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!

R. Rice Wok Grill Sushi in Atlanta

Massaman curry with scallops.

While I was still in Atlanta I was invited to a special tasting at R Rice in Dunwoody. This pan-Asian restaurant's byline: "wok, grill and sushi" understates how huge its menu is - and there truly is something for everyone! The menu contains a variety of traditional and innovative sushi combinations, Japanese, Chinese, and Thai cuisines and even tacos. The location off Hammond Dr. is easy to miss although it's near the corner of Peachtree Dunwoody and Hammond and there is ample parking once you find the right lot.

My overall favorite dishes include the massaman curry (above): a huge portion with good spice and flavor; and the salt and pepper soft shell crab. Get the crab over the calamari - it's something different and it's better. The special sushi rolls we tried were also tasty. R Rice uses some unique sushi wrappers including soybean paper and cucumber, although I love the traditional seaweed wrappers personally. Several in our party tried the cocktails, which came in an array of rainbow colors and were determined to be on sweet end of the spectrum - good for those who enjoy fruity drinks. The fried green tea ice cream was a nice end to the meal - I'm a sucker for green tea ice cream so I knew this would not be a bad choice! If you are in the area, you should give R Rice a try - you will definitely find something you enjoy!

Agedashi tofu.



Salt and Pepper Calamari.



Salt and pepper soft shell crab.



Shumai: steamed shrimp dumplings.



The King and Queens' Crown - king crab with house seasoning and crunchies wrapped in avocado.



Sushi Dinner.



Hawaiian roll.



Tuna Pizza.



Lollipop roll.



Fish Katsu.



Fried green tea ice cream - deliciously sinful!



Bar, dining and kitchen areas in the open restaurant.

Disclosure: The meal described in this review was complimentary.

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.

Thaicoon - Marietta

The Sherlock Holmes Roll - not sure why it is called this but I love this spicy tuna roll topped with more fish and a tiny piece of lemon. Tangy, spicy and delicious!

Recently we dined at Thaicoon in Marietta just before viewing a performance of "The Sound of Music" on Marietta's historic square. This restaurant has a sister located near where I live at the Sage Hill shopping center on Briarcliff Road. For no particular reason, I have not actually had a meal there although I've ordered take out several times. This was a great opportunity to sample the offerings, which are similar at both restaurants. My favorite dishes here include the above fancy sushi roll and the basil duck. The tom yum kung soup was also good. The Panang curry with scallops was too bland for me - one of those instances when the spice stars don't mean a thing - definitely a disappointment after our recent trip to Thailand! Thaicoon was crowded - it was Saturday night - so make a reservation if you're going at a popular time. If you have never tried Thai food this is a great place to start. There is a full Japanese menu available as well including several other creative sushi rolls like the Caribbean Roll, which includes snow crab and shrimp tempura.

Basil Duck - tasty.



Panang Curry with Scallops - not enough spice for me!



Tom Yum Gung - good flavor but not heavily spiced.