With intriguing Indian-fusion lunches and traditional tandooris and biryanis for dinner, this is a place to return to again and again.
By: Faith Bahadurian
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Masti Indian Grill |
To confirm my initial good impression of Masti Indian Grill in East Windsor tucked away in a shopping center that is home to a large SuperFresh and Staples I brought along an Indian friend. Ownership has changed since my first visit, but the new owners, Rajendra and Neela Desai, maintain high standards in this welcoming and comfortable spot.
The large space is divided into two rooms, simply furnished, with warm peach walls (in need of repainting in some areas) and dark wood furnishings. During my previous foray, my friends and I enjoyed predominately northern Indian dishes: samosas, fried pastry containing spiced vegetables; pakoras, vegetables fried in chickpea batter; minced lamb kebabs; and excellent moist chicken from the tandoor oven, along with addictively creamy black lentil dal. I was just as pleased on my return visit and can now also recommend the complexly seasoned Kashmiri rice-based biryanis.
We started with an appetizer commonly found on Indian menus but not often ordered by Westerners, my friend told me. Alu papri chat ($3.50) is a cool concoction of potatoes, chickpeas and crunchy flour chips in rosy yogurt sauce alive with heat from chilies offset by sweet-tart tamarind. My friend would have liked a little less sweetness, and guessed that the kitchen may have toned down the spices for me, a Westerner. I could have taken a bit more heat too, but still had to tear myself away from the generous serving to save room for dinner.
For my main course, I ordered king shrimp tandoori ($14.95), which arrived sizzling hot, a generous serving with carrots, squash, onions and peppers. The shrimp was moist, pleasantly charred and flavorful from the myriad seasonings that go into tandoori dishes. The colorful vegetables arrayed around the plate were crisp and fresh.
My friend ordered gosht biryani ($12.95), and we both pronounced it very good. Chunks of boneless lamb were remarkably moist and tender, surrounded by fragrant basmati rice cooked with the famously lengthy list of numerous herbs and spices that go into a biryani, including whole cardamom pods. Creamy raita, the ubiquitous Indian yogurt-based sauce, was the perfect mate to the biryani.
We also ordered a side dish of that wonderful black dal ($7.95, yellow also available), its sauce enriched with generous dashings of butter and cream. An order of pudina paratha ($2.95), mint-flavored wheat bread cooked in the tandoor, was a good accompaniment to the dal, although my friend said the inside layers of the folded bread could have been crispier. We were also brought plain rice, fragrant with whole cumin, or "geera" seeds.
At the beginning of dinner, I ordered ginger chai ($2.50), tea brewed with milk and spices, expecting a cold version similar to Thai iced tea. When it arrived hot, my friend said it would more normally be ordered at the end of the meal, so next time I will save that treat for last.
We ordered a special dessert of the evening, south Indian carrot halwa ($3.25), sweetened, finely grated carrots cooked with sugar, milk and spices, sort of like a pudding version of carrot cake. My friend thought it a fine version of the classic Indian dish, was glad it was not too sweet, and happily took the remainder home. Overall, servings were very generous, and between us we took home enough for at least two or three additional meals.
Masti Indian Grill also offers an intriguing Indian-American fusion lunch menu that holds its own in the realm of contemporary takes on traditional ethnic food. It includes creatively named salads like "Twist of Caesar Salad" ($5.95, made with tandoori chicken and shrimp) and "Salad Indienne" ($6.95), with cauliflower, broccoli and peppers on a bed of lettuce with cumin-balsamic vinaigrette.
Gourmet wraps and specialty sandwiches round out the appealing lunch menu, so I will happily return to Masti for lunch and dinner.
For directions to Masti Indian Grill, click here.