With the goal of ensuring that the food tastes exactly as it does in their restaurants in India, Amit and Gary Mulchandani, third-generation descendants of the original owners, have diligently trained the chefs in New York. I, for one, have a super soft spot for family run establishments, so this little tid-bit of information pleased me to no end!
Not only does Kailash Parbat cater to two specific culinary subgroups (hello, kosher vegetarians!), but they do a really, really good job of keeping the dishes exciting and fresh, and make every single morsel in house daily. (Trust me, this is a pretty big deal because unfortunately it is not the case in a lot of these restaurants!)
Popular entrees include vegetarian dishes inspired by the Punjab: diwani handi, mixed vegetables and paneer combined with mint and spinach, bright green and punctuated with the fresh taste of ginger and the individual flavors of carrots, cauliflower and spinach; paneer makhanwala, house made Indian cheese in rich tomato sauce; kofta-e-dilbar, a tender, lightly sweet round of soft paneer and vegetables in a thick cashew and onion gravy; andlasooni dal tadka, yellow lentils cooked until just on the verge of falling apart, delicately flavored with cumin seeds, garlic and curry leaves; as well as Indo-Chinese, traditional Sindhi and tandoor dishes.
The desserts have also helped make Kailash Parbat popular since 1952; In particular, gulab jamun, balls of sweetened condensed milk, lightly fried until golden brown, and soaked in rose-flavored sugar syrup, served warm, and kulfi falooda, a smooth rich ice cream made with the best quality milk, accompanied by sweet vermicelli noodles. Truly, the kulfi is one of the most unique dessert dishes I’ve ever tasted, and surely mixes it up from the typical NY style cheesecake found in most of our city’s restaurants!
To complement the spice and soothe your palate, you’ll definitely want to check out the restaurant’s brand new full bar menu. I went with the delicious Sharabi Lassi, built with mango lassi, vodka and a touch of rose syrup. Along with classics (think a dirty martini), the bar is also stocked with eight brews (yep, two of them are authentic Indian options), and plenty of wine–including kosher labels. They host a happy hour from 4pm to 7pm so do be sure to stop by and check it out! Cheers! Or, as you are more likely to hear in India…”Badhai Ho!”
Details: Kailash Parbat is located at 99 Lexington Avenue, between 27th and 28th Streets, 212-679-4232, and is open Mon-Sun from Noon – 11pm. Happy hour Mon-Fri from 4pm – 7pm.
Jessica Tiare Bowen lives in the juicy Big Apple with her adorable pink-nosed chihuahua, Gillman. He’s the inspiration for her first published children’s book, “Park Avenue Pound Puppy.” The book is the combined result of her two greatest passions: pooches and penning stories.
Her passions include art, urban hikes through Manhattan, drinking coffee with 3 creams and 6 sugars, making extremely detailed itineraries and traveling to far away places, singing along to Broadway shows, Netflix movie nights, discovering incredible treasures at Goodwill and thrift stores, and listening to stories from little people under 7 and big people over 70.
She started her career as New York City Teaching Fellow, teaching elementary school and theater arts at a special education school in the South Bronx for 6 years. She is now a Special Education School Improvement Specialist working in public schools throughout New York City. She is the Editor-In-Chief of the online New York City travel magazine, Used York City. The magazine focuses on finding the best of New York…as used by New Yorkers. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, and an ASPCA Ambassador.
