Tabla for 3
Swimster flew in from California, returning from his long winter break, and we were set to celebrate with a fun dinner and drinks. We also had another reason to celebrate. Swimster's friend from Switzerland just moved to the Big Apple on assignment with CSFB. And we decided to include MoritzJunge in our plans.
Unfortunately, the night got off to a late start as Swimster had some shuttle confusion at the airport. I'm used to it. As my dad says, I'm a magnet for travel mishaps. Anything that could go wrong usually does: fearing for life on bumpier than bumpy rides, missing connecting flights, missing flights, losing luggage, luggage taking detours, missing shuttle vans, losing wallets, leaving bags on rental car shuttles, showing up at American terminals when flying United, and vice versa. It's pretty pathetic actually. Needless to say, nothing that happens in travel is unfamiliar to me.
The night got off to a slow start at around 9:45p.m. when Swimster and I finally moseyed out of his apartment and headed west. Much to my surprise, the city that "never sleeps" seemed to be passed out and snoring. Restaurants were either closed or not serving anymore. I mean, granted it was a school night, but come on! I know L'Express has an all-night food policy, but I've eaten there before and wanted to hop on L'Express train outta there. When we ended up in the Madison Square Park area we thought Eleven Madison or Tabla. Eleven Madison was a little fancy for that late. I ate at Tabla several years ago on a $150 gift certificate I won in a raffle (imagine that), and preferred to try a new place; but at 10:20 their naan was calling, "Mona, Mona..."
Tabla speaks for itself. When you walk in it's hard not to be overwhelmed by the beauty of its spiraling staircase, richly etched wood, criss-crossed beam ceiling in the Bread Bar, and the lavish green walls. As I was off in Tablaland taking it all in, the hostess brought me back to earth with a "Hello, can I help you?" I was happy to learn the Bread Bar was still serving food and would be until 11.
We ordered a schmorgasbord of plates, large and small, to snack on: bacon-stuffed naan served with an apple-walnut raita (a yogurt-based condiment); tandoor fried chicken tikka marinated with curry leaf, ginger, and chillies; saag paneer pizza or spicy creamed spinach and goat cheese pizza on corn roti; sindhi Sai Baji or puree of winter vegetables with spinach, dill and split chickpeas; pulled lamb and mustard-mashed potato sandwich with fresh lime juice and chillies; and mango chutney. If you go to Tabla and order nothing else, you have to order one of their various naans and chutneys. Naan is always the highlight for me of an Indian dinner. Who am I kidding? Bread of any kind is the highlight of my meals. Everything we tried at Tabla had its own unique flavor, most of the chutneys and sauces were sweet, to compliment the salty meat and vegetables. I would go again and order the exact same things. They say in exercise it's good to shock your muscles once in a while. Tabla food is a good shock to the tastebuds, a kind of wake 'em up. I felt I hadn't tasted anything as vibrant and colorful as Tabla's dishes in a long time.
Our server had every reason to be short and unfriendly to us. I mean, we were one of the last few parties left at the restaurant. But, to our fortune, he never once let us feel like it was last call. We ordered a bottle of champagne, a bottle of wine, some glasses of wine, lots of food, and then some, and we never felt rushed. Here's the catch that made for a funny evening anecdote: a few minutes into our meal the server asked MoritzJunge what watch he was wearing. Or more accurately, he asked, "Is that a Panerai watch you're wearing?" When MoritzJunge said, "Yes, yes it is!" it was all over. From then on, our newfound friend and watch aficionado kept making frequent stops to check in on us. Apparently MoritzJunge had picked the right wristcandy for the evening. And silly me, I had never even heard of it. At the end of the night I thanked our server repeatedly, expressing my gratitude for his patience with us. And his response? "It's all about the Panerai."
11 Madison Ave, at 25th St
212-889-0667
Unfortunately, the night got off to a late start as Swimster had some shuttle confusion at the airport. I'm used to it. As my dad says, I'm a magnet for travel mishaps. Anything that could go wrong usually does: fearing for life on bumpier than bumpy rides, missing connecting flights, missing flights, losing luggage, luggage taking detours, missing shuttle vans, losing wallets, leaving bags on rental car shuttles, showing up at American terminals when flying United, and vice versa. It's pretty pathetic actually. Needless to say, nothing that happens in travel is unfamiliar to me.
The night got off to a slow start at around 9:45p.m. when Swimster and I finally moseyed out of his apartment and headed west. Much to my surprise, the city that "never sleeps" seemed to be passed out and snoring. Restaurants were either closed or not serving anymore. I mean, granted it was a school night, but come on! I know L'Express has an all-night food policy, but I've eaten there before and wanted to hop on L'Express train outta there. When we ended up in the Madison Square Park area we thought Eleven Madison or Tabla. Eleven Madison was a little fancy for that late. I ate at Tabla several years ago on a $150 gift certificate I won in a raffle (imagine that), and preferred to try a new place; but at 10:20 their naan was calling, "Mona, Mona..."
Tabla speaks for itself. When you walk in it's hard not to be overwhelmed by the beauty of its spiraling staircase, richly etched wood, criss-crossed beam ceiling in the Bread Bar, and the lavish green walls. As I was off in Tablaland taking it all in, the hostess brought me back to earth with a "Hello, can I help you?" I was happy to learn the Bread Bar was still serving food and would be until 11.
We ordered a schmorgasbord of plates, large and small, to snack on: bacon-stuffed naan served with an apple-walnut raita (a yogurt-based condiment); tandoor fried chicken tikka marinated with curry leaf, ginger, and chillies; saag paneer pizza or spicy creamed spinach and goat cheese pizza on corn roti; sindhi Sai Baji or puree of winter vegetables with spinach, dill and split chickpeas; pulled lamb and mustard-mashed potato sandwich with fresh lime juice and chillies; and mango chutney. If you go to Tabla and order nothing else, you have to order one of their various naans and chutneys. Naan is always the highlight for me of an Indian dinner. Who am I kidding? Bread of any kind is the highlight of my meals. Everything we tried at Tabla had its own unique flavor, most of the chutneys and sauces were sweet, to compliment the salty meat and vegetables. I would go again and order the exact same things. They say in exercise it's good to shock your muscles once in a while. Tabla food is a good shock to the tastebuds, a kind of wake 'em up. I felt I hadn't tasted anything as vibrant and colorful as Tabla's dishes in a long time.
Our server had every reason to be short and unfriendly to us. I mean, we were one of the last few parties left at the restaurant. But, to our fortune, he never once let us feel like it was last call. We ordered a bottle of champagne, a bottle of wine, some glasses of wine, lots of food, and then some, and we never felt rushed. Here's the catch that made for a funny evening anecdote: a few minutes into our meal the server asked MoritzJunge what watch he was wearing. Or more accurately, he asked, "Is that a Panerai watch you're wearing?" When MoritzJunge said, "Yes, yes it is!" it was all over. From then on, our newfound friend and watch aficionado kept making frequent stops to check in on us. Apparently MoritzJunge had picked the right wristcandy for the evening. And silly me, I had never even heard of it. At the end of the night I thanked our server repeatedly, expressing my gratitude for his patience with us. And his response? "It's all about the Panerai."
11 Madison Ave, at 25th St
212-889-0667
posted by Mona at 3:27 PM
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12 Comments:
Ha, BB, I'm completely understanding your English. Speaking of Language mixups..is junge really the German word for boy?
Also a city needs a break of its inhabitants.
I've never been in such a big city like NYC (biggest was Hamburg, Ger, I guess), but I've never thought it's a problem to get a place to it there!
Seemed the day wasn't the best.
(I hope you understand what I'm babbl(e)ing - it's late and I had a hard day)
I mean a place to eat, of course!
I went to tabla many years ago. I recall that the bread was excellent but our meal was okay. I'd go again and try if it weren't for the priorities on my "Must eat" list.
btw, forgot to mention there's a great little book called "Cheap Eats London" published by Time out that I used when I was there last year. It was terrific and gave you places in every section of town.
one of my other favorite guide books (albeit not food related) was the Frommer's memorable walking tours series (loved the one for Paris, too). you'll have a slamming time :-)
mona, yes you're right. Junge means boy.
I've heard, the Swiss are, well, a little bit ... slowly! Does he?
What are some of your priorities on your must eat list? Don't you love keeping up with that? It's hard!!
Thanks so much for your book recs for London. I'm so excited to check them out! Cheap eats is a MUST in any city, but I'm afraid especially in London. I've been warned about how expensive it is but nothing can prepare me....
And Frommers sounds great. I'll have to check I wonder if my mom has any of her walking tour books hanging around :)
BB, Swiss guys...slowly? Not sure quite what you mean. Slow? Speaking-wise? Mental-wise? Ha, no he was neither of those :)
Get used to curry, it's England's national dish! In Manchester we have the curry "mile", one of our major roads out of the city passes through a prt of the city called Rusholme, at this point both sides of the road are just restaurants dedicated to curry and (south) Asian food in general. It's wear the city migrates after they leave the pubs/clubs ;-)
I think the last time I was at Tabla was a couple years ago... I do have mixed feelings about them... feel that they are not consistent... but do like the concept of "indian/american fusion served in a sort of spanish tapas" style.
Thanks Paz, ha, I could go for a taste of it right now too.
Naz, ha, that's great. Curry mile, I can't say I'm thinking curry when I'm drunk and leaving bars, but hey, to each his own. I'm more of a french fries late night girl myself:)
Avant Garde, hey thanks for stopping by! Haven't seen you in a while. I like the new look of your blog! You hit it, it is all those wrapped up into one product. And that night, it was great. Would like to go back for a real meal, then I'd be able to give it apples accordingly.
It sounds delicious - I've been meaning to try Tabla forever, after reading this I'm putting it up at the top of my list. Also, I may need to get some naan for lunch.
Mebeth, good, that's awesome! I ate so much bread yesterday I think I'll have to put off eating any more until....tomorrow:)
Thanks Melissa! Yes it was yummy! Would go back there just for that in a second:)
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