11.16.05

Akbar

Posted in Uncategorized at 11:23 pm by trueepicure

My first night in Pasadena was a late one. I got to the airport at 5:30 PM, had the scissors that I forgot to take out of my knitting kit confiscated, waited to board the plane, and then somehow didn’t arrive in Pasadena until 8:30. It was 9:30 when I arrived at the hotel, and I was pooped, but there was a cute boy waiting for me in the lobby.

I met some of E’s coworkers, and chatted with them for a bit before they all headed up to bed. E knows me altogether too well, and suggested Indian food for dinner. I have this obsession with Indian food, thanks to my parents who made it a regular part of our eating out habits in NYC. I was starving because I hadn’t eaten anything since 12 PM or thereabouts, so we headed out pretty quickly, after a change of clothes.

One of the best things about Old Town Pasadena is the fact that you can walk everywhere. We set out from the hotel and were at Akbar in no time at all. I was a bit distracted by all of the different food options along the street, proof that living in Phoenix has renewed my appreciation for good local food. Living in the land of strip malls can do that to a person.

Akbar is kind of trendy. It’s like what I’m used to from NYC, but LA-style. I mostly find all of the foo-foo stuff kind of annoying, but the metal water glasses were kind of cool. In doing research about the restaurant when I got back to Phoenix, I discovered that Akbar is part of a chain, a chain of the modest variety though, not like Starbucks.

I know, I know, you didn’t come here looking for my diatribe on chain restaurants; you want to know how the food was. Well, it was good. Quite good. We got the requisite papadum (lentil wafers) and sauces to start. I would never order it special, but I always enjoy it when it comes to the table. Usually the trio of sauces includes a spicy mint and coriander sauce, tamarind sauce, and a chutney of one sort or another. My favorite of the sauces is the mint/coriander. Strangely, this trio included what appeared to be pico de gallo, rather than Indian chutney. I didn’t try it, and E said it wasn’t that great. No big loss.

Like I said, I was really hungry, so we kind of went crazy on food. I ordered the Mint Chicken Kabob (large chunks of white meat chicken, marinated in what appeared to be a yogurt-y version of the papadum topping, cooked in a tandoor), E had lamb… Lamb Saag, I think, and we ordered lentil dal, vegetable rice, and garlic naan to share.

The chicken was sooooo good. It was like the mint/coriander sauce all over and inside the chicken. YUM! I don’t like lamb except in certain situations, so I didn’t try that, but I was told that it was good. The dal was excellent - not runny like it sometimes is. I had to order plain rice after the veggie rice arrived. The veggie rice looked good, but it had corn in it. Neither of us even thought to ask. Corn in rice? Oh well. The plain rice was perfect- just rice and a little bit of fennel seed. No peas (thank goodness)! The naan rocked - LOTS of fresh garlic and a little bit of parsley. I just wish they provided more than one piece per order.

I will definitely go to Akbar again. The service wasn’t particularly good, but it was clean (as opposed to the last place in Phoenix that we went), and the food was good. Go, check it out. Let me know what you think.

Akbar Indian Cuisine
44 N Fair Oaks Ave
Pasadena, CA 91103
(626) 577-9916

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