A Tiny Bites dinner date at Ashiana Tandoori Restaurant
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Karen Hamilton
November 16, 2008
It was a dark and stormy night*—the whole week was miserable, in fact—and the hideous turn in weather prompted last-minute cancellations leading up to the dinner plans that I was so eagerly anticipating. My attempt to place a cap on number of attendees consequently backfired. Instead of a merry group of 8, numbers dwindled down to 5, and we scampered into Ashiana Tandoori Restaurant, shivering, pelted with rain, stomachs growling for something cheering and warm.
The pink neon lights that usually lit up the storefront were dark as we entered the foyer, and we were ushered to a corner table in an elegant, largish, but mostly empty restaurant. We were the sole diners in our section of the establishment. Through the spire-shaped portals from my seat, I spied a family of four dining in solitary in the middle of the room, nearly ready to set off for home.
I was disheartened by the atmosphere, knowing that this place is often let out for grand Indian weddings and should have been abuzz with people. Perhaps it was an off night, the gloom of the day having scared away regular patrons. Perhaps, as reported by my guests, the storefront was invisible from the street, and those that would have otherwise chosen to dine at Ashiana passed by its dim doors, assuming they were closed for the evening.
Our group was nonetheless revved up at the prospect of investigating Ashiana’s array of dishes, so we quickly opened our menus and targeted the items that held the greatest communal appeal: garlic naan, the mixed grill of tandoori, prawn makhani, lamb rogan josh, bhindi for the okra lovers, and chawal-e-khas (basmati rice cooked with onions, peas, and mild spices).
The highlight of our meal was easily the prawn makhani, which is a seafood variant of the ubiquitous butter chicken. The candy sweetness and the vibrancy of colour were muted in Ashiana’s rendition, and the ribbon of cream that usually snakes through the makhanis I’ve had was not present, but it made the dish more real to me—that I had been catered to by the parent of a family friend than by a food court kiosk. The prawns were a refreshing element. I’ve never held stewed chicken in much esteem, and I usually sop up the sauce and avoid the meat when eating butter chicken, but this time, I made sure to grab my share of crustacean before zealous mouths assumed my disinterest.
Other courses were adequately toothsome. The rogan josh was a new dish to us all, and while we savoured its gentle heat and tender chunks of lamb, we mused rather inanely whether Seth Rog(e)n and Josh Groban may have had a fusion of sorts. The garlic naan was plump and a delight to chew into but devoid of the garlic that purportedly permeated the dough. The table enjoyed the tandoori platter despite the meats being somewhat sapped of moisture. I was most disappointed in the bhindi, being an avid supporter of all things okra, as the vegetable retained too much of a bitter edge and was too slimy for most of us to enjoy.
Halfway into our meal, a party of over a dozen SFU students were seated nearby, exponentially uplifting the vivacity of our corner of the restaurant. One fellow at the new table had attended the August dinner date at Cobre. He accommodated our request for a group photo and acquiesced to my documentation of a few of the dishes that their group had ordered.
Our table continued to deplete our food stores while discussing overall impressions of the fare and the restaurant. The cuisine was good; not great, not memorable, and not enough for me to personally tear myself away from my coccoon of downtown dining. Surroundings were beautiful albeit a little lonely that evening, and I seriously debated leaving a generous tip in exchange for sneaking home some of their gorgeously bronzed dishware. I suggest that you try Ashiana if you are ever in the neighbourhood with a hankering for Indian food, and let me know whether you feel the same way.
Ashiana Tandoori Restaurant
1440 Kingsway | Vancouver
(604) 874-5060
*I’ve always wanted to start a story with this line!
Categories: Events, Food, Kensington, Restaurants
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Articles by Karen Hamilton
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Hi Karen, good meeting you the other night at crazy hat bowling!
I’ve been to Ashiana once and my opinion is pretty much in-line with yours– the food isn’t good enough to merit the inconvenient location (and plus, they were building a new crosswalk right outside of the restaurant, effectively cutting off access altogether). I think the only reason it was even on the radar was because they had a continuous 20% off coupon in the entertainment book. Oh, and plus it was close to my ex’s house.
But I agree, Ashiana Tandoori doesn’t do itself any favours– after hoping over the gaping holes left by our wonderful city construction team, I wasn’t sure if the restaurant was actually open or not.
~Cecilia
My stomach is grumbling for some good indian food right about now.
As much as I would love to dive into a meal right now, I wont be able to partake in any such indulgences for the next month. I’m trying to cleanse my system and build a healthier lifestyle by going on a raw food diet.
oh my…. so hungry. haha