Madras Chettinaad

Chicken tikka masala (left) and saag (spinach) paneer.

After hearing about Madras Chettinaad for years from my former yoga instructor in Atlanta, two of us from the office went with Elizabeth, our fabulous yogini, for dinner just before I moved to Charlotte. After the hour plus drive I was ravenous and luckily, Madras Chettinaad came through in a big way. We started with samosas, which I always love - but here they were truly outstanding, flaky, not at all greasy and filled with spiced potato goodness. I adore the tamarind and mint sauces served on the side - so delicious!

For the main course we shared a special dosa, chicken tikka masala and saag paneer along with an order of garlic naan. I really like how Madras Chettinaad serves great veggie and meat dishes. Their focus is on Chettinaad cuisine, which originates from a region of the Tamil Nadu state in India. This means there are tons of great vegetarian curries and dosas as well as meat dishes, all perfectly spiced. Everything we tried was fantastic, with good flavor, but not so spicy that the taste was overpowered. The chicken tikka masala was a particularly tasty rendition. I'm told that the weekend buffet here is something to behold. Although I'm not likely to be in Alpharetta again anytime soon since our move to NC, it is definitely worth an extra special trek to try this place. Thank you Elizabeth for introducing me to this great Indian restaurant!

Samosas - perfectly fried with very little grease.

Special Dosa with chutneys and dipping sauce.

Garlic Naan. Buttery, garlicky and delicious!

Cardamom Hill - Atlanta

Shrimp Molee appetizer.

Just before leaving Atlanta I had met up with fellow food blogger Malika of Atlanta Restaurant Blog at Cardamom Hill for dinner. The location of this new Indian restaurant which focuses on owner Asha Gomez's native Kerala region is convenient, right off I-75 on Howell Mill and once you are inside it is easy to forget you are in a nondescript strip-mall. Cardamom Hill offers set lunch menus, which change daily and has a full a la carte dinner menu as well. A small bar welcomes patrons near the front of the restaurant.

Service was prompt - in some ways a little too rushed; it was clear the server was ready for us to move along so that he could have another table. This irked me for a place that is so expensive. Nevertheless I found the food interesting and for the most part delicious. Still, several improvements could be made.

The shrimp molee appetizer and the entree vegetable plate were my favorite items that we tried. However, it was difficult to know how to eat the shrimp molee dish - it begged for more appams (steamed rice cakes) or rice for the delicious sauce. The duck and plantain croquettes came in a tiny portion and were ho-hum except for the one piece of dried fig, disappointing after hearing a lot about them. As mentioned the vegetable plate was truly outstanding, with flavors that complemented each other in a satisfying way. The spicy fish curry was spicy, which I like, but the flavor was almost lost in the spiciness and again the portion was quite small for the charge. In my opinion Cardamom Hill needs to work on appetizers fit for sharing and should be a bit more generous with portions; alternatively they could lower their prices.

Duck and plantain croquettes.



Vegetable Plate - my favorite thing - lots of great flavors.



Spicy fish curry, quite spicy and a bit oily.

Birthday Party with Delicious Indian Food

Delicious Indian and Indo-Chinese food from Chopaati in Decatur. As you can see they cater!

Our friends' baby turned one in August and we were invited to share in the festivities. In addition to hanging out with more one year olds than I've ever seen at the same time in one room, we enjoyed a delicious Indian/Indo-Chinese lunch with food catered from Chopaati. I definitely look forward to going to this place and recommend it if you are looking for Indian food catering.

We also enjoyed watching the birthday girl tear into this special cake made just for her. So cute and fun to be included in this family's special day.

Palo Alto Farmer's Market and Half Moon Bay

Blowing in the wind at Half Moon Bay.

While in California we also checked out Half Moon Bay and visited the Palo Alto Farmer's Market. The market is full of fresh foods, delicious prepared items and my favorite: free samples.

Making naan at the Palo Alto Farmer's Market.

Pear & Chocolate Crepe with Whipped Cream.

Rotisserie chickens at the market.

Canada O' Canada - May Toronto Trip

Pure bliss - a Toronto Hot Dog from the cart - with fries.

Back in May Calvin and I traveled to Toronto for a wonderful extended weekend for a family wedding. We stayed at the awesome Fairmont Royal York Hotel, which reminded me of what I think it would have been like to stay on The Titanic. The wedding was held at the hotel and was gorgeous. See below for a photo-log.

Shabbat Dinner at our cousin's house.



St. Lawrence Market goodness: St. Urbain Bagel. These bagels are nothing like what we get in the south: warm, chewy, with a very unique taste - there's really nothing like it!

Indian Buffet in India town.





Delicious Naan.

Greek dips at the night-before-the-wedding dinner.





Greek Salad.



Chicken kabob.

Restaurant atop the famous CN Tower.

Frittata.



Quiche with salad and sweet potato fries.



Fish from the lake!



Salmon - not from the lake!



Chocolate mousse.



The family at brunch, high up in the sky.

Fabulous dessert at the wedding dinner.



Famous ice cream shop.



We tried roasted marshmallow, sweet cream, cardamom and lemon merigue.

BEFORE



AFTER

Salt and Pepper Calamari.

Crepe and croissant-wich at a cute place near our hotel - can't remember the name!

Omelet and toast with fruit.

Awesome Homemade Indian Meal

Spicy chickpeas.

A couple of weeks ago a friend invited me over for homemade Indian food. Everything she prepared was delicious, with just the right amount of spice. I also tried vadas (below) for the first time. I would like to learn to cook more Indian food as it's one of my favorite cuisines.

Vada.

Potato & Cauliflower dish.