Gandhi Mahal

3009 27th Ave S
Minneapolis, MN
612-729-5222
http://www.gandhimahal.com/

Category: Indian

Rating (Scale 1-10, with 10 being the highest):
Food: 9
Service: 9
Ambience: 9

Recommendation: Minneapolis has a new standard in North Indian cuisine. Gandhi Mahal excels in all aspects of the dining experience and does great justice to Indian cuisine and culture.

We’re so excited about Gandhi Mahal that I’m sitting down to write this review after having just arrived home after eating dinner there - even though we are stuffed and could really use a nap. You get a good vibe as soon as you step into this restaurant. They’ve taken the extra step to up the ambience compared to most Indian restaurants, and it’s impressive. Dimly lit and romantic with live, soothing Indian classical music on the weekends. The richness of India was portrayed through the sandstone colored walls, brass ornaments, and the ornate fabric that adorns all corners of this restaurant. Even the table cloths have heavy embroidery – a small touch that goes a long way to bringing this whole experience together.

And it isn’t just the ambience that impresses – the food is every bit as good. The menu has the typical Indian list of curries, tandoori food, and vegetarian options, although some of the names are quite creative. We started with the Papadum ($1) – the flavor was nice, but it seemed like it wasn’t cooked fresh; it was lacking the crunch and snap. The accompanying chutneys were really good – the Coriander Chutney was spicy and fragrant, the Tamarind Chutney had a sweet lingering finish while the Onion relish was pungent. We enjoyed the Delhi Chicken Tikka Masala ($12) – a healthy portion of white chicken meat cooked in a creamy tomato sauce. Any respectable Indian restaurant should be able to execute this dish well and Gandhi Mahal doesn’t disappoint. The Lamb Rogan Josh ($14) was another winner – a dark curry with tender pieces of lamb and a nice kick. Another staple of North Indian Cuisine is Tandoori (grilling in a clay oven). The Tandoori Mixed Grill ($18) had some nice components, including the lamb tikka, shrimp tikka, and seekh kabob. Unfortunately the Tandoori Chicken was a little dry, but had good flavor. Both the vegetarian dishes we ordered were good. The Palak Paneer ($12) had a good balance of spices and the Malai Kofta (balls of paneer and potato, $12) was well executed, although we would have preferred the sauce to be a little thinner. An array of Naans flooded our table – we couldn’t pick a favorite from the plain, garlic, onion, cheese and potato naans (try ‘em all we say). We had asked for most of the dishes to be on the medium spice level and we can gladly say that the medium at Gandhi Mahal accurately represents Indian spice levels. A couple of the dishes were ordered hot and you could tell the difference. Our one gripe with this restaurant was the absence of alcohol – this is one Indian restaurant where we wouldn’t object to ordering a nice bottle of wine with our meal (I was in that frame of mind). Alas, we had to stick to Lassi, Juice and Water. The Mango Lassi was both sweet and tart and we liked it. On the other hand the Salty Lassi needed an additional spice or two. For dessert we tried all three options ($4 each) on the menu. The Kulfi was nice, albeit strong on Saffron, a flavor Nick detests. Our first set of Gulab Jamuns was terrible – light and fluffy and nothing like what it is supposed to be. We sent them back and the kitchen sent us a new order, apologizing because the initial execution had gone wrong – dense and sugary, just how they are meant to be. The Kheer is also very good – not too sweet with a terrific creamy bite.

Service was super – friendly, knowledgeable staff with attention to detail and hospitality just as you would receive in India. We were glad to see this restaurant is bucking the trend of understaffed ethnic eateries. At the end of our meal we were offered hot hand towels - a classy touch common in many restaurants in India.

$$-$$$. Our total tab for 11 people was $250. Street parking is available on 27th Ave as well as Lake St. Lot parking available as well.

Update (April 2009) – We had originally planned to visit Harry Singh’s for dinner, but after a mix-up in the reservations and being belittled by an arrogant host, we decided to make our way to our new favorite Twin Cities establishment, Gandhi Mahal. They accommodated our large group of 11 on short notice and we enjoyed another great meal. If you’ve never tried the Badam (Almond) Lassi, we’d highly recommend it – sour and creamy with a lingering taste.

The Queen Crore Vindaloo with Lamb ($13) was outstanding. A dark sauce that is loaded with spice, this isn’t one for the faint hearted…at a medium spice level, this burns good. You can’t go wrong with the Five Spice Garlic Shrimp ($15), a tomato based curry with an ample amount of shrimp. We also ordered Shikh Kabob, a tandoori classic. Made with ground beef the kabobs were tender and succulent…however for $14 you don’t seem to get much. The meal was made complete with a hearty helping of fresh warm Naan to dip in the curries.