Review: Spice of India in Nyack

(Credit: Angela Gaul)

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At an ethnic restaurant, the question that usually springs to my mind is: Would the food pass muster in its native country? Is it the real deal? Of course, the idea of truly authentic Indian food (or Chinese, Japanese, Mexican or Italian, for that matter) is about as mythical as "healthy options" in the packaged-foods aisle. The truth is, Indian food has been influenced time and again by occupying forces (from Arab to Portuguese). Even my favorite dish, chicken tikka masala, is actually an inauthentic modern creation, concocted by the British in the 1960s.

That spirit of cross-cultural evolution seems to have given birth to Spice of India, tucked inside Nyack's Main Street strip mall (the same one that houses Riverspace). First, there's the décor, which pays homage to India but is distinctly Western. Silver shelves with light-box tops illuminate vases, sculptures and Lucite-encased artifacts; an enormous painting of a Herculean-style chariot hangs over the bar; and a mix of red-, green-, and yellow-colored chairs and ceiling tapestries liven up the space. Even my first drink, a mango fizz, was a delicious blend of Indian (a lassi frappe made of yogurt) and American (mango vodka) — a kind of intercontinental fruit smoothie.

I began with fairly traditional vegetable somosas — potato-and-pea-wrapped pastries — which, while tasty, were hardly memorable. The bread basket of three assorted naans made things more interesting. One came stuffed with paneer cheese, a savory quesadilla-like creation, while the other, called "Kashmir naan," was filled with an eclectic, nonstandard mix of nuts, coconut, and maraschino cherries. Each was tasty and, unlike the third and very plain naan, worked as an appetizer all on its own.

While the menu has an extensive list of vegetarian dishes, such as paneer (made with cheese cubes) and tandoori (cooked in a tandoor oven), the curry-based dishes were our favorites. The korma cashew-and-almond sauce gave its accompanying shrimp a silky sweet, gluten-free flavor. And my beloved tikka masala came with heaping boulders of chicken that needed to be split into bite-sized chunks. Once the division was complete, the tomato-yogurt-cream sauce coated the poultry in tangy, spicy gravy that was as good as any I've tried at other Indian restaurants.

Our desserts took the longest to materialize, but we happily sipped floral-flavored, organic Rishi tea while waiting. Despite handling all 12 tables at Spice of India by his lonesome, our waiter did his best, and he soon arrived with matching gold goblets of mango ice cream and gulab jamun (hot Munchkin-like treats soaked in honey). I'm not sure how authentic the chalice presentation was, but while savoring the ultra-sweet confections, I didn't much care anymore.

For pics to click, go Inside: Spice of India in Nyack

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