RESTAURANT REVIEW : At Akbar, Dining’s on the Mild Side

The long, narrow light-pink and mauve space at Akbar Encino Cuisine of India looks like a trendy Indian restaurant in London.

The decor is pale and refined, as is the cooking. Spices and spiciness are toned down, which works well in a few dishes, but not as well in others.

On the successfully refined side is Kashmiri Kebab, yogurt-marinated chicken skewer-cooked to a beautiful hazelnut brown. The dish retains a creamy, delicate texture but is not bland. The tandoori meats, available in a mixed grill appetizer or entree, reveal a talent for marinating that gives the meat a deep through-and-through flavor, not merely a wash on the surface.

Gentility, however, seems to be the downfall of two appetizers. Kashk-e-badamjan , sauteed sliced eggplant in a seasoned garlic-yogurt sauce, has none of the vitality this usually zippy dish needs. And papadum are unreliable at Akbar: one time crisp and fresh, one time dish-cloth tired.

A couple of the dishes at Akbar are delightfully unexpected. Bhen masala is lotus root in a creamy sauce. The root itself, which looks like brownish oversized okra, has a pleasing-to-the-bite resilience and absorbs flavors well. The dish would have been more satisfying if the sauce had more flavor. Bihari chicken, on the other hand, is a fully realized dish--I didn’t want to share it. Pieces of chicken are marinated in mint chutney, then charred on a spit.

Although the Keema mattar , minced lamb with peas and potatoes, was adequately seasoned, a number of other dishes weren’t. Lamb korma , chunks of lamb in a cream sauce, was simply bland. The same was true of malai kofta , vegetable croquettes in tomato and onion sauce. Eggplant bhartha , a sort of homogenous vegetable stew, had some of the smokiness of roasted eggplant but lacked the depth of seasoning that usually makes this dish distinctive.

The sometimes too-exotic nature of Eastern desserts is not a problem at Akbar. Even though they are less sweet than we are used to desserts being, kheer khas , rice pudding, and kulfi , pistachio ice cream, were very much to my taste. The rice pudding was granular and runny, like tapioca, and the ice cream had the texture of frozen milk, with pieces of pistachios and almonds scattered about. “Mango with ice cream” didn’t taste enough of mango to make it worthwhile.

Since I am familiar with Akbar in Marina del Rey, it was surprising that the cooking at Akbar Encino was so under-flavored. I don’t know if this is due to a preconception about Valley taste or in reaction to actual complaints about over-spicy food.

Recommended dishes: Kashmiri kebab, $8.95; Bihari kebab, $9.95; kheer khas, $3.25.

Akbar Encino Cuisine of India, 17049 Ventura Blvd., (818) 905-5129. Open for lunch 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Sunday through Friday, dinner 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. Full bar. Monday through Saturday. Major credit cards accepted. Street parking. Dinner for two, food only, $35 to $45.