Rahi by Roni Mazumdar Inaugural Review Our Coverage Sponsored by Fresh Origins
Our friend Roni Mazumdar, Owner of Rahi
Mahi Mahi Fish and Chips, where have you been all our life?
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In life before Whom You Know, sometimes people who are far less fussy and discriminating thought Peachy noticed far too many details and was way too critical.
Clearly there is a market for these skills, and she has found a way to make them work for her and we are thrilled you enjoy them.
We noticed everything before, but we really notice everything now.
When we arrived at Rahi, we noticed straightaway how clean it was and how great the staff is (rare, especially for a new spot) and we like the diversity in including an Italian manager at an Indian restaurant-smart move, as you can see from reading us, the Italians for the most part totally know what they are doing. As you know we are even into the lighting fixtures (know anyone else that writes on restaurants that also writes on chandeliers?) and we liked those too. It is essential to have great lighting so we can see our food (do not put us at a candlelight dinner please) and it is even better when the lighting is beautiful (see Marcony, many times).
What on earth is this? Is Peachy starting to eat surfboards this summer?
No, silly. Rahi presents local dishes from India created by local ingredients: produce is from New York. Rahi means a traveler/gypsy and is understood to be a young girl traveling through India discovering her heritage Roni tells us. And, by the way we have known him on Facebook for years and we are friends there, but this is the first time we've worked with him. Spices are ground on premises every few days at Rahi, and Roni is incredibly detail-oriented also. Rahi opened on May 17, 2017 and is one of Manhattan's newest hot spots that actually is high quality, not just another trend or pretty face that will come and go.
So, we're not eating surfboards although our taste buds did hang ten.
Meet Kheera on the Rocks. We shall explain, as we had no idea either. As this dish is presented to you, you'll be totally wowed by the dry ice, which is also a nice cool way to enjoy yourself this time of year. We bet you have never had grilled cucumber before either, and that is what a Kheera is. Chaat masala and corander spice this up with a balance of yogurt and dehydrated pineapple. This dish is refreshing and highly creative. Rahi is one of the most aesthetically-motivated new spots we've seen.
The best dish you absolutely must try by ten miles at Rahi is the Koliwada Fish n Chips. It is made with catch of the day, and when we visited it was Mahi Mahi. WE LOVE MAHI MAHI and it should be on far more Manhattan menus than we see it on. Peachy mostly has eaten it in Florida. The mustard aioli was to-die-for and local yam fries rounded out the winner. They even put microgreens on the fish and chips. We would eat this every day if we could. Every bite of succulent flakiness was divinity on a plate and you are going to love it.
It says cheese and smiles at you, before diving into:
Do not share! You will want them all to yourself.
They will make your dining companion another one.
Another appetizer we tried was the Chorizo Seekh: farm-raised pork, pepperjack cheese, and berry compote (our favorite). These flavors married well and it's a good choice.
Another intelligent flavor combination choice results in Tulsi Chicken: basil, Thai chili, pink peppercorn and orange marmalade put a glorious spin on chicken, that can be quite boring. Every appetizer we tried was not at all boring.
Meet Edamame Artichoke Chaat! For someone that does not touch edamame on purpose (it's way up there with tofu on not wanted list), Peachy truly enjoyed this dish. After the fish and chips, it had the most stars she made on the menu. (You should know that places that are ok, good, positive may not have any stars at all on the menu, so we do hope Rahi keeps this up.) Spinach chips, tamarind and fantastic dots of pomegranate make this a splendid endeavor for your palate.
If you are an Indian restaurant, you may not pass go and collect $200 without feeding the Garlic Naan monster. We also tried the Booti Wali Naan: with zaatar. Garlic is still our favorite.
Peachy adores lobster and the Butter Pepper Lobster is a rare find at an Indian restaurant. Lobster tail, tellicherry peppers imported from India and semolina cake (adds texture) was phenomenally gorgeous. The lobster was succulent and exactly what we are looking for. We would feature many more seafood restaurants but Manhattan is not exactly a beach town.
Seasonal saag of mustard green and spinach was delicious and nutritious and you should absolutely include this side. Feta is on top but we liked the greens. The kidney bean shape reminded us of diving in a pool.
Now, open sesame:
Initially you'll think maybe you are at the Flintstones, but when you open up the Banana Leaf Chicken, the bone-in chicken leg with Basmati rice and fabulous Kerala coconut curry is all yabba-dabba-doo on your tastebuds.
If you thought chicken and rice was dull, you clearly don't know our friend Roni yet. We cannot remember ever being so impressed with this dish.
In dessert, if you like cheesecake, fried dessert/donuts/fritters or mousse, they have them here. We liked the chocolate cake part of the chocolate mousse.
The first visit was positive so we look forward to seeing what Roni does next.
