{"id":8421,"date":"2019-02-28T01:16:27","date_gmt":"2019-02-28T06:16:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/?p=8421"},"modified":"2019-04-26T17:18:30","modified_gmt":"2019-04-26T21:18:30","slug":"vatan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/?p=8421","title":{"rendered":"Vatan"},"content":{"rendered":"

When I write about restaurants on Instagram, they’re usually brief takes accompanied by a photo or two. (You can see my feed right here on ethnojunkie.com, updated almost daily, by selecting the \u201cInstagram\u201d category from my home page \u2013 no signup required.) But because of Instagram\u2019s character count limitations, it’s often necessary to break up a review into several parts. This one originally appeared as two posts, published on February 27 and 28, 2019.
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If for some reason it were necessary for me to go vegetarian, I could handle it thanks to the cuisine of India: so many types of preparations infused with so many herbs and spices in so many combinations create what feels like a boundless array of choices. It\u2019s a cuisine that can be both subtle (the distinction between types of dal for instance) and overwhelmingly intense in the same bite. You can partake of this palate pleasing panoply at Vatan, the exceptional all-you-can-eat vegetarian Indian restaurant at 409 3rd Ave in Manhattan where your helpful, friendly server delivers courses from a set menu; you can request additional portions of any item that you found appealing.<\/p>\n

Vatan is as much about the experience as it is about the food \u2013 and the food is excellent. Vatan (\u0935\u0924\u0928) is the Hindi word for motherland and the decor, presided over by Ganesha, the elephant-headed god of wisdom, good luck, and the remover of obstacles, is calculated to transport you to a Gujarati thatch-roofed hut where you can relax and enjoy your sumptuous meal.<\/p>\n

Here are a few of the extraordinary dishes I’ve tried. (Click any photo to view in glorious high resolution.)<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>First course: the appetizers – varied and delectable<\/p>\n

\u2022 Sev Puri \u2013 crispy shells filled with potatoes, green gram (mung) beans, yogurt and chutney
\n\u2022 Ragda Patis \u2013 potato cutlet in white bean sauce
\n\u2022 Samosa \u2013 savory pastries filled with spicy potatoes and onion
\n\u2022 Muthia \u2013 steamed flour with spinach
\n\u2022 Chana Masala \u2013 garbanzo beans with onions and coriander
\n\u2022 Khaman \u2013 puffed cream of wheat flour cakes similar to dhokla
\n\u2022 Mirchi Bhajia \u2013 fried hot peppers with garam masala
\n\u2022 Batata Vada \u2013 fried potato balls in chickpea flour batter<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Annotated<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The accompanying chutneys (clockwise from 10:00)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Carrot Sambharo (mustardy!)
\n\u2022 Fried Garlic
\n\u2022 Mango Chutney
\n\u2022 Tamarind Date Chutney
\n\u2022 Cilantro Chutney<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Second course: the entr\u00e9e thali<\/p>\n

\u2022 Toor Dal \u2013 boiled lentils cooked with Indian spices
\n\u2022 Kheer \u2013 rice pudding with dried fruits
\n\u2022 Chole \u2013 chickpeas cooked with garam masala, an Indian spice blend
\n\u2022 Ful-Gobi \u2013 cauliflower and green peas saut\u00e9ed in a savory sauce
\n\u2022 Bhaji \u2013 saut\u00e9ed spinach and corn
\n\u2022 Batakanu Sak \u2013 potatoes cooked in a mild red gravy
\n\u2022 Papadam \u2013 thin lentil wafers
\n\u2022 Puri \u2013 puffed whole wheat bread
\n\u2022 Roti \u2013 whole wheat flatbread<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Annotated<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The entr\u00e9e complements<\/p>\n

\u2022 Khadi \u2013 soup with yogurt and besan (chickpea flour) with aromatic spices
\n\u2022 Khichdi \u2013 lentils with rice and assorted vegetables
\n\u2022 Pulao \u2013 rice with (undercover) peas<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>An addition: Rotla, a Gujarati specialty<\/p>\n

Flatbread served with classic embellishments of ghee, garlic chutney, and jaggery (palm sugar) and yes, they did work together. Dessert was Indian ice cream, gulab jamun (fried dough in sweet syrup), and masala chai.
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\nVatan is located at 409 3rd Ave in Manhattan. I highly recommend it, especially \u00e0 deux.
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\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When I write about restaurants on Instagram, they’re usually brief takes accompanied by a photo or two. (You can see my feed right here on ethnojunkie.com, updated almost daily, by selecting the \u201cInstagram\u201d category from my home page \u2013 no … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3336,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[59,115],"tags":[52],"class_list":["post-8421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-instagram","category-restaurant-reviews-extended","tag-indian"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8421","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3336"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8421"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8421\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8429,"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8421\/revisions\/8429"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8421"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8421"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}