RESTAURANT REVIEW : Fine Regional Indian Cuisine Shows Up in Unlikely Places

It’s so easy, so comforting to think in absolutes: The San Fernando Valley is flat, the Valley is white-bread Middle America, all Indian cooking is hot. Fortunately it just isn’t so.

On a clear day, the lushly landscaped Hollywood Hills and the higher, more rustic San Gabriel Mountains assert their role in Valley life. And even when the air isn’t so clear, the ethnic diversity of the Valley is apparent and a source of delight for those seeking the variety of tastes offered by ethnic cuisines.

In Encino and Tarzana, for instance, we find the outward manifestation of local ethnic cultures: discreetly tucked into mini-malls or proudly proclaiming their presence are a number of Armenian, Israeli and Indian restaurants. Some of the Indian restaurants (where hot is optional) are especially welcome.

Among the restaurants preparing this sophisticated and varied cuisine is the long-established Star of India. Although located in a boxcar-shaped space that is so underadorned as to appear transient, it actually features handsomely set tables and correct, though stiff, service.

Like most countries, India has regional cuisines as well as the cuisines of various minority groups. Star of India mainly serves dishes from the northwestern part of the vast country. It is an area that includes the Punjab, the home of tandoori cooking, which is characterized by meat and poultry that has been marinated then cooked in a clay oven.

The best way to sample this distinctive cooking is via a mixed grill. Star of India’s tandoori mixed grill is comprised of chicken tandoori (bone-in parts marinated in milk curd, lemon or lime juice, garlic, ginger and other flavorings), chicken tikka (skinless, boneless chunks rubbed with a spice mixture and normally sauteed in ghee --clarified butter--to mellow the spices), lamb tikka (similarly prepared chunks of meat) and sheek kebab (a sort of skinless ground lamb sausage).

The chicken tikka was the standout. Subtle and moist, the delicious large cubes of chicken were so distinctive that they could not be confused with the cooking of any other people.

The tandoori dishes are available as main dishes or, in smaller portions, as appetizers. Other appetizers include samosas (pastries filled with ground beef or spiced potato and peas). The vegetable samosa was enlivened with some of the aromatic spices (cardamom, cumin, coriander) that help give Indian cooking its distinctive appeal. The onion bhaji (sliced onion in chickpea batter shaped into a ball then fried) had the pleasingly familiar taste and texture of fried onion rings.

Vegetables (a la carte) include the appealing eggplant bhartha (tandoori roasted then cooked as a puree with tomatoes and spices in clarified butter) and a mild bindi bhaji (sauteed sliced okra).

The one memorable dish I sampled at Star of India was chicken dansak , which is a product of India’s Parsi minority. It is a complex dish whose remarkable appeal is not easy to capture. It certainly contains lentils and spices and perhaps lemon or lime juice. Although it doesn’t look exciting, it is.

The only real disappointment was a shrimp biriyani . The elaborate rice preparation was dull, and the small shrimp scattered through it were egregiously overcooked.

Fine Indian cooking is even showing up in mini-malls. No matter how unsightly these installations may be to the urban landscape, their appearance should not be taken as a yardstick of the quality of the restaurants in them, especially in the case of India’s Cuisine.

This small restaurant, manifestly a favorite of the Indian community, is tucked into the elbow of a mall at Ventura Boulevard near Tampa Avenue. The room is a generic rectangular mall space with the usual hung ceiling and pass-through to the kitchen. However, judiciously understated ornamentation and a wall of curtains have turned a cold, faceless space into an invitingly warm dining room.

Like Star of India, India’s Cuisine is also a northern Indian/Punjabi restaurant. Its cooking is characterized by the fresh, clear taste of aromatic spices and has a vitality lacking in many more-assimilated Indian restaurants. In addition, many of its dishes (marked on the menu with a red heart) are endorsed by the American Heart Assn.

Of India Cuisine’s tandoori preparations, lamb boti kabab (spelling variations on the menus are retained here) was outstanding. The large chunks of tender marinated lamb had such an appealingly complex flavor that it was difficult to eat enough to be satisfied. In a mixed tandoori grill, the tandoori chicken was moist and well-seasoned, and the very flavorsome seekh kabab was characteristically lacking in fat, which gave it an agreeably drier quality than one might anticipate in a sausage-looking meat dish. Reshmi kabab (strips of marinated chicken breast) was irresistible. Its fresh, lively taste and almost buttery texture were apparent at first bite. But it wasn’t until you drizzled it with lemon juice and ate it with small pieces of raw onion that its full flavor potential was realized.

Lamb vindaloo (in a vigorous, potato-thickened sauce) had a surprisingly strong, almost muttony flavor. It is a fine dish, though perhaps not to everyone’s taste.

Like most Indian restaurants, India’s Cuisine offers a variety of vegetarian dishes. Onion bhaji , although less crisp than most, was highly aromatic and attractively octopus-like in shape. The bengan bhartha (eggplant puree) had a smokey flavor imparted by the charred eggplant skin and a fine balance of seasonings that made this an especially refreshing dish. The vegetable biriyani , a subtle and challenging rice dish, was as well-executed as any I’ve ever had. However, on one occasion, as part of a combination plate, it was as dry as if it were a reheated leftover.

The overall quality of ingredients and standard of preparation at India’s Cuisine are so high that I was barely tempted to use the complimentary chutneys that included an uncommon pickled carrot and jalapeno chili mixture.

The service was surprisingly professional yet agreeably welcoming. It is a restaurant to go back to.

Recommended dishes: Star of India: chicken tikka, $6.95; chicken dansak, $5.50. India’s Cuisine: reshmi kabab, $5.25; bengan bharta, $4.24; lambboti kabab $6.95.

Star of India, 18003 Ventura Blvd., Encino. (818) 343-1838. Open for lunch 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily; dinner from 5:30 to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, till 10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Beer and wine. Carte Blanche, Diner’s Club, MasterCard and Visa accepted. Dinner for two, food only, $20-$30.

India’s Cuisine, 19006 Ventura Blvd., Tarzana. (818) 342-9100. Open for lunch 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Saturday; dinner from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday, till 10 p.m. Sunday. Wine and beer. MasterCard and Visa accepted. Dinner for two, food only, $20-$30.