Reviewer's Summary: Good Food; Decent Service
Over the last few years, we've walked past Bay Leaf Indian restaurant on W56th St in Manhattan several times. Each time, we promised ourselves that we would stop by at this restaurant one of these days.
Actually a good bit of time passed by before we redeemed our promise to ourselvers to stop by at Bay Leaf for a meal. But we are so glad we finally did.
Located conveniently near Times Square, this cosy Indian restaurant offers a variety of North Indian items.
We liked much of what we ate at Bay Leaf.
Vegetables or meat items, the folks in Bay Leaf's kitchen do seem to care about what they place before diners.
Usually, we are not overly partial to salads. But Bay Leaf's Tandoori Chicken Salad is sui generis, one of a kind. Made from small slices of Tandoori Chicken breasts, fresh greens and vegetables tossed with roasted cumin and vinegar dressing, it makes a fine beginning to a meal. Make sure, you don't miss this yummy appetizer.
Two fairly common vegetable curries Alu Baingan and Mutter Paneer turned out to be tasty delights at Bay Leaf. Unlike at most Indian restaurants, Alu Baingan did not come swimming in a pool of oil. It was well seasoned with a medley of Indian spices as was the Mutter Paneer.
We enjoyed these two vegetable curries with some flavorful pieces of Garlic Naan as well as rice.
On the meat side, Tandoori Chicken and Lamb Pasanda demonstrated the chef's talents yet again. One bite into a chunk of tender Tandoori Chicken was enough to give us a glimpse of Nirvana. Although a little mildly spiced for our tastebuds, the Lamb Pasanda gave no room for complaint.
That Bay Leaf's kitchen wasn't flop-proof was evident by the below average Chicken Curry. With too watery a gravy and not spicy enough for Indian palates, it was a letdown. Ditto with the Dal, which was wholly bland.
But these were exceptions in an otherwise fine meal.
We had no complaints with our desserts Gajar Halwa and Mango Mousse. Made from grated carrots, milk and sugar, Gajar Halwa is a fairly common Indian sweet. Unfortunately, few Indian restaurants in New York manage to get it right. Invariably, it turns out to have a raw smell but rest assured the folks at Bay Leaf do seem to know their Gajar Halwa.
After a cup of nice Masala Chai and a few sips of black coffee, we were at peace with the world.
If there was one jarring note in our meal at Bay Leaf, it was the rather unpleasant "fishy" smell emanating from the direction of the kitchen. Someone should introduce the wonderful invention called room freshner to Bay Leaf's manager.
Our Pakistani waitress Aliya was a friendly and attentive soul throughout the meal although a bit of a chatterbox.
All in all, our meal at Bay Leaf was a delightful experience.
After all, Bay Leaf is a genuine Indian restaurant in Manhattan and not one of those purveyors of misery like Surya, Moksha, Darbar, Utsav, Jewel of India or Simla. - © NYIndia.us
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