July 22, 2009
Saravana Bhavan
81 Lexington Avenue (at 26th St)
212.684.7755
5/5
$21 (for two people) – Kaima Idli & Bisibelabath
This place is all about managing expectations. It is NOT an upscale Indian restaurant. It’s a place where Indians come to dine (that was just to make a point – on my visits here I’ve seen lots of different kinda people). There might be people who eat with their hands and betray all etiquette you've learned about dining. The waiters are not trained in any kind of hospitality management and the concept of customer service is non-existent. There are a bunch of servers around – they aren’t assigned to any particular tables and just try to help out as they see appropriate. With that said, I didn’t find them particularly rude – I’d give them the benefit of ignorance. We got there, picked our own seats, and just as we were looking through the first page of the menu, within a span of five minutes, three different waiters asked us if we were ready to order. By the time the third guy came around, we knew we wanted the Kaima Idli, so we ordered that and a fourth guy eventually helped us with our main course, the Bisebelabath. About five minutes later, the Bisibelabath was sitting in front of us. Thought of complaining because we hadn’t yet gotten our appetizer, but decided against it reflecting on the many Indian restaurants that I’ve been to where the concept of three course meal is mythical. On to the food – the Bisibelabath was awesome! A perfect medley of rice, spices, vegetables and what seemed like sambhar. ‘Twas marginally spicy, but the flavors meshed together very well. Even though it felt like it wasn't cooked after we ordered, it tasted really fresh and was delicious! At least that’s what I thought until the Kaima Idli finally arrived; little pieces of fried Idli (steamed South Indian dumplings made with rice and lentils) with onions and spices served with raita(yogurt). Definitely spicy, even by Indian standards, but was delizioso..! Can’t wait to go back!
This place is all about managing expectations. It is NOT an upscale Indian restaurant. It’s a place where Indians come to dine (that was just to make a point – on my visits here I’ve seen lots of different kinda people). There might be people who eat with their hands and betray all etiquette you've learned about dining. The waiters are not trained in any kind of hospitality management and the concept of customer service is non-existent. There are a bunch of servers around – they aren’t assigned to any particular tables and just try to help out as they see appropriate. With that said, I didn’t find them particularly rude – I’d give them the benefit of ignorance. We got there, picked our own seats, and just as we were looking through the first page of the menu, within a span of five minutes, three different waiters asked us if we were ready to order. By the time the third guy came around, we knew we wanted the Kaima Idli, so we ordered that and a fourth guy eventually helped us with our main course, the Bisebelabath. About five minutes later, the Bisibelabath was sitting in front of us. Thought of complaining because we hadn’t yet gotten our appetizer, but decided against it reflecting on the many Indian restaurants that I’ve been to where the concept of three course meal is mythical. On to the food – the Bisibelabath was awesome! A perfect medley of rice, spices, vegetables and what seemed like sambhar. ‘Twas marginally spicy, but the flavors meshed together very well. Even though it felt like it wasn't cooked after we ordered, it tasted really fresh and was delicious! At least that’s what I thought until the Kaima Idli finally arrived; little pieces of fried Idli (steamed South Indian dumplings made with rice and lentils) with onions and spices served with raita(yogurt). Definitely spicy, even by Indian standards, but was delizioso..! Can’t wait to go back!
Service could use a total makeover, but with the food so delicious I’d tolerate having to wait a bit for my water to be refilled!
Addendum: July 23rd 2009
Couldn’t resist and went back the next day for some more Kaima Idli. Was awesome as it was the day before!! Also ordered a Kara Dosa – a crispy dosa with a thin layer of mashed potatoes and spices. Was decent, but the sambhar was quite bad. This time around we decided to try some dessert and order the badam halva. Was served hot but tasted like it was doused with twice the amount of sugar. Couldn’t eat more than a spoon and left it untouched. To my surprise the server asked us if we didn’t like it and proceeded to take it off the check! Did not expect this level of service! He mentioned that a bunch of people had complained about the halva – which begs the question, why serve it again to begin with? – but either way, my ultra low expectations were catered to. I’ll definitely be coming back for more Idli!
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