Dinner at Spice Xing, Rockville, MD

I had one of the best Indian dinners I've had in the MidAtlantic region at Spice Xing in Rockville, MD, courtesy of Chef Sudhir Seth.
We started with Mirchi Paratha, a version that was whole wheat and had a strong spicy kick to it. Fortunately, you could cool it down with some Raita.
We were then served a platter with various appetizers. There was a little salad and some chili cheese toasts. (Indian pizza?)
I liked the vegetable cutless which was red inside from beets. There was Lamb Seekh Kabab and some spicy Tandoori Chicken wings.

I loved the Kathi Roll, chicken with onions and peppers wrapped in Indian bread. It would be a perfect companion to the gyro/kebob as a late night snack.





After appetizers, we were presented with our plates for dinner, already loaded with basmati rice and veggies. The revelation for me was the Methi Chaman. Imagine the spinach loaded Saag Paneer with mustard seed. The flavor is completely different, and so much more subtle. We also had Gobhi Simla Mirchi, a nice cauliflower dish.











We got four different main dishes.
My favorite was the Salli Boti Jardaloo, a sweet and savory lamb stew that had apricots.
We also had the Indo-Chinese "Chili Chicken" and the Nariyal Shrimp Curry.
I also enjoyed the Masala Baked Fish which came out piping hot in a cast iron skillet.

Chef Seth's lentil dish, the Dal Makhni was also fantastic. One of my dinnermates talked with the staff and found out the lentils are roasted beforehand to give a different flavor.




For dessert, we had the Rasmalai, saffron flavored poached cheese dumplings, and the Gajar Halwa, a carrot rice pudding. Needless to say, I was completely stuffed after this fantastic and memorable meal. We were finished off with a piece of Tandoori roasted pineapple.

100-B, Gibbs Street
Rockville MD 20850
(301)610-0303

Moksha, Edison, NJ

We went up to Edison, which is the Little India of New Jersey. We ate at Moksha on the famous Oak Tree Road.

We started off with the Thenga Manga Pattani Sundal (Mango & Peas Salad), which was recommended by NY Times NJ critic Karla Cook. It was kind of bland and tasted too healthy for my taste. The complimentary poppadums and chutney were a much better starter.

Our main dishes took forever to come out. Brownie's husband wasn't happy with his Kodi Vepudu (Chicken cubes in spicy dry masala), but the rest of us really liked it. The restaurant was kind enough to make him something else and let the rest of us keep and eat the first dish without charging us.

Our favorite all around was the Iguru Mamsam (Lamb Hot Pot). By the end we were sopping up the sauce with leftover bits of naan. We also got Sukka Bendakkai (Okra Crispy Fry), which was pretty good as far as okra goes - not slimy at least -- and Guthi Vonkaiya Koora (Baby Eggplant with Sesame).

The dosa, however, was disappointing. Our Khara Dosai was small, and the pancake wasn't crispy. I prefered the Idiappam (String hoppers made of rice dough). These were like Vietnamese bun noodles, and I liked them with the lamb sauce over them, instead of rice.

Moksha
1655-200 Oak Tree Road
Edison, NJ
732-947-3010

Dosa Grill, North Brunswick, NJ

Located in a teeny blink-and-you'll-miss-it strip mall on Route 27, Dosa Grill is a favorite of Brownie's. Strictly vegetarian and South Indian, the menu has 25 different dosas and 8 different types of the dosa's thicker cousin uthappam.

Pictured above and to the right, is the the old standby Masala Dosa, served with sambar (a spiced broth), a garlicky tomatoey chutney, and coconut sauce.



















We also got Pesaratu with Uppuma, (pictured above and right) a green gram dhal pancake with a filling described as "cream of wheat with vegetables." The filling was nice and thick and creamy like polenta, but with the mild cream of wheat rather than corn flavor.

We also ordered the Dinner Thali (pictured below), an assortment of dishes which included a dhal, a channa masala, two flavors of sambar, a sweet beet dish, and a savory beet dish, along with rice and a chappathi.

I think we were the only non-Indian people in the restaurant that night - always a good sign. I will definitely be back.

Dosa Grill
1980 Route 27
North Brunswick, NJ 08902
732-422-6800

Dosa from Passage to India, Lawrenceville NJ

So they aren't the best dosas (or is the plural dosai?) I've ever had, but they're the closest geographically. And sometimes, you just have a craving for that starch overdose known as a dosa. Potatoes and spices wrapped in a pancake made from lentil flour. My friend brownie94 and I are partial to the extra-spicy Mysore Masala dosa. On this evening we got the usual Mysore Masala (above), and a Mysore Uttapam (below). With the uttapam the ingredients are mixed into the batter and formed into a thicker pancake. I read that the batter is made of bean flour and rice. It reminds me of an Indian version of okonomiyaki, the Osaka specialty, or Korean pajon.