Your Call - Tarka

A few weeks back when I wrote about a less than stellar dinner at Taj Mahal, a commenter suggested we head out to Tarka to satisfy our curry craving. Relying upon the recommendation of this Decayed Gentlewoman, The Folk Singer and I ventured out to this purveyor of Indian & Pakistani cuisine on Williams Boulevard.

My prior experience with Pakistani cuisine was nonexistent, and because we set out on this adventure specifically seeking out samosas and the like, we did not sample much of the Pakistani offerings on the menu. But if you trust the opinion of Ian McNulty (as we usually do), then perhaps you are better off thinking outside the tandoori box.

Instead, we stuck to what we knew best and ordered several our favorite Indian dishes. The meal starts with two complimentary chutneys: tamarind and a mint version which surprisingly had quite a bit of heat. Naan had a nice firm crust on the outside, but the samosas missed the mark with an unfortunately doughy pastry. We asked for raita with our appetizers, but the waitress said that they were out. Hmmm, OK. We improvised with a dish of plain yogurt augmented by the spicy mint chutney, which created a suitable stand in.

Our entrees were rather disappointing as well. Palak (a/k/a Saag) Paneer had a wonderfully light texture, but the chef must have forgotten to salt the spinach while cooking. The opposite was the case with the Lamb Boti, whose tandoori cooked morsels were dry and tasted like they had been covered in garlic salt. The Folk Singer's Chicken Makhni had a tomato-butter cream sauce which had broken into a bland base covered in a sheen of ghee. In short, where we expected flavorful sauces and spices, they just were not there.

So, not a good first impression made by Tarka. We will certainly give it another shot, probably on the weekend when the Pakistani beef specials are available. If I am ever in the area during lunch, I'll probably stop in at the buffet in order to sample a wider spectrum of the menu.

But for now at least, the search continues...