by Susan Bryan
The word "darbar" means "royal court" in Punjabi. It's an appropriate name for Palo Alto's newest Indian restaurant, because you can eat there like a king while being treated like a prince. Generosity is Darbar's hallmark. Piping hot potato fritters arrive free of charge while you're reading the menu. (If you like these thick-sliced potato chips, order mixed bhajias and you'll get a basket of fried tidbits for $5.50. Ours held thin eggplant slices, small florets of cauliflower, clumps of onion slivers, more potatoes and one very hot whole chili.)
Service is generous, too. During one lunch, I asked when the next batch of chicken pakoras would be added to the buffet. Instead of telling me when to serve myself, the waiter presented me with a plate full of hot pakoras straight from the kitchen.
The lunch buffet at Darbar ($7) is a real bargain, with more than two dozen items to choose from. Main dishes change daily, but there are always four vegetarian and four meat entrees. The trimmings include buttery rice, creamy lentils, two soups, puffy white nan bread, wafer-crisp dosas, three chutneys, salsa, orange wedges, green salad, raita and dessert. Depending on the chef's whim, you get either chicken pakoras or the vegetarian onion version. All are lightly coated with a thin gram flour batter that fries up more moist than crunchy.
On the buffet line, each vegetarian dish I sampled was distinctly different from the others. Soft garbanzos rolled through a thin onion-tomato sauce. A thicker, chili-spiked tomato sauce blurred the distinction between turnips, sweet potatoes and onions in the vegetable medley. Fuzzy, firm okra pods stood their ground against cilantro, tomato, and chili. And classic mattar paneer, or peas with bland white cheese cubes, rounded out the quartet of vegetarian choices.
The three chicken dishes on the buffet were just as distinctive. From rich butter chicken in mild tomato sauce, the heat level rose to a classic yellow chicken curry, and then escalated to unusually spicy tandoori chicken. The lamb dish that day was biriani, or lamb cubes in a saffron rice casserole flavored with coconut milk and studded with soft cashews.
At dinner, thali dinners are the bargains. The non-vegetarian version is almost big enough for two ($15). There's buttery rice, dal, raita, chutneys and dessert. Bread is limited to a thin papad cracker, a large lacy circle made of lentil flour that tastes like beans. But you get freshly made sour lemon pickle, three crunchy onion fritters and a cone-shaped fried pie, or samosa, filled with ground lamb, cashews, cumin, raisins, and chili. The three main dishes are all heavy on tomato. There's spicy lamb tomato curry, mild butter chicken in velvety smooth tomato sauce, and deep-fried cheese balls under a piquant sweet-sour tomato sauce with crunchy cashews and raisins.
The vegetarian thali dinner features all the same trimmings. But the main dishes are mixed vegetable curry, creamed spinach with farmer's cheese, and fried yellow lentil patties ($11.75).
All the dishes on the buffet and combination dinners can be ordered a la carte. Each comes with rice, nan, dal and yogurt raita. Butter chicken, for instance, is $11, while lamb curry is $12. All vegetarian offerings go for $9.
Ordering dishes I hadn't tried on the buffet or thali dinner proved a gamble. Neither vegetarian nor meat dishes were prepared with the finesse of the daily offerings. Creamy spinach and potatoes, or aloo palak, was highly charged with cardamom ($9). Lamb vindaloo was fiery hot but saturated with clove ($12). Fresh cod cooked in the tandoori oven was not the least bit fishy, but a salty ginger/garlic sauce overwhelmed the moist white meat ($12).
The only outstanding a la carte dish I tried was a south Indian specialty: kheema masala dosa. This slightly sour lentil crepe filled with spicy ground lamb tasted like an exotic version of a hamburger. The lamb filling is flavored with tomato and mustard. But tiny lentils, green peas and cashew nuts add interesting tastes and textures. And the thin, wafer-crisp dosa has a sour note to its credit. Together it all wraps up to a very satisfying meal, especially with chutneys and sambar soup added ($7).
Unlike other Indian restaurants in the area, Darbar does not cater to America's sweet tooth. The chutneys are savory, whether the main ingredient is coconut, cilantro or mango. The chai tea is mild, milky, and comforting. And if you finish everything on your plate, your server may offer you a second helping. A Moghul emperor couldn't ask for more.
Darbar Indian Cuisine, 129 Lytton Ave., Palo Alto, 321-6688
Hours: Lunch Monday-Friday 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m., dinner Sunday-Wednesday 5-9:30 p.m., Thursday-Saturday 5-10 p.m.
Atmosphere: Monet posters on white walls, red-rimmed plates on red paper mats
Highlights: Kheema masala dosa, thali dinners, lunch buffet
About the owners: When Pargat Singh left his life as a farmer in India, he signed up for a cook's job on a Greek cruise ship. Ten years ago, he immigrated to the United States. He washed dishes, cooked at various restaurants, then finally made manager at Sue's Kitchen in Mountain View. To finance his own restaurant, Singh and his wife Sukhwinder Karu went into partnership with Singh's brother Dara and his friend Ajid Ahluwalia. Although Singh is from the Punjab in northern India, Darbar mixes northern and southern Indian cooking. "I change the style of each dish a little," says Singh. "There is no coconut in north Indian food, but I put a little coconut in my curry just for a little bit of different taste."
reservations: yes
credit cards: yes
parking: no
wine and beer only: yes
takeout: yes
banquet: yes
wheelchair access: yes
non-smoking: yes
highchairs: yes
outdoor seating:no
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