Enak! Lunch at Tasty Chapathi serving North Indian food.
Date : Thursday 12th May, 2022
As a new Enaker! I dragged my husband Paul along as my guest and we managed to navigate the tricky roads of Jalan Ipoh to find the restaurant thanks to the detailed written directions from Michelle and Vicki. The building where the restaurant is located is called Viva Residency and it had a spacious visitors’ carpark that uses a Touch and Go card for payment.The ‘Tasty Chapathi’ restaurant is on a ground floor shop lot and is air-conditioned, with the reception right next to the door. The staff were helpful, and we were guided to the private room where our lunch was to be served.
It was marvelous to meet the lovely ladies of Enak! who were present, and we quickly made friends and excitedly discussed the menu. The menu gave a clear description of the vegetarian dishes we were going to have today.
Nisha did a quick introduction of the type of food we were going to have and the various items on the menu which we might have tried before especially the Saag which turned out to be a familiar minced spinach dish.
The Hara Bhara Kebab arrived first with two dipping sauces. The green sauce had a lovely minty- green chili taste and the white dip most probably had a yogurt base. The kebabs were delicious and had a texture and taste very similar to a falafel.
The Paneer Tikka (Paneer is a type of Indian cheese) was served with the same dip as the kebab. These grilled cheese triangles were a favorite at our table and although we felt that the portions were rather small everyone had a chance to try a piece. This dish was marinated in spices and had the firmness and texture of chicken breast. This was Paul’s favorite dish on the menu.
After the two starters were finished, the rest of the dishes arrived.
The Tandoor Roti was cut up into triangles and everyone got a chapati each.
Both breads were soft and warm to the touch. They went well with the gravy dishes especially the Dhal Tadka which was a blend of yellow lentils in turmeric spices.
The Mushroom masala was spicy and hot with a good portion of mushrooms in the gravy mix. It did have a bit of a bite and had my ears ringing after a while thanks to the heat from the chilies in the dish.
The Baingan Bartha was a dish of mashed eggplant minced with lots of onion. The onion flavor dominated the dish which was not a favorite of mine.
The classic Indian dish of cooked spinach ‘Saag’ was sublime and went well with all the breads and rice dishes.
I really enjoyed this dish and would be interested in getting the recipe from the chef. It had a rich heavy flavor, and I am guessing there was cream added to it.
Some of the Enakers did discuss the merits of ‘Saag’ as it was or ‘Saag Paneer’ which is a similar dish but studded with cubes of fried Indian cheese.
One of the last items to arrive was the steamed white rice and we quickly finished as it with the mushroom masala and the dhall. The Dahi which is a thick, sour yoghurt was refreshing, and we used it to chill the heat from the other dishes.
We were in a private room that could seat the 20 of us but there were some drawbacks. The room was literately an echo chamber and with all of us talking at once it was rather difficult to hold a conversation as we couldn’t hear one another speak. At some point during the lunch, we realized that the air was cooler in the main restaurant and so we had to request for the two air-conditioners to be switched on.
Our dessert arrived soon after the waiting staff at the ‘Tasty Chapathi’ cleared out tables.
The Kulfi ice- cream came in two colours, a pistachio green and a milky white. It was a delicious, cooling end to a lovely lunch.
If you are looking to try North Indian food, the ‘Tasty Chapathi’ is a good place to start. There is a proper carpark for visitors and ample space for everyone. The staff are helpful and the food though a little spicy, a good introduction to Mughlai cuisine.
Santhi Moine