And so, 36 visits into this thing and the end in sight, I finally start coming to the big hitters.
Indian food: something that has always been dear to my heart. In the good old days, it was something I took for granted and finding Indian food in Manchester was like trying to find a 7-11 in Taipei, it was pretty flipping simple. Of course, what qualifies as Indian in the UK would often actually be Bangladeshi or Pakistani foods that changed for UK tastes (much like Taiwan does with most foreign foods), the real stuff is/was available, and all regions are/were accommodated. In Rusholme, which was student central in those days, Wilmslow Road has a ridiculous number of curry restaurants. One of the city’s large Muslim communities is also centered around that area. It used to be nicknamed “the Curry Mile” by people who didn’t live there and would piss off the locals, such as when you call San Francisco “San Fran”. You mark yourself very quickly as someone who doesn’t know what they are talking about. Nevertheless, that road and its curry remain massive business and as far as I know, there is still a competition every year for Best Curry House. Winning that competition is/was a very big deal, and in the year I left, Shere Khan (I think it was Shere Khan. It has been a while) had won it about seven years on the trot. That would translate to big sales.
I’ve seen Indian food improve a lot in my time here. It used to be a bit niche, and it would mean traveling to far off places in the city to pay exorbitant prices. It has become more mainstream nowadays, and the overall quality is better. Amma’s Kitchen in its previous location on Roosevelt Road was a spot that had been recommended to me earlier by an Indian gentleman who left these shores a few years back, so I think it qualifies. It was also easy to get to. By the way, I’m not doing that UK thing where my being British somehow qualifies me as an Indian food expert, I know a bit, but I’m more than happy to be corrected if I get something wrong.
Boo Lion and Ant were with me today, it had been a while since I’d seen both in the flesh. Boo Lion has been out about with me before, however Ant only got a passing mention once. Ant (which is his real name, unlike some of the other people I’ve dined with in the past) is one of the bosses at top New Zealand eatery KGB Burgers, one of my first outings. A longtime supporter of this experiment and as equally as tall and thin as me, Ant knows a thing or two about bladed articles and plays rugby. He is also so darned laidback, the very dictionary definition of “a safe pair of hands”. He had been keen to come along as he had told me in the past if you are in the restaurant trade, you don’t really get to see other stuff that often. Other than his own restaurant (which is super-duper, of course) he would be hard-pressed to tell you “decent places to go”, anyone with a bit of nous should know by now that owning your own restaurant is ridiculously hard work. Also typically, he forgot it was Thursday and was a bit late. Boo Lion had requested we come here as it been recommended to him elsewhere too. He is a vegetarian and a curry fan, as well as knowing everything about history and nearly every film ever made.
Amma’s Kitchen is now in a small alley just off Heping East Road, close to the University of Education. I was there earlier than my friends and was the only customer until a group of Tibetan monks stopped by. It had the authentic Indian restaurant vibe: decoration (Check!) TV playing Bollywood music videos (Check!), the nationality if Ivan Lendl (Czech!)… I perused the menu and saw straight away there were many things I’d never seen before, so was very happy to eat something new, or at least know I would at a later date. Our waiter was attentive and was happy when I asked where he was from in India “Tamil Nadu”. Yep, all good there.
Unusually for me, I went for one of the vegetarian lunch time specials, the sambar (which is a lentil stew), it came with rice, soup and payasam for dessert. Boo went for the veg masala and Ant for the mutton, which came with all the above. We ordered masal vada (a deep fried vegetable street food thingy) and a plate full of pakora. Drinks wise- we had lassi (though I had salty whereas them two had sweet).
As always, we have been spoiled. Really great, and cheap for a lunchtime set. Not one of us complained while we opined about the issues of the day, the new three minute trailer for Dune which had been released earlier that morning and literature. I can’t really bore you with adjectives or superlatives, but we can definitely say we enjoyed it. Knowingly eating Southern Indian food was a surprise and there were so many things on the menu that we are going to go back for, when time and budgets allow. Times remain hard for all, and I’m still trying to solve my own work conundrum.
I’m not sure what it all came to in the end because it was generously paid for by Boo Lion, but the menu sets were 150NT for the Sambar, 165 for the veg and 220 for the mutton. I’m guessing around 1000NT for two appetizers, three drinks and three set meals- darned good in my book.
After googling and finding out that I was right about which Evil Dead film the tree scene was in, we decided it was time to do one. They both had work and I had to see the dentist. These truly are the lifestyles of the rich and famous. We agreed this will be the venue we come to next time, and we’ll probably get a bit more avant-garde when we do.
Menu:
Address: No. 2, Lane 357, Section 2, Heping East Road, Da’an District, Taipei City, 106
Best way to get there: Heping E. Road is served well by buses, and I don’t know all of them, but if you were from out of town- I’d say go to Guting MRT, and then take 235 bus to the University of Education.
52 Cuisines? 