India Clay Oven

Photo by Patrick

India Clay Oven, Dinner, Outer Richmond
April 27, 2016

P&J:
Mattar Paneer - green peas and homemade cheese cooked with spicy gravy
Vegetable Korma - fresh-cut vegetables, cooked in creamy sauce with almonds, nuts and raisins
Chicken Tikka Masala - clay oven roasted chicken in spicy sauce
Raita - homemade yogurt with carrot and spices


Notes:
Here we are at another neighborhood spot.  It's a pretty sizable space, but almost always empty when we walk by.  I generally think of that sort of thing as a sign (and avoid), but we wanted Indian food, dammit!

So, I have a thing I always order (Mattar Paneer) and Patrick has a thing that he always orders (Chicken Tikka Masala).  We rounded the meal out with the Vegetable Korma, an unexpected favorite of Patrick's but something I hadn't tried before, and the Raita, a yogurt condiment of sorts that I consider a requirement with Indian food.

I'm going to get ahead of things and say that we don't know what good Indian food should be.  I say that because I'm pretty sure we've had good Indian food, and I'm pretty sure we've had much better Indian food than this, but I'm also pretty sure we didn't think the food here was that bad.

Sure, the tandoori chicken in the tikka masala was cooked to death, but we don't know much better, and Patrick enjoyed the sauce with his naan.  The paneer was rubbery, but not uncommonly so in my experience, though I can say with certainty the sauce was much less flavorful than I've had at other restaurants.  The korma tasted of over-reduced cream, but we still ate most of it.  And, the raita was too thin and not very flavorful, but it provided the cool tang I love so much.

Then again, I haven't yet mentioned the off-putting aroma of pine-scented cleaning products wafting throughout the restaurant.  And yes, afterwards (unfortunately) we learned of their low scores with the Health Department (which may have explained the pine products).  And no, I didn't want to eat the leftovers once I this found out, even though I was happy enough to take them home in the first place.


I guess all I can say is that this experience has inspired me to find good Indian food in the Bay Area, because I really do love the cuisine, and I know it's out there, somewhere.